Is PD as We Know It Really Working?
My Why I Think It's Not:
I've only been a teacher for 8 years now but I have been to SO MANY different PDs that sometimes I feel like my head is spinning and I don't know what side is up. Every time I attend a PD, I get that "YES! I can't wait to use this in my classroom! This is exciting!" Only to forget everything I learned in the entire 3-8 hours. I have been to trainings about guided reading, spelling, math, science, read alouds, writer's workshop, and so so many more. The problem is, every one of those trainings were a sit and get style of PD. You go and SIT in the training room or the zoom room, you get told about the latest and greatest curriculum or lessons, then you leave all pumped up to try new things. Then you get back into your classroom the next day or a couple days later and you can't remember what you wanted to try.
This type of PD needs to change. We don't teach our students the same way we used to by standing in the front of the room reading words from a powerpoint we project. Why are we still being taught that way? Why are we expected to learn this way when we are expected to NOT teach this way?
I was trying to find the original author of the following quote, but I was unable to find it. I still feel that it is so profound that I need to share it:
"Tell me and I forget,
teach me and I remember,
involve me and I learn," (Allport, 2019).
This needs to be the new way of looking at professional development in the educational setting.
Now that I think back, when I was working In Waller ISD, we were trained on Neuhaus. It is an AMAZING language arts program that was the best PD I have ever had. Not only did we have days of interactive and upbeat training. We also had follow up trainings through the year with the SAME presenters. They scaffolded all of the concepts that we learned and offered support when we needed throughout the entire time I worked there.
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My How and What
In the video here I mention how we can use the 5 key principles of effective professional learning to improve our PD.
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It is crucial to the future of teacher learning that professional development/learning evolves with the times just like our instruction has. If we want teachers to grow in their professions, we need to allow them the opportunity to do so through effective PD.
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Professional development is NOT a one size fits all. Each and every one must be special and unique to the teachers that are learning from it. Why can;t it be meaningful, fun, and educational at the same time?
It's time to shift from the SIT an GET and move on to a GO and SHOW way of looking at PD (Goodbye “Sit-And-Get” PD: Practical, Applicable Professional Development for Teachers, 2020).
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Source: TNTP (2015)
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Source: TNTP (2015)
References
Allport, G. W. (2019, February 27). Tell me and I forget; Teach me and I may remember; Involve me and I learn – Quote Investigator. Quote Investigator. Retrieved April 11, 2022, from https://quoteinvestigator.com/2019/02/27/tell/
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​Goodbye “sit-and-get” PD: Practical, applicable professional development for teachers. (2020, June 30). EdTech Classroom. Retrieved April 11, 2022, from https://edtech-class.com/2020/06/30/goodbye-sit-and-get-pd-practical-applicable-professional-development-for-teachers/
Gulamhussein, A. (2013). 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
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TNTP. (2015). The mirage: Confronting the hard truth about our quest for teacher development. Retrieved from http://tntp.org/publications/view/evaluation-and-development/the-mirage-confronting-the-truth-about-our-quest-for-teacher-development
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