So looking through the responses made by my PLN I have learned a lot about the thoughts of others on the skills of the 21st century learner. It was interesting to read the thoughts of the tools that teachers will need to move forward to become critical thinkers, problem solvers, and collaborators. So if we know all of these things, what do we need to do to get there? What do I need to do as an administrator to empower my students and staff?
My job as an administrator is to empower my staff and give them tools to be successful. Sometimes this is sharing knowledge, sometimes this is providing tools (it is not about the tools, but we definitely we need them if we want to connect globally), and sometimes this is allowing them to take risks (calculated but still risks).
There are many staff that are already trying different things. I have staff writing their own blogs, creating multimedia with students, collaborating in the classroom through simple things like show and share. I am seeing these practices everyday. Unfortunately (not for me but for everyone else), I am able to visit different classrooms everyday. I have the opportunity to see the effective practices that each of these teachers are doing.
So HOW do I give my staff more opportunities? Here are my initial thoughts:
- Time – This is the greatest commodity that we lack in schools. There is always that balance of leaving the classroom to learn more but then who is working with the kids? This is always a great struggle with teachers and it totally makes sense. Our school will also continue to offer, “release time” for teachers to simply further their learning in critical thinking and technology integration. Hopefully this time will provide beneficial to staff.
- Opportunities for Collaboration – My Assistant Principal, who is absolutely amazing, has been working on a schedule where staff has preps at the same time of day so that they will have the opportunity to share best practices with one another. There are definitely times that teachers need to just work on their own and get things done, but we wanted to ensure that time was available to learn from their teaching partners.
- Job Embedded Professional Development – As we are working on distributed leadership, we have provided time for staff to take the lead in certain areas in our staff, including special education reform, technology integration, and critical thinking. Although they will need time to further their own learning, they will also have time to work with teachers IN the classroom along with students. This not only lowers the ratio of teacher to student, but it also gives staff the opportunity to learn on the job in a safe manner. We are looking forward to see how this progresses in the next year.
- Tools – Ultimately we cannot connect through things like Skype with out cameras, computers, and microphones. If we want to collaborate with others and open up opportunities for students to use technology, I have to ensure that these tools are available in the classroom. As a technology integration coordinator, I saw the reluctance of many who had to go grab carts, set things up, etc., etc. It is essential these tools are readily available in the classroom for staff so it is the same as grabbing a writing utensil. Of course costs cause an issue, but the better we can equip the classroom, the more likely we are able to reach our goals.
- Professional Development Opportunities – In our school division, we have eight days next year that are for professional development and are up to each site to decided how they are used. It is important as an administrator that I align our goals and vision with what we do during these days. If it doesn’t fit (which I have seen in schools), then we don’t do it. We need to be very deliberate in the way that we spend these days. There are always the “little” things that we must ensure that we get done for our school division, but it is essential that we use our time as wisely as possible. This also includes time for teachers to just “work” on things for their classroom; it is not about filling the day with professional development. Often times as learners, we check out when topics are “overkill”. It is important that we are wise in how we use this time and thoughtful of how it affects our staff as a whole.
Now these are only some of the ideas that we have had to move our vision forward. As an administrator I have a lot of opportunities in our school to determine how our budget is used and what it is used for, so this is how I will focus my time.
Are there things that your staff does that are useful that are missing from this list? Are there things on this list that will not work? I do not believe in “my ideas” but I believe in “best ideas”; all input is valued.
Hopefully we are on the right path.
The time issue is huge. I hate being out of my classroom, so I do as much as I can after school or in the summer. It may be an option to pay a small stipend to stay after school instead of release time.
In Canada, we are not allowed to do that. I do offer short sessions every now and again for teachers. It is such a tough thing because you have to be able to find that balance between PD and being in the classroom. Hopefully we can figure out an easier solution without burning out staff with too much work.
Time will always be a huge issue. Our district sets aside 2-4pm on Wednesday for elementary PD (students have early release that day). Some of the PD is district level, but most are on-site. It's nice to have those days devoted to PD. They haven't always been the most effective, but changes are being made (I am trying to be a part of those changes) that will make our on-site PD more relevant and productive for our staff.
On the other hand, though, teachers need to realize that teaching is a "service" and serving others is often times inconvenient. Sometimes sacrifices have to be made (working some evenings or weekends) in order to do our best. I'm not saying ignore everything else (family, friends, yourself), but every now and then, you have to put in some extra time.
Thanks for your comment Jeremy. I agree that there needs to be some time that needs to be put in after school as that is part of our professional obligation. Part of it is that we want to ensure we are not overburdening staff and ensuring they have balance in their lives. I have found that the most effective teachers are the ones that have interests outside the classroom. Students definitely connect with them. It will be a challenge to try and balance all of those things but I will definitely do my best to help! Thanks again!
Our Principal has also prepared monthly meetings in which we meet with our grade level team/PLC for part of the day (rotating subs during the day). We focus on common assessments and best practices. We also look at "data" to determine our focus and direction. It is a great opportunity to collaborate and work closer with our grade level colleagues.
I always enjoy reading your blog posts and make a real concerted effort to do so, but George, you have really outdone yourself here. I think that this is a blog post that every person in education needs to read. Wow! You make a number of great points about how to deliver meaningful professional development, so that we, as teachers, really do get the most out of it. The more that we get out of this PD, the bigger the impact it will have on our students.
I have been very fortunate to be in a school where the majority of my prep times are at the same time as my grade team partners, and this makes a really big difference. While we do use this time for our own classroom preparation, we also meet a couple of times a week to plan for the following week and dialogue about what we've done throughout the week. This common planning time has not just been hugely beneficial for planning purposes, but also for assessment purposes, as we often engage in teacher moderation during this time. This ensures that we are consistently assessing in the same way, as well as looking at our assessments, and making future plans based on areas of need.
I have also been fortunate enough to be involved in the Board Mentorship Program for the past five years, and this program gave me the opportunity to go into other teachers' classrooms and see what they're doing. While I know that this benefitted my protege, it benefitted me equally as much too. I'm not good at sitting and listening through long meetings, but I learn a lot by seeing what others do and being immersed in the "doing process." Visiting classrooms definitely helped me tremendously!
The only thing that I always worry about when it comes to PD is being out of my classroom too much. I often feel like the times are lumped together, and this makes it difficult. Half-day PD sessions always worked well for me, and trying to spread them out throughout the year works too. Also trying not to have professional development opportunities near holidays or near the end of the year works well, as this is the hardest time to focus during these meetings and really take the most out of these sessions. Timing is key!
I also think that Differentiated PD would be great! If teachers have areas that they want to find out more about, or if they are "experts" in certain areas, it would be great if this could be taken into account when planning and executing these PD opportunities. Then everybody gets the most out of each session!
Thanks for always giving me so much to think about! I'm definitely going to share this blog post with my two administrators and some other administrators that I know, as I think that you have an excellent plan here.
Thanks again for your kind words! There is no one better than you to mentor new teachers; definitely shows there is hope for the future!
I appreciate you sharing this link with others. Hopefully I can help them in the future
One of the projects that I was teased with last year, and hope to make a reality this year, involves how we can see "best practices" in the classroom. It is tough when there isn't a lot of time in the day to visit other classrooms. We hope to videotape or uStream classrooms (where we have parental approval) to show how things work in the actual classroom. I see potential!
That sounds like a great idea! I think that when we watch ourselves teach, we really learn what we do. I think the best videos now are when there is more students engagement and less teacher led discussion. I would love to see these videos. Thanks for the comment!
I agree that time is a major issue. The administrators at my school are working diligently to find time for us to plan together. Next year we will have late start Mondays which will give the PLC's 1 1/2 hours of team planning. We also have a common planning time for grade levels most days and 6 half days in the calendar to plan as a team. I'm sure we will need more time, but they are doing their best to give us as much time as possible.
Excellent! Time to work with each other will definitely benefit long term in the classroom. Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
Great post. It's all about the differentiated PD and CHOICE.
I agree…we really need to ensure that we are tailoring it to meet the needs of staff that have great knowledge or that are just starting, and everything in between. Thanks for your comment!
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Dear George,
Thank you for the ideas you share with us here. The "how" part often lacks here in Turkey..Maybe because we are not used to collaborate, act as a team etc. All the effort you add in to realize effective learning and teaching is amazing. I will definetely..share this link with my colleagues!
Best,
Candan
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