Creating purposeful teacher Web pages to enhance and promote stakeholder understanding of classroom objectives
by Bernal, Yanaka, Ed.D., UNIVERSITY OF DELAWARE, 2011, 147 pages; 3498489

Abstract:

Teachers in a northern Delaware public school were finding that their classroom Web pages were an ineffective form of school-to-home communication. Teachers were not aware of the school stakeholders' online wants and needs and stakeholders were not finding desirable information on the classroom Web pages. The researcher hypothesized that if stakeholders found the information on teacher Web pages to be desirable, classroom Web page traffic would increase. All stakeholders (administrators, teachers, parents, and students) were surveyed as to their online wants and needs. The survey results were distilled into a set of content guidelines. Ten volunteer teachers modified their Web pages to reflect the content guidelines for a period of six months. All ten teachers received a monthly Web traffic report during the treatment period. After the treatment period, the researcher compared treatment teacher Web page traffic and non-treatment teacher Web page traffic using the Chi Square statistic. The treatment teacher Web pages experienced statistically higher Web page traffic than non-treatment Web pages. Based on the traffic data and additional survey evidence, the researcher determined that teacher Web pages were an effective form of school-to-home communication when stakeholders' online wants and needs were met. Pre- and post-treatment data revealed that teachers reported feeling more confident in their computer use. Teachers also learned that stakeholders accessed their classroom Web page more frequently than they estimated in the pre- and post-treatment data. The findings suggest that parents and teachers have a different opinion about what information enables parents to help their children at home. Parents report wanting information to help them save time such as a classroom calendar, and homework and project information. The student survey results indicate that elementary-level students are active and sophisticated Web users. Students indicate that they want information on teacher Web pages directed toward their needs. In summation, the researcher recommended that all teachers at the school apply the content guidelines to their Web pages as well as utilize other non-invasive Web traffic measures.

 
AdviserFred T. Hofstetter
SchoolUNIVERSITY OF DELAWARE
SourceDAI/A 73-06, p. , Mar 2012
Source TypeDissertation
SubjectsElementary education; Web studies; Educational technology
Publication Number3498489
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