During the COVID pandemic, the sudden switch to online learning brought an unintended spotlight to this gradually expanding educational innovation. However, while numerous tools exist to assess student perceptions of or readiness for online learning quantitatively, a research gap exists regarding teachers' perceptions of online learning. To facilitate future research among teachers, the authors describe the development of a new perceptions of online learning scale (POOLS). The POOLS seeks to measure teachers' perceptions of online learning across four theoretical constructs associated with quality education in online and traditional face-to-face formats. The POOLS was constructed using expert review and a sample ( N=654), where an exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis were conducted on split halves of these data. The results of this initial validation study provide the basis for using the POOLS as an approach to measuring four aspects of perceptions of online learning: Effective Learning ([Formula: see text] = 0.77), Student-Centered Learning ([Formula: see text] = 0.67), Interactive Learning ([Formula: see text] = 0.73), and Engaged Learning ([Formula: see text] = 0.66). We recommend that the POOLS be used in research settings to describe the relationship among POOLS factors and other characteristics such as self-efficacy, amount or type of experience with online learning, and personality traits.

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<p style="text-align: justify;">Gender is ever present in education preparation, school materials, curriculum, and school systems. To improve our knowledge about different facets of gender and the extent to which the depiction of gender has changed over time in picture books, there is a need to dig beneath the surface of questions about gender representation in picture books. Given that in-service teachers have proximity to approximately 75 million K-12 students, how in-service teachers think about gender, gender representation, and their own experiences with gender socialization have important implications on how K-12 students think, act, and feel about gender. In this study, we focused on teachers’ responses to a semester-long assignment about the selection and review of picture books. Specifically, we captured teachers’ perceptions on gendered images evidenced in picture books and to what extent there are changes (i.e., economical, emotional, physical, political, and social) in the central character throughout the book. We also explored if perceived changes were different based on the gender of the characters. Teachers reported four types of changes among the characters in the picture book. Emotionally changes in the books’ central characters emerged as the most commonly reported change among our participants.</p>