Exploring Professional Learning Through The Eyes Of Oklahoma Social Studies Teachers

Abstract

Professional development encompasses school-based professional learning, school district based professional learning and then outside of school-based professional learning. Through the use of case study, I explore what could be learned from Oklahoma social studies teachers in regard to their professional learning experiences. A focus group interview was used to collect data from an Oklahoma public school social studies department. The focus group interview was conducted in a manner that asked opened-ended questions along with follow-up questions which encouraged group think and led participants to reflect on their professional development experiences. Participant responses to this focus group suggested three dimensions to consider when choosing effective professional development for teachers: student characteristics, teacher characteristics and curriculum characteristics (Hochberg & Desimone, 2010). At the end of this paper, I explore the implications for myself and other social studies teachers in pursuing and presenting in professional learning contexts.