Chair: UHLIG, GEORGE E.
DAI-A 59/09, p. 3407, Mar 1999

This study investigated the effectiveness of two methods of delivery of professional development for teachers and teachers' perceptions of the effectiveness of the training. The two methods of delivery were live face-to-face instruction and video-based instruction with a trained on-site facilitator. The experiment was designed to answer two questions: Is there an effective and efficient alternative to traditional live face-to-face professional development delivery methods? Do teachers perceive alternative methods of delivery of professional development as effective? The study was conducted in a rural school district. One hundred twenty-three subjects participated in the experiment. The dependent variables were gain scores on a cognitive test of information related to norm-referenced testing, and responses to a perception questionnaire. There were two types of data analyses performed: quantitative and qualitative. The quantitative data analysis included analyzing the differences between pretest scores and posttest scores using a repeated measures analysis of variance, and an examination of the relationship between the participants perception of the effectiveness of the training and their changes in knowledge. The qualitative data summarized information provided by the participants on a perception questionnaire. Results obtained from this research suggest video-based instruction with a trained on-site facilitator may be considered an effective alternative method of instructional delivery of professional development for teachers.