A professional development program evaluation: Teacher efficacy, learning, and transfer

Although professional development is an important means of improving both teachers' skills and student outcomes, there is a dearth of high quality empirical research on the efficacy of such efforts. The efficacy of the Challenging Behavior Process was assessed using a mixed method approach which included the use of pre-, post-, and follow-up surveys. The participants were preschool teachers who worked for Kamehameha Schools on the island of Oahu. The relationship of the training to teacher efficacy, learning, and transfer was assessed. The analyses determined that the training was well-designed to meet the needs of the teaching staff, participants reacted positively to the training, and participation in the training was related to positive changes in knowledge about the CB process. However, participation in the training was also related to a statistically significant decrease in teacher efficacy for teaching strategies at the time of the follow-up and a number of knowledge gaps were uncovered. Finally, the study revealed a reporting rate for challenging behaviors that was much lower than expected. The overarching implication drawn from this study is that comprehensive evaluation of professional development in education is both necessary and valuable. It is not enough to collect data about how an initiative is working. It is important to take time to put the pieces of the professional development puzzle together to determine how and if professional development efforts create or support change in the classroom.