Designing an online problem-based professional development programfor differentiation of early literacy instruction

Effective professional development (PD) programs closely linked to classroom practice, and teacher collaboration stand as a crucial element in enhancing educational quality. In PD programs that incorporate problem-based learning (PBL), teachers work together to address real-world challenges. Elementary teachers often struggle with assessment and teaching early literacy to students with varied skill levels and diverse backgrounds. This study aimed to address this need by design and delivery of a PD program to develop in-service early literacy teachers' knowledge and implementation of differentiated instruction (DI). The program, designed with PBL principles, was conducted on an online platform. In this design-based research, a needs analysis was conducted, followed by two cycles, with design improvements implemented after the first cycle. Participant artifacts, video recordings of the sessions, interviews, questionnaires and field notes were used for data collection. The findings indicate that participation in the PD program led to improvements in the participants' understanding and application of DI. Through collaborative problem-solving and self-directed learning tasks, teachers demonstrated a deeper understanding of DI and made progress in developing differentiated lesson plans. The findings suggested that teacher PD programs structured around PBL design principles can foster effective learning experiences that support teachers in developing practical skills in DI.