Recent innovations in professional development are rife with a wide array of efforts focused on teacher collaboration. In this essay, we address some of the unexamined assumptions about the nature and significance of interactions in teacher professional collaboration, drawing on the concept of the "fourth wall" from theater and film…

We present a model for Professional Development (PD) for in-service generalist primary teachers of science. The Remote Classroom Modelling (RCM) model is specifically designed to address salient challenges in the context of professional isolation. We share the principles that supported the design of this PD prototype, and the insights and lessons…

This article explores the practice of virtual learning in New Zealand schools. It reports on a study that examined how virtual learning has evolved over the last 30 years and how it is currently experienced by students and teachers, and makes recommendations for the future. Research participants were teaching principals selected from eight small…

Background: Internationally, teachers are increasingly reporting elevated levels of stress, anxiety, exhaustion and burnout. Although social support has been found to be a protective buffer against stress, depression and burnout, there have been limited strength-based studies examining the relationship between social support and teacher wellbeing.…

Many pre-service teachers (PSTs) face a common dilemma when completing their internships: they seek to display their own strengths and competencies in teaching while also adhering to the guidance of their mentor teachers and avoiding instructional risks. The underlying structure of the internship promotes a hierarchy which positions mentoring…

In Irish classrooms, one option for educating children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) involves placement in a special class co-located in a mainstream primary school. This study surveyed 125 primary school teachers who taught in these classes. An evaluative framework of teachers' professional development was used to analyse primary teachers'…

This paper reports the results of a qualitative study that used in-depth interviews to understand the experiences and perceptions of six pre-service teachers as they engaged in microteaching at a tertiary institution in Hong Kong. Using a framework grounded in dialogism and positioning theory, the study describes the ways in which different…

This action research project examined a rural band director's attrition/retention and possible reasons for staying or leaving a position. The purpose of this case study was to describe a rural band director's experience with content-related professional development and support networks, providing access to and a process for collaboration in…