Comments on: Lame professional development http://TeachEffectively.com/2007/09/25/lame-professional-development/ Evidence-based teaching methods for helping students who are at risk for school failure or who have disabilities. Wed, 08 Oct 2008 07:03:25 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.2 By: JohnL http://TeachEffectively.com/2007/09/25/lame-professional-development/#comment-53576 JohnL Wed, 03 Oct 2007 10:08:31 +0000 http://TeachEffectively.com/2007/09/25/lame-professional-development/#comment-53576 Angela, thanks for the inquiry. Here are some notes for a start. To be productive and powerful, professional development should <ol><li>Present practices, procedures, and methods that have consistently been shown by research to cause higher levels of outcomes for students;</li> <li>Provide explicit models of how to implement those practices, procedures, and methods;</li> <li>Include adequate opportunities for participants to practice implementing those effective practices, procedures, and methods;</li> <li>Incorporate systematic feedback about how participating teachers are implementing those practices, procedures, and methods;</li> <li>Demonstrate how to assess whether those effective practices, procedures, and methods are, in fact, having the expected effects of students' performance;</li> <li>Follow up in participants' classrooms and provide additional models and feedback about implementing the effective practices, procedures, and methods (as well as the progress-monitoring methods); and</li> <li>Provide a little rationale and explanation.</li></ol> In short, I'd like to see professional development that teaches effectively. I welcome corrections, amplifications, and such. These are simply some quickly drafted notes. Angela, thanks for the inquiry. Here are some notes for a start. To be productive and powerful, professional development should

  1. Present practices, procedures, and methods that have consistently been shown by research to cause higher levels of outcomes for students;
  2. Provide explicit models of how to implement those practices, procedures, and methods;
  3. Include adequate opportunities for participants to practice implementing those effective practices, procedures, and methods;
  4. Incorporate systematic feedback about how participating teachers are implementing those practices, procedures, and methods;
  5. Demonstrate how to assess whether those effective practices, procedures, and methods are, in fact, having the expected effects of students’ performance;
  6. Follow up in participants’ classrooms and provide additional models and feedback about implementing the effective practices, procedures, and methods (as well as the progress-monitoring methods); and
  7. Provide a little rationale and explanation.

In short, I’d like to see professional development that teaches effectively.

I welcome corrections, amplifications, and such. These are simply some quickly drafted notes.

]]> By: Angela Maiers http://TeachEffectively.com/2007/09/25/lame-professional-development/#comment-53379 Angela Maiers Thu, 27 Sep 2007 22:58:55 +0000 http://TeachEffectively.com/2007/09/25/lame-professional-development/#comment-53379 This post caught my eye. As a consultant providing professional development for teachers and schools, I hear many stories. I would be interested in your thoughts on what can make professional development more productive and powerful. Every child deserves a teacher that is knowledgeable, passionate, and equipped to manage learning within the classroom. So how do we achieve that goal in the most meaningful way? Love to hear your thoughts. This post caught my eye. As a consultant providing professional development for teachers and schools, I hear many stories. I would be interested in your thoughts on what can make professional development more productive and powerful. Every child deserves a teacher that is knowledgeable, passionate, and equipped to manage learning within the classroom. So how do we achieve that goal in the most meaningful way? Love to hear your thoughts.

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