Reconstructing goals for transfer of training in faculty development programs for higher education teachers: A qualitative documentary method approach

• Main Author: Andreas Gegenfurtner
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier 2019-11-01
• Series: Heliyon
• Subjects: Education; Educational psychology; Pedagogy; Teaching research; Individual differences
• Online Access: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405844019365879

Faculty development programs are often used in universities and higher education institutes to develop the knowledge and skills of their teaching personnel. At the same time, these faculty development programs often remain ineffective because lecturers are not fully using what they learned in their courses, classes, and seminars. The purpose of this case study was to explore the goals higher education teachers had after professional development programs for applying newly trained knowledge and skills. Grounded in 3 × 2 achievement goal model and Ryan and Deci's (2018) goal contents theory, the study addressed the research question: Which types of transfer goals do university teachers have after teacher education? Participants were three lecturers that were selected following the procedures of the maximum variation sampling schema. Adopting a mixed methods approach, data were collected with questionnaires (aimed at profiling the goal orientations of the teachers) and reflective interviews (aimed at reconstructing the goals and goal contents teachers had for transferring the trained skills). Triangulation of the quantitative and qualitative data using the documentary method resulted in a typology of intrinsic, mixed, and extrinsic transfer goals. Directions for future research associated with instrument development and theory building as well as implications for the educational practice in human resource development programs of higher education institutes are discussed.