Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
348459 | Computers & Education | 2013 | 12 Pages |
•Wiki integration affected by technology competence, utility and resourcing.•Practising teachers want to share practice with other teachers but have limited opportunities.•The development of practicing teacher wikis need to be considered longitudinally.
Many teachers have little opportunity to share and discuss their practice in the course of a normal school day beyond chance meetings in the staff room. Such a lack of opportunity can leave many teachers feeling isolated. However, online resources are continuously providing teachers with greater opportunities to engage with other teachers. This research studied early-adopting New Zealand science teachers' perceptions and integration of one such online resource, a wiki, for professional development. The wiki was developed to support teacher portfolios consisting of mediums called Content Representations (CoRes) and Pedagogical and Professional-experience Repertoires (PaP-eRs). Initial interviews were conducted with six teachers and were followed by case studies of three of these teachers. Data included pre/post interviews, field notes from feedback on observations, and teachers' use of the wiki. Findings discuss important factors organised around three themes in relation to teacher perceptions and engagement in knowledge sharing on a wiki: technology competence, technology utility, and technology resourcing.