Online Professional Development: Design, Deliver, Succeed!

PrefaceAcknowledgmentsAbout the Author1. Why Online Professional Development? The OPD Framework Asking the Right Questions Why Online Professional Development Caveat Emptor: Talking to Vendors Determining Your Need for Online Professional Development Take Action: Conduct a Needs Assessment and Create Your Vision Conclusion2. How Much Does It Cost? Outcomes Take Action: Determine Your Desired Outcomes Measuring Your Outcomes Support Security Required Technology Ease of Use Risk Caveat Emptor: Supporting Your Outcomes Economies of Scale Conclusion Take Action: Set Your Mission3. How Do I Get Started? Take Inventory Caveat Emptor: Facilitation Models Caveat Emptor: Partnering for Success Conclusion Take Action: Gap Analysis to Describe Your Needs4. What Does Good Online Learning Look Like? Why Instructional Design? Take Action: Instructional Design Considerations Getting Your Hands Dirty Take Action: Content Development Timeline Using Media to Help (Or Hinder) Learning Conclusion Caveat Emptor: Evaluating Media in Online Content5. What Technologies Are Right for Me? A Word About Learning Objects Presenting basic information via text and images Demonstrating a process, sequence, or procedure Hosting asynchronous interactions Hosting synchronous interactions Growing a learning community Monitor learning Take Action: Exploring Technology Specifications Infrastructure for online professional development Caveat Emptor: Is Free Right for Me? Conclusion Caveat Emptor: Evaluating a Management System6. Putting it All Together Gathering all the pieces Taking Care of Business Take Action: What Online Facilitators Should Know and Be Able to Do Putting the Pieces Together Take Action: Putting all the Pieces Together Celebration7: Did it work? Formative evaluation Is it better than face-to-face? Measuring your outcomes Take Action: Measuring Your Desired Outcomes Was it worth it? One story: The framework in action Design,

John Ross has been helping educators from the classroom to the state board room better understand how technology integration enhances school improvement efforts for more than a decade. Spearheading the 2004 launch of an online professional development environment for an educational non-profit, Dr. Ross has since designed and delivered online professional development that has gone to many thousands of educators in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia. He has connected with educators across the nation through podcasts, webcasts, webconferences, social networks, dabbling in Second Life, and his blog. Dr. Ross is the subject-matter expert for Principal Connections Online, an expanded, Web-based version of the popular training on technology integration for K-12 leaders. He worked with the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) to design and develop the free, Web-based Data-Based Decision Making Tool: A Resource for Teachers (www.edvantia.org/dbdm), a comprehensive guide for developing and implementing school improvement efforts; and also developed the Web-based version of the K-12 Total Cost of Ownership, or TCO, Calculator (www.edvantia.org/tco), which is based on the work of the Integrated Technology in Education Group. He served as the director of the Institute for the Advancement of Emerging Technologies in Education and as the director of technology for the Appalachia Regional Comprehensive Center (ARCC), both funded by the U.S. Department of Education, where he has educators at all levels investigate and incorporate new and emerging technologies in support of their work. Dr. Ross is a frequent presenter in the field of educational technology at state and national conferences and has served as a consultant and trainer for teachers, administrators, and policymakers. He teaches an online graduate class he created about technology integration for Bethel University based on the textbook he co-authored with Dr. Katherine Cennamo from

"This book explores why online professional development is a good option, how to get started, which technologies to use and how to put it all together. Experiences of other educators in the book allow the reader to benefit and create a cost-effective path to success."