Evaluating a resource for online teacher professional development across four continents: the MESH Guide to Spelling

Colin Harrison, University of Nottingham Marilyn Leask, University of BedfordshireRichard Proctor, University of BedfordshireSarah Younie, De Montfort University

Who uses it? When? How?

… and Why?

The MESH Guide to Teaching Spelling

What is it?

Who uses it? … and Why?

The MESH Guide to Teaching Spelling

“Online teacher professional development has increased exponentially, [but] evidence of the effectiveness of such self-directed learning is often anecdotal and based on immediate rather than long-term impact” (Dede, 2009).

The MESH Guide to Teaching Spelling

“Online teacher professional development has increased exponentially, [but] evidence of the effectiveness of such self-directed learning is often anecdotal and based on immediate rather than long-term impact” (Dede, 2009).

Self-directed learning

The MESH Guide to Teaching Spelling

“Online teacher professional development has increased exponentially, [but] evidence of the effectiveness of such self-directed learning is often anecdotal and based on immediate rather than long-term impact” (Dede, 2009).

Plan B Plan CPlan A

Plan D

Plan B Plan CPlan A

Plan D

Plan E

Plan B Plan CPlan A

Plan D

Plan E

Plan E

Plan E

What is MESH?? 

What is MESH? 

What is MESH?•Mapping Educational Specialist knowHow•A global partnership•A quality assured 'wikipedia' of professional knowledge for teaching •http://www.meshguides.org/•All resources are free

What is the MESH Guide to Teaching Spelling?•“A quality assured 'wikipedia' of professional knowledge for teaching spelling” (My Dad, personal communication, 2014)

•http://www.richprocter.co.uk/cgi-bin/pathways/spelling.pl

• Site visit data - Google Analytics: How many?

Who is using the MESH Guide to Teaching Spelling?•Questionnaire - Google Docs•Site visit data - Google Analytics

• Questionnaire - Google Docs

• Site visit data - Google Analytics: From where?

• Site visit data - Google Analytics: Country

OECD?

• Google Analytics: How is the site being used?

• Google Analytics: How is the site being used?• Which pages are popular? Theory or Resources?

• Google Analytics: How is the site being used?• Which pages are popular? Theory or Resources?

Plan E

123 January- 18 AugN = 1,570 site visits

12

12 3

12 3 4

12 3 4

5

12 3 4

5

Plan E

12 3 4

5

Plan E

What does accommodation involve?

• It is multifactorial:• New theories of how

children learn• New discourse tools• New schemata for

pedagogy• It involves restructuring

cognitive architecture• It requires criticality• It implies provisionality

and uncertainty

What is the take-home message from this data?

1,221 teachers from 50 nations want well-informed theory to develop theirpractice more than they want resources

Evaluating a resource for online teacher professional development across four continents: the MESH Guide to Spelling

Colin Harrison, University of Nottingham Marilyn Leask, University of BedfordshireRichard Proctor, University of BedfordshireSarah Younie, De Montfort University