Nurturing Professional Growth: Moving Beyond One-and-Done Professional Learning

While professional learning can ignite our passion and drive, it often leaves us feeling isolated when we return to our classrooms and the whirlwind of our daily responsibilities. We need more than just a push to implement these new skills. The ineffectiveness of professional learning is a shared struggle, whether it's the 'sit and get' style or the more engaging ones that fail to translate into our classrooms. A typical pattern I've observed is the intensity of professional learning at the start of the school year, with grand ideas and goals only to fizzle out as the year progresses. We all need more training and accountability to sustain the effectiveness of these new opportunities. 

As a high flyer in my organization, I often find myself more technology-driven than my peers. In a TedxTalk presentation by Kristin Daniels, she shares a story about Carol, a high flyer with technology, a narrative I closely relate to. I attend professional development sessions to gather ideas for my projects, often not needing assistance with technology. Within my school district, I've noticed a diverse range of technology knowledge among teachers, and I am frequently approached for guidance, a testament to the value of our collective expertise. 

The five principles of effective professional development underscore the importance of continuous learning and growth, emphasizing that more than one-and-done sessions are needed to ensure student success. This reminder should inspire us to seek more development opportunities and to advocate for a culture of ongoing learning within our organization. Teachers need support through the process of implementing new skills in their classrooms; this is the second principle (Gulamhussein. 2013). This new content should be modeled for teachers and specific to their teaching content. My school district has attempted to conduct professional development this way but has often fallen off after a semester due to budget cuts and time constraints. I would like to see effective, alternative PD in my school. 

References: 

Gulamhussein, A. (2013, September). Teaching the Teachers Effective Professional Development in an Era of High Stakes Accountability. Center for Public Education. Retrieved from http://www.centerforpubliceducation.org/system/files/2013-176_ProfessionalDevelopment.pdf 

TEDx Talks. (2013, November 6). Empowering the teacher technophobe: Kristin Daniels at TEDxBurnsvilleED [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/puiNcIFJTCU?si=WSwDDwZ4c87wrMIJ