An evaluation of professional development on using student response systems and interactive whiteboards for formative assessment in the middle schools of a southeastern school district

The purchase of 21st-century technologies for each middle school teacher in my school system coinciding with a historic lack of significant professional development in technology integration provided the impetus for the study. To address the problem, professional development focused on helping teachers use student response systems and mobile interactive whiteboards for formative assessment. The professional development incorporated adult learning theory, professional development literature, and instructional systems design. This study examined the design, development, and implementation of the technology-based professional development.;This study used a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods for collecting and analyzing data within the framework of Guskey’s Five Levels of Professional Development Evaluation (1998) to assess and improve the effectiveness of the professional development. Data-collection methods included Likert-Scale questionnaires about perceptions and organization support, rubrics for evaluating the learning and its application, and field notes from an observation cycle for examining use of new knowledge and student engagement. The findings revealed that the professional development was effective and provided information for developing plans to improve my professional practice. Additional outcomes point to future research about implementing an instructional coaching model to serve teachers in their technology-integration needs.;This work is significant in that it demonstrates using a systematic framework for evaluating professional development. Few professional development evaluations assess effectiveness beyond the participants’ perceptions of the experience. Completing comprehensive evaluations is important for continuous improvement of professional development. Recommendations for coordinating a professional development evaluation in other organizations are provided.