Online Teacher Professional Development in Conflict Area Online Teacher Professional Development Training For Educators in Two Different Areas in Syria, a case study.

Abstract

Teachers in the modern technological era are prompted to continually develop their skills and knowledge. Therefore, educational organizations have repeatedly called for more action to support teachers and educational systems. They emphasized the need to invest potentials and material resources in improving teachers’ professionalism, especially in fragile areas to keep pace with the changing time and requirements. Despite the growing interest in Teacher Professional Development (TPD)programs, there is still much to do in this field. This study will address an online Teacher Professional Development program which designed by Arab Organization for Research and Development (AORD) and delivered remotely for educators in armed conflict areas in Syria. The aim is to explore the educators' experiences about an online program model that wasdesigned to enhance Teachers’ Professional Development particularly in conflict area. Through the administration of questionnaires along with interviews the following project examines the negative and positive aspects of this program, drawing from obtained data and using a case study approach. The mixed data were collected using a survey answered from 20 educators, and semi-structured interviews with five educators, who were selected using a purposive sampling method that could allow subjective detailed questioning and responses. The results of this study revealed a good satisfaction about the course attended, further, the participants demonstrated great interest in this model of TPD and gave useful feedback. On the other hand, they expressed the need for more interaction among them. This feedback is valuable in the design of the future Teacher Professional Program TPD. In the end, Participantsstressed the need for more TPD programs, owing to the dire situation they have, so they liketo be abreast of the modern learning methods.