Career and Technical Education Teachers’ Post-secondary Training and Professional Development Interests Related to the Teaching and Learning of Two-Stroke Engines Content: A Preliminary Study

Abstract

Teachers are responsible for the dissemination of knowledge, skills and values, according to Day (1999). Teachers will only be able to meet their educational purposes if they are well prepared for the profession and are committed to professional growth through career-long learning. The theoretical framework of this study was guided by Ericsson’s Theory of Expertise (2006). Professional development activities provided career and technical education (CTE) teachers with the opportunity to continue to refine their skill development through an intense training. The purpose of the present study was to develop an understanding of the post-secondary training related to, and professional development interests related to two-stroke engines instruction. The population consisted of 20 (N = 20) CTE teachers that participated in an intensive two-day, two-stroke engines training workshop. The pre-workshop instrument contained questions related to post-secondary training on two-stroke engines and the post-workshop instrument contained questions related to professional development needs. A majority of the participants reported poor or very poor post-secondary instruction related to two-stroke engines. The teachers also reported a high or very high need for additional professional development for all 51 skills related to two-stroke engines.