Targeting PD Activities
The collaborative decision making and learning that occurs in every step of the KEYS-CSI process provides opportunities for professional development. The discussion here identifies programs and practices that are more formal though many of the characteristics of effective professional development identified here apply to less structured opportunities to learn where the activity is not usually defined as professional development. For example, most professional development should be based on the analysis of student performance and such analysis, when done collaboratively, can provide opportunities for increasing expertise.
Structuring professional development activities involves three sets of considerations:
• For whom should professional development be designed?
• What does research suggest are the best processes and practices for structuring professional development activities?
• What resources will be needed, including resources to deal with potential difficulties might undermine the implementation of those practices?
Who Should be Involved in Particular Professional Development Experiences?
People will have different levels of knowledge and some will need to learn more than others. There is some value in having all those involved in the implementation of the improvement practice participate to develop common understandings and to promote peer learning. But this is a matter of judgment. Requiring staff to learn things they already know can misuse resources and undermine motivation in furthering expertise.
It is important that professional development be tightly focused on the capabilities to address particular challenges involved in implementing the new improvement strategy. This, of course, may mean that different staff members may need different opportunities to enhance their expertise. If new initiatives do not require that everyone involved learn new skills, how can some teachers and staff be involved but not others? This is tricky, of course, but the guideline for this is straightforward. The first design principle for professional development noted above is: professional development should be based on collaborative analyses of the differences between (a) actual student performance and (b) goals and standards for student learning. Such analysis defines teacher needs for learning.
One of the most important foci of professional development is the mentoring of new teachers and teachers who are struggling. To learn more about mentoring programs for beginning teachers, CLICK HERE [link 6h]
Structuring Professional Development Activities
There are three principles that speak directly to the way professional development activities should be organized whenever feasible:
• Professional development should provide experiential opportunities to gain an understanding of and reflect on the research and theory underlying the knowledge and skills being learned.
• The way teacher learning is facilitated should mirror the instructional approaches they are expected to master and allow teachers to experience the consequences of newly learned capabilities.
• Professional development should be continuous and on-going, involving follow-up and support for further learning, including support from sources external to the school that can provide necessary resources and new perspectives.
To learn more about the characteristics of effective professional development activities, CLICK HERE [link 6i]
Structuring professional development activities involves three sets of considerations:
• For whom should professional development be designed?
• What does research suggest are the best processes and practices for structuring professional development activities?
• What resources will be needed, including resources to deal with potential difficulties might undermine the implementation of those practices?
Who Should be Involved in Particular Professional Development Experiences?
People will have different levels of knowledge and some will need to learn more than others. There is some value in having all those involved in the implementation of the improvement practice participate to develop common understandings and to promote peer learning. But this is a matter of judgment. Requiring staff to learn things they already know can misuse resources and undermine motivation in furthering expertise.
It is important that professional development be tightly focused on the capabilities to address particular challenges involved in implementing the new improvement strategy. This, of course, may mean that different staff members may need different opportunities to enhance their expertise. If new initiatives do not require that everyone involved learn new skills, how can some teachers and staff be involved but not others? This is tricky, of course, but the guideline for this is straightforward. The first design principle for professional development noted above is: professional development should be based on collaborative analyses of the differences between (a) actual student performance and (b) goals and standards for student learning. Such analysis defines teacher needs for learning.
One of the most important foci of professional development is the mentoring of new teachers and teachers who are struggling. To learn more about mentoring programs for beginning teachers, CLICK HERE [link 6h]
Structuring Professional Development Activities
There are three principles that speak directly to the way professional development activities should be organized whenever feasible:
• Professional development should provide experiential opportunities to gain an understanding of and reflect on the research and theory underlying the knowledge and skills being learned.
• The way teacher learning is facilitated should mirror the instructional approaches they are expected to master and allow teachers to experience the consequences of newly learned capabilities.
• Professional development should be continuous and on-going, involving follow-up and support for further learning, including support from sources external to the school that can provide necessary resources and new perspectives.
To learn more about the characteristics of effective professional development activities, CLICK HERE [link 6i]