What elements of the 8 Things to Look For in Today’s Classrooms” exist in your professional learning? What elements are lacking?
Within my organization in regards to professional learning opportunities, I would say that while we employ several of the above techniques to certain extents, there are a few that we do not employ at all. Professional learning opportunities are valued by my management team, and they allow us to voice our needs and wants, and provide us with a variety of professional learning opportunities to choose from, either internal (on campus through UVM) or externally to a conference. These opportunities often lead to connected learning and opportunities for innovation by exposing professionals to different ideas, best practices, and modes of thinking. The elements that are lacking would be self-assessment as well as time for reflection. I think if our organization provided more opportunities for us to gauge our own strengths (and possible have others give input into our strengths, we would be able to better align to our training needs. I also think that after prior to and after a professional learning opportunity, one must be able to realistically reflect on their needs and how they align to their organization, and then reflect on the learning they have done after they experienced the learning opportunity. This way you recognize whether or not the experience was valuable (and then others can participate), and how the knowledge learned can benefit the individual and the organization.
I appreciate how you've used the "8 Things" to critically evaluate the professional learning process and culture within your organization. Your post prompted me to think about the professional development I've participated in at the public schools where I've worked. Most striking in my experience is a deficit in reflection. I can't think of an example where reflection was explicitly structured into an in-district PD activity. Perhaps we are expected as professionals to "naturally" engage in reflection by our own initiative? Ironically, professional learning for teachers too infrequently models best practices for learning. Thank you helping me notice this connection between the "8 Things" and professional learning.
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