Developing Professional Leadership

What is Professional Learning?

Professional learning is a process where teachers continue to learn and develop new skills to become better educators. Just like students, teachers also need to keep learning to stay updated with new teaching methods, tools, and ideas that help improve their classrooms. Professional learning can happen in many ways, such as attending workshops, collaborating with other teachers, or exploring new teaching strategies.

The goal of professional learning is to help teachers grow in their careers and improve how they support their students. When teachers engage in professional learning, they are better prepared to create positive, effective learning environments that meet the needs of all students.

One source that highlights the importance of ongoing professional learning for teachers is The Learning Educator: A New Era for Professional Learning by Hayes Mizell. Mizell emphasizes that professional development is crucial for teachers to adapt to changing educational environments and improve their instructional practices to better serve their students (Mizell, 2010).

Reference:

Mizell, H. (2010). The Learning Educator: A New Era for Professional Learning.

picture of adults engaged in professional learning.jpg

Professional Learning Resources:

5 Key Principles

Duration

Support

Active Learning

Modeling

Specific

Promoting Alternative Professional Learning

The Why

Professional learning (PL) is said to be the catalyst to effective student learning. Right? However, in my experience as an educator professional development sessions often lack personalization, engagement, and relevance. PL is frequently delivered as a "one-size-fits-all" format, with little room for individualized learning path or hands-on application.

Teachers have a diverse range of skills, interests, and needs, yet a rigid professional learning model does not cater to this diversity. The current state of professional learning fails to prepare teachers to implement new, innovative teaching strategies, leaving them feeling disconnected from the content or overwhelmed by the pace of change enhancing the "whirlwind effect" on educators.

I envision a system where professional learning encourages exploration, collaboration, and practical application, allowing teachers to directly implement new strategies in their classrooms and receive meaningful feedback. By fostering an environment of continuous growth, reflective practice, and collaboration, alternative professional learning will ensure that teachers are better equipped to meet the diverse needs of students in a technologically advanced world.

The five key principles will serve as my guiding precedents in my alternative professional learning shift. The idea for alternative professional learning evolved as I began to critically reflect on my own professional development experiences. I noticed that the most impactful learning moments came not from lectures or required workshops, but from collaborative discussions with colleagues, experimenting with new strategies in the classroom, and receiving feedback tailored to my specific needs. This realization led me to explore implementing a professional learning models that will prioritize hands-on, active learning experiences, much like the blended and project-based learning I advocate for in my classroom. This shift is not just a solution to an outdated system but a necessary step toward ensuring our education system can meet the demands of a rapidly changing world.

The What

"Empowering Educators: Mastering Innovation in a Tech-Driven Classroom" is a call to action to convince district personnel and campus administrators of the need for an alternative professional learning model. The presentation video would be used during a faculty meeting to present my idea. The video will navigate through a Canva video Slideshow with a voiceover created using zoom recording features saved into a Mp4 audio. The video presentation will allows those who were not able to attend the video the opportunity to go back and watch utilizing the link posted onto our campuses weekly Bulletin. Educators will engage in a survey regarding the current state of professional learning via microsoft forms. This survey will provide insights into the effectiveness, relevance, and areas for improvement in the current PL model, helping guide the conversation toward alternative professional learning approaches.

Access Form

The How

To create this media, I used a combination of Canva and Zoom to keep the audience engaged. Canva allowed me to create professional-looking content without requiring advanced design skills. I used Zoom to take advantage of the recording features which allowed me to screenshare my Canva presentation to myself and record what I wanted to say for each slide. I ensured that each slide's visual directly related to the information provided throughout. During the cross-over process of combing the audio with the visual, I ran into a challenge with making sure my slides lasted as long as the verbiage in the audio. For a moment, I attempted PowerPoint, but it did not showcase the animations from Canva. I finally, realized that I could slow down the videos within the Canva presentation so the playback could last as long as the verbiage. By leveraging Zoom's recording features and Canva's design capabilities, I was able to produce dynamic and visually engaging video media that should capture and retain my audience's attention.

Call to Action

View Script

From Sit & Get
to
Go & Show

Explanation of Plans

Out of the Box Learning presents educators with the opportunity to engage in alternative professional learning that allows for active learning experiences and collaboration. I am presenting a professional learning that will allow educators to see the benefits that project-based learning and academic

e-portfolios have on students success in the classroom. This professional learning directly aligns with my innovation proposal to FBISD. Project-based learning and e-portfolios mimic the COVA model which allows students to take full ownership over their learning while reflecting on the concepts they've learned.

So what made me do an active professional learning? Well, the current model in FBISD mainly reflects the "sit and get" model. Either admin, instructional coaches, or outside companies present to us different topics throughout the school year per campus. At the district level, each summer they utilize the same model and give us 14 hours of required professional learning that they pick for us. Any other professional learning that sparks interest must be taken outside of those required course within the 14 hours. Many times teachers feel that these 14 hours are spent as a "waste". However, if teachers were presented with topics and ideas that could enhance the flow of their classrooms and spark relation to the current digitally advanced world that students are learning in, educators may not feel like professional learning is such a daunting topic.

My alternative professional learning course would end the dauntless thoughts and engage educators thoroughly each session.

3 Column Table

Innovation Plan

PL Course Outline

Join me on the drive to addresses the learning goal for each month over the span of a 9-month period. Sessions will be hosted once a month. Each day I will meet with a different grade level. This is to be sure that the learning is specific towards their grade level and content area. Each session will be held during grade level PLC timeframe which is an allotted 75 minutes. Teachers will then be given 4 weeks to implement and practice each learning goals focus. This gives the necessary time for hiccups, feedforward, and correction.

Incorporating the 5 Key Principles of Effective Professional Learning

Content Specificity: The PL program specifically addresses Project-Based Learning (PBL) and e-portfolios, ensuring relevance to various subject areas by allowing participants to design PBL units that incorporate real-world problems relevant to their disciplines.
Active Engagement: Teachers participate in workshops, collaborative projects, and role-playing scenarios which facilitate hands-on experience and direct interaction with the materials and concepts taught.
Modeling: Experienced educators, like myself, will demonstrate the use of PBL and e-portfolios in real classroom settings, including the integration of digital tools such as Google Classroom and Padlet, to provide clear, actionable examples for participants.
Coherence: The program is designed to align with current educational standards and teachers' professional goals, gradually building from basic concepts to more complex applications over the course of the program.
Sustained Duration: Spanning nine months, the program allows teachers to develop, test, and refine their skills in PBL and e-portfolio development, with ongoing support and periodic assessments to track progress and adjust approaches as needed.

Duration and Ongoing Support

The extended timeline facilitates deep engagement with PBL and e-portfolios. Monthly focus areas ensure a structured yet flexible learning environment. Ongoing support includes regular check-ins, access to a dedicated online forum for troubleshooting, and scheduled feedback sessions to discuss implementation challenges and successes.

Support During Implementation

Targeted support during implementation stages includes on-demand access to instructional coaches who provide personalized guidance. Troubleshooting workshops are also available to address specific technological or pedagogical challenges, ensuring teachers can adapt practices to their unique classroom environments.

Active Learning/Exposure

Sessions are designed to be interactive, involving immediate application of PBL principles through small group discussions, case study analyses, and design of mini-PBL units. This approach ensures that teachers actively process and apply new information from the beginning.

Discipline/Content Specific

Modeling Effective Practices

Detailed modeling sessions include live demonstrations of PBL units in action, use of e-portfolios for student assessment, and guest presentations by teachers who have successfully integrated these practices. This provides a concrete understanding of how to implement these strategies effectively.

How Will You Foster Collaboration?

The professional learning course will contain structured activities such as collaborative project design workshops where teachers work in groups to create PBL units, encouraging sharing of ideas and co-construction of knowledge. They will also have access to our LMS (Schoology) where teachers can share ideas, resources, seek advice, and provide feedback. This will sustain collaborative momentum between in-person sessions that are held each month. Teachers will also be given opportunities to present the progress of their PBL and

e-portfolio designs so that other colleagues may offer feedforward.

Who Will Lead What Components?

Course Facilitator: I, the professional learning facilitator will lead the overall program. I will be responsible for delivering content, facilitating discussions, and providing personalized support to participants. As educators become more equipped, I will then choose other educators or allow those experienced with the subject to help facilitate.
Technical Specialists: I will be sure to have the campus IT specialist aware of the professional learning to assist with any technology hiccups throughout the professional learning course. Our IT specialist is available on campus twice a week. Previous Technology Integration Coordinators (a stipend position) will assist when the IT specialist is not available. However, I will be able to assist in one-on-one sessions as well regarding technological issues within the PBL units and or the construction of the e-portfolios.

Who is the Audience & Their Needs?

The audience includes teachers from diverse subject areas and grade levels ranging from 4-12. The program will cater to these variances by offering differentiated tracks or sessions tailored to specific grade levels or subject areas. The sessions will be held one week per month Monday-Friday during campus grade level PLC times. Each session held with be a total of 75 minutes. Teachers will likely need support not only in understanding PBL and e-portfolios but also in how to integrate these approaches into their existing curriculum and meet their professional growth goals. Thus, sessions on curriculum integration and strategies for professional advancement will be included. Feedback will be welcomed from the participants in order to adapt the course to better meet their evolving needs throughout the professional learning program duration.

What Resources will be needed?

Educational Technology Tools: Licenses or subscriptions for software such as e-portfolio platforms (Google Sites or Wix) and PBL support tools (Trello, Padlet, Kahoot).
Professional Learning Materials: Access to a curated library of resources, including scholarly/peer reviewed articles, case studies, sample PBL units per grade level or content area, current curriculum, and templates for e-portfolios.
Facilities and Equipment: A designated PLC room to conduct the interactive workshops and collaborative work. Equipment such as computers, SMART Boards, and reliable internet access.