Teacher Development Through Video in Virtual Learning Communities: A Qualitative Case Study
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Authors
Kinney, Joesph
Issue Date
2025-11
Type
Dissertation
Language
en
Keywords
Professional Development , Virtual Learning Community , Organizational Development , Educational Leadership & Learning Lifelong
Alternative Title
Abstract
The daily work lives of teachers are constantly evolving from year to year. Time that was once allotted by the school district leadership for professional development and teacher learning has been reallocated to other state and federal regulations. The trickle effect has resulted in the traditional method of professional development delivery becoming obsolete. This descriptive qualitative case study addressed the problem that teacher needs for ongoing training and skill enhancement are no longer being met by traditional, in-person professional development programs. The purpose of this descriptive qualitative case study was to investigate teachers’ perceptions of virtual learning communities as a means of effective professional development. This descriptive case study examined one high school’s English language arts department consisting of 16 teachers. The use of in-person interviews, teacher journals, and technical platform data were used to explore the impact on the perceptions of teachers who used the VLC as their main means of professional development. The two research questions guided this study: 1) how do high school teachers perceive and describe their learning through virtual learning communities as a means of professional development, and 2) how do high school teachers perceive and describe their learning from video in virtual learning communities as a means of professional development? Through the data analysis, six themes emerged: (a) solid platform for learning, (b) adequate coverage of topics within the virtual learning community, (c) effective means of learning, (d) deeper understanding of professional development specific curriculum development, and (f) commonality of learning among department members. The results revealed that teacher perception of the use of VLCs was positive regarding growth, efficiency, connectivity, and learning.