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How Do In-Service Communities of Practice Support Teacher Learning and What Role Can EdTech Play? [Learning Brief]

Adam, T., Friese, L., & Plaut, D. - 2025 - EdTech Hub

This Learning Brief is part of the EdTech Hub Learning Brief Series, providing practical resources for people working to improve the use of technology in education. In this brief, we look at how in-service Communities of Practice (CoPs) support teacher learning and how EdTech can enhance this aspect of teacher professional development (TPD) in low- and middle-income countries. In-service CoPs have become an important component of TPD, creating spaces where teachers can share their knowledge...

Pre-service education and in-service teacher professional development (collectively termed teacher professional development or TPD here) can play a pivotal role in raising teaching quality and, therefore, learning outcomes for children and young people in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). However, TPD opportunities in LMICs are limited, unsustained, and often not informed by recent research evidence, and outcomes are mixed. Educational technologies offer potential to enhance formally...

This paper explores the English in Action (EIA) intervention in Bangladesh and explores how the school-based support systems impact on classroom practice in Underprivileged Children’s Educational Programs (UCEP) Schools. It presents evidence to demonstrate how in-school training helps teachers’ professional development (TDP). This paper explores TPD by analysing interviews with UCEP school administrators and teachers who are participating in the pre-pilot EIA intervention. It draws...

To promote significant pedagogical change, the most successful teacher education programmes for the global south happen in the school context. This paper is based on a pre-pilot intervention study of an international education development programme in Bangladesh. Technology-enhanced learning, in this case the use of the Apple® iPod® (iPod touch®), was used to support teachers’ teaching and learning in their school contexts. This paper presents evidence to demonstrate how such school-based...

This study intends to present a bespoke teacher professional development MOOC designed by Teacher Education for Sub-Saharan Africa (TESSA) team that allows MOOCs to become a viable means offering cost-effective, quality professional teacher development. TESSA is a network of teachers and teacher educators, working to improve classroom teaching in Africa. TESSA MOOC is an innovative approach to capacity building for teacher educators and teachers across Africa. The study presents outputs of...

How Can Participatory Methods Centre Teachers Within Education Policy? [Learning Brief]

Koomar, S. - 2024 - EdTech Hub

This Learning Brief is part of the EdTech Hub Learning Brief Series, providing practical resources for people working to improve the use of technology in education. In this brief, we look at the potential for participatory methods to bring teachers closer to the decision-making table. Insights from those closest to the work shed light on the daily contextual realities that can determine the mechanisms for optimal success or failure of a programme. However, these voices are often neglected...

To promote significant pedagogical change, the most successful teacher education programmes for the global south happen in the school context. This paper is based on a pre-pilot intervention study of an international education development programme in Bangladesh. Technology-enhanced learning, in this case the use of the Apple® iPod® (iPod touch®), was used to support teachers' teaching and learning in their school contexts. This paper presents evidence to demonstrate how such school-based...

The purpose of this study was to explore the impact of the lesson study (LS) approach on developing knowledge and perception of peer mentoring (PM) and communities of practice (CoPs) among kindergarten (K.G.) teachers in Egypt. It also aimed to improve students' learning in science concepts and English vocabulary due to teachers' participation in LS. A mixed methods design was employed. Results show that the LS approach provided a rich context for practicing PM experiences and helped...

Examples of mobile phones being used with teachers to provide continuing professional development (CPD) in emerging economies at scale are largely absent from the research literature. We outline English in Action’s (EIA) model for providing 80,000 teachers with CPD to improve their communicative language teaching in Bangladesh over nine years. EIA’s CPD program is delivered face to face and supported through open distance learning (ODL). This innovative model of teacher CPD is supported...

TCPD in Tanzania: Design-Based Implementation Research Cycle 1 Recommendations Policy Brief [Policy Brief]

Koomar, S., Massam, W., Chachage, K., … Nkya, H. - 2023 - EdTech Hub

MEWAKA (Mafunzo Endelevu kwa Walimu Kazini, or teacher continuous professional development [TCPD]) is a landmark teacher professional development programme being implemented by the Government of Tanzania. The research project, 'The Impact of a Tech-Supported, School-Based TPD Model on Learning Outcomes in Tanzania, using Design-Based Implementation Research (DBIR)', closely aligns with the Tanzania National TCPD implementation plan, to evaluate the implementation of MEWAKA at school level....

A strong base of research is needed to guide investments in teacher professional development (PD). This article considers the status of research on PD and articulates a particular direction for future work. Little is known about whether PD can have a positive impact on achievement when a program is delivered across a range of typical settings and when its delivery depends on multiple trainers. Despite a consensus in the literature on the features of effective PD, there is limited evidence on...

This article explores the use of classroom video as a tool for fostering productive discussions about teaching and learning. The setting for our research is a 2-year mathematics professional development program, based on the Problem-Solving Cycle model. This model relies on video from the teachers’ own classrooms and emphasizes creating a community in which members feel comfortable learning from video. We describe our experiences carrying out the Problem-Solving Cycle model, focusing on our...

TCPD in Tanzania:  Phase 2 Round 1 Recommendations [Policy Brief]

Swai, C., Chachage, K., Koomar, S., … Simmons, H. - 2024 - EdTech Hub

The study reported here is for Phase 2 of the research project known as ‘The Impact of a Tech-Supported, School-Based Teacher Continuous Professional Development Model on Learning Outcomes in Tanzania’ and part of the global Empowering Teachers Initiative (ETI), which comprises 10 country projects. It is closely aligned with the implementation of ‘MEWAKA’ (Mafunzo Endelevu kwa Walimu Kazini) or Teacher continuous professional development (TCPD), and the Tanzania National TCPD implementation...

Design-Based Implementation Research Baseline Data Collection: Technical report [Technical Report]

Koomar, S., Adam, T., Massam, W. E., … Barretto, J. - 2022 - EdTech Hub

This research study aims to investigate the effectiveness, cost-effectiveness, and sustainability of a tech-supported, decentralised, and school-based teacher continuous professional development (TCPD) model, to improve learning outcomes in rural Tanzanian primary schools. The research will test and iteratively improve the national TCPD model and roll-out (including the semi-structured Communities of Learning), as outlined in the Tanzanian National TCPD Implementation Plan (2021). We seek to...

This chapter is about teacher professional development in Tanzania. The authors have examined the current status of teacher professional development in Tanzania, focusing on predominant perspectives on the concept and provision modalities. In addition, the authors have identified challenges facing teacher professional development in Tanzania, most of which seem to be systemic. The challenges include lack of explicit policy and guidelines for teacher professional development, limited...

Support provided for K-12 teachers teaching remotely with technology during emergencies: A systematic review

Crompton, H., Burke, D., Jordan, K., & Wilson, S. - 2021 - Journal of Research on Technology in Education, 0(0), 1–16

Emergencies can cause disruption to education. This study is unique in providing the first empirical systematic review on teacher support for Emergency Remote Education (ERE) from 2010 to 2020. A total of 57 studies emerged from the PRISMA search. This mixed-method study used deductive and inductive iterative methods to examine the data. The data reveal teacher support strategies from across 50 different high and low-income countries. Few studies focused on a teacher’s subject and the age...

TCPD in Tanzania: Design-Based Implementation Research Cycle 2 Recommendations [Policy Brief]

Chachage, K., Koomar, S., Swai, C., … Simmons, H. - 2024 - EdTech Hub

MEWAKA (Mafunzo Endelevu kwa Walimu Kazini, or teacher continuous professional development [TCPD]) is a landmark teacher professional development programme being implemented by the Government of Tanzania. The research project, 'The Impact of a Tech-Supported, School-Based TPD Model on Learning Outcomes in Tanzania, using Design-Based Implementation Research (DBIR)', closely aligns with the Tanzania National TCPD implementation plan, to evaluate the implementation of MEWAKA at school level....

This paper is part of a larger study that was carried out to investigate the use of information communication technology (ICT) in the self-directed professional development (SDPD) of mathematics and science teachers in Zimbabwe. The educational context provides an example of how teachers compensated for lack of structured government initiatives to support teachers' professional development. This paper focuses on the ways in which these teachers were using ICT resources to further their...

Teacher Professional Development (TPD) has become a major policy priority within education systems worldwide. But keeping teachers professionally up-to-date and providing them professional development opportunities on continuing basis is a big challenge. Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) can be a cost and resource effective means to complement the traditional methods of professional development of teachers. This optimism is based on the assumption that use of MOOCs will facilitate mass...