Effects and Impacts of Postsecondary Online Teaching Faculty Members' Participation in Professional Development Activities

Participation in professional development activities contributes to both effectiveness and productivity among postsecondary faculty members, as well as enables them to assist institutions to sustain the means to continuously innovate, for example, as they integrate emerging technologies in curricula and instruction. A broad continuum of program alternatives combines to facilitate a high level of interaction, communication, and information sharing, providing variety and enabling personalization that supports a range of professional goals and needs. The research study discussed in this article solicited participation from an elite population of postsecondary faculty members teaching online courses to respond to the following general research question,"To what degree does participation in professional development activities impact your teaching and/or professional practice in the postsecondary educational environment in which you are employed?". The context for this exploration focused on professional experiences teaching online in postsecondary institutions with which participants were sufficiently familiar to be able to effectively respond.