Focus on Improving Instruction - Connecting PD to Practice

As educators, we have all experienced professional development sessions that inspire us and other sessions that fall flat.  Too often there are so many competing initiatives, that activities planned for professional development days throughout the year feel disjointed without clear connections to the work in the classroom.  This lack of focused PD that is planned and facilitated in a top-down way rarely helps schools or school districts move forward and improve.  Is there another way?  Can a plan be developed for professional development in a school that is focused, and yet still provides opportunities for teachers to provide input and drive the direction of the school?  I think the answer to all of the above is yes. Here's how.  First, one theme is selected as the area of focus for the year (or ideally two or three years).  Let's take improving instruction as the big umbrella theme.  Next, teachers and administrators work together to develop a menu of instructional strategies that they want to learn more about.  From that menu, each individual teacher selects their top choices.  Teachers connect with colleagues with similar areas of interest.  In our school, we are blessed with a designated one hour block of time every week for this work.  In week one, teachers could research their instructional strategy of choice and share out current practices.  Prior to the next meeting, teachers try out this strategy, observe peers, and then reconvene to debrief.  At this meeting, teachers share observation feedback - successes and failures - and leave with adjusted/improved strategies in hand.  They try out these strategies and do another round of peer observations.  They then meet again to debrief and can now decide to either continue to refine their work with this strategy or move on to another instructional strategy with potentially another group of colleagues.  Interspersed with this learning cycle are opportunities to learn about new technologies or address the items that end up competing for our time - the new technology for teacher evaluations or the new online grade book.  The potential here, I believe, is great.  Teacher driven professional development with opportunities to immediately try out what you learn, observe peers as well as be observed by peers, and receive feedback without the weight of evaluation.  It is like combining the concepts of EdCamps with Instructional Rounds. I think this can work - do you? Anyone doing/have done something similar?

Reflection and Focus - Improving Instruction

A recent article in ISTE’s April 2015 edition of their journal Entrsekt, shares a parable about preparation.  It is the story of a lumberjack who gets diminishing returns despite his best effort over the course of three days.  After apologizing to his boss, the boss asks him: When was the last time you sharpened your ax? The article is about teacher preparation.  The article concludes with a quote from Abraham Lincoln who said about preparation: “If I had eight hours to chop down a tree, I’d spend six hours sharpening my ax.” (Douglas, 2015 http://tinyurl.com/l66tvls).  With competing initiatives from federal, state, and local authorities, too often educators get bogged down in trying to meet these mandates rather than regularly sharpening their ax.  This is why it is so important for educational leaders to help their schools find the time to focus on improving instruction through professional development, peer observations, and the regular sharing of best practices. Teachers also need to be encouraged to take risks by trying out new things.  Also crucial is time for regular reflection. In September, we will kick off the school year with a visit from Dave Burgess.  He will bring his high-energy to the island to fire up our educators with his Teach Like A Pirate strategies.  The true work begins after the pirate leaves the island.  In order to sustain the burst of energy that will no doubt be injected into our school, we must be vigilant and determined to take full advantage of the time we do have to sharpen our collective ax.