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Assessing the needs of teachers when creating educational technology professional development for an urban charter school district: an innovation study

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Assessing the needs of teachers when creating educational technology professional development for an urban charter school district: an innovation study

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Content TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT Assessing the Needs of Teachers When Creating Educational Technology Professional Development for an Urban Charter School District: An Innovation Study by Jeff Shultz A Dissertation Proposal Presented to the FACULTY OF THE USC ROSSIER SCHOOL OF EDUCATION UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree DOCTOR OF EDUCATION May 2023 Copyright 2023 Jeff Shultz TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 2 Abstract African American and Hispanic students face a digital divide that negatively impacts their achievement as students. It is important for teachers to become more proficient in the use of educational technology to help shrink this digital divide, and to close the achievement gap. The purpose of this study was to assess the needs of teachers and to provide recommendations to help an urban charter school district create an effective professional development program centered on helping teachers become more technologically proficient, and to learn to incorporate educational technology into their classroom practice. The study utilized a modified gap analysis framework, pioneered by Clark and Estes (2008) to assess teacher needs. Interviews were conducted and data analyzed to help identify current knowledge, motivation, and organizational assets, and to surface additional needs that, if fulfilled, will help increase teacher usage of educational technology. Eight current teachers from Black Rock Public Schools, a pseudonym, participated in the study. Findings concluded that it is important for professional development to include real world examples to help teachers effectively incorporate educational technology into their lesson plans. In addition, having fellow teachers with real world experience in using educational technology in the classroom leads to increased buy-in and fosters changes in classroom practice. Finally, the study found that building a cohesive school culture around the use of educational technology leads to increased educational technology usage. These findings were used to propose recommendations on the creation of future professional development, and included a plan to evaluate the efficacy of the suggested recommendations. TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 3 Contents Abstract 3 Table of Contents 3 List of Tables 7 List of Figures 8 Chapter One: Introduction 8 Background of the Problem 8 Statement of the Problem 9 Educational Technology Training 9 Positive Impacts of Classroom Educational Technology Use 10 Purpose of the Study 10 Research Questions 11 Importance of the Study 11 Organizational Context 12 Overview of Theoretical Framework and Methodology 12 Definitions 13 COVID (AKA COVID-19) 13 Digital Divide 13 Educational Technology 13 Professional Development 14 Organization of the Dissertation 14 Chapter Two: Literature Review 15 The Digital Divide in the United States 15 History of The Digital Divide 15 Implications of The Digital Divide 17 Digital Divide Expansion During the COVID Pandemic 21 Benefits of Educational Technology in the Classroom 24 Increasing Student Engagement and Closing the Digital Divide 24 Preparing Students for “The Real World” 27 The Role of Teachers in Incorporating Educational Technology into the Classroom in Low Income Schools 28 Barriers to Teachers Incorporating Technology Into the Classroom 28 Support for Teachers - An Educational Technology Professional Development Program 30 Theoretical Framework 32 Theoretical Framework Overview: Clark and Estes Gap Analysis 32 TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 4 Why the Clark and Estes Gap Analysis Model was Selected 33 Organizational and Stakeholder Group’s Goals 37 Knowledge Influences 37 Motivational Influences 39 Organizational Influences 42 Conclusion 44 Chapter Three: Methodology 46 Research Questions 46 Population and Sample 47 School Sampling Strategy 48 Interview Sampling Criteria and Rationale 49 Instrumentation 50 Data Collection 50 Data Analysis 51 Credibility and Trustworthiness 52 Ethics 52 Role of Researcher 54 Conclusion 55 Chapter Four: Results and Findings 56 Study Purpose and Research Questions 56 Interview Participants 57 Findings for Research Question One: Knowledge and Skills Influences 58 Teachers’ Knowledge of the Technical Aspects of Using Educational Technology 59 Teachers’ Skills Related to Incorporating Educational Technology Into Lesson Plans 61 Teachers’ Self-Reflection on Their Own Effectiveness in Incorporating Educational Technology Into Their Classroom Lessons 63 Summary of Assumed Knowledge Needs 65 Findings for Research Question One: Motivational Influences 66 Teachers’ Confidence to Optimally Incorporate Educational Technology Into Lesson Plans 67 Teachers’ Perception of Incorporating Educational Technology Into Lesson Plans as Critical in Supporting Student Performance 69 Summary of Assumed Motivation Needs 71 Findings for Research Question Two: Organizational Influences 71 Organizational Emphasis Needed on Implementing Educational Technology in the Classroom 72 Organizational Need to Provide Professional Development to Support Teachers in Implementing Educational Technology into Daily Lesson Plans 76 TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 5 Summary of Assumed Organizational Needs 78 Emerging Themes Error! Bookmark not defined. Chapter Five: Discussion and Recommendations 79 Discussion of Findings Error! Bookmark not defined. Recommendations 85 Go Beyond the Basics 86 Have Fellow Teachers Lead the Training 87 Cultivate an edtech Culture 89 Evaluation Plan 90 Limitations and Delimitations 93 Recommendations for Future Research 95 Conclusion 96 References 98 Appendix A: Interview Protocol 98 Appendix B: Interview Questions Mapped to KMO Constructs/Influences 107 Appendix C: Interview Invitation Email 1 109 Appendix D: Interview Invitation Email 2 111 Appendix E: Interview Invitation Email 3 112 Appendix F: Interview Invitation Email 4 113 Appendix G: Information Sheet 114 TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 6 List of Tables Table 1: Organizational Mission, Organizational Goal and Stakeholder Group’s Goal 37 Table 2: Knowledge Influences 38 Table 3: Assumed Knowledge and Skills Influences 39 Table 4: Motivation Influences 41 Table 5: Assumed Motivation Influences 42 Table 6: Organizational Influences 43 Table 7: Assumed Organizational Influences 44 Table 8: Interview Participants 57 Table 9: Assumed Knowledge Influences and Related Themes. 58 Table 10: Assumed Motivation Influences and Related Themes. 66 Table 11: Assumed Organizational Influences and Related Themes. 72 Table 12: Emerging Theme 1 81 Table 13: Emerging Theme 2 81 Table 14: Emerging Theme 3 82 Table 15: Emerging Themes and Recommendations 85 Table 16: Evaluation Plan for Professional Development Program 91 TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 7 List of Figures Figure 1: Internet Use by Race or Ethnicity, Percent of Americans Ages 3+, 1998-2019 17 Figure 2: Poverty Rate by Race and Hispanic Origin: 1959 to 2019 22 Figure 3: Digital Equity Gaps 24 Figure 4: Positivity and Negativity Cycles of Student Engagement 25 Figure 5: Turning Research into Results Process Model 33 Figure 6: KMO Description 35 TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 8 CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION African American and Hispanic children face many technological inequalities in the United States that negatively impact their achievement as students and that can lower their quality of life over time (Anderson & Auxier, 2020; Bergdahl et al., 2020; Kalyanpur & Kirmani, 2005). This inequality manifests as a dearth of skills in technology usage and is often referred to as a digital divide (Rogers, 2016). Low-income, urban school districts, composed mostly of students of color, struggle to help students close this digital divide. One of the main barriers to closing this divide is a lack of technical skills exhibited by teachers (Francom, 2020; Wallace, 2012; Wood et al., 2005). To mitigate this issue, Black Rock Public Schools, a pseudonym, is preparing to launch a professional development program aimed at increasing teacher technical skills in the use of educational technology. The professional development program will be centered around increasing the use of educational technology to deliver curriculum to students. This study assessed the needs of teachers and provides recommendations for the district to implement during the development of the professional development program. Background of the Problem The digital divide refers to the lack of access to computers and the internet by, “...people of color, the economically disadvantaged, and other marginalized groups” (Rogers, 2016, p.197). This lack of access has contributed to a growing inequality between different demographic groups in the United States. This growing inequality has led to three primary issues. The first primary issue is an increase in educational inequality that is created for already disadvantaged students (Kalyanpur & Kirmani, 2005). The second primary issue is a negative impact on the United States' economy (PriceWaterhouseCoopers, 2018). The third primary issue is how a lack of technology skills to create information on the internet causes a shift of power from one TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 9 demographic group to another (Rogers, 2016). To help close the digital divide, it is important for disadvantaged students to gain technology skills before being sent out to “the real world” to either attend college or to enter the workforce. The logical place for this technology skills education to occur is in the K-12 classroom. Statement of the Problem Black Rock Public Schools, a non-profit organization operating 18 schools in low-income areas in an urban city in the southwestern United States, is working to help teachers more fully integrate educational technology into their classrooms. This study was performed to assess the needs of teachers to increase the efficacy of a targeted professional development program created and delivered to teachers to help change the perceptions and use of educational technology in the classroom in this large, urban, charter school district. It is hoped that the recommendations of this study will be useful to other large, urban school districts when deciding whether to increase spending on educational technology professional development staff and programs for teachers. Educational Technology Training While the availability of educational technology for use in the classroom has drastically increased in the last few decades, schools have not invested adequately in training their teachers on how to incorporate this technology into their classroom practice. Teachers require ongoing professional development lest they quickly become out of touch with current educational technology trends. The U.S. Department of Education’s 2017 National Education Technology Plan Update pointed out that educators “...need continuous, just-in-time support that includes professional development…and roughly half say that lack of training is one of the biggest barriers to incorporating technology into their teaching” (p.28). Further, a recent survey of more than 2,000 K-12 teachers showed that almost 80% of teachers wanted more professional TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 10 development for technology related subjects (PriceWaterhouseCoopers, 2018). Positive Impacts of Classroom Educational Technology Use Studies show that student achievement is positively impacted when teachers successfully incorporate technology into their classroom lessons (Bergdahl et al., 2020; Martin et al., 2010). The integration of technology into the classroom has been shown to be especially beneficial and increase student outcomes for at-risk students, but these improved outcomes are only realized if the technology is properly implemented (Darling-Hammond et al., 2014). One study suggests that students who started with the lowest achievement scores who were subsequently taught by teachers receiving high quality professional development in the use of technology in the classroom benefited the most by attaining the highest achievement gains over time. (Blanchard et al., 2016). Training teachers to include more educational technology into classroom lessons can help close the achievement gap in academic performance currently being experienced by minority and low-income students. But for teachers to be successful in bringing technology into their classroom practice, they must participate in ongoing professional development that includes adequate time to practice and to plan the use of technology into classroom lessons (Afshari et al., 2009; Francom, 2020; Martin et al., 2010). Purpose of the Study Black Rock Public Schools (BRPS) California is a large, urban, charter school district in the Southwestern United States. The number of technology systems Black Rock has adopted over the past few years has significantly grown while the amount of training Black Rock provides to teachers on the use of these systems has remained relatively constant. In addition, little work has been done to ascertain whether teachers are utilizing the purchased systems with fidelity in their classrooms. To encourage its teachers to adopt the use of educational technology TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 11 into their classroom practice, Black Rock is designing and implementing a pilot professional development program. The purpose of this study was to assess the needs of teachers to find out what will help increase their knowledge, motivation, and confidence in using educational technology in the classroom. This study looked at teacher knowledge, motivation, and organizational (KMO) assets and continuing needs utilizing the Clark and Estes gap analytic framework (2008). Qualitative data was gathered to perform this analysis through interviews of teachers. Research Questions The questions used to guide the case study were: 1. How can teacher knowledge of and motivation in using educational technology impact the creation of a targeted professional development program? 2. How can a district create a professional development program to increase a teacher’s knowledge of and confidence in educational technology? Importance of the Study For large, urban charter school districts, there is a lack of comparable information available studying the needs of teachers to create an effective professional development program that can increase teacher expertise in the use of education technology. This research study is significant because it focused on this overlooked sector of the educational landscape that was not represented in the literature. The information gathered led to recommendations in the creation of a pilot professional development program. While these recommendations make the study important to Black Rock, the results of the study will also be significant outside of Black Rock, especially for other charter management organizations in the United States. For external organizations, the information could be used to help inform future budgeting and program TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 12 development decisions which could lead to an increase in educational technology training for teachers outside of the studied district. In this way, the results of the study could impact far more teachers than those who participated in the original study. The potential increase in the number of teachers being properly trained to use educational technology in their classroom practice could equate to a greater number of historically marginalized students benefiting from well-trained teachers in educational technology and ultimately to a reduction of the digital divide. Organizational Context Black Rock Public Schools has been operating for over 20 years and is one of the largest charter management organizations in the United States. Black Rock currently operates middle and high schools in a large, urban city in the Southwestern United States. The mission of Black Rock is to prepare low-income students for advanced education, to become leaders in their community, and to have a successful and fulfilling life. Black Rock has recently created a strategic plan that includes a goal to increase the technological fluency of students in the district by the time they graduate high school. The hope is to help close the digital divide for their student population. To meet this goal, district leadership is working to implement an intermediate goal of having 100% of teachers using an educational technology curriculum delivery system as a standard classroom practice. An experimental professional development program is being developed and implemented to help achieve this goal. The professional development program is currently under development by staff. The current rollout date for the pilot program is set for August 2023. Overview of Theoretical Framework and Methodology This study used the Clark and Estes (2008) gap analytic framework to better understand teacher knowledge, motivation, and organizational assets and needs related to classroom TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 13 instructional technology use. Clark and Estes (2008) posited that “gap analysis diagnoses human causes behind performance gaps” (p. 21). By using this framework, the study determined the needs of teachers to provide recommendations for the creation of the professional development program. The study used a qualitative approach as the methodological framework to uncover teacher needs. The qualitative data was gathered through interviews with teachers who will be attending the professional development program. Definitions This study was centered on assessing the needs of teachers when developing a professional development program that Black Rock Public Schools is developing and implementing to increase teacher use of educational technology. The following are definitions for terms used frequently throughout the study. COVID (AKA COVID-19) “Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is an infectious disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus” (World Health Organization, 2021). Starting in 2020, COVID caused a worldwide pandemic leading to mandatory shutdowns of schools and businesses and a subsequent shift to online learning. Digital Divide Refers to a technology access gap between underprivileged members of society, in this case lower income, people of color who do not have access to computers or the internet and wealthier, whites who do have access (Steele, 2019). Educational Technology Computer applications or other technological tools that are used to facilitate learning in a classroom setting (The Journal, 2010). TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 14 Professional Development Refers to learning new skills to help an individual grow and succeed in the workplace (University of California, San Francisco, 2014). In the context of this study, this focused specifically on a formalized training program being developed to be delivered to district teachers. Organization of the Dissertation There are five chapters in this study. Chapter One provided background information on the problem of practice being the digital divide and the need to increase teachers’ effective use of educational technology in the classroom. It also introduced the purpose of the study, and the reasoning for why the study is important in the context of the literature. It ended with a brief overview of the theoretical framework that was used as a lens for the study. Chapter Two reviews the current literature that surrounds the problem of practice and provides background information and a history of the problem. Chapter Two also delves deeper into why this is a problem, and how schools can help alleviate the problem by providing additional support to teachers. Chapter Three introduces the methodology used for selecting a sample group, information on how data was collected, background on data analysis, and discusses credibility and trustworthiness of the research. Chapter Three ends with a discussion of why ethics are important in research and the ethical considerations in this research study. In Chapter Four, the data and results are assessed and analyzed. Finally, Chapter Five contains recommendations, based on gaps identified through the study, for the development of an educational technology professional development program at Black Rock Public Schools. TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 15 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW This chapter contains a review of literature on the digital divide in the United States, including historical beginnings of the digital divide, implications of the digital divide for different demographic groups, and the expansion of the digital divide brought about by the COVID pandemic and the subsequent pivot from in person learning to home based distance learning. The literature review then moves on to discuss some benefits of using educational technology in the classroom, including how its use can increase student engagement, help close the digital divide, and prepare students for life after school. Following this is a discussion about barriers that preclude teachers from incorporating educational technology into the classroom in low-income schools, potential supports for these teachers, and the importance of schools having a unified professional development plan in place centered around educational technology use in the classroom. The literature review ends with a discussion of the Clark and Estes gap analysis framework (2008) modified to assess the needs of teachers to help with the creation of a new professional development program being implemented at Black Rock Public Schools, a pseudonym. The program is being implemented to address the problem of practice of teachers not fully integrating educational technology into their classroom practices. The Digital Divide in the United States History of The Digital Divide The digital divide was a term originally coined in the mid 1990’s during the Clinton administration and was initially used to describe the lack of access to computers and the internet by, “...people of color, the economically disadvantaged, and other marginalized groups” (Rogers, 2016, p.197). In 1999, the U.S. Dept. of Commerce, National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) published findings showcasing certain aspects of the digital TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 16 divide. The study included a comparison of internet access between low-income White children and low income African American and Hispanic children. Results of this study indicated that the African American and Hispanic children were three times and four times less likely to have access to the internet, respectively, than White children from similar family backgrounds (NTIA, 1999). In 1991, households owned approximately 300,000 personal computers in the United States. By 1996, that number was over 10 million (Huffman, 2018). As this number continued to increase and as the gap in internet and computer access shrank between demographic groups, the definition of the digital divide changed to include a difference in internet skills and usage for those same groups (van Deursen & van Dijk, 2019). Most recently, the definition has morphed yet again to include a difference in tangible benefits derived from internet usage (van Deursen & van Dijk, 2019). In all three definitions, the lack of access, skills, and usage equated to a growing inequality between different demographic groups. Much has been written and many studies conducted to address this digital divide over the past 20 years, yet in 2020, the NTIA again published findings from a subsequent study showing African Americans and Hispanics were still seven percent less likely to use the internet than White non-Hispanics as illustrated in Figure 1 (NTIA, 2020). TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 17 Figure 1 Internet Use by Race or Ethnicity, Percent of Americans Ages 3+, 1998-2019 Note. Internet Use by Race or Ethnicity, Percent of Americans Age 3+, 1998-2019. From the National Telecommunication and Information Administration, retrieved from https://ntia.gov/data. While studies showed that people of color have been slowly catching up in access over time, and that internet connection rates are nearly reaching the saturation point, that does not mean the digital divide is closing. That 7% gap was still significant (NTIA, 2020). In addition to that gap, there was also another aspect of the digital divide centered around ways in which individuals used the internet and around internet skills (van Deursen & van Dijk., 2019). Implications of The Digital Divide The literature reviewed discussed three primary issues brought about by the digital divide. The first implication of the digital divide was the increase in educational inequality it TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 18 created for students that were already disadvantaged (Kalyanpur & Kirmani, 2005). The second implication was the negative impact the digital divide caused to society and to the economy of the United States (PriceWaterhouseCoopers, 2018). The third implication centered around how information on the internet equated to social, economic, and political power, and how a lack of technology skills to create information on the internet caused a ceding of power from one demographic group to another (Rogers, 2016). The first issue the literature discussed was how a digital divide was causing additional harm to already disadvantaged groups (Kalyanpur & Kirmani, 2005). One study reported that the digital skills gap led to both educational and future socioeconomic disparities for the disadvantaged groups (Bergdahl et al., 2020). The inequalities these groups faced can take many forms in the long term, including lower rates of graduation, lower college attendance, and in the very long term, lower attainment of wealth over the student’s lifetime (Anderson & Auxier, 2020). An article in the Harvard Business Review recently reported that, “Seventy percent of Black and 60% of Hispanic respondents report being underprepared with digital skills, affecting their employability” (Chakravorti, 2021). The second issue discussed by the literature was less focused on the individual and more focused on the impact to society at large. In addition to the negatives that were experienced by individuals when a person was not able to secure a good paying job later in life, the lack of skilled workers was also a net negative for society (PriceWaterhouseCoopers, 2018). PriceWaterhouseCoopers found that nearly four in five U.S. CEO’s (79%) reportedly were concerned that the level of graduates with key science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) skills could stunt the growth of their companies. Another study conducted by Deloitte (2021) found that there were significant economic costs to society attributed to the TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 19 digital divide such that “a 10 percentage-point increase in broadband access in 2014, would have resulted in more than 875,000 additional U.S. jobs and $186 billion more in economic output in 2019” (p.6). The third issue discussed in the literature centered around changing power dynamics in society caused by an increase in information control by internet content creators. Initially the digital divide specifically referred to differing levels of access to computers and the internet for different demographic groups. The term later became more about information control and about how groups that primarily consume information on the internet cede power to groups that produce that information (Rogers, 2016). Rogers provided examples of this information control such as internet producers writing a blog, creating a database, coding a website, or producing videos. Rogers went on to discuss the difference between being a consumer of information on the internet and being a producer of information on the internet. Having internet consumption skills generally means being able to successfully search the internet to find valuable information. However, having internet production skills means having the ability to create content for others to consume (Rogers, 2016). According to Rogers, failing to understand how to create informational content to deliver via the internet causes content consumers to cede power to content creators. A study conducted by the Pew Research Center in 2013 showed that African American and Hispanic teens were less likely to have internet access than Whites (Madden et al., 2013). The study also showed that for African American teens that did access the internet, they were more likely than Whites to access the internet mostly using a cell phone rather than a computer (Madden et al., 2013). This means that African American teens have less opportunity to become adept at using the internet and less opportunity to become internet information creators. TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 20 In a 2019 paper, van Deursen and van Dijk performed a study whose outcomes support Sylvia Roger’s (2016) hypothesis of some individuals becoming internet consumers while others learn to be internet producers. The van Deursen and van Dijk study was conducted in the Netherlands, which is a relatively homogeneous society, and therefore did not explicitly focus on race, but the findings did look at a variety of other demographic factors such as education, income, employment status, and age. The study showed that younger individuals, unemployed individuals, those with lower levels of education, and those with lower incomes were less likely to use laptops and desktops to access the internet and were more likely to use smartphones and tablets instead. At the time of the study, the population of the Netherlands had a 98% rate of access to the internet (van Deursen & van Dijk, 2019). The main thesis of van Deursen and van Dijk’s study was that even after a population has ubiquitous physical access to the internet, there is still a “mobile divide” inherent in the population as the functionality of smartphones and tablets cannot be considered equal to that of desktops and laptops. While van Deursen and van Dijk’s (2019) study was conducted on a primarily homogeneous population in the Netherlands, the outcomes of the study can still be used in conjunction with other studies, such as the aforementioned Rogers study (2016) and a Pew Research Center study from 2019, to show the negative implications of the continuing digital divide on African American and Hispanic populations in the United States. The Pew Research Center study conducted by Andrew Perrin and Erica Turner in 2019 showed that in the United States 82% of Whites reportedly owned a desktop or laptop computer compared with only 58% of African Americans and 57% of Hispanics (Perrin & Turner, 2019). All three demographic groups owned smartphones at roughly the same percentage of 8 in 10 meaning that more African Americans and Hispanics relied on smartphones as their primary means of accessing the internet TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 21 (Perrin & Turner, 2019). The report went on to show that 25% of Hispanics and 23% of African- Americas used smartphones as their only means of accessing the internet, while the same was true for only 12% of Whites (Perrin & Turner, 2019). Given these numbers, all three demographic groups had approximately the same level of access to the internet, however Whites had a much higher ability to gain internet production skills than African Americans and Hispanics. Van Deursen and van Dijk’s (2019) paper concludes with the analysis that, “Structural differences appear when particular segments of the population systematically and over longer periods of time take advantage of better devices and peripherals, while others use devices that enable fewer opportunities” (p. 372). Taken from the literature, one can see that an increase in educational inequality for disadvantaged students, net negative impacts on society, and a growing transfer of power are three implications of the digital divide that have been growing over the past three decades (Kalyanpur & Kirmani, 2005; Perrin & Turner, 2019; PriceWaterhouseCoopers, 2018; Rogers, 2016). A worldwide pandemic (COVID-19) that occurred in 2020 quickly widened this gap and expanded the digital divide. Digital Divide Expansion During the COVID Pandemic During “normal” times, many lower income students relied on school and library computers to complete their schoolwork. The recent COVID pandemic caused school shutdowns and mandatory stay at home orders. This resulted in detrimental effects to lower income students as schools worked to quickly pivot to online learning. The effects hit Hispanic and African American students especially hard as the rate of Hispanic and African American students in poverty is more than double that of Whites (U.S. Census Bureau, 2020). While poverty rates for all three groups are at historic lows, Whites are at 7.3% while Hispanic’s are 15.7% and African TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 22 Americans are at 18.8% as illustrated in Figure 2. Internet use in low income and high income families is quite different, and while most lower income families do have some form of access to the internet, many of these families are under-connected with smartphones and tablets being their primary source of access (Rideout & Katz, 2016). Figure 2 Poverty Rate by Race and Hispanic Origin: 1959 to 2019 Note: Poverty Rate by Race and Hispanic Origin: 1959-2019. From the U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, 1960-2020 Annual Social and Economic Supplement. The higher rates of poverty in African American and Hispanic communities translates into lower numbers of students having access to computers or internet access at home. A Pew TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 23 Research study from March 2020 found that 17% of Hispanic students and 25% of African American students reported not having a computer or internet connection at home compared to only 13% of White students that reported the same issue (Anderson & Auxier, 2020). The COVID pandemic provided an example of how lack of computer or internet access negatively affects low-income, minority students. When COVID hit and schools pivoted to distance learning, Black Rock Public Schools, the district that is the center of this research study, procured 10,000 Chromebooks and 5,000 wifi “hotspots” to provide to students so they could continue attending classes and complete schoolwork. But the procurement and distribution of these devices took several months leaving the students without a learning environment in the meantime. According to a report released in October 2020, schools with students from more affluent families that previously had access to computing devices and high-speed internet at home, and the knowledge of how to use them, were able to pivot and return to pre-pandemic learning levels much more quickly than those that did not (LearnPlatform, 2020). In an analysis from LearnPlatform, data showed that during the pandemic districts with 25% or higher of students with free and reduced lunch eligibility were using educational technology at half the rate of districts with higher income families. According to the data, and shown in Figure 3, the digital equity gap, defined as variations in levels of educational technology usage as considered through a lens of equity, doubled from the beginning of the quarantine in February 2020 through April 2020. This gap persisted into the beginning of the following school year as well with the data in October 2020 showing the same gap level as was seen earlier in the spring (LearnPlatform, 2020). TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 24 Figure 3 Digital Equity Gaps Note: Digital Equity Gaps. From https:/learnplatform.com/presentation/edtech-insights-sept2020. The digital divide that has existed in the United States shows no signs of going away. In fact, the divide increased due to conditions caused by COVID. But, there are ways that schools in areas with high concentrations of traditionally underserved students can help close this divide. Using interactive educational technology in the classroom is one way to help increase student engagement and help close the digital divide. Benefits of Educational Technology in the Classroom Increasing Student Engagement and Closing the Digital Divide Literature shows that the use of educational technology in classrooms in a systemized way engages students both academically and socially (Brown, 2011; Darling-Hammond et al., 2014; Sinclair, 2009). One study showed that with increased engagement, students were more likely to excel in school and achieve better outcomes (Finn & Zimmer, 2012). More engaged TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 25 students received positive encouragement about their work and behavior from teachers thus creating a positivity cycle as illustrated in Figure 4 (Finn & Zimmer, 2012). A white paper delivered at the 2011 International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) annual conference reported that when teachers did not fully integrate educational technology into their lessons it left students not fully engaged, eventually leaving them unprepared to be competitive in the digital workplace (Beglau et al., 2011). With decreased engagement, students were more likely to withdraw, achieved worse outcomes, and received negative remarks about their work and behavior from teachers thus creating a negativity cycle as illustrated in Figure 4 (Finn & Zimmer, 2012). Figure 4 Positivity and Negativity Cycles of Student Engagement Note: Positivity and Negativity Cycles of Student Engagement. From Finn & Zimmer, 2012. A publication by Darling-Hammond, et al. (2014), from the Stanford Center for Opportunity Policy in Education (SCOPE) discussed numerous studies where significant achievement and engagement gains were realized for at-risk students when they engaged with TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 26 educational technology in the classroom. For example, one quasi-experimental study that SCOPE discussed found that when low achieving eleventh grade students were provided the Texas Instruments InterActive instructional environment to study quadratic functions, they scored significantly higher than similar students that were given a more traditional studying approach that included lecture, notes, drills, and practice (Bos, 2007). Another study discussed by SCOPE looked at tenth grade students that were at-risk of failing the math portion of their state's end of year exams. Students were enrolled in a computer-based instructional course for remediation. The results of the study found a significant correlation between students enrolling in the computer-based instructional course and improved passing rates on the exam with passing rates at the school being studied, going from 47% in 1999 to 84% in 2001 while the state average went from 47% to 75% over the same time period (Hannafin et al., 2006)*. All of the studies SCOPE identified and discussed centered around the use of computers in an interactive learning environment and on students receiving real-time digital feedback (Darling-Hammond et al., 2014). These studies indicated that incorporating technology into the classroom setting in a systematized way is an important tool to help increase technical skills of underserved students and to help close the achievement gap. Literature also showed that there was a strong correlation between the use of educational technology in the classroom and increased student outcomes when schools put forth strong goals and objectives and also, importantly, when there was proper teacher training provided (Brown, 2011). Literature also indicated that the use of educational technology in the classroom improved student learning outcomes when used as cognitive tools (Sinclair, 2009). When teachers effectively incorporated technology into their classroom, not only for administrative purposes but also to help interactively deliver classroom content, students were more engaged, and better TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 27 student outcomes were achieved (Brown, 2011; Darling-Hammond et al., 2014; Finn & Zimmer, 2012; Sinclair, 2009). The use of educational technology in the classroom can also help prepare students to successfully enter the workforce later in life. Preparing Students for “The Real World” In the U.S. educational system, from primary through high school, students are supposed to be prepared for a successful transition to adult life including being taught the skills necessary to engage in “the real world,” also known as the world of work. The mission of the United States Department of Education is to, “...promote student achievement and preparation for global competitiveness by fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access” (U.S Department of Education, n.d.). Studies indicate, however, that White students are being better prepared by the educational system than African American and Hispanic students (Anderson & Auxier, 2020; Bergdahl et al., 2020; PriceWaterhouseCoopers, 2018; U.S. Department of Education, 2017). Increasing the use of educational technology in all classrooms helps students acclimate to using technology in everyday life. This is important because once students are out of school and entering the workforce, they need to have technology skills to be successful in many industries (PriceWaterhouseCoopers, 2018). In 2018, PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PWC) reported that by 2020 there would be over a million unfilled computing jobs available in the U.S. that would require technical skills, but there would not be enough qualified applicants to fill those jobs. To combat this imbalance, the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Educational Technology’s National Educational Technology Plan (NETP) sought to bring about increased equity and accessibility for students. The NETP reported that many learners were being tasked with using technology simply as passive consumption devices and were not being asked to use technology actively or creatively. The 2018 PriceWaterhouseCoopers study reported that 60% of technology TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 28 use in the classroom was passive consumption while only 32% was active (PriceWaterhouseCoopers, 2018). This means students were not spending time practicing higher level technology skills but were instead being kept busy watching videos and reading webpages. The NETP contained a roadmap that included the importance of not just relying on providing devices and internet access to students but also in prioritizing teacher training. In so doing, the NETP hoped to bring about growth for all students while providing increased opportunities for traditionally underserved students so they would receive better educational experiences than they were normally afforded and would thus be better prepared to enter the workforce (U.S. Department of Education, 2017). The plan theorized that disregarding the roadmap could lead to an increased digital divide even though access was increasing. Teachers play a key role in helping students increase their knowledge in technology and in closing the digital divide. The Role of Teachers in Incorporating Educational Technology into the Classroom in Low-Income Schools Barriers to Teachers Incorporating Technology Into the Classroom There are a variety of barriers that stop teachers from incorporating technology into their classroom lesson delivery. One of the main barriers discussed by the literature is that teachers lack requisite technical skills (Francom, 2020; Wallace, 2012; Wood et al., 2005). The other main barrier discussed was a lack of adequate support provided to teachers by the school or district (Francom, 2020; Wallace, 2012; Wood et al., 2005). Many teachers lack technical skills when it comes to incorporating educational technology into their classroom lessons. The literature shows that prior to the COVID pandemic, teachers already had a hard time planning and using educational technology in transformative ways when they did not have enough time to fully test and learn those systems (Francom, 2020). TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 29 This was before the entire country was forced into an almost overnight pivot to online learning due to the COVID pandemic. The subsequent need for teachers to immediately understand how to use educational technology in order to continue teaching highlighted this lack of technical skills. At Black Rock Public Schools, the internal help desk saw a 500% increase year over year in the number of emails received asking for technical assistance in the six months following the stay-at-home order in California. This example shows that from a technical perspective, Black Rock teachers were not ready for the abrupt pivot to an online teaching model. The other barrier to teachers incorporating technology into the classroom discussed most frequently in the literature reviewed was lack of technical support provided by the school or district. A study comparing technical support available in business and in education showed that businesses strive for one technical support staff member for every 50 devices, while in education it is closer to one support staff member for every 1000 devices on average (Francom, 2020). Showing how this lack of support in education presented a barrier to teachers incorporating education technology into the classroom, an International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) white paper from 2011 presented research from a few studies showing that only 15% of teachers implemented a new instructional method when not given adequate support and follow up (Joyce & Showers, 1983). This number increased to 85% when teachers received adequate support and follow up (Knight, 2007). In the paper, adequate support was defined as, “...receive coaching in the use of technology tools to improve student learning” (Beglau et al., 2011, p. 3). Both the lack of technical skills and the lack of technical support were seen more often in low-income schools. Multiple studies showed that low-income, urban schools were less likely to provide adequate technical training and support to teachers than more affluent, suburban schools (Herold, 2016; Kormos, 2018). Prior research has indicated that the lack of technical training and TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 30 support is, in part, due to funding disparities (Kormos, 2018). In order for teachers to become experts in the educational technology that can help close the digital divide for their students, their school/districts needed to have a plan in place to offer the requisite support. Support for Teachers - An Educational Technology Professional Development Program In 2009, G.B. Sinclair assessed whether Stanford’s Larry Cuban was correct in his assertions on the impact of computer technology on student learning. Cuban’s thesis was that computers were being sold as a panacea for education but that teachers were using them in uninspired and unimaginative ways and computers were thus not contributing to student education in meaningful ways (Sinclair, 2009). Sinclair assessed studies from many sources and concluded that Cuban was correct that if teachers were not educated enough to help students use computers as cognitive tools in the classroom, then the use of computers did not enhance learning as promised (Sinclair, 2009). But if teachers were given proper training and subsequently became experts in the use of the educational technology being used then, “...computer technologies [could] serve, and build students’ social skills, cognitive perspective, tolerance, creativity and high order thinking skills” (Sinclair, 2009, p.48). These observations pointed to a conclusion that teachers need both the technical skills and confidence in using educational technology in order to deliver effective classroom lessons using that technology (Sinclair, 2009). For teachers that lack confidence or skills in using educational technology, how should schools work with them to boost both confidence and skill level? Much of the responsibility for this falls on the administrators of the school and district to make sure teachers are well-trained in both the use of the technology, and in how educational technology can be used to foster student learning (Brown, 2011). Additionally, administrators have to offer a vast TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 31 amount of support in order to get teachers to where they need to be with technology fluency, and with both ability and desire to incorporate technology into their classrooms (Wood et al., 2005). Synthesizing the conclusions of the literature reviewed indicates that creating and implementing a well-designed and well delivered professional development program would help teachers fully incorporate educational technology into their lesson plans. An increase in the use of educational technology by technically skilled and confident teachers should increase engagement of students (Sinclair, 2009). This increased engagement and learning should help to close the digital divide (Brown, 2011). The most effective professional development programs used the technology being taught during the training so that rather than teaching about the application, the application is used as part of the training thus giving a real-world example of how the application can be used. In addition, effective professional development programs employed a coaching model for content delivery, and they used some kind of community driven or social learning framework for follow up (Beglau et al., 2011; Francom, 2020; Kopcha, 2012). Finally, it was imperative when building an effective professional development program to provide ample time to practice with the application to increase teacher comfort levels with the educational technology. In fact, one study found that teachers, “...comfort with technology was the only significant predictor of integration of technology in the curriculum.” (Wood et al., 2005, p. 201). Literature suggests that administrators must establish a culture of professional development that provides teachers with needed instruction in the use of educational technology and also allows teachers additional time to work with educational technology programs outside of classroom time so they could learn to incorporate it into their lesson plans (Beglau et al., 2011; Francom, 2020; Kopcha, 2012; Wood et al., 2005). The conclusion of one study was that TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 32 the strategy of providing educational technology tools without proper training and time for practice would surely fail (Beglau et al., 2011). The lack of technical skills and confidence in teachers is not due to a lack of desire on the teacher’s part. In 2018, PriceWaterhouseCoopers surveyed more than 2000 K-12 educators and found that 90% of teachers surveyed did not feel confident teaching higher level technology skills and 79% said they wanted to receive additional professional development in this area (PriceWaterhouseCoopers, 2018). The program that Black Rock Public Schools will be implementing aims to increase technical skills and bolster confidence in educational technology for its teachers and, in so doing, help close the digital divide for its students. Theoretical Framework Theoretical Framework Overview: Clark and Estes Gap Analysis When creating a new program in a school or district, it is important to ensure that the program addresses the issue(s) that the program was initially created to solve. One way to carry out an analysis of the needs required for the professional development program that Black Rock is creating is through a modified gap analysis framework (Clark & Estes, 2008). The steps of the framework are outlined in Figure 5. For this study, first the researcher identified the organization's strategic goals and the performance goals that would help achieve the strategic goals. Once the goals were determined, performance gaps were identified through data collected in an interview process. This found what steps were missing in prior professional development programs. The gaps were analyzed in three distinct areas; people’s knowledge and skills, motivation, and organizational processes. Potential solutions for the gaps in these three areas were devised and recommendations for future professional development were provided. TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 33 Figure 5 Turning Research into Results Process Model Note: Turning Research Into Results, Process Model. From Clark and Estes, 2008. Why the Clark and Estes Gap Analysis Model was Selected TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 34 While the availability of educational technology to use in the classroom has drastically increased in the last few decades, schools have not invested adequately in training their teachers on how to incorporate this technology into their classroom lessons. Teachers require ongoing professional development lest they quickly become out of touch with current educational technology trends. The U.S. Department of Education’s 2017 National Education Technology Plan Update points out the, “...need [for] continuous, just-in-time support that includes professional development…[with] roughly half [of teachers] say[ing] that lack of training is one of the biggest barriers to incorporating technology into their teaching.” Further, a recent survey of more than 2,000 K-12 teachers has shown that almost 80% of teachers want more professional development for tech related subjects (PriceWaterhouseCoopers, 2018). To combat this issue, Black Rock Public Schools will be creating and implementing an educational technology professional development program to increase teacher knowledge of the educational technology programs available to them, and to help them learn how best to incorporate these technologies into their classroom practice. The Clark and Estes gap analysis model was selected as the framework to use for this study because it was specifically designed to help root out and diagnose performance gaps in business processes through a research approach. In addition, the literature supports that when teachers failed to use educational technology in their classrooms, or to use it effectively, it was a mix of knowledge, motivation and organizational influences that affected this (Afshari et al., 2009; Blanchard et al., 2016; Francom, 2020; Herold, 2016). The gap analysis framework posits that there are three main factors to examine when assessing performance gaps. These factors are people’s knowledge and skills (Knowledge), people’s motivation to achieve the business TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 35 objective (Motivation), and organizational barriers to achieving the strategic goal (Organization) as shown in Figure 6. Figure 6 KMO Description KMO Description Note: KMO Description. From Clark and Estes (2008). Once the performance gaps in the areas of knowledge, motivation, and organization are understood, the KMO model moves to identifying research-based solutions. This step helps in providing recommendations for implementing these solutions. The recommendations, if implemented, would help Black Rock in the creation of the new educational technology professional development program being developed. The organization being studied was attempting to solve two long term strategic goals by creating this new educational technology professional development program. The first strategic goal was for all students at Black Rock Public Schools to become fluent in the use of technology by the time they graduate high school. To do this they wanted to help teachers become experts in TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 36 educational technology so the teachers could incorporate the technology into their classroom lesson delivery. The intermediate goal was to have 100% of teachers comfortable with and using an educational technology curriculum delivery system as part of their classroom practice. This would in turn help expose low-income students to technology which would help them become better prepared for advanced education, to become leaders in their community, and to have a successful and fulfilling life, which is part of Black Rock's mission statement. In this way the organization hoped to start closing the digital divide for its students. The second strategic goal was around ensuring the district be ready for any future unexpected events, such as what occurred with the COVID pandemic. It is important for schools and districts to create and implement a comprehensive educational technology professional development plan so they are prepared when the next COVID-like emergency hits. In this way schools will be more ready to pivot quickly with little to no downtime and subsequent loss of learning. These are complex but very important strategic problems to solve for the organization, so the failure of the newly implemented technology professional development program was not an option. Because of this, the organization agreed to allow research to be done using a KMO gap analysis model in order to understand teacher needs in professional development. The research would also help Black Rock understand its current strengths in professional development and to build on and make process improvements to better ensure success. Using the KMO framework in this study helped find and repair gaps in the knowledge and skills, motivation, and organization that would otherwise go undiagnosed. Following are the initial KMO constructs and assumed KMO influences that were used when developing the interview protocol for this study. TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 37 Organizational and Stakeholder Group’s Goals This study focused on one specific part of the organizational strategic goals centered around having 100% of teachers implement educational technology in their classroom practice. The home office Instructional Technology department staff, the school site administrators, and the students are all important to this goal achievement, but the goal cannot be achieved without the full involvement of the teachers. Thus, this study focused on teachers as the stakeholder group. Table 1 Organizational Mission, Organizational Goal and Stakeholder Group’s Goal Organizational Mission The mission of Black Rock Public Schools is to help transform public education so students graduate prepared for advanced education, to become leaders in their community, and to have a successful and fulfilling life. Organizational Performance Goal By May 2025, 100% of students will be adept at using the district's curriculum delivery program for engaging in classroom curriculum and the increase in curriculum access will correspond to a one point increase in overall student GPA. Black Rock Public Schools Teacher Goal By May 2024, 100% of teachers will incorporate the district's curriculum delivery program into their lesson plans. Teachers’ Knowledge, Motivation and Organizational Influences Knowledge Influences According to Krathwohl (2002), there are four distinct knowledge types. The first is factual knowledge which is defined as basic and discrete bits of knowledge about a specific subject. The second is conceptual knowledge which is the more complex and organized knowledge of a subject such as theories, principals, and modalities. Factual and conceptual TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 38 knowledge combined are called declarative knowledge. The third knowledge type is procedural knowledge which is the knowledge of how to perform a task or execute a skill. Finally, the fourth type of knowledge is metacognitive which is the knowledge of one's own cognition. All knowledge types will be addressed as all are needed for there to be effective performance in an organization. In Table 2 below, knowledge influences are listed for this study and each influence is categorized into a distinct knowledge type. Table 2 Knowledge Influences Knowledge Type Assumed Knowledge Influence Declarative Teachers’ knowledge of the technical aspects of using educational technology. Procedural Teachers’ skills related to incorporating educational technology into lesson plans. Metacognitive Teachers’ self-reflection on their own effectiveness in incorporating educational technology into their classroom lessons. In the area of knowledge, factors were identified for declarative, procedural, and metacognitive influences. For declarative, knowledge of the technical aspects of using educational technology were assessed. Francom (2020), Wallace (2012), and Wood et al. (2005) each identified a number of knowledge barriers to educational technology integration over time, including a lack of time for practice and integration into classroom lessons. They also discovered a decline in training and technical support by districts over time. And finally, they reported that although teachers used computers at home and school, they were not wholly comfortable with the technology. For procedural influences, skills related to incorporating educational technology into lesson plans were assessed. Brown (2011) and Sinclair (2009) both reached the conclusion that teachers need skills with educational technology in order to deliver effective classroom lessons TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 39 using that technology. They also reported that teachers must be provided adequate training prior to technology integration occurring. Finally, for metacognitive influences there were questions probing for self-reflection on effectiveness in incorporating educational technology into classroom lessons. Sinclair (2009) found that in addition to technical skills, teachers also needed confidence in using educational technology to use that technology effectively in the classroom. To boost confidence and learning, Krathwohl (2002) found that it is important for professional development attendees to be made aware of their metacognitive activity so they can use this knowledge to appropriately adapt the ways in which they think and operate with educational technology. Table 3 Assumed Knowledge and Skills Influences Assumed Knowledge and Skills Influences Sources - Knowledge of the technical aspects of using educational technology (Declarative) - Skills related to incorporating educational technology into lesson plans (Procedural) - Self-reflection on effectiveness in incorporating educational technology into classroom lessons (Metacognitive) Francom (2020); Wallace (2012); Wood et al. (2005) Brown (2011); Sinclair (2009) Krathwohl (2002); Sinclair (2009) Motivational Influences Knowledge is one key influence on performance, and motivation is another. While knowledge is the “how” to perform a task, motivation is the “why” that task should be completed. According to Clark and Estes (2008), there are three motivational processes or TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 40 “indexes” that should be examined when diagnosing motivational issues in a workplace. These motivational processes are, “...first, choosing to work towards a goal; second, persisting at it until it is achieved; and third, how much mental effort we invest to get the job done” (Clark & Estes, 2008, p. 44). Diagnosing and correcting deficiencies in these three motivational processes can lead to increased productivity. The first motivational aspect outlined by Clark and Estes, choosing to work towards a goal, is also known as “active choice.” This is when an employee decides to actively work towards an end goal. Intending to reach a goal without actually taking concrete steps to move towards that goal shows a lack of motivation. The second motivational aspect discussed by Clark and Estes is persistence. Starting a project or task is the first step towards completing that task or project. However, distractions can stop the employee from making adequate progress in a timely fashion. If these distractions stop the forward progress towards the end goal completely, this is a persistence problem. The final motivational aspect Clark and Estes outlined is mental effort. This aspect is tied closely to confidence. Being overconfident or underconfident in one’s abilities to achieve a goal will lessen a worker’s mental effort towards reaching that goal. It is more motivational for the worker to be moderately confident and challenged in their work. While choice, persistence and mental effort are behavioral manifestations of motivation, underlying them are psychological constructs that drive behaviors. Self-efficacy is an internal judgment of one’s ability to complete a task or goal. This is not the same as a general feeling of self-esteem, but it is instead directed at a specific task or goal. According to Rueda (2011), self- efficacy is related to all three motivational indexes previously discussed. Self-efficacy is important to look at when assessing motivation because “individuals with higher self-efficacy, TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 41 greater belief in their own competence, and higher expectancies for positive outcomes will be more motivated to engage in, persist at, and work hard at a task or activity” (Rueda, 2011, p. 41) The distinction between knowledge and motivation when assessing organizational productivity issues is important because if an individual knows how to complete a task but does not see any value in that task, it is unlikely the task will be completed. Value in this context is also known as task value. Task value can be further broken down into four categories: attainment, intrinsic, utility, and cost. Attainment value is the importance an individual attaches to achieving a goal. Intrinsic value is the enjoyment an individual gets out of performing a task. Utility value is how useful the individual feels completing a task will be towards achieving a future goal. Cost value is what is expended to achieve a goal. The importance of looking at all four of these value categories is that “...the higher an individual values an activity, the more likely he or she chooses, persists, and engages in it” (Rueda, 2011, p. 43). While a variety of motivational factors likely affect teachers’ engagement with instructional technology, this study looked specifically at self-efficacy and task value. The motivational influences outlined in Table 4 are pertinent to the organization being studied. Table 4 Motivation Influences Motivation Type Assumed Motivation Influence Self-Efficacy Teachers’ confidence to optimally incorporate educational technology into lesson plans. Task Value Teachers’ perception of incorporating educational technology into lesson plans as critical in supporting student performance. In the area of motivation, two main assumed influences were identified for study: self- efficacy and task value. For self-efficacy, it is the self-confidence needed to optimally TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 42 incorporate educational technology into lesson plans that was assessed. Clark and Estes (2008) listed mental effort, tied closely to confidence, as a motivational process that needs to be examined when diagnosing motivational issues in a workplace. For task value, teacher perceptions of incorporating educational technology into lesson plans as being critical in supporting student performance were studied. Rueda (2011) found that if an individual knows how to complete a task, which is knowledge, but does not see any value in that task, it is unlikely the task will be completed. In addition, Beglau et al. (2011), Darling- Hammond et al. (2014), and Finn and Zimmer (2012) found that having educational technology fully integrated into classroom lessons can increase student engagement and student outcomes. This study will look at teacher perceptions of task value to understand how the training received can help teachers equate the use of educational technology to increased student outcomes. Table 5 Assumed Motivation Influences Assumed Motivation Influences Sources - Self-confidence to optimally incorporate educational technology into lesson plans (Self-Efficacy) - Perception of incorporating educational technology into lesson plans as critical in supporting student performance (Task Value) Clark and Estes (2008) Beglau et al. (2011); Darling- Hammond et al. (2014); Finn and Zimmer (2012); Rueda (2011) Organizational Influences Along with knowledge and motivation, organizations also have a strong influence in the success or failure of organizational goals. According to Gallimore and Goldenberg (2001), TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 43 organizational influences can be broken into two organizational influence types: settings and models. Settings are the outward, physical activities that take place between workers to complete tasks while models are less visible and are composed of an organization's values and norms. Looking at the more tangible settings and making conclusions and recommendations based solely on those settings would be insufficient, as the less visible models can have just as much, if not more, influence on worker behavior. Because of this, it is important when studying organizations to look at both settings and models. Table 6 shown below lists one cultural model and one cultural setting to be investigated for the organization being studied. Table 6 Organizational Influences Organizational Influence Type Assumed Organizational Influences Cultural Model Influence 1 Organizational emphasis on implementing educational technology in the classroom. Cultural Setting Influence 1 Organizational professional development to support teachers in implementing educational technology into daily lesson plans. In the organizational area, the study looked at cultural settings and cultural models. For settings, organizational emphasis on implementing educational technology in the classroom was studied, and for models the influence studied was organizational professional development. These influences were selected because studies by Beglau et al. (2011), Francom (2020), Kopcha (2012), and Wood et al. (2005), in addition to an article in the International Journal of Instruction by Afshari et al. (2009) and an article in the Journal of Research on Technology in Education by Martin et al. (2010), all suggest that administrators must establish a culture of professional development that provides teachers with adequate instruction so they can learn to incorporate educational technology into their lesson plans. TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 44 Table 7 Assumed Organizational Influences Assumed Organizational Influences Sources - Organizational emphasis on implementing educational technology in the classroom (Settings) - Organizational professional development to implement educational technology into daily lesson plans. (Models) Beglau et al. (2011); Francom (2020); Kopcha (2012); Wood et al. (2005) Afshari et al. (2009); Beglau et al. (2011); Francom (2020); Kopcha (2012); Martin et al. (2010); Wood et al. (2005) Conclusion This chapter provided an in-depth review of the literature associated with the problem of practice of teachers not using educational technology in a systematized way in curriculum delivery and included information on the history, implications of, and recent expansion of the digital divide due to the COVID pandemic. The benefits of using educational technology in the classroom and how it can help close the digital divide were also discussed. In addition, there was a review of the literature around barriers that teachers face in implementing educational technology into their classroom practice and the importance of districts having a unified professional development plan in place to help mitigate this issue. Finally, the literature review introduced the gap analysis KMO framework developed by Clark and Estes (2008) and how the use of this framework helped the study find and analyze data to formulate recommendations on the creation of a professional development program at Black Rock Public Schools. Chapter Three discusses the methodology used to conduct a study of teachers who will be participating in the professional development program being developed by Black Rock centered TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 45 around the use of educational technology in the classroom. The chapter provides specifics on the instrumentation used for the study, as well as background information on how the population studied was selected, on data collection methods, and on data analysis. TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 46 CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY As part of an internal instructional technology strategic plan launched in the school year 2021-2022, a stated organizational goal was for all students at Black Rock Public Schools, a pseudonym, to become fluent in the use of technology by the time they graduate high school. For this goal to be met, the leadership team at Black Rock Public Schools set an intermediate goal to have 100% of teachers comfortable with and using an educational technology curriculum delivery system as part of their standard classroom practice. To reach this intermediate goal, a pilot professional development program is to be developed and implemented at Black Rock Public Schools. The purpose of the professional development program is to increase teacher use of educational technology in the classroom. Research Questions The questions used to guide the case study were: 1. How can teacher knowledge of and motivation in using educational technology impact the creation of a targeted professional development program? 2. How can a district create a professional development program to increase a teacher’s knowledge of and confidence in educational technology? This study assessed the needs of teachers to inform the creation of a pilot professional development program to be implemented at Black Rock Public Schools. The study used a modified gap analysis approach developed by Clark and Estes (2008) to analyze the knowledge, motivation, and organizational needs of teachers who will participate in the professional development program. Data for this qualitative study was gathered utilizing interviews of district teachers to assess their needs in professional development. A qualitative approach to data gathering was TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 47 selected for this study. One understanding of the epistemological assumption of qualitative researchers is that truth is inextricably tied to context and thus there can be many truths (Lochmiller & Lester, 2017; Merriam & Tisdell, 2016). In this viewpoint, each person’s reality is filtered through their own perspective. For qualitative studies, open ended questions are asked that will allow the researchers to gather data (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016). The researchers’ subsequently use the responses to explore solutions to the original problem of practice. This is done through a gradual process that first sees researchers’ assigning codes to fragments of response data, then combining codes into categories which helps assign meaning to the disconnected codes. Finally, categories are brought together into themes which are “broad, analytically driven statements about your data” (Lochmiller & Lester, 2017, p.177). One of the main strengths of a qualitative research approach is that it is flexible. The researcher will often start with a defined set of questions, but during the interaction with the subject, they are able to pivot and delve deeper and ask the research subjects additional questions called “probes” (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016, p.122). This can lead to further understanding and allows the researcher to gather additional detail and go deeper into researching the problem being studied. Interviews were selected as a research method of this study because they allowed for a more thorough discussion of teacher needs when creating a professional development program. Neither a survey nor formal, direct observation would be appropriate as neither would allow for teachers to express their needs, nor would they allow for follow up questions (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016). Follow up questions are needed to delve deeper into the subject matter and to assess both motivation and teacher opinions on their needs in professional development. Population and Sample The stakeholder population of focus for this study were teachers at Black Rock Public TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 48 Schools, a large, urban charter school district in the Southwestern United States. As of September 30, 2021, there were approximately 600 teachers employed by the district. Study participants were selected from the total population after being filtered through several criteria to ensure responses collected were not atypical for the stakeholder population. School Sampling Strategy According to Merriam and Tisdell (2016), probabilistic sampling is not needed or justifiable for a qualitative approach so non-probability, purposeful sampling was used. When selecting the sample population, specific criteria were used to remove schools from the list that were unsuitable for this study. For example, there were eighteen middle and high schools in the district being studied. The study focused on high schools so the starting list removed the middle schools. The school site selected needed to be a “typical” sample school, meaning a school that was of average size for the district and that had an average number of teachers. One outlier removed from the final list was one of the largest schools in the district with the most teachers of any Black Rock school. This school had 51 teachers while all other Black Rock High Schools had between 27 and 34 teachers. Choosing the larger school would have made it easier to ensure enough teachers at the selected school were willing to participate in the study. But since the school had almost twice as many teachers as other Black Rock schools, questions on teacher needs around organizational influences may have elicited different results than in smaller schools, thus skewing the results of the analysis. This made the larger school a less ideal candidate for the study. The final criterion was that the school needed to have a well-established Principal. If the Principal was new, they would be engrossed in establishing relationships with the teachers. They would likely have had a number of priorities as they became established, and technology might TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 49 not have been one of their top priorities. Additionally, they would still be learning the Black Rock model while a more established principal would likely be more attuned to Black Rock tenants. To minimize the effect these issues would have on the study, schools with principals that were in the job at that school less than two years were removed from the list. While the qualitative study would not produce widely generalizable results, by selecting a Black Rock school that fit the criteria listed, the results provided Black Rock the greatest comparison for its other schools. The school that was ultimately selected had 27 teachers who fit the teacher selection criteria. In addition, the principal of the school has been in this position for five years. Interview Sampling Criteria and Rationale The criteria used for participant selection at the selected school helped ensure responses received were based on similar previous professional development experiences at the school. Criterion 1 Participants had to be teachers at the selected school. This was to ensure organizational responses were based on the same organization. Criterion 2 Participants could not be first year Black Rock teachers. This was because the interview questions assumed knowledge of previous Black Rock professional development to help probe for organizational influence gaps. Teachers new to Black Rock would not have knowledge and experience of the past years’ programs making their responses less helpful in assessing needs. Once the participant school was identified, an email was sent to all teachers that met the criteria listed above. There were 27 teachers in the initial invite group. The potential participant teachers were identified by pulling data from Black Rock’s human resources information system, TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 50 to identify teachers that had been employed at the school for more than one year. An email was then sent to all potential participants with information about the study, as well as an embedded Calendly link. The email asked if they were willing to participate in the study, and if so to please click on the Calendly link to select a date and time that worked best for their schedule. The first email elicited a low response rate, so subsequent emails were sent to ask for additional responses. In all, four separate emails were sent which resulted in eight positive responses for interviews. Instrumentation The primary method used to collect data for this study was interviews of teachers. Care was taken during the creation of the instrument to ensure all questions were tied to the original research questions, as well as to the theoretical KMO framework utilized in this study. Interviews were conducted to gauge teacher knowledge, motivation, and organizational settings and models. Clark and Estes (2008) believe that “employee’s [sic] beliefs and perceptions are critical to diagnosing gaps” (Clark & Estes, 2008, p. 43). Therefore, interviews allowed for the most in-depth evaluation of teacher knowledge, motivation, and organizational settings and models. Interview questions were open ended to allow for in-depth probing as needed. Follow up questions were important and were used to get to the knowledge and motivation, but also to probe into teacher opinions on organizational influences. A copy of the interview protocol is attached as Appendix A. Data Collection Interviews were conducted in April and May 2022. Interviews were conducted after school hours and on weekends through Zoom, an online video communications platform. Interviews were kept between 30 and 45 minutes. Teacher participation was kept strictly TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 51 confidential and results remain anonymous. School administration does not know which teachers agreed to participate in the study. During analysis and final reporting, care was taken to ensure any and all identifying data were not included in the study findings. Pseudonyms were used in the findings to maintain participant anonymity. Teachers were recruited through emails which were sent to all potential participants. The email asked if they would be willing to participate in the study and included an information sheet about the study, as well as an embedded Calendly link so they could self-schedule the interview. The information sheet included information about the voluntary nature of the study. It also included information about the right of participants to refuse to answer any individual question, and to have their responses removed from the study within two weeks after the interview was conducted. Interviews were video recorded through Zoom for transcription purposes. All interview data was maintained on a password protected computer. Any written field notes were maintained in a locked file cabinet. At the conclusion of the study, all data was destroyed to protect confidentiality. Data Analysis Merriam and Tisdell (2016) suggest beginning data analysis during the data collection process. To this end, field notes were written as soon as each interview was completed to capture the thought process of the researcher as close to the time of the interview as possible. Interviews were recorded through the Zoom online video application. Recorded interviews were passed through an artificial intelligence application, otter.ai, for transcription. Once transcribed, coding began on each interview to help discover emergent trends. Coding is “simply a text-based label that gives meaning to a segment of your data” (Lochmiller & Lester, 2017, p. 174). Interview questions were mapped to assumed knowledge, motivation, and organization influences on TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 52 performance during development of the interview protocol. The initial mapping created during the development of the interview protocol helped with coding. However, oftentimes interview responses can cross influence boundaries, so care was taken during the coding process to code responses to all pertinent influence(s). According to Lochmiller and Lester (2017), coding is a multi-layered process with each layer revealing additional meaning. Coding began as soon as interviews were complete so initial thoughts were captured and potential emergent trends discovered. During this phase a priori codes were found and documented. A second pass of coding was used to help interpret and find meaning in the data (Lochmiller & Lester, 2017). A third and final layer of coding helped with final interpretation, and to ensure thematic analysis was complete. Credibility and Trustworthiness To ensure credibility and trustworthiness, member-checking was employed, “...sharing...emergent findings with participants to elicit their feedback and perspectives” (Lochmiller & Lester, 2017, p.180). This was performed by soliciting feedback from a number of teachers who participated in the interviews. This occurred after all data was collected and before any findings were published. In addition, a software application (MAXQDA) was used to assist with coding to ensure that data analysis was conducted in a precise and consistent manner. By utilizing these different approaches, emergent findings were validated by multiple means. Ethics It is important for studies to be carried out ethically and with integrity so that the study results cannot be called into question. More importantly, ethics must be upheld so research subjects are not caused any harm (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016). The University of Southern California Institutional Review Board (IRB) reviewed the proposal for this study prior to any TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 53 data collection to ensure all necessary precautions were in place and were sufficient to protect the rights and well-being of the research subjects. Because the research was conducted as a qualitative study and the main source of data was individual interviews, it was important to maintain anonymity and to ensure participants were well informed about the voluntary nature of their participation. According to Glesne (2011), research subjects need to be provided enough information about the study in which they are being asked to participate to make an informed decision about their potential participation. Further, the participants must be able to withdraw from the study at any time without suffering any harm. To this end, participants of this study were provided information about the nature of the study either verbally, via email, or both prior to agreeing to participate. Participants were also provided an information sheet just prior to the interview informing them of the following: ● Participation in the study was strictly voluntary and if they agreed to participate, they could withdraw from the study at any time. ● In no way will it reflect poorly on their performance evaluations if they refused to participate in the study. ● Participants could refuse to answer any individual question even if they agreed to participate in the study. ● Participants could withdraw their permission to use their interview data and to have any stored data deleted within two weeks from the interview date. ● Participants would not be provided any monetary compensation for participating in the study. The information sheet also provided details about confidentiality of their data, anonymity of their individual responses, and security of all interview data. After the interview, participants TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 54 were provided transcripts of the interview to verify no words were added or removed. To keep all data secure, interview recordings were saved on a password protected computer. Only the researcher has both physical access to the computer and knowledge of the password used to unlock the computer. All written forms, notes, and other documents were housed in a locked file cabinet. Only the researcher had physical access to the file cabinet and access to the key. At the conclusion of the study, all data was destroyed to maintain confidentiality in perpetuity. Role of Researcher The teachers that were interviewed are employed by a company separate from the company where the researcher was employed, but the two companies were closely related. As such, many of the teachers knew the researcher prior to the interview. It was important for participants to know that what was being asked of them came from the researcher as a doctoral student at the University of Southern California and not as an employee at Black Rock Public Schools. The researcher did not directly supervise any of the teachers, nor have any direct supervisory responsibilities over anyone in their company hierarchy, so interviewing participating teachers at Black Rock Public School did not pose any ethical problem in that regard. The results of the study were tangentially linked to the team that was supervised by the researcher as the Information Systems team was responsible for implementing educational technology at the district and this team also ran the internal help desk which received calls for assistance for the educational technology systems. However, the results of the study could not adversely affect the Information Systems team in any way, so again, this should not have caused any ethical problems. The professional development program was being created and TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 55 implemented by a team at a separate company from the company where the researcher is employed, so results that increased or decreased budget allocation did not cause benefit or detriment to the Information Systems team. Finally, the issue of potential bias must be addressed. As mentioned previously, using a qualitative approach to research collection makes it easier for research bias to creep into the study results due to all conclusions running through the researcher’s personal filter. This case was no exception. For at least a decade the researcher has advocated for the need of a comprehensive professional development program at Black Rock. This study could have either helped or hurt the argument for the need of this program. However, when looking at the interview data, objectivity was maintained and the researcher worked to remain impartial when coding the data, reaching conclusions, and creating recommendations. Conclusion The purpose of this study was to help assess the needs of teachers when creating a professional development program on the use of educational technology in the classroom at Black Rock Public Schools. This professional development program will be centered around increasing the usage of educational technology by teachers in delivering classroom lessons. The program is being created and implemented as part of a longer-term strategic goal to increase technological literacy in students. This study was being conducted using a KMO framework pioneered by Clark and Estes (2008). Efforts were made to maintain credibility and trustworthiness, and not to allow the researcher’s personal bias to persuade the conclusions. Chapter Four will present the findings and analysis of the data collected during this study. TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 56 CHAPTER FOUR: RESULTS AND FINDINGS Chapter Four presents the findings and themes uncovered from interviews conducted with eight teachers at a Southern California high school that is part of the Black Rock Public Schools school district, a pseudonym. Chapter Four begins by reviewing the purpose of the study and the research questions. The chapter then turns to the study participants, providing a brief overview of the individuals interviewed in a participant profile. Next is a presentation of the individual research question themes that emerged in response to each assumed influence on performance and related interview questions. These research question themes are presented in sections separated by KMO influences on creating a pilot professional development (PD) program related to using educational technology in the classroom. They are further separated into subsections based on each initial assumed influence. Finally, overall emerging themes looking across KMO influences on performance are presented and discussed before moving on to recommendations for practice in Chapter Five. Study Purpose and Research Questions The purpose of this study was to understand teachers’ knowledge, motivation and organizational influences related to their use of educational technology and provide recommendations for the creation of a pilot professional development program centered on training teachers on the use of educational technology in the classroom. This study looked at teacher knowledge, motivation, and organizational assets and continuing needs utilizing the Clark and Estes Gap Analytic framework (2008). Qualitative data was gathered to perform this analysis through interviews of participant teachers. The research questions used to guide the study were: 1. How can teacher knowledge of and motivation in using educational technology TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 57 impact the creation of a targeted professional development program? 2. How can a district create a professional development program to increase a teacher’s knowledge of and confidence in educational technology? Interviews were conducted with eight current teachers at the high school that was studied. The interview data were analyzed through the lenses of knowledge, motivation, and organizational influences to better understand teachers’ knowledge with the use of educational technology, motivation in using edtech in the classroom, and to assess possible improvements the district can make in future educational technology professional development programs. Interview Participants All teachers who had been teaching at the high school of study for more than one full academic year, 27 teachers, were contacted to request interviews. Of the 27 individuals contacted, eight agreed to participate in the study. Five different academic departments were represented in the participant sample, including English, mathematics, science, social science, and special education. Participants were equally split by gender with four identifying as male and four as female. Longevity in the teaching profession and longevity employed at Black Rock were well distributed, with the number of years teaching and number of years at Black Rock displayed in the table below. Participants’ pseudonyms were used in Table 8 to maintain confidentiality. Table 8 Interview participants (n = 8) Pseudonym Years of Teaching (range) Years at Black Rock (range) Paul Lee 6-10 1-5 Donald Bell 16-20 16-20 TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 58 Ray Butler 6-10 1-5 Helen Rickman 11-15 11-15 Eva Garcia 1-5 1-5 Linda Harris 6-10 6-10 Roy Martinez 1-5 1-5 Alice Carter 6-10 6-10 Findings for Research Question One: Knowledge and Skills Influences Knowledge influences on teachers’ ability to effectively incorporate educational technology into their classrooms’ practices were broken down into three a priori influences using Krathwohl’s (2002) definitions of knowledge types, including declarative, procedural, and metacognitive knowledge. The knowledge assumed influences are presented in Table 9, along with the specific knowledge category to which each question aligns. The text of each question asked in the interviews is also displayed. The final column introduces the theme(s) that arose based on analysis of the interview data. Table 9 Assumed Knowledge Influences and Related Themes Assumed Knowledge Influence Knowledge Category Aligned Knowledge Question Themes Teachers’ need knowledge of the technical aspects of using educational technology Knowledge - Declarative When we are designing a new educational technology professional development program, what knowledge would it be important for you to have about the technical aspects of using that technology in your classroom Theme 1: Teachers want to know how the program presents information from a student perspective. Theme 2: Teachers seek knowledge of technical aspects of how to effectively incorporate TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 59 practice? technology into pedagogy. Teachers’ need skills related to incorporating educational technology into lesson plans Knowledge - Procedural What additional skills would you need to master to help you incorporate educational technology into your lesson plans and into your classroom practice? Theme 3: Teachers need time to practice during professional development. Theme 4: Teachers need PD to be peer-driven because a fellow teacher showing how they are successfully using edtech in the classroom is more effective than that same message being delivered by a non-teacher. Teachers’ need to be able to engage in self- reflection on their own effectiveness in incorporating educational technology into their classroom lessons Knowledge - Metacognitive How do you know when you are effectively using educational technology in your classroom? Theme 5: Teachers want to learn how to more easily and effectively access outcome data from edtech platforms as perceptions of student engagement and outcomes were the most relevant indicators of effective use of edtech in the classroom. Teachers’ Knowledge of the Technical Aspects of Using Educational Technology This assumed influence focused on declarative knowledge. Declarative knowledge consists of both factual and conceptual knowledge. Factual knowledge is essentially basic and discrete bits of knowledge about a specific subject while conceptual knowledge is more complex and organized knowledge of a subject such as theories, principals, and modalities (Krathwohl, 2002). The assumed influence and related interview question sought to understand the knowledge of the technical aspect of using educational technology that teachers require to effectively incorporate edtech into their pedagogy. Interview participants highlighted a number of different technical aspects they desired to learn from a professional development program. TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 60 Two themes arose around their need for knowledge of the technical aspects of using educational technology. These themes were: 1. Teachers want to know how the program presents information from a student perspective; and 2. Teachers seek knowledge of technical aspects of how to effectively incorporate technology into pedagogy. For the first theme, teachers discussed wanting to know how the platform presents information from both a teacher and a student perspective. Donald Bell stated, I need to understand what it looks like for me and what it looks like for the students. You know what I'm saying? So like, I'll give you an example. Nearpod is a mystery to me because I don't feel like I can understand and see what they're seeing. Whereas Pear Deck, I know what I'm seeing is what they're seeing…I want to be able to understand what it's going to look like for them and how they're going to be able to use it. That to me is important. Linda Harris agreed with Bell saying she wanted to see, “what it would look like from my perspective and what it looks like from a student perspective.” Learning how the platform presents information to students was important to teachers as it would help with the deeper desire to understand how to effectively incorporate edtech into their pedagogy and into their lesson plans. Ray Butler summed up the importance of learning to incorporate edtech pedagogically when he shared the following, ...on the pedagogical side, how do you use [edtech] in a highly effective way is something I'm really interested in because it's a huge, huge shift from what we were using these things for during the [COVID] pandemic, which was we were forced of necessity, to try to be able to monitor our kids and see what they're doing in some way and see and try to encourage them to engage in learning. And TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 61 now we have so many options. And there's a menu of possibilities and how to use them effectively without losing all the great things about being in a room. The information gathered from the interviews on the declarative knowledge assumed influence showed that teachers want a deeper understanding of edtech platforms. Data showed that teachers wanted professional development to be more than a superficial, technical overview of using a platform. Instead, they wanted professional development to help them gain deep familiarity with an edtech platform. Only when they are completely comfortable with a platform can they effectively incorporate that platform into their classroom lessons. Teachers’ Skills Related to Incorporating Educational Technology into Lesson Plans This assumed influence sought to understand the procedural knowledge that teachers need to effectively incorporate edtech into their lesson plans. Procedural knowledge is the knowledge of how to perform a task or execute a specific skill (Krathwohl, 2002). Two themes emerged around the need for procedural knowledge in incorporating education technology into lesson plans. The themes that emerged were: 3. Teachers need time to practice during professional development; and 4. Teachers need PD to be peer-driven because a fellow teacher showing how they are successfully using edtech in the classroom is more effective than that same message being delivered by a non-teacher. While the interview question for this assumed influence asked about specific skills each interviewee would need to gain to help incorporate edtech into their lesson plans, most respondents chose instead to focus on professional development delivery methods as being more important to gaining proficiency rather than listing any specific skill they felt they needed to master. Five of eight respondents stated that having time to gain hands-on experience during TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 62 professional development was very important in helping to incorporate edtech into their lesson plans. Paul Lee stated, When I first started using [Nearpod], it really helped seeing other people use it first. And then me not only observing them, but me actually having a hands-on experience, like someone giving me an actual lesson on Nearpod. And then me practicing and seeing okay, this is where I click for this and this is where I click for that. Linda Harris agreed, stating, I don't think we're given any time to practice. So I think if if there was some common edtech that our school or the org, either school site or org based, we were all working towards, and that could be part of our PD calendar. That would probably be the biggest benefit. Because then we will be able to collaborate with our department or people outside of our department. And then those teachers who do really like thrive with the edtech could be the ones to lead it or share the successes, that have been going on in our class. The latter point that Linda made about having teachers who thrive with edtech leading professional development was echoed by many respondents. Five of eight respondents indicated a requirement for the individuals leading professional development to be a fellow teacher, and if possible, be someone teaching at their own campus. Donald Bell stated, ...the best PD is when it's on site led by my peers. If you're at All Black Rock Day and someone's trying to lead a whole thing, it's like okay, I may or may not use this but if we're at school, and it's like the guy that teaches next door is showing TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 63 us how he's used something like there's way more buy-in and investment there because like alright, this is working on our campus with our students. Ray Butler agreed saying that leaders of professional development are, “probably going to need to be teachers or a collab of a teacher and a home office person, right? Or someone in home office with lots and lots of relevant and recent teaching experience.” Eva Garcia also agreed with this sentiment, saying, I think you rarely go to like a specialist or someone that's trained in these things, even though they're probably more valuable as a resource. You're more comfortable going to someone you know. So I guess you could train certain people at a school and then have them share that knowledge with everyone else. One of the major themes gathered from the data for the procedural knowledge assumed influence was that teachers need more time to practice with the edtech platform during PD to become proficient. Without adequate time to gain hands-on experience, edtech platforms will not be fully incorporated into lesson plans. The other theme was that professional development needs to be led by a peer. A fellow teacher providing training with real world examples of how they are successfully using edtech in their classroom is much more effective than having the same message delivered by someone with no classroom experience. Teachers’ Self-Reflection on Their Own Effectiveness in Incorporating Educational Technology into Their Classroom Lessons This assumed influence probed the metacognitive knowledge that teachers need to incorporate educational technology into their classroom lessons. Metacognitive knowledge is knowledge of one's own cognition (Krathwohl, 2002). This assumed influence probed teachers’ self-reflection and the effect it has on their ability to incorporate technology into their classroom TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 64 practice. One theme emerged around the need for self-reflection on effectiveness. The theme that emerged from the data in this section was: 5. Teachers want to learn how to more easily and effectively access outcome data from edtech platforms as perceptions of student engagement and outcomes were the most relevant indicators of effective use of edtech in the classroom. Teachers stated that they perceive being effective in using edtech when delivering lessons to be important. Teachers used information on student engagement and outcomes to gauge their own effectiveness in using edtech in the classroom. Six of the eight respondents mentioned student engagement while five of the eight mentioned outcomes. When asked how he gauges if he is effective in using edtech in the classroom, Ray Butler very quickly answered “I think it's a combination of engagement and outcomes.” He went on to explain, So there's opportunities with technology in the classroom to engage kids differently and so if when you're doing something that is, that the kids find really fun, or just engaging it may be fun but it's not always fun, right? But it's something compelling. That's one part of it. But then also you'd want to see like the outcomes that they're mastering the standards that they're, you know, achieving your objective that day that you're seeing growth in their skills. Linda Harris agreed that “seeing better results from students in terms of outcomes” was most important while Paul Lee stated that he looks at results from “checks for understanding,” “temperature checks,” and at “collaboration boards” to find evidence of both engagement and outcomes. Donald Bell further stated, “When I have to pull teeth to get you on [Nearpod] and responding, then it's not that great. But when everyone's already on and like ripping through it, TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 65 it's great, you know, and so you can tell by the level of engagement.” Similarly, Linda Harris said, “I think it would be like student engagement. So if I'm walking around, and the students are like going through the Pear Deck, and they are actually going through it, then I know that it works.” Roy Martinez became very animated in his response while agreeing with this sentiment, stating, When the conversations are actually about [the assignment]. In fact, it's great when I ask them, let's work on this quietly, and they're talking but I realize they're arguing about the work and I'm like, I'm not gonna tell them to stop talking. They're like, ‘you're being dumb’ and I'm like, ‘don't call her dumb but keep the conversation going!’ The data collected for the metacognitive influence pointed to teachers using student outcomes and engagement as a stand in to judge their own effectiveness in using edtech in the classroom. Nearly all respondents listed student engagement and/or outcomes as being most important in knowing how effective they are as teachers at using edtech in their classroom lessons. Teachers monitored student outcomes and engagement as a reflection on their own effectiveness in the use of edtech in the classroom and therefore they want to know how to more easily gather this data from educational technology programs in order to continue reflecting on their own effectiveness. Summary of Assumed Knowledge Needs Teacher responses about their ability to effectively incorporate education technology into their classrooms and pedagogy suggested the desire to gain a more thorough understanding of the educational technology programs being used. Teachers felt that a better understanding of the platform would help them better incorporate educational technology into lesson plans. It would TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 66 also give them better access to student outcome and engagement data with which to gauge their own effectiveness. In addition, responses pointed to the importance of peer-led instruction for professional development. Having peers lead the professional development has the effect of providing real world examples of how to use edtech in the classroom and also increases buy-in amongst teacher attendees of the program, which, they suggest, would lead to increased usage. Findings for Research Question One: Motivational Influences Similar to knowledge influences, motivation influences on teachers’ use of education technology were also broken down into a priori influences using Krathwohl’s (2002) definitions. These influences related to teacher self-efficacy and task value. The motivation assumed influences are presented in Table 10, along with the specific motivation category to which each influence is aligned, the related interview question, and the overall theme that arose from analysis of the interview data. Table 10 Assumed Motivation Influences and Related Themes Assumed Motivation Influence Motivation Category Aligned Motivation Question Themes Teachers’ confidence to optimally incorporate educational technology into lesson plans Motivation - Self-Efficacy How do you feel about your ability to use educational technology in the classroom? Theme 6: Teachers have varying levels of confidence, but those that expressed lesser ability all felt more comfortable after the Covid-19 pandemic and the resulting integration of edtech. Teachers’ perception of incorporating educational technology into lesson plans as critical in supporting student performance Motivation - Task Value How valuable is it for you to use educational technology in the classroom as it relates to student performance? Theme 7: Interviewees stated that edtech is important to student performance and to future academic and workplace life, but it needs to be used TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 67 intentionally, be incorporated into pedagogy, and not be overused which can cause “screen fatigue.” Teachers’ Confidence to Optimally Incorporate Educational Technology into Lesson Plans This assumed influence sought to understand the teachers’ self-efficacy related to educational technology and how that affects how they incorporate edtech into their classrooms and lesson plans. Self-efficacy is an internal judgment of one’s ability to complete a specific task or goal (Rueda, 2011). The interview question asked about the teachers’ confidence in their own ability. If teachers don’t feel confident in their ability to use educational technology in their classroom, they likely will not have the motivation to incorporate edtech into their pedagogy. One theme emerged around the need for teacher’s self-efficacy in motivation. That theme was: 6. Teachers have varying levels of confidence, but those that expressed lesser ability all felt more comfortable after the Covid-19 pandemic and the resulting integration of edtech. Interviewees expressed differing levels of confidence in their ability to use educational technology in the classroom. All eight participants expressed that they became more comfortable with the use of technology in the classroom due to the increased requirement to use edtech every day in their online classroom practice during the COVID pandemic. Alice Carter stated, “If it's a scale of one to four, I think I'm at a three now. Before [COVID] I was at a two, or maybe one and a half. I don't know. I mean, post pandemic I'm at a three now like I'm at standard.” Donald Bell agreed saying, [I’m] better now through the pandemic. I think being at home for that year like you've figured out what works and what doesn't. So there’s things I'm very comfortable with and there's things that like, again, like GoGuardian, I'm not TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 68 gonna try it. Like I don't want that tech and I'm not going to figure it out. But I think I've gotten pretty comfortable with Google Classroom. Google Slides, Google Forms, submitting work online, Pear Deck, relatively comfortable, you know, YouTube, things like that, like I can use them pretty well. However, even with the increase in comfort levels, three of the eight expressed some trepidation, saying that they are not completely comfortable with technology in the classroom. Helen Rickman voiced her discomfort stating, “So I'm always like, really nervous, like when we had to do distance learning and I had to learn how to do Google Classroom like, that was a pretty high anxiety level.” Donald Bell agreed saying, “If it's like too much of a struggle, like I'm just going to revert to what I know how to do and teach those lessons the old school way.” Ray Butler discussed his lack of confidence in edtech by stating, “...on the technical side, I feel great. But on the pedagogical side, I have a lot of questions. And it's definitely an area that I plan to do some reflection and some reconsideration this summer.” Later in the interview Butler added, “I think there's a lot of potential there. I just think it needs, there needs to be, we have a lot to learn, as educators, as an institution, as a profession. I think we have a lot to learn about how to [use edtech] effectively.” Teachers’ confidence level in the use of edtech had increased through usage due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, teachers still expressed some lack of confidence in their ability to use educational technology in the classroom. This suggests that Black Rock could do more planning and training in a purposeful way on how to use edtech in the classroom effectively to improve teacher confidence and motivation to fully incorporate edtech into their pedagogy. TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 69 Teachers’ Perception of Incorporating Educational Technology into Lesson Plans as Critical in Supporting Student Performance Task value is related to motivation because if an individual has procedural knowledge of how to complete a task but does not see the reasoning behind why they should complete the task, it is unlikely the task will be completed. This assumed influence and related interview question examined the extent to which teachers valued the use of edtech in their classroom practice and its ability to boost student performance. One theme emerged around task value in motivation. That theme was: 7. Interviewees stated that edtech is important to student performance and to future academic and workplace life, but it needs to be used intentionally, be incorporated into pedagogy, and not be overused which can cause “screen fatigue.” Even though teacher confidence levels in using educational technology varied, and some teachers indicated they fell back on using older methods for teaching once teachers and students returned to the classroom full time, most respondents still felt that the use of edtech in the classroom was important for enhancing student performance. In fact, seven out of eight interviewees believed that the use of edtech in the classroom to be beneficial for students. For example, Linda Harris stated, “I think it's valuable in the sense that like, as they move forward in their education, they are definitely going to be expected to use technology in college and higher level so like, I do want to give them that experience with using [edtech] in class.” Paul Lee agreed saying “On my end, my job is easier because of technology. On [the student’s] end they're not only getting it done, but they're also learning the skills that hopefully they'll master and carry with them, even beyond high school.” While nearly all respondents believed that edtech should be used in the classroom to some extent to increase student performance, four of the eight respondents thought the use of TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 70 edtech needed to be more intentional and to come with additional training for both teachers and students to help build a positive culture around the use of technology. Helen Rickman felt that schools are relying too much on edtech, to the detriment of students. She explained this by stating, “I think a lot of kids are still doing PearDecks with their teachers, and there's like, screen fatigue. And the kids just kind of feel like, okay, I come in, I open a computer, I log in, like, you know, I have to go through all of this.” Rickman went on to say, I think a lot of our students abuse technology, so they have access to the computers, but they're going to use it to play games…I think Black Rock can do a better job maybe of coming up with, and this is like, obviously, at a school-to- school level, but like, I think kids really need to understand the purpose of the technology that they are given in the classroom. And like, just a little bit more focus as to, ‘hey, you have access to this computer to do this kind of work. And this is why it is not the best use of your time to be doing a game right now.’ Like they're just at least at my school, there's just been zero communication around like, expectations around technology. Ray Butler agreed with Rickman, and discussed the negative impact technology had on students due to the pandemic. Butler summed it up by saying, We've been fighting cell phones for a decade. This thing we're excited about is just a much worse version of the cell phone. Yeah, I mean, I literally walked into a teacher's classroom the other day, and there was, and this is a good, effective teacher, and as I'm opening the door to like pop in, a student on one side is calling out to a student on the other side to get him to join a multiplayer online game during class. TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 71 Responses suggest that most teachers believe edtech to be an important educational tool, one that can help streamline classroom instruction and that can help increase student performance. But to gain these benefits, it is important for the district, school, and teachers to be intentional about the use of edtech in the classroom and to make sure it is not used simply to fill time. Summary of Assumed Motivation Needs Responses to motivation-aligned questions showed that teachers have varying levels of confidence in their own technical ability but that almost all teachers believed that enhancing their own expertise with educational technology would benefit themselves as well as their students in the long run. In order to ensure teachers are motivated to use educational technology to enhance their classroom instruction and, ultimately, student performance, teachers believed that Black Rock would need to build a stronger technology culture, as also supported by the organizational influence findings discussed next. Findings for Research Question Two: Organizational Influences Clark and Estes suggest that in addition to knowledge and motivation, organizational resources are another strong influence in the success or failure of organizational goals. The final section centers around organizational influences on teachers’ use of educational technology in the classroom. These were also broken into a priori influences using Krathwohl’s (2002) definitions of cultural settings and cultural models. Cultural settings are the outward, physical activities that take place between workers to complete tasks while cultural models are composed of an organization's values and norms. Organizational assumed influences are presented in Table 11. The table also shows the category to which each influence is aligned, the related interview questions, and the theme that emerged from analysis of the interview data. TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 72 Table 11 Assumed Organizational Influences and Related Themes Assumed Organizational Influence Category Aligned Organizational Question Themes Organizational emphasis needed on implementing educational technology in the classroom Organizational - Cultural Setting What do you think Black Rock does well when it comes to implementing new educational technology? And conversely what could Black Rock do better? Theme 8: Does well - The organization provides ample access to tools. Theme 9: Could do better - The organization should ensure the trainer has both recent classroom experience AND is an expert with the edtech platform so they can focus on both the technological and pedagogical sides of training. Organizational need to provide professional development to support teachers in implementing educational technology into daily lesson plans Organizational - Cultural Model What supports could Black Rock provide other than a professional development program, to help make it easier for teachers to incorporate educational technology into their classrooms? Theme 10: The organization needs to provide more effective examples of using edtech in the classroom Theme 11: The organization needs to help schools build a culture around the use of edtech with both teachers and students. Organizational Emphasis Needed on Implementing Educational Technology in the Classroom An interview question asked participants to reflect on both what Black Rock does well when implementing edtech and what Black Rock could do better. The focus of this question was TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 73 to understand Black Rock’s cultural setting around the use of edtech. Cultural settings are the outward, physical activities that take place between workers to complete tasks (Gallimore & Goldenberg, 2001). Two themes arose around Black Rock’s cultural settings and what the organization does well and what it could improve on when implementing new educational technology. The themes were: 8. The organization provides ample access to tools; and 9. The organization should ensure the trainer has both recent classroom experience and is an expert with the edtech platform so they can focus on both the technological and pedagogical sides of training. Six out of eight respondents mentioned providing access to alternative edtech options as the number one thing that Black Rock does well when it comes to edtech. Paul Lee summed this up by saying, I appreciate and like that Black Rock gives us options. They don't limit. They don't limit our choices, or what they give us to just one thing, they present multiple options. Like for us, the main, the main programs that stood out were Pear Deck, and Nearpod. Personally, I wasn't a big fan of Pear Deck. Nearpod was one of those things that I learned I was like, ‘huh, I'm getting the hang of this, I'm gonna, I'm gonna stick with this’. So it was more than one program that we were able to embrace. Eva Garcia agreed with Lee, and mentioned specifically that Black Rock subscribes to the premium version of programs, not just the entry level or free versions, stating, I like how we subscribe to like the premium version of our programs of our software, like Pear Deck that I mentioned, we're still, we still have the premium subscription across all our schools. We also have Nearpod which is like a very TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 74 similar software that some teachers use. So I think they do that very well. They like know what we want and what we need. Ray Butler also agreed with Lee and Garcia, and mentioned the same edtech programs in his response, The number one thing that springs to mind with doing well is, I have felt that I have access. And that Black Rock and [the school] are interested in giving me access to tools. And so like, I don't know if this is a mandate across the organization. Or if this is just a result of my admin in my relationship with them or what have you. But like, when I led a PD at my school early in the pandemic where a lot of people were frustrated with Nearpod and I said, hey, you know, there's this alternative Pear Deck that I think is could be a better fit for some of us. And so I led a PD on that and our admin was like, ‘Cool, let's get a license’, you know. And so then we just had both. Having access to both Nearpod and Pear Deck, which are similar content delivery programs, is not an isolated incident. Butler went on to give further examples of Black Rock subscribing to NewsELA, Savvas My Perspectives, and mentioned that they are currently also looking at Fishtank, which are all English language curriculum platforms. While the majority of participants praised the availability of edtech options, six out of eight respondents would like to see improvement in Black Rock’s professional development program centered around there being more focus on pedagogy during future professional development. These responses centered specifically around the professional development trainer needing to have both classroom and edtech experience so that they can focus on both the TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 75 technical use of edtech and on incorporating the edtech into pedagogy. For example, Ray Butler stated, We need to like approach it as like how do we not just focus on the technical side, but on the pedagogical side. And then we also need to make sure that the people who are leading a training are really like super experienced with the tool, because there have definitely been times and including with people I really respect and like at the organization who I feel like we're just put in really tough positions. I'll never forget a PD that [name redacted] led early in the pandemic and I just felt so bad for her because she clearly like was not an expert, and somehow it ended up being the one who needed to lead the PD. Butler added that PD focused on incorporating edtech into pedagogy could best be done by other teachers, stating, I know there are teachers out there who are using technology in effective ways that I haven't dreamed up yet. And I want to learn from that. So like finding those people, and then knowledge sharing…if we can find those people who are effectively using tools, right, like compensating them to share that knowledge and lead PDs. Alice Carter agreed, offering a suggestion that there be “teachers in the organization where you can visit and you can see them teach. So we can have specific teachers who would teach us using technology, and the focus would be not more instructional, but more using technology in the instruction.” TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 76 The teacher responses suggested that Black Rock excels at providing access to edtech programs. At the same time, teachers feel that the organization could improve its organizational support by ensuring professional development is led by experienced teachers with classroom experience. Teachers stated that providing professional development taught by peers would help teachers gain buy-in quickly, and would help them understand how to incorporate edtech into their pedagogy. Organizational Need to Provide Professional Development to Support Teachers in Implementing Educational Technology into Daily Lesson Plans This assumed influence and corresponding interview question asked respondents about specific supports they would require to help them implement edtech into their classroom practice. The purpose of this interview question was to understand how the organization’s cultural model influenced teacher use of edtech and what supports the organization could provide to help make it easier for teachers to successfully incorporate edtech into their classrooms. A cultural model is composed of an organization's values and norms (Gallimore & Goldenberg, 2001). Two themes emerged around the organization's cultural model. The themes that emerged were: 10. The organization needs to provide more effective examples of using edtech in the classroom; and 11. The organization needs to help schools build a culture around the use of edtech with both teachers and students. The organizational model specific to this question centered around the supports needed that the organization could provide to assist teachers with incorporating edtech into their classrooms. Respondents presented two possibilities that Black Rock could focus on as an organization to help teachers incorporate edtech into their classroom lessons. The first was simply providing more effective examples. And, the second centered on the need to help schools TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 77 build a culture around using edtech. Five of eight respondents suggested that Black Rock should provide effective examples of using edtech in classroom lessons. Alice Carter wanted to see videos made available of Black Rock teachers using edtech effectively in their classroom. She said Black Rock should “have their videos of [teachers] using technology, and then talking about, you know, why this helps them as teachers, or how it helps them as teachers and advertise [the videos].” Similarly, Paul Lee wanted to see Black Rock make broadly available examples of lesson plans using edtech effectively and stated, I would have definitely appreciated more, more exemplars, like would have been nice to have more, more lessons sent to me on their part for me to practice with or for me to see, okay, this is what a truly engaging lesson looks like, this is what my lesson should look like moving forward. Eva Garcia agreed with Carter and Lee, saying, I think in terms of implementing it, it's always been a struggle. I don't know if that's like a problem on our end. Maybe we aren't like focusing as much as we should. But it's always a struggle when these new things come out. And the PDs that we have for it have never been that helpful. I don't think I've ever picked up anything from the PD teaching us on how to use new software. It's always been like learning from someone else. But maybe if there were more like examples, it would be more helpful. When the need for building a culture around edtech was discussed, four of eight respondents wanted to see Black Rock work on rolling out edtech platforms in a more holistic way. Specifically, they mentioned that rather than just looking at training teachers on the use of TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 78 each piece of edtech from an individual program standpoint, they want to see Black Rock help schools build a culture around the use of edtech. Helen Rickman said, It's part of a larger issue of why are you here? And what do you need to do while you're here? Because I think that there is that missing piece to really energize students to see kind of the bigger picture, of school, and I think you know, having access to technology will be part of that. Roy Martinez gave examples of a number of different edtech platforms that were introduced but never caught on with teachers or students on their campus, stating, I don't hear that many teachers using [the program]. I haven't heard of any at all using it and I think wow, it sounds like an incredible tool but like, was it like it was never taught it was talked about slightly. Yeah, it was talked about in one PD true. But it wasn't pushed…because so many things have not been pushed. So many great technologies seem to be just washed away. Responses to these questions pointed to the need for Black Rock to provide more concrete examples of how to effectively incorporate edtech into classroom practices. In addition, they wanted Black Rock to focus on building a school culture around the use of technology, rather than simply providing access and rudimentary training in the technical aspects of the use of the technology. Summary of Assumed Organizational Needs Responses to interview questions that asked teachers about what organizational support they needed to incorporate edtech into their classrooms suggested that while Black Rock provides access to just about any educational technology platform that a teacher could want, teachers need additional help in incorporating these technologies into their daily lesson plans. TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 79 Teachers want training from someone who has expertise in the technology being presented but also has real world classroom experience. Teachers also want real world examples of the effective use of educational technology in the classroom. In addition, teachers want help in building a school culture around the use of technology so that students and teachers can work together with technology rather than feeling like technology is working against them. TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 80 CHAPTER FIVE: RESULTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS This study was conducted to surface teachers’ perceived needs to help them functionally and effectively incorporate educational technology into their lesson plans and their classroom practice and provide related recommendations for practice. This surfacing of needs was completed through an interview process, with interview questions separated into the assumed influence areas of KMO. Using the Clark and Estes (2008) KMO framework was important because the literature supports that when teachers fail to use educational technology in their classrooms, or to use it effectively, it is a mix of knowledge, motivation and organizational influences that cause this failure (Afshari et al., 2009; Blanchard et al., 2016; Francom, 2020; Herold, 2016). The purpose of this chapter is to discuss the findings and interrelate those findings into the literature through the lens of the KMO framework. In addition, this chapter will outline recommendations for the creation of a pilot professional development program centered on training teachers on the use of educational technology in the classroom. The chapter will also outline limitations of the study and potential future research ideas. This study is significant because for large, urban charter school districts, there is a lack of information in the literature about how to increase the use of educational technology by teachers through effective professional development. The charter school sector has grown quickly over the last two decades, but research in this particular subject area has not kept pace with this growth. Incorporating the recommendations outlined in this chapter into future professional development should increase the efficacy of teacher training and help teachers and students become more successful in their use of educational technology. If the pilot program being created as a result of the findings of this study is effective, this will help the organization that TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 81 was studied, Black Rock Public Schools, a pseudonym, make future decisions around whether the program should be continued and expanded. The lessons from Black Rock could also inform other schools and districts looking to improve the effectiveness of the use of educational technology in their classrooms. Emerging Themes Once all interview data were analyzed and individualized themes were identified centered around each KMO assumed influence, a final analysis was performed to look across these individualized findings to identify cross-cutting emerging themes. Three emerging themes are outlined in the tables below. Each table lists one emerging theme along with the assumed influence categories, and the specific findings gleaned from the data in the category sections that led to the discovery of that emerging theme. Table 12 Emerging Theme 1 Categories Findings Emerging Theme Knowledge - Declarative Teachers need to know how edtech works and how to effectively incorporate it into classroom lessons More data, examples, and assistance need to be made available for teachers to effectively incorporate edtech into their lesson plans and pedagogy Knowledge - Metacognitive Teachers need access to outcome data to judge their own self effectiveness Motivation - Self-Efficacy Teachers need to feel confident in the use of edtech Organizational - Cultural Model Teachers want concrete examples of how to use edtech in the classroom Table 13 Emerging Theme 2 TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 82 Categories Findings Emerging Theme Knowledge - Procedural Professional development needs to be led by peers to increase teacher buy-in Professional development classes that are led by fellow teachers who are already using the specific edtech successfully in their classrooms are more likely to gain buy-in and foster change in practices Organizational - Cultural Setting Peer-led training will allow teachers to see what works in practice Table 14 Emerging Theme 3 Categories Findings Emerging Theme Motivation - Self-Efficacy Teachers need to feel confident that Black Rock has a master plan in place on the use of edtech The district needs to help schools build a cohesive culture around using edtech amongst staff, teachers, and students Motivation - Task Value Teachers need to feel that the use of edtech is intentional at the district and school Organizational - Cultural Model Teachers want the district and school to build a culture where edtech is used intentionally TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 83 The interview questions asked of teachers throughout the interview process were each linked to either knowledge, motivation, or organizational influences utilizing the Clark and Estes Gap Analytic framework (2008). Through thorough analysis of teacher responses, findings emerged that were further refined and combined into the final emerging themes shown in Tables 12, 13, and 14. In this chapter, these emerging themes will be used to create recommendations for practice that the organization can use in the creation of future professional development programs. Utilizing the recommended techniques should increase the effectiveness of these professional development programs and help teachers increase their knowledge of and confidence in educational technology in the classroom. Discussion of Findings This section will discuss the study findings as they pertain to the research questions that guided the study and the larger body of literature surrounding the topic of study. The research questions used to guide the study were: 1. How can teacher knowledge of and motivation in using educational technology impact the creation of a targeted professional development program? 2. How can a district create a professional development program to increase a teacher’s knowledge of and confidence in educational technology? The study found that teachers require more than just basic technical information on the use of an educational technology platform to successfully incorporate the technology into their classroom practice. While providing basic technical information on using technology can increase teacher knowledge, without the addition of specific examples and best practices, it is difficult for many teachers to intuitively know how to make the best use of the technology. This finding supports the literature of Beglau et al. (2011), Francom (2020), Kopcha (2012), and TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 84 Wood et al. (2005) which found that teachers need instruction in the use of technology, but also need to be taught how to incorporate the technology into their lesson plans. The study found that providing specific examples on the use of the educational technology is perceived as the most effective tactic the district could employ to increase teacher knowledge. The study also found that it is important for the person leading the professional development program to be a fellow teacher. If the trainer does not have real world experience using the educational technology program, this could lead to a lack of buy-in by teacher attendees. This lack of buy-in means teacher motivation to use the edtech program may not increase, which according to the literature is one of the requirements in increasing the effective use of educational technology in the classroom (Afshari et al., 2009; Blanchard et al., 2016; Francom, 2020; Herold, 2016). This also supports the assertions of Beglau et al. (2011), Francom (2020), and Kopcha (2012) who noted that the most effective professional development programs employ a coaching model for content delivery. Further, this study found that while having the trainer not only have teaching experience but be someone that the teacher attendees are already familiar with is not a requirement, it could increase buy-in even further. Finally, the study found that for a professional development program to be successful, it is important for the school to have a cohesive culture around using educational technology amongst all stakeholders. This supports the findings of Brown (2011), Darling-Hammond et al. (2014), and Sinclair (2009) who reported that the use of educational technology in classrooms in a systemized way engages students both academically and socially. The findings of this study extend this way of thinking to include all stakeholders on campus. Doing so helps increase teachers' knowledge of and confidence in using educational technology, but also increases their motivation to more actively incorporate the technology into their classroom lessons. Without a TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 85 cohesive educational technology culture at the school, many teachers believe that students are using the technology to avoid classwork rather than to engage in classwork. Because of this, it is important to ensure students are also taught the appropriate way to engage with technology in the classroom, not only by the teacher, but also in a systemized way at the school level. Recommendations This section offers recommendations for the district to use in the creation of an educational technology professional development pilot program for teachers. If implemented, these recommendations should help increase teachers' knowledge of and confidence in the use of educational technology in the classroom. The themes that emerged from collecting and analyzing the interview data are listed below in Table 1, along with corresponding recommendations for the development of a pilot professional development program. Later in the section, each recommendation will be discussed in detail. Table 15 Emerging Themes and Recommendations Emerging Theme Recommendation 1 More data, examples, and assistance need to be made available for teachers to effectively incorporate edtech into their lesson plans and pedagogy Go beyond the basics during professional development and provide real world examples of how to successfully incorporate educational technology into classroom lessons 2 Professional development classes that are led by fellow teachers who are already using the specific edtech successfully in their classrooms are more likely to gain buy-in and foster change in practices Have fellow teachers from the district with real world experience in the use of the educational technology program lead the training to increase attendee buy-in, knowledge of and confidence in using the educational technology in the classroom 3 The district needs to help schools build a cohesive culture around using edtech The district should invest in building a cohesive culture around using educational technology TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 86 amongst staff, teachers, and students amongst all stakeholders Go Beyond the Basics The first recommendation is that during professional development, Black Rock needs to go beyond the basic technical aspects of how to use educational technology and focus more time on training teachers how to successfully incorporate edtech into their classroom practice. Time allocated to professional development is limited, so it is important in this time to increase both teachers’ knowledge of and confidence in using educational technology as much as possible. Past training programs at Black Rock have focused almost entirely on the technical aspects of using educational technology. While it is important to teach some of the basics, such as how to log in to the program, going over every option and menu item does nothing for actually incorporating the educational technology into the classroom. Interview participants shared that they wanted professional development to be more than a superficial, technical overview of using a platform, but instead wanted information on how they can effectively incorporate that platform into their classroom lessons. According to Knowles’ (1984) work on adult learning theory, while children are more subject-oriented, adults tend to be more problem-oriented when it comes to learning. In other words, when attempting to teach adults, the curriculum should use examples that will help the adults overcome current problems. Given this, Black Rock should focus on providing specific, real world scenarios during training, along with step-by-step instructions on how to use the educational technology in each specific example. This will help teachers become more familiar with the educational technology in a real world setting and will thus increase both their knowledge of and confidence in using the educational technology in the classroom. TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 87 Have Fellow Teachers Lead the Training The second recommendation is to have fellow teachers from the school with real world, successful experience in incorporating the educational technology into the classroom lead the professional development training classes. This will have a two-fold positive effect on the school. First, it will help increase buy-in amongst teacher attendees and second it will help develop teacher leaders. Increasing teacher buy-in refers to the beliefs that attendees of professional development have around whether incorporating educational technology into their classroom practice would have a positive impact for them and for their students. Knowing that the person providing the training has recent classroom experience in a setting similar to their own would have a positive impact on the level of buy-in experienced by teacher attendees. This in turn would increase knowledge of and confidence in using the educational technology in the classroom as there is no trust hurdle that needs to be overcome. As discussed in the previous section, having problem- oriented, current situational examples brought in by fellow teachers will help increase buy-in and knowledge acquisition (Knowles, 1984). Having an outsider come in either from the company that owns the educational technology program that is being implemented, or having someone from the district's education team in the home office providing the training is the next best scenario. However, in each of these scenarios, the trainer will come in with a slight disadvantage and will need to prove they have current, similar experience to establish trust before teacher attendees will accept what they are presenting. In the case of the educational technology company employee, they are not district employees and will need to first establish their real- world experience in a similar classroom setting. For the district home office educational team employee, they will first need to establish their expertise with the application. In either case, it is TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 88 still possible for the teacher attendees to establish the needed trust and to increase knowledge of and confidence in using the educational technology in the classroom, but it will likely take longer than it would if the trainer were a fellow teacher. Alternately, having someone from the IT department with little or no teaching experience and with little or no experience with the educational technology program lead the training, according to the study participants, would be least likely to increase teacher knowledge and confidence in using the new educational technology program. It is highly recommended that this last scenario be avoided if at all possible. The second benefit of having fellow teachers lead the training will be in helping to develop teacher leaders at the school. Crowther, et al. (2009), discussed the importance of developing teacher leaders, asserting that schools are complex social systems and that teacher leaders, “...perform highly complex formal educational functions in conjunction with, and on behalf of, their colleagues and their principals” (p.4). Amongst other things, the Teachers as Leaders Framework that Crowther, et al. (2009) present states that teacher leaders, “...encourag[e] a shared, schoolwide approach to core pedagogical processes” and “work with the principal, administrators, and other teachers to manage projects that heighten alignment between the school’s vision, values, pedagogical practices, and professional learning activities” (p.3). In other words, teacher leaders help to make for an overall better school culture. Katzenmeyer and Moller, (2009) agreed as their research shows that teacher leaders take on increased school responsibilities which in turn has a positive effect on teaching and learning in the entire school (Katzenmeyer & Moller, 2009). The positive impact achieved through an increase in buy-in from teachers attending professional development as well as the expansion in teacher leaders makes this recommendation a win-win for the school. TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 89 Cultivate an Edtech Culture The third recommendation centers around cultivating a positive school culture around technology at the school. It is important to create a positive school culture among all stakeholders around how educational technology can enhance the work of educators and improve the quality of educational content to support all learners. Not everyone at the school may need to use educational technology, but they should all understand the impact that educational technology can have on learning when implemented well. Study participants reported that students are often seen using technology in ways that make access to technology more a hindrance than a benefit to teaching students. One study participant noted that students are seen openly playing games during class time, and compared Chromebooks to “a much worse version of the cell phone” which they had been fighting for a decade. Because of this, the recommendation is that beyond just providing access to software and hardware, Black Rock needs to invest in building a cohesive culture around using educational technology amongst staff, teachers, and students. To do this they would need to build a training program that helps teachers rethink curriculum so edtech is being used efficiently and effectively. The program would need to incorporate all edtech to which the district currently subscribes as the list is quite overwhelming. Ideally, a new teacher would be provided with a list of all available edtech resources, along with an easy to access training guide that includes written and video documentation as well as access to live training programs. A training department could be established to ensure that all documentation is updated regularly and that training classes are offered frequently. To boost use of edtech, rewards could be offered to teachers that increase their use of edtech in the classroom over time. A program like this would help ensure all staff have access to the technology and training that they need to successfully incorporate edtech into TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 90 their classroom practice and recognize the substantial investment of time and energy teachers are making to improve their practice. Currently the biggest impediment to achieving this recommendation is lack of dedicated full-time staff available for building out and implementing such a cohesive training program. The staff that would normally be given this task are currently being used to backfill and support schools due to an extreme teacher shortage in the industry and in the district. The comprehensive program might need to wait until the teacher shortage has been alleviated. In the meantime, a less time intensive recommendation that could be implemented with current resources and that would start the district down the path to cultivating an edtech culture would be to have home office staff create an “advertising” campaign that can be rolled out to all schools training students and staff alike on what is appropriate and what is not appropriate use of district provided and owned technology. There should be well defined rules so that students and staff know what is allowed and what is not allowed. In addition, there should be consequences or rewards around the appropriate use of technology. For example, a school could allow an extra free dress day if no students are caught using technology inappropriately during the month. This recommendation is important as it gets to the heart of organizational influences that the district can roll out to help increase teacher motivation to use educational technology in the classroom. If teachers trust that students are using technology appropriately, they are more likely to allow the use of technology in their classrooms. Evaluation Plan It is important to assess the efficacy of the suggested recommendations for the creation of the educational technology professional development pilot program for teachers. While it is theorized that these recommendations will help increase teachers' knowledge of and confidence TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 91 in the use of educational technology in the classroom, without assessment there is no way of knowing if the recommendations lead to the desired outcome, and therefore if the program should be continued or expanded. To evaluate the recommendations, the Kirkpatrick model (2006) will be employed. The Kirkpatrick model is a method of evaluation which uses four criteria to assess a training program. These criteria are reaction, learning, behavior, and results. Table 1, below shows the evaluation levels in the Kirkpatrick model, as well as suggested evaluation plans for each level. Table 16 Evaluation Plan for Professional Development Program Evaluation Level (Kirkpatrick, 2006) Evaluation Plan Level 1: Reaction ● Post professional development satisfaction exit survey Level 2: Learning ● Pre and post training assessments to evaluate changes in knowledge and commitment to using educational technology in the classroom Level 3: Behavior ● Analyze educational technology program usage data ● Additional criteria in teacher observation protocol evaluating demonstrated knowledge and usage of educational technology in classroom lessons Level 4: Results ● Monitor student achievement over time (i.e. looking for improvement in grades and/or statewide test scores) The first level, reaction, is used to gather stakeholder feedback to an intervention. In this use case, the assessment will utilize an exit survey protocol of teacher trainees on their satisfaction with having attended the professional development program. Negative reactions would indicate less confidence in the use of the educational technology being taught and would lead to lower motivation by attendees to use the educational technology in their classroom. TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 92 Positive reactions would indicate the opposite impact on confidence and motivation. The second level of the Kirkpatrick model is learning. To assess an increase in learning, it is important to establish a baseline knowledge and confidence level in teachers prior to them attending the professional development. This can be done through the use of a pre-training assessment. A subsequent post-training assessment will be used to compare against the pre-training assessment responses to evaluate the level of knowledge, skills, and confidence teachers have acquired through attending the professional development. The third level of the Kirkpatrick model evaluates changes in behavior. This is used to see if what teachers learned during professional development translates into concrete changes in day-to-day classroom practice. To evaluate this level, it will be helpful to capture and analyze educational technology program usage from before and after teachers attend the professional development program. Furthermore, an additional protocol should be added of formal teacher observations to assess demonstrated knowledge of and use of educational technology in the classroom setting. Finally, the fourth level in the Kirkpatrick model is results. This step is used to discover if the intervention ultimately translates into the intended outcomes. In this case, short term outcomes could be observed engagement in learning but long-term outcomes would be positive changes in student achievement. This assessment level will look for these positive changes by comparing longitudinal grade and state testing assessment data over time. Using the Kirkpatrick model will help Black Rock Public Schools leadership perform an overall evaluation of the professional development program being developed. Outcomes gathered through this evaluation process can be used to adjust the program as needed, and evaluate if the program should be expanded into all schools in the district. TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 93 Limitations and Delimitations Limitations are influences that the researcher cannot control. Delimitations are the boundaries set by the researcher that need to be addressed (Creswell, 2018). This study contains a number of limitations and delimitations. One limitation centered around the length of time that is needed to study the entire problem. The scope of the issue being studied will take much longer than the researcher had available for the dissertation process, and will need to be ongoing. To ascertain if the recommendations being put forth from the data gathered in this study have a positive impact, it will take additional years of study. This study was limited to looking at only the first step of the whole process. The long-term goal of the strategic plan being implemented at Black Rock Public Schools centers around increasing student outcomes and on closing the digital divide for its students. The time frame for implementing this strategic plan from start to finish is much longer than is allowed for this study. Because of this, the research is limited to looking at only the first step being taken to bring the strategic plan to fruition. This step centers around increasing teacher comfort levels with using technology in the classroom. While this first step was an important step to study, subsequent research will need to be conducted to ascertain if implementing this first step has any positive downstream effect on student outcomes and on lessening the digital divide. Another limitation was that when using a qualitative research approach the conclusions being reached are being run through the researcher’s personal filter which makes it easier for research bias to creep into the results (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016). In addition to this, qualitative research lacks anonymity for the research subjects. In a quantitative study, subjects can remain completely anonymous whereas for qualitative studies, the researcher is most often present TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 94 during data collection. This lack of anonymity can affect outcomes by influencing or changing subject responses (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016). It is up to the researcher to consciously mitigate these weaknesses as much as possible to ensure trustworthiness and credibility by “carrying out the study in as ethical a manner as possible” (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016, p.265). A conscious effort was made to mitigate both limitations. For research bias, probing and follow up questions were used to ensure the data being gathered expressed the view of the person being interviewed and not of the researcher. For lack of anonymity, research subjects were assured their responses would remain anonymous, and that both positive and negative feedback were valuable as they would be used to positively affect future professional development. A final limitation encountered during this study was a combination of a resurgence of the COVID-19 pandemic, called the Omicron Variant, combined with a teacher shortage that the educational industry was experiencing during the study window. Both of these limitations caused teachers to have limited time available for interviews, or to simply be completely unavailable. To mitigate this, the researcher was as flexible as possible with the interview schedule. One delimitation that was encountered during the study was the time of year the study was conducted. April and May of the spring school semester is when state testing was conducted which caused teachers to be overly busy and to be less inclined to voluntarily participate in a research study. This combined with the aforementioned COVID-19/teacher shortage limitation made scheduling interviews extremely difficult. One of the weaknesses of a qualitative approach is that it often takes a lot of time to gather usable data, and in fact it could go on indefinitely, often ending when time and money allocated to the project run out (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016). This means there are usually fewer results in which to base conclusions than in a quantitative study. The smaller sample size can make it harder to recognize patterns that would be more TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 95 evident with the larger sample size normally available in a quantitative study. In this case, additional time could have increased the number of usable data points and could have led to additional categories, themes, or findings. Ideally interviews end when the collection of data has reached a point of saturation. Saturation is when additional interviews reveal no new categories, themes, or findings (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016). In this case, a number of findings were uncovered, but it is unclear if saturation was truly reached. Similar to the previous limitation, extreme flexibility with the interview schedule was required to allow for as many participants as possible. Another delimitation encountered was that this study only included the perspective of teachers. Administrators and home office staff were left out of the first phase of the study. This was done to ensure adequate data was collected from teachers with the limited amount of time that was available for data collection. Administrators and home office staff will need to be included in subsequent studies when time is less restricted. Recommendations for Future Research The lack of information in the literature specific to the large, urban charter school sector about how to increase the use of educational technology by teachers through effective professional development points to a need for additional research studies. This study interviewed teachers at a single, charter high school located within an urban environment. While this is an important group to study, the results found cannot be seen as exhaustive. The interview questions used to gather data could be used to gather data at additional schools in other settings. This could include other schools within the Black Rock district, but could also include other large urban charter management organizations. It could also be used in rural settings or in smaller districts as the interview protocol did not rely on the district being a large, urban district. TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 96 It would also be worthwhile to expand the data collection to include stakeholders from middle and elementary schools to see if the grade level being taught changes the perceived requirements that teachers need to effectively incorporate educational technology into the classroom. Other stakeholders, including administrators and students, could also be interviewed to gather additional points of view on the use of educational technology in the classroom. Also, while this study used an interview protocol, future research could instead use a survey protocol to increase the number of responses and to collect data in a different setting. Lastly, if the recommendations provided in this research study are accepted and implemented, it will be important to evaluate their efficacy as outlined in the evaluation plan section of this chapter. This will hopefully be carried out and published in the future either by the researcher or by the district. Conclusion African American and Hispanic students in the United States face a digital divide which negatively impacts their achievement as students (Anderson & Auxier, 2020; Bergdahl et al., 2020; Kalyanpur & Kirmani, 2005). One of the main drivers of this digital divide has been a lack of technical skills demonstrated by teachers (Francom, 2020; Wallace, 2012; Wood et al., 2005). To help combat this issue, it is important for schools to help increase teacher knowledge of and confidence in using educational technology in the classroom. This study found that it is important for professional development programs to do more than provide surface level technical training on aspects of using an educational technology program. After teaching the basics, the professional development program must then go deeper and provide real world examples of how to effectively incorporate the educational technology platform into classroom lessons. The study also found that having fellow teachers with real world experience deliver professional TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 97 development has a positive impact on the level of buy-in experienced by teacher attendees which would in turn increase the teacher’s knowledge of and confidence in using educational technology in the classroom. Finally, the study found that it is important for the district and school to build a cohesive culture around using educational technology amongst all stakeholders. The success of the professional development program with the goal of increasing teacher knowledge and motivation in using educational technology in the classroom will be greatly improved by implementing these recommendations. This will lead to an increase in technological aptitude by teachers at the district. This is ultimately important because an increase in technological aptitude by teachers will help close the digital divide for African American and Hispanic students which should positively impact their achievement as students and increase their quality of life over time. TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 98 References Afshari, M., Kamariah, A. Bakar, Wong, S., Luan, B. A., Samah, Foo, S., & Fooi. (2009, January). Factors Affecting Teachers’ Use Of Information And Communication Technology. Retrieved from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED524156.pdf Aliyu, A. A. (2015). 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A revision of Bloom’s Taxonomy: An overview. Theory into Practice, 41(4), 212–218. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15430421tip4104_2 LearnPlatform. (2020). Double-Digit edtech Usage Gaps Persist at the Start of the New School Year, According to New Research. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/double- digit-edtech-usage-gaps-persist-at-the-start-of-the-new-school-year-according-to-new- research-301162970.html TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 102 LearnPlatform. (2021). New 2020 Edtech Report Spotlights Lingering Gap in Usage for Students, Educators Despite Improvements from Spring. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/new-2020-edtech-report-spotlights- lingering-gap-in-usage-for-students-educators-despite-improvements-from-spring- 301217393.html Li, Y., Garza, V., Keicher, A., & Popov, V. (2019). Predicting High School Teacher Use of Technology: Pedagogical Beliefs, Technological Beliefs and Attitudes, and Teacher Training. Technology, Knowledge and Learning, 24(3), 501-518. 10.1007/s10758-018- 9355-2 Lochmiller, C. R., & Lester, J. N. (2017). An introduction to educational research: Connecting methods to practice. Madden, M., Lenhart, A., Duggan, M., Cortesi, S., & Gasser, U. (2013). Teens and Technology 2013. In Policy File. Pew Research Center. ***** Martin, W., Strother, S., Beglau, M., Bates, L., Reitzes, T., & McMillan Culp, K. (2010). Connecting Instructional Technology Professional Development to Teacher and Student Outcomes. Journal of Research on Technology in Education, 43(1), 53-74. 10.1080/15391523.2010.10782561 Merriam, S. B., & Tisdell, E. J. (2016). Qualitative research: A guide to design and implementation (4th ed.). Jossey-Bass. Mouza, C. (2006). Linking Professional Development to Teacher Learning and Practice: A Multi-Case Study Analysis of Urban Teachers. Journal of Educational Computing Research, 34(4), 405-440. https://libkey.io/libraries/149/articles/57402028/full-text- file?utm_source=api_287 TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 103 NTIA (1999, November). Falling through the net : defining the digital divide. U.S. Dept. of Commerce, National Telecommunications and Information Administration. NTIA (2020, June). NTIA Data Reveal Shifts in Technology Use, Persistent Digital Divide. U.S. Dept. of Commerce, National Telecommunications and Information Administration. Perrin, A., & Turner, E. (2019, August 20). Smartphones help blacks, Hispanics bridge some – but not all – digital gaps with whites Pew Research Center, Washington D.C. https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/08/20/smartphones-help-blacks-hispanics- bridge-some-but-not-all-digital-gaps-with-whites/ PriceWaterhouseCoopers (2018) Technology in US schools: Are we preparing our kids for the jobs of tomorrow? https://www.pwc.com/us/en/about-us/corporate- responsibility/assets/pwc-are-we-preparing-our-kids-for-the-jobs-of-tomorrow.pdf Rideout, V., & Katz, V. S. (2016). Opportunity for all? Technology and learning in lower- income families The Joan Ganz Cooney Center at Sesame Workshop https://joanganzcooneycenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/jgcc_opportunityforall.pdf Rogers, S. (2016). Bridging the 21st Century Digital Divide. TechTrends, 60(3), 197–199. 10.1007/s11528-016-0057-0 Rueda, R. (2011). The 3 dimensions of improving student performance. Teachers College Press. Sinclair, G. B. (2009). Is Larry Cuban right about the impact of computer technology on student learning? Nawa: Journal of Language & Communication, 3(1), 46–54. Sparks, C. (2013). What is the “Digital Divide” and why is it Important? Javnost 20(2), 27–46. 10.1080/13183222.2013.11009113 Steele, C. (2019, February 22) What is the Digital Divide? http://www.digitaldividecouncil.com/what-is-the-digital-divide/ TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 104 Subramony, D. P. (2007). Understanding the complex dimensions of the digital divide: Lessons learned in the Alaskan Arctic. The Journal of Negro Education, 76(1), 57–67. University of California, San Francisco (2014) Learning and Organization Development https://learning.ucsf.edu/staff-development/staff-learning-portal/professional- development-guide U.S. Census Bureau (2020). Inequalities Persist Despite Decline in Poverty For All Major Race and Hispanic Origin Groups. https://www.census.gov/library/stories/2020/09/poverty- rates-for-blacks-and-hispanics-reached-historic-lows-in-2019.html U.S. Department of Education. (n.d.). About ED. https://www2.ed.gov/about/landing.jhtml U.S. Department of Education, Office of Educational Technology (2017) Reimagining the Role of Technology in Education: 2017 National Education Technology Plan Update. https://tech.ed.gov/files/2017/01/NETP17.pdf van Deursen, A., & van Dijk, J. (2019). The first-level digital divide shifts from inequalities in physical access to inequalities in material access. New Media & Society, 21(2), 354– 375. 10.1177/1461444818797082 Wallace, K. (2012). Teachers & Technology: Identifying Uses, Barriers, and Strategies to Support Classroom Integration. ProQuest Dissertations Publishing. Wood, E., Mueller, J., Willoughby, T., Specht, J., & Deyoung, T. (2005). Teachers’ Perceptions: Barriers and supports to using technology in the classroom. Education Communication and Information, 5(2), 183–206. 10.1080/14636310500186214 World Health Organization (2021) Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) https://www.who.int/health-topics/coronavirus TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 105 Appendix A: Interview Protocol Teacher Interview Questions 1. (Background) How long have you been a teacher, and how long have you been at Black Rock? 2. (Background) What is your favorite part about being a teacher? 3. (Background) In general, how do you feel about incorporating technology into the classroom? 4. (Knowledge - Declarative) When we are designing a new educational technology professional development program, what knowledge would it be important for you to have about the technical aspects of using that technology in your classroom practice? 5. (Knowledge - Procedural) What additional skills would you need to master to help you incorporate educational technology into your lesson plans and into your classroom practice? 6. (Knowledge - Metacognitive) How do you know when you are effectively using educational technology in your classroom? 7. (Motivation - Self-Efficacy) How do you feel about your ability to use educational technology in the classroom? 8. (Motivation - Task Value) How valuable is it for you to use educational technology in the classroom as it relates to student performance? 9. (Organizational - Settings) What do you think Black Rock does well when it comes to implementing new educational technology? And conversely what could Black Rock do better? 10. (Organizational - Models) What supports could Black Rock provide other than a TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 106 professional development program, to help make it easier for teachers to incorporate educational technology into their classrooms? (probe on time for practice and peer mentoring if they are not mentioned) 11. (Overall Wrap up question) If you were going to design the ideal professional development program for an educational technology platform, what would be the top 2 - 3 essential elements that would have to be included? TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 107 Appendix B: Interview Questions Mapped to KMO Constructs/Influences KMO Construct KMO Influence Interview Question Knowledge Declarative Teachers’ need to have knowledge of the technical aspects of using educational technology. When we are designing a new educational technology professional development program, what knowledge would it be important for you to have about the technical aspects of using that technology in your classroom practice? Knowledge Procedural Teachers’ need to have skills related to incorporating educational technology into lesson plans. What additional skills would you need to master to help you incorporate Educational Technology into your lesson plans? And what about incorporating it into your classroom practice? Knowledge Metacognitive Teachers’ need to self-reflect on their own effectiveness in incorporating educational technology into their classroom lessons. How do you know when you are effectively using educational technology in your classroom? Motivation Self-Efficacy Teachers’ need confidence to optimally incorporate educational technology into classroom lesson plans. How do you feel about your ability to use educational technology in the classroom? Motivation Task Value Teachers’ perception of incorporating educational technology into lesson plans How valuable is it for you to use educational technology in the classroom as it relates to student performance? TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 108 is critical in supporting student performance. Organizational Settings Organizations must place emphasis on implementing educational technology in the classroom. What do you think Black Rock does well when it comes to implementing new educational technology? And what could Black Rock do better? Organizational Models Organizations must provide time for practice and peer mentoring along with professional development for it to be effective. What supports could Black Rock provide other than the professional development program to help make it easier for teachers to incorporate educational technology into their classrooms? (probe on time for practice and peer mentoring if they are not mentioned) TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 109 Appendix C: Interview Invitation Email 1 Hello <name>, The short version: I know you are very busy so here is the gist of this email - I could really use your help gathering information about professional development for educational technology at Black Rock. If you are willing to participate in a study about edtech professional development by participating in a 30 minute interview, please <click this link> to schedule an interview with me at a day/time that would be most convenient for you. Participation is strictly voluntary, but would truly help me and Black Rock in creating future training programs. Feel free to skip the rest of this email unless you want more information. The slightly longer version: I am a doctoral student at the University of Southern California and I would like to invite you to participate in a study about educational technology professional development at Black Rock Public Schools. The study is being performed to evaluate what is needed to create an innovative and truly helpful educational technology professional development program for teachers. The results of the study will be used by Black Rock to analyze the usefulness of its current educational technology professional development program and will also be used as research for my doctoral dissertation. You were selected to participate in this study because you are a teacher at <school name> and have valuable insight into what teachers need from professional development. Participation is simple, and consists of an interview conducted via Zoom that will take approximately 30 TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 110 minutes to complete. Participation is strictly voluntary and your responses will remain anonymous in the final report. If you are willing to participate, please <click this link> to schedule an interview with me at a day/time that would be most convenient for your participation. Please see the attached information sheet for more information about the study and feel free to reach out to me with any questions. Thank you for your consideration and participation. Sincerely, Jeff Shultz TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 111 Appendix D: Interview Invitation Email 2 Hi <name>- Just sending a quick reminder about this opportunity to share your opinion on the state of edtech professional development at Black Rock! We really want to know your thoughts on what will be valuable in future trainings. Just <click this link to schedule an interview with me> at a day/time that would be most convenient for you in the next few weeks. The interview will take no more than 1 hour, but will likely be about half that. I know how hectic this time of year is, and participation is strictly voluntary, but your ideas could truly help me and Black Rock in creating future edtech training programs. Feel free to reach out to me with any questions. Thanks again for your consideration and participation. Sincerely, Jeff Shultz TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 112 Appendix E: Interview Invitation Email 3 It's just me again, <name>- I know you’re getting tired of hearing from me and I'm sorry I keep filling up your inbox with messages, but I really, REALLY need just a few more people to say yes to participating in a short interview. It will only take about 30 minutes out of your day, I promise! And in that time you'll get to share your thoughts on what makes professional development truly worthwhile for teachers. My findings will be synthesized and conclusions will be shared with the top levels of Black Rock management, so your opinion really does matter. And as a bonus, I promise to stop sending you these annoying emails once you sign up. So what do you say? <Click this link> to schedule an interview with me and make my day! :) Sincerely, Jeff Shultz TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 113 Appendix F: Interview Invitation Email 4 Hi <name>- This is my last email, I promise. I have conducted some amazing interviews with your colleagues over the past week and I'm truly in awe of how passionate and insightful they have all been. The recommendations that come from these interviews will be shared with the chiefs at Black Rock home office, so if you want your voice included on what Black Rock should be doing in their educational technology professional development program moving forward, now is your chance! <Click this link> to schedule an interview with me anytime this week. But even if you can't, I still appreciate everything you do for <school name>, for Black Rock, and for the students! Sincerely, Jeff Shultz TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 114 Appendix G: Information Sheet INFORMATION SHEET FOR EXEMPT RESEARCH STUDY TITLE: Assessing the Needs of Teachers when Creating Educational Technology Professional Development for an Urban Charter School District: An Innovation Study PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR: Jeff Shultz FACULTY ADVISOR: Cathy Krop, Ph.D. You are invited to participate in a research study. Your participation is voluntary. This document explains information about this study. You should ask questions about anything that is unclear to you. PURPOSE The purpose of this study is to assess what is needed to create an innovative educational technology professional development program at Black Rock Public Schools. You are invited as a possible participant because you are a teacher at SouthLands High School and have valuable insight into what teachers need in professional development. PARTICIPANT INVOLVEMENT Participation consists of an interview conducted via Zoom that will take approximately 1 hour to complete. Participation is strictly voluntary and your responses will remain anonymous in the final report. Interviews will be recorded and transcribed. CONFIDENTIALITY The members of the research team, and the University of Southern California IRB may access the data. The IRB reviews and monitors research studies to protect the rights and welfare of research subjects. When the results of the research are published or if they are discussed in conferences, no identifiable information will be used. Teacher participation will be kept strictly confidential and anonymous. School administration will not know what teachers agree to participate in the study. During analysis and final reporting, care will be taken to ensure any and all identifying data is not included in the study findings. Pseudonyms will be used in the case a name must be provided for an individual. Original interview recordings will be kept on a secure drive that can only be accessed by the principal researcher. Once the recording is transcribed, you will have the right to review/edit the transcripts and to have your responses removed from the study within two weeks after the interview has been conducted. At the conclusion of the study, all data will be destroyed to protect confidentiality. INVESTIGATOR CONTACT INFORMATION TEACHER NEEDS AND TECH FOR PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 115 If you have any questions about this study, please contact Jeff Shultz at 213-200-3401 or jeff.shultz@usc.edu. You can also contact the faculty advisor, Dr. Cathy Krop at krop@usc.edu. IRB CONTACT INFORMATION If you have any questions about your rights as a research participant, please contact the University of Southern California IRB at (323) 442-0114 or email irb@usc.edu.

Abstract (if available)

Abstract African American and Hispanic students face a digital divide that negatively impacts their achievement as students. It is important for teachers to become more proficient in the use of educational technology to help shrink this digital divide, and to close the achievement gap. The purpose of this study was to assess the needs of teachers and to provide recommendations to help an urban charter school district create an effective professional development program centered on helping teachers become more technologically proficient, and to learn to incorporate educational technology into their classroom practice. The study utilized a modified gap analysis framework, pioneered by Clark and Estes (2008) to assess teacher needs. Interviews were conducted and data analyzed to help identify current knowledge, motivation, and organizational assets, and to surface additional needs that, if fulfilled, will help increase teacher usage of educational technology. Eight current teachers from Black Rock Public Schools, a pseudonym, participated in the study. Findings concluded that it is important for professional development to include real world examples to help teachers effectively incorporate educational technology into their lesson plans. In addition, having fellow teachers with real world experience in using educational technology in the classroom leads to increased buy-in and fosters changes in classroom practice. Finally, the study found that building a cohesive school culture around the use of educational technology leads to increased educational technology usage. These findings were used to propose recommendations on the creation of future professional development, and included a plan to evaluate the efficacy of the suggested recommendations.

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Asset Metadata

Creator Shultz, Jeff (author)

Core Title Assessing the needs of teachers when creating educational technology professional development for an urban charter school district: an innovation study

School Rossier School of Education

Degree Doctor of Education

Degree Program Global Executive

Degree Conferral Date 2023-05

Publication Date 01/31/2023

Defense Date 01/09/2023

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag charter school,digital divide,Ed Tech,edtech,Educational Technology,innovation,KMO,OAI-PMH Harvest,professional development,teacher,Teacher Training,technology,Training

Format theses (aat)

Language English

Contributor Electronically uploaded by the author (provenance)

Advisor Krop, Cathy (committee chair), Aguda, Narciso (committee member), Robison, Mark (committee member)

Creator Email jeff.shultz@usc.edu,shultz.jeff@gmail.com

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-oUC112723863

Unique identifier UC112723863

Identifier etd-ShultzJeff-11457.pdf (filename)

Legacy Identifier etd-ShultzJeff-11457

Document Type Dissertation

Format theses (aat)

Rights Shultz, Jeff

Internet Media Type application/pdf

Type texts

Source 20230201-usctheses-batch-1005 (batch), University of Southern California (contributing entity), University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses (collection)

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