Educators’ perspectives on the impact of Edcamp unconference professional learning

Edcamps are a voluntary, democratic form of unconference. This paper presents participants’ perceptions regarding the impact of Edcamps. Data were gathered from a survey and interviews (N=105). Participants overwhelmingly reported that Edcamp experiences caused changes in their practices and in student learning. The impacts of Edcamps were often described in terms of student engagement, experiences, and dispositions, rather than traditional measures of achievement such as test scores. Participants experienced various obstacles and supports as they utilized what they had learned at Edcamps. Considering these results, the Edcamp model and its implications for other forms of teacher learning are discussed.