Professional Development Experience

Danielle C. LamotteEDTL 506Fall 2012

Design• PD Model: Site-based

– Initially I was going to conduct Asynchronous Self-Directed Study

– Changed it to: Synchronous Site-based. Why?• The teachers that signed up for the PD session were all

new to the school (with the exception of one). Some had seen Moodle, but had not actually created a Moodle site and utilized it in their classroom.

• By conducting this form of PD, teachers were able to see the tools used in Moodle and how it could benefit them as teachers, as well as impact their classrooms.

• Follow up would be conducted via One-On-One coaching, allowing for individualized sessions

Research• In the March 2002 edition of Educational Leadership, James Stigler

offered his input on how the concept of effective professional development is changing. He said “Today, people believe that professional development should be targeted and directly related to teachers’ practice. It should be site-based and long-term. It should be ongoing-part of a teacher’s workweek, not something that’s tacked on. And it should be curriculum-based, to the extent possible, so that it helps teachers help their students master the curriculum at the higher level.”

• Top 10 Reasons for Site-Based Staff Development– http://www.projectcriss.com/pdf_files/2_3_S05_TEN.PDF

Theories of Adult Learning• Adult learners need to see that the professional

development learning and their day-to-day activities are related and relevant. – While exploring my Moodle site as a student, teachers

were able to see how user-friendly it is for students and parents. From a teacher’s standpoint, they were able to see how user-friendly it is in creating assignments, uploading documents, materials, videos, etc.

• Adult learners need direct, concrete experiences in which they apply the learning in real work.– Teachers were shown how to create assignments and

upload documents to a Moodle site

• FOLLOW-UP:• Adults need to receive feedback on how they are doing and the

results of their efforts. Opportunities must be built into professional development activities that allow the learner to practice the learning and receive structured, helpful feedback. • Once teachers have created their sites, they will either have to

allow guest access or enroll me as a user, so that I can check out their sites and give them feedback.

• Transfer of learning for adults is not automatic and must be facilitated. Coaching and other kinds of follow-up support are needed to help adult learners transfer learning into daily practice so that it is sustained.– Individual (One-On-One) sessions will be held on an as-needed

basis, and teachers will have to request these sessions at least a week in advance via email. I will also be able to facilitate the transfer of learning through the feedback I give when I visit the teachers’ sites and give them input.

Topic

• The results from my needs assessment indicated that Interactive Games and Moodle were the two top topics that teachers wanted to learn more about in order to enhance their students’ learning environment and maximize their teaching potential.

• I chose Moodle as my PD topic because of the…– Audience

• Teachers that signed up were either new or hadn’t used Moodle at all– Potential

• Interactive games, the other preferred topic, could essentially be uploaded to teachers’ personal Moodle sites

• Built-in tools in Moodle, such as quizzes and the ability for students to upload assignments were just a few features that would benefit both teachers and students. Other tools, for example Google Docs, could be used with Moodle to enhance the classroom experience.

– Impact• From first-hand experience, Moodle has definitely been beneficial to

myself, my students and parents. Having a place for students and parents to get the information they need for my class reduced paper usage and communication conflicts. It increased student accountability and interaction.

Delivery

• My PD session was conducted after school (3:00-4:30 PM) in the IBCA (Introduction to Business Computer Applications) lab on Thursday November 29, 2012.

• Teachers were introduced to Moodle and given a brief overview of what it actually is.

• Teachers initially explored my Moodle page as a “student”.• They were then guided through components of Moodle

– Enrolling users– Calendar– Assignments– Quizzes

• I introduced a few Web 2.0 tools that I use in conjunction with Moodle, such as– Google Docs – PhotoPeach

Sign In Sheet

Reflection• Teachers were open to this “new” tool• Sparked greater interest…they all signed up

for a Moodle site for their respective classes!• In the works: Site building and Mini-sessions• Changes…

– Have teachers’ sites already created and ready to manipulate