Term

Summer 2019

Capstone

Dissertation

Degree Name

EdD

Primary Advisor/Dissertation Chair

Karen Moroz, Ed.D.

Secondary Advisor/Reader One

Jennifer Carlson, Ph.D.

Peer-Reviewer/Reader Two

John Schulz, Ph.D.

Abstract

This qualitative case study investigated the connections between teacher motivation and high quality professional development. The research focused on two elementary schools in one large suburban school district in the upper Midwest. Surveys, individual interviews, focus group interviews, and document analysis were all used to collect data. This study identified the attributes of high quality professional development, which include collaboration, sustainability, and active teacher learning (Darling-Hammond, Hyler, & Gardner, 2017; Desimone & Pak, 2017; Macias, 2017; Parsons, Parsons, Morewood & Ankrum, 2016; Steeg & Lambson, 2015). The study explored current research around intrinsic and extrinsic motivation (Deci et al. 1991; Pink, 2009) and strove to determine which types of professional learning best support teachers in the continuous pursuit of developing their pedagogy. One conclusion is that when teachers are intrinsically motivated, the pursuit of mastery is ongoing and raised student achievement can be the outcome.

Research Methodology

Case Study, Focus Group, Interview, Survey (attitude scale, opinion, questionnaire)

Keywords

Motivation, Reflective Practice, Teachers/ Teaching, Professional Development

dc_type

text

dc_publisher

DigitalCommons@Hamline

dc_format

application/pdf

dc_source

School of Education Student Capstone Theses and Dissertations

Included in

Education Commons

Share

COinS