PBS TeacherLine
PBS TeacherLine provides K-12 teachers throughout the US with online professional
development in mathematics, reading and literacy, and technology integration.
Supported through a grant from the US Department of Education, TeacherLine’s
online facilitated courses provide educators with standards-based content
that is accessible anytime, anywhere.
Hezel Associates was selected to conduct an external evaluation of TeacherLine
that is guided by the central question, "How do TeacherLine’s
online modules contribute to changed teacher practice and improved student
performance?" Hezel developed a three-part evaluation structure that
examines TeacherLine’s multiple facets:
- TeacherLine’s impact on teachers’ classroom instruction and practice
- the student outcomes associated with teachers’ participation in TeacherLine courses
- the model of online professional development created by TeacherLine
During the 2002-03 academic year, the evaluation has focused on TeacherLine’s online learning environment. The evaluation team has examined the content and format of courses, the communication patterns among participants, and teachers’ participation in and completion of the online courses. In addition to creating an array of online surveys, the evaluation team convened an expert review panel, analyzed web tracking data, hosted focus groups, and conducted observations at training sites. Our analysis for Year One will focus on describing participation across TeacherLine courses (including attrition, completion rates), with particular emphasis on correlating characteristics of successful and less successful participants, and identifying the support services that contribute to completion and success. In addition, the analysis will consider those courses that have enrollments much higher than others, to identify the factors (content- or facilitator–related) that might have contributed to their popularity.
Supporting the evaluation is a comprehensive web site that serves as a single point of communication for information about the evaluation. The evaluation web site includes .pdf and online versions of all surveys, an online tool that allows facilitators to check on the status of their students’ completed surveys, and periodic reports of findings.