Professional Professional Development Development For Title I, Part D, For Title I, Part D, Programs Programs

Dr. Ted PriceAssistant Professor, Educational Leadership, West Virginia University

Dr. Fran WarsingSuperintendent, Office of Institutional Education Programs, West Virginia Department of Education

Rick MartinDirector of Curriculum, Learning, Accountability, and Student ServicesOrange County Department of Education, California

Elements of Effective Elements of Effective Professional Development Professional Development

Sufficient resourcesStrategic plan

◦ Values, Beliefs, VisionHigh quality

Peterson, Kent (March 2011). "Characteristics and Features of Quality Professional Development Programs." E-Lead. Web. http://www.e-lead.org/principles/characteristics.asp

Professional Development Professional Development ActivitiesActivities

Types Topics

• Internal trainings by outside experts or qualified, trained staff

• External conferences and trainings

• Mentoring and coaching programs

• Data• Technology training• English Language

Learners• Parent Engagement

Information obtained from Dwayne Harapnuik, director of faculty enrichment at Abilene Christian University

Reviewing the Research: Reviewing the Research: National Staff Development Council National Staff Development Council Report Report

Purpose

• Provides overall picture of the nation’s professional development

• Reviews the research literature on staff training

• Presents data collected from a nationally representative survey of teachers

Wei, R. C., Darling-Hammond, L., Andree, A., Richardson, N., Orphanos, S. (2009). Professional learning in the learning profession: A status report on teacher development in the United States and abroad. Dallas, TX. National Staff Development Council.

Reviewing the Research: Reviewing the Research: National Staff Development Council National Staff Development Council Report Report Findings Duration

◦ Programs of 30 to 100 hours, over six months to a year positively influenced student achievement

◦ Programs with fewer than 14 hours of time over six months to a year had little effect on student achievement

Content-Focused◦ Curriculum connected to teachers’ classroom practice◦ Focus on deepening teacher content knowledge◦ Relation to how students learn particular concept◦ Coherent experiences

Fosters collaboration◦ Collective participation

Reviewing the Research: Reviewing the Research: Lessons From Abroad Lessons From Abroad

Other Industrialized

Countries

United States

• Teachers spend about 60 percent of their working time engaged in instruction

• Teachers spend relatively more time sharing ways of improving

• Practices align with the research just discussed to greater extent

• Teachers spend about 80 percent of their working time engaged in instruction

• Professional learning typically takes place in isolated settings

• PD is predominantly an individual enterprise

• Focus is on serving individuals rather than focusing on what students need

Wei, R. C., Darling-Hammond, L., Andree, A., Richardson, N., Orphanos, S. (2009). Professional learning in the learning profession: A status report on teacher development in the United States and abroad. Dallas, TX. National Staff Development Council.

Reviewing the Research: Reviewing the Research: Teacher Professional Learning in the Teacher Professional Learning in the United States: Case Studies of State United States: Case Studies of State Policies and StrategiesPolicies and Strategies

Teacher Reports Less than 10% reported that PD had little or no impact

About 40% reported that PD confirmed what they were already doing

Only about 50% of the teachers receiving PD in a given area reported that it led to a change

Teachers were more likely to note the impact of PD when the duration was longer

Teachers in highest-poverty schools were more likely to report that PD in their content area was ongoing than teachers in lowest-poverty schools

Jaquith, A., Mindich, D., Wei, R.C., Darling-Hammond, L. (2010). Teacher professional learning in the United States: Case studies of state policies and strategies. Oxford, OH: Learning Forward.

Common Strategies for Common Strategies for Leveraging Quality Leveraging Quality Professional DevelopmentProfessional Development1. Developing standards to guide accountability

2. Monitoring quality3. Requiring induction and mentoring programs 4. Leveraging collegial strategies for

professional learning5. Partnering with professional organizations 6. Creating networks of intermediary

organizations7. Addressing federal mandates and

accountability requirements in constructive ways

Peterson, Kent (March 2011). "Characteristics and Features of Quality Professional Development Programs." E-Lead. Web. http://www.e-lead.org/principles/characteristics.asp

Guided by Policy: Guided by Policy: ESEA and Professional DevelopmentESEA and Professional Development

High quality and classroom-focused Sustained and intensive Positive impact on classroom instruction Impact on teacher performance Improve teachers’ knowledge of subject area Provide training on use of data and

assessments to inform instruction

More information can be found at Education Commission of the States: http://www.ecs.org/

Reviewing the Research:Reviewing the Research:The Dilemmas of Professional The Dilemmas of Professional DevelopmentDevelopment

Barriers and ChallengesMost of the staff development that is conducted

with K-12 teachers:Derives from short-term transition model Pays no attention to what is already going on in

a particular classroomOffers little opportunity for participants to

become involved in the conversation Provides no follow-up

Richardson, Virginia (2003). "The Dilemmas of Professional Development." Phi Delta Kappan. 84(5) 401-106.

Coaching Teachers: Coaching Teachers: What You Need to KnowWhat You Need to Know

Definition: Coaching is providing specialized support for a designated period of time. It is an interactive process built upon collaborative activities and collegiality focused upon improving student learning. • A four-year, nationwide research project

affirmed what many of us who have been coached—or who are coaches—know: instructional coaching works

• Or rather, it can work if the conditions are right

Foltos, Les (2010). Peer Coaching: Changing Classroom Practice and Enhancing Student Achievement . Utah Special Education, 32(3), 29-31.

Coaching Teachers:Coaching Teachers:So what is coaching? So what is coaching?

Coaching is about listening

Effective coaches aren’t over-directive

"Without trust there can be no coaching"

Coaching can be transformative

Aguilar, Elena (March 2011). "Coaching Teachers: What You Need to Know." Education Week. 16 Feb. 2011. Web. http://www.edweek.org/tm/articles/2011/02/15/tln_coaching.html

Coaching Teachers:Coaching Teachers:Personal Lessons LearnedPersonal Lessons Learned

Coaching is really, really hard. Coaches need training and ongoing professional development.

Benefits to coaching:◦ Creates more collaboration and sense of

community◦ Provides opportunities to practice new

strategies more often and with greater skill◦ Retains and increases new skills◦ Demonstrates clearer understanding of the

purpose and use of the learned strategy

Conclusions and HighlightsConclusions and Highlights

1. Only half of teachers who received PD reported actual change in their teaching practice

2. Teachers engaging for longer duration were more likely to report change in their teaching practice

3. Teachers in the highest-poverty schools appear to be receiving more ongoing, multi-year PD experiences than teachers in lowest-poverty schools

4. Content-focused PD and collaborative efforts contribute to greater impact on teaching practices