The assistant professors of education were involved in four different presentations at the AACTE Annual Meeting in Atlanta from Feb. 27-March 1, 2015.
Assistant Professor Jeffrey Carpenter presented an individual paper, titled “Twitter in Teacher Education,” which investigated the use of Twitter by pre-service teachers in a face-to-face undergraduate teacher education course. The participants completed student teaching the subsequent semester, after which a survey was conducted to explore if they had continued to use Twitter, and why or why not.
Carpenter and Assistant Professor Scott Morrison gave a presentation with colleague Michael Maher of North Carolina State University, titled “Using Twitter to Market and Promote the Profession.” Their session discussed the uses of Twitter to promote the successes of the profession and to interact positively with schools, campuses, and community stakeholders. Opportunities and challenges associated with the use of Twitter to market the profession were also analyzed.
Morrison also presented an individual paper, titled “The Commons as Professional Development: Insights from a Critical Friends Group on EcoJustice Education.” This paper was based on the findings of a research study in which Morrison set out to learn what it would mean for seven ecologically minded teachers to immerse themselves in the study of EcoJustice education. Their Critical Friends Group served as a commons where transformative learning occurred.
Finally, Carpenter was a discussant in the session, “Assessing Transformational Leadership Qualities to Develop TPACK Ready Teacher Candidates.” In this session, the AACTE Innovation & Technology committee, of which Carpenter is a member, presented a change process, formative assessment tool, and case studies addressing changing school culture and practices to ensure that teacher candidates are ready to grow as TPACK proficient teachers.