There has been an increase in the number of online universities, degrees, and coursework over the last decade. Institutions of higher learning are beginning to embrace online instruction more than ever before. However, the motives behind enrollment and the benefits of online instruction have not always been clearly understood. The purpose of this…

This article discusses a study which was designed to explore how online scaffolding can be incorporated to support knowledge acquisition in asynchronous discussion. A group of Singapore preservice teachers engaged in collaborative critiquing of videos before they embarked on their video projects to illustrate what constitutes good and bad video…

In this study we examined the effects of online follow-up and online peer interaction following a face-to face professional development workshop on attitudes towards that professional development and completion of a professional development task. School librarians were invited to work online on a three page plan outlining interventions a library…

Recognizing the power of high quality practice in teacher preparation, a web-based simulation called Cook School District was designed to allow teacher candidates to practice the skills necessary to connect their teaching to the learning of all children employing the framework of teacher work samples (TWS). Pilot study data comparing simulation…

Instructional coaching or mentoring, as a form of professional development for teachers, has gained importance as educational policy has called for the implementation of research-validated instructional practices by highly qualified teachers. Technology-mediated mentoring has strong potential for overcoming barriers of accessibility and…

The effects of using a student response system (SRS) in a graduate lecture class in special education were investigated. Comparisons of content mastery and self-reported engagement between lectures with the SRS and without were made. Students demonstrated more mastery of content on weekly quizzes and reported increased class engagement on those…

This paper will describe an inquiry into the case of a design & technology one-year Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) trainee's interpretation of their school-based experience in England using the DEPTH approach of subject knowledge, pedagogic knowledge and school knowledge. The following research questions drove the study: (a) What…

There are various aspects to teachers' professional knowledge, some such as subject knowledge are more easy to articulate than others, for example knowing how to construct a scheme of work. Student teachers need to be able to understand the various aspects of teachers' professional knowledge in order to be able to help themselves reflect on and…

The Finnish case contributing to the international DEPTH study was carried out within the Technology Education "NOW!" project at the University of Oulu. Nineteen project teachers participated in the study. The recent revision of the Finnish Basic Education Curriculum with the introduction of the cross-curricular theme "Humans and Technology"…

In this issue of the International Journal of Technology and Design, we report on a series of case studies from the second phase of an international project--Developing Professional Thinking for Technology Teachers (DEPTH2). The first phase of the project was a study conducted with both primary and secondary technology pre-service teacher…

This study illustrates the use of the DEPTH model in the development of professional development for secondary teachers of Engineering. In the school context of Western Australia, Engineering is a new upper school subject which will be taught by Design and Technology teachers, the majority of whom have neither taught at this level before, nor…

The paper describes the development of an Integrated Curriculum Science and Technology subject offering as part of the Bachelor of Education (Teaching) degree for primary pre-service teachers at Massey University in New Zealand. The paper discusses some of the difficulties and concerns which arise when pursuing this type of endeavour. This paper…

In the context of recent debates on technological literacy, a renewed research effort has focused on the nature of technologies. The aim of this work, which considers "epistemological knowledge" as viewpoints which spring into gear in a given situation, is to use questionnaires and interviews to identify the opinions of teachers in a training…

This article addresses how we learn technology across the lifespan. After outlining findings of research into how children, adolescents, teens and adults learn technology, we address theoretical shifts from sociocultural to technocultural theories of cognition and reorientations from mediated to cyborgenic learning. The balance of the article…

An increasing variety of professional educational and training disciplines are now problem based (e.g., medicine, nursing, engineering, community health), and they may have a corresponding variety of educational objectives. However, they all have in common the use of problems in the instructional sequence. The problems may be as diverse as a…