Development of a professional development program based on ASSURE model for science teachers at science and art centers

The level of competency, which is needed in professions due to changing scientific, economic, social and cultural developments, is increasing all over the world. Along with the development and change, technology substantially affects education and requires the skills in this field to be improved and updated. In ensuring communication and harmony with students, it is important to learn new technologies, increase experiences and strengthen the adaptation of teachers. In this study, in line with the needs determined, it was aimed to prepare and implement a professional development program enriched with technology for teachers who work with gifted students and to examine the experiences obtained following the implementation. In the study, the holistic single-case pattern, a type of the case study method, was used. Implementations were carried out in a total of three Science and Art Centers in the Marmara Region: one center for the pilot study and two centers for the main study of the research. Before the implementations, the interviews held for determining the needs included 12 science teachers (elementary science, physics, chemistry and biology). In line with the semi-structured interviews with this group, it was revealed that their use of technology in lessons was at a basic level, and they mostly used it for the purpose of visualization, presentation, revision or research. Moreover, they were found to demand the improvement of their technological competency levels and to need training with a technological content. The study group of the pilot implementation in the research consisted of four science teachers in a Science and Art Center (SAC), and the study group of the main implementation included 10 science teachers in two Science and Art Centers (SAC). The professional development program, which was developed after the needs determined in the research and enriched with technology, was implemented in a manner to cover socio-scientific issues based on the ASSURE instructional design model. As the data collection tools, semi-structured interview forms, open-ended opinion form, lesson plan evaluation form based on the ASSURE instructional design model, observation form and researcher log were used. During the pilot study, necessary arrangements were made, and then the main implementation was initiated. After the completion of the main study, the participants were asked to prepare a lesson plan in compliance with the ASSURE instructional design model, and lesson observations were performed. Lesson observations were executed as unattended observation process for eight participants who continued to be a part of the research. In the analysis of the data obtained from the research, descriptive analysis, content analysis and data analysis with continuous comparison were carried out. According to the findings obtained from the research, participants said that innovative technological applications in the study would increase attention and motivation during the lesson. Furthermore, the participants stated that they could be used for purposes such as enriching and supporting the lesson, preparation for the lesson and evaluation. Additionally, they expressed that the applications were eligible for use in the processes of the projects they ran. Areas of use in lessons and advantages provided by the applications were explained in detail, regarding each application, in the semi-structured interviews and open-ended opinion form. The problems likely to be faced in relation with using the applications were determined as hardware deficiencies, inadequacy of the technological background of the teachers and/or students and possible insufficiencies resulting from the application. About the research process, the participants expressed that it contributed to their professional development, enabled communication with the university and provided mentoring support. It was observed that the prepared lesson plans were planned in accordance with the ASSURE model and comprised of student-centered and technology-assisted contents. However, deficiencies were found in the lesson plans in terms of the analysis and evaluation of the learners. In lesson observations, on the other hand, it was discovered that most of the lessons were run according to the lesson plan; however, there were deficiencies arising from the technical issues or problems experienced in classroom management in some lessons. It is recommended to use multiple data sources and to plan the implementations over a period in order to determine the teachers' success levels in integrating the technology into lessons. Keywords: ASSURE model, Science and art centers(SAC), teacher education, technology in gifted education, socioscientific issues, innovative technology applications