Highlights in This Issue Update on Professional Learning ... · Update on Professional Learning for...
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Highlights in This Issue Volume 12, Number 3 Spring 2012 • Editorial —Update on Professional Learning for Teachers Consultation ...............1 • Feature Workshop —Spotlight on Cognitive Coaching.....................2 • In Your Neighborhood —Calgary Separate School Local and School District Work Together Toward High- Quality Professional Development ..............3 • Upcoming Events............4 • New Teacher Workshops Online in April................4 • Specialist Council Profile —Career and Technology Studies Council ...........5 • Spring Professional Development Area Conference, April 20(eve)–21, 2012 ...5 • Look Who’s Talking —Introducing Eight New PD Facilitators to Support PD Leaders Across the Province....6 • Reminders .......................7 • Nous sommes à l’écoute! —Deux nouveaux ateliers ........................8 • First Nations, Métis and Inuit Language and Culture Studies for Alberta Classrooms......................9 • Teachers Want a Balanced Approach to PD............10 One of the greatest challenges—and often a source of frustration— in advocating for professional development is wondering if anyone is even listening to the recurring appeal for change and call for improved supports. Sometimes, so much time passes before anything happens that you wonder if the leadership principle that states “if you ignore something long enough, it will go away” is in place. Be assured that your voice has not only been heard but listened to. Although it has been almost 16 months since Alberta Education initiated a major consultation, in November 2010, on professional learning for teachers in Alberta’s K–12 education system, more than 600 quantitative and qualitative responses have been received and analyzed. Following is a glimpse of some of the highlights in the final report that affirm the pivotal role of teacher professional development in Alberta. • Job-Embedded Time—Improving educator access to job-embedded time for professional learning within the teaching day, as long as it takes into account the implications for daily workloads and competing teacher responsibilities • Learning Communities— Enhancing opportunities for all school staff to actively participate in learning communities; and understanding that learning communities arise most commonly from organizational cultures of inquiry, risk taking, and openness, built through collaboration and cooperation. Mentorship and coaching were particularly supported as specific strategies for learning communities. • Self-Directed Learning—Ensuring that teachers have options when choosing which learning opportunities to access • Teacher Feedback—Providing meaningful opportunities for teachers to offer feedback on their professional learning supports • Collaboration—Ensuring a higher degree of cooperation E ditorial Update on Professional Learning for Teachers Consultation Michael Podlosky, Coordinator, Professional Development
Transcript of Highlights in This Issue Update on Professional Learning ... · Update on Professional Learning for...
Highlights in This Issue
Volume 12, Number 3 Spring 2012
• Editorial—UpdateonProfessional
LearningforTeachersConsultation...............1
• FeatureWorkshop—SpotlightonCognitive
Coaching.....................2
• InYourNeighborhood—CalgarySeparate
SchoolLocalandSchoolDistrictWorkTogetherTowardHigh-QualityProfessionalDevelopment..............3
• UpcomingEvents............4
• NewTeacherWorkshopsOnlineinApril................4
• SpecialistCouncilProfile—CareerandTechnology
StudiesCouncil...........5
• SpringProfessionalDevelopmentAreaConference,April20(eve)–21,2012...5
• LookWho’sTalking—IntroducingEight
NewPDFacilitatorstoSupportPDLeadersAcrosstheProvince....6
• Reminders.......................7
• Noussommesàl’écoute!—Deuxnouveaux
ateliers........................8
• FirstNations,MétisandInuitLanguageandCultureStudiesforAlbertaClassrooms......................9
• TeachersWantaBalancedApproachtoPD............10
Oneofthegreatestchallenges—andoftenasourceoffrustration—inadvocatingforprofessionaldevelopmentiswonderingifanyoneisevenlisteningtothe
recurringappealforchangeandcallforimprovedsupports.Sometimes,somuchtimepassesbeforeanythinghappensthatyouwonderiftheleadershipprinciplethatstates“ifyouignoresomethinglongenough,itwillgoaway”isinplace.
Beassuredthatyourvoicehasnotonlybeenheardbutlistenedto.Althoughithasbeenalmost16 monthssinceAlbertaEducationinitiatedamajorconsultation,inNovember2010,onprofessionallearningforteachersinAlberta’sK–12educationsystem,morethan600quantitativeandqualitativeresponseshavebeenreceivedandanalyzed.FollowingisaglimpseofsomeofthehighlightsinthefinalreportthataffirmthepivotalroleofteacherprofessionaldevelopmentinAlberta.
• Job-EmbeddedTime—Improvingeducatoraccesstojob-embeddedtimeforprofessionallearningwithintheteachingday,aslongasittakesintoaccounttheimplicationsfordailyworkloadsandcompetingteacherresponsibilities
• LearningCommunities—Enhancingopportunitiesforallschoolstafftoactivelyparticipateinlearningcommunities;andunderstandingthatlearningcommunitiesarisemostcommonlyfromorganizationalculturesofinquiry,risktaking,andopenness,builtthroughcollaborationandcooperation.Mentorshipandcoachingwereparticularlysupportedasspecificstrategiesforlearningcommunities.
• Self-DirectedLearning—Ensuringthatteachershaveoptionswhenchoosingwhichlearningopportunitiestoaccess
• TeacherFeedback—Providingmeaningfulopportunitiesforteacherstoofferfeedbackontheirprofessionallearningsupports
• Collaboration—Ensuringahigherdegreeofcooperation
Editorial
Update on Professional Learning for Teachers ConsultationMichaelPodlosky,Coordinator,ProfessionalDevelopment
PD E-News, Volume 12, Number 3, Spring 2012, p 2
andcollaborationamongmembersofAlberta’seducationlearningcommunitytosupportteacherlearning
• CoordinationofDelivery—Improvingcoordinationofdeliveryofprofessionallearningsupports,withoutcompromisingtheself-directedlearningofteachers
Advocatingforteachers’controloftheirprofessionalpracticewillcontinuetobeamajorthrustoftheAssociation.Theconditionsofpracticeincludeallofthe
structuresrequiredforteacherstoprovidetheirbestpossibleprofessionalservice.Teachersknowthatprovidingthebestpossibleprofessionalservicerequiresmanyhoursofeffortandthatthemoreeffortputintopreparationbyteachers,thebetterthelearningforstudents.Securingmoretimeduringtheschooldayforteacherstodotheworknecessarytoprovidehigh-qualityinstructionwillbeapriority.Changecanbeslow,butnonethelessverypositiveandrewardingwhenyouknowyourvoiceisbeingheard.
Spotlight on Cognitive CoachingMarkYurick,ExecutiveStaffOfficer,ProfessionalDevelopment
Cognitive Coaching Series
TheAssociationhascoordinatedaCognitiveCoachingprogramthatisbeingfacilitatedbyJohnClarke,atrainingassociatefromtheCenterforCognitive
Coaching,HighlandsRanch,Colorado.TheprogramconsistsoffiveFridayeveningandfull-daySaturdaysessions.Acohortof48 people,comprisingclassroomteachersandschoolanddistrictadministrators,hasbeenparticipatingintheseriessincethefall.
Cognitivecoachingisapeercoachingmodelthatfocusesonenablingpeopletoenhancetheircognitiveprocesses.Itisbasedonthepremisethatthoughtandperceptionproduceallbehaviourandthatcoachingsomeonethroughthecognitionstagemediatesthinkingandallowsthepersontobuildhisorherproblem-solvingabilities.
Participantshavelearnedthatalargepartoftheprocessisbuildingtrustandrapport.Theyhavebeenprovidedwithopportunitiestodevelopskillsinmediativequestioning,
Feature Workshop
responsebehaviours,andpacingandleadingcoachingconversations.Theseskillsareutilizedin“maps”thathavebeendevelopedtoguidethethinkingprocessinplanning,reflectingandproblemsolving.
Participantswhosuccessfullycompletetheprogramwillbecertifiedascognitivecoaches.Duetothestrongresponsefortheprogramthisyear,considerationisbeinggiventoofferingitagaininthefall.
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Calgary Separate School Local and School District Work Together Toward High-Quality Professional DevelopmentDavidCracknell
Howdoestheteachingprofessionensurethatteachershaveaccesstohigh-qualityprofessionaldevelopment?Onewayistotakethebullbythehornsandstarttheprocessourselves.FouryearsagotheCalgarySeparateSchoolLocal 55didjustthat.
ThelocalcreatedanadhoccommitteetolookintomanyaspectsofPD.Thatcommittee,withtheassistanceofATAstaffofficersMichaelPodloskyandJ-CCouture,createdasurveythatmorethan1,400CalgaryCatholicteacherscompleted.Thecommitteepresenteditsreport,“CreatingOurFuture,”tothelocalCouncilofSchoolRepresentatives(CSR),theDistrictAdministrativeCouncil,theDistrictLeadershipCouncil(DLC)andtheCalgaryCatholicBoardofTrustees.ExpertiseandinsightgainedfromtheexcellentfeedbackfromteacherscreatedaspringboardfordiscussionsbetweenthenChiefSuperintendentLucyMillerandLocalPresidentDavidCracknelltocommenceajointefforttoprovidequalityPDforteachers.OutofthesediscussionscametheJointATA/CSSDPDCommittee,whichisnowinitsthirdyearofcooperation.
TheJointATA/CSSDPDCommitteehadanoriginalmandatetoaddressthreesignificantareas:(1) improvetheavailabilityandopportunitiesforPD,(2) engageinadiscussiontodefineembeddedPDand(3) coordinatePDeffortsbyworkingtogethertoshareideasandresources.Thecommitteehasalsoworkedinanadvisorycapacitybyprovidingfeedbackonleadershiptrainingwithintheschooldistrictandcontributingtodiscussionsregardingteacherprofessionalgrowthplans(TPGP).However,themainfocusison
In Your Neighbourhood
coordinatingeffortsandprovidinghigh-qualityPDforourteachers.
Afterthefirstyearofoperation,thecommitteesentabrochuretoallteachersdetailingthehistoryofthecommitteeandthegeneralphilosophyofqualityPD.ThishasnowmorphedintoayearlyupdatethatcomesoutinearlySeptember,settingthestagefortheschoolyear.Communicationwithourteacherscontinuesthroughe-mail.ThecommitteehasalsopresentedtoDLCmeetingsandCSRmeetingsofthelocal.
ThecrowningachievementoftheJointATA/CSSDPDCommitteeatthispointisthesignificantincreaseinthedepthandbreadthofPDofferingsavailabletoteachers.ParticularlyinspiringarethedistrictwidePDdays,inwhichteachershaveachoiceofmorethan60PDopportunitiesthroughoutthecityatvarious
DavidCracknell,formerpresidentofLocal 55,andLucyMiller,formerchiefsuperintendentCalgaryRomanCatholicSeparateSchoolDistrict1
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schoolhostsites.Thisconvention-styleofferinghasreceivedpositivereviews,oneofthemostexcitingbeingtheoften-heard“ThereweresomanysessionsIwantedtoattendthatIfounditdifficulttochoosejustone.”
Ifwehavelearnedanythingthroughthefouryearsdedicatedtothisproject,itisthatprofessionaldevelopmentisaprocess,notanevent.Theexcellentcooperationbetweentheschooldistrict(CSSD)andthelocalcontinuestofuelthisexcitingjourney.Whoknowswhereitcouldlead?
New Teacher Workshops Online in April
Areyouinyourfirstfewyearsofteaching?DoyouwanttoattendtheNewTeachersOnlineWorkshops?
Takethemonlineinanyorallofthesethreeafter-schoolInternetsessions:
Parents and Teachers: Same Goals, Different Goals Tuesday,April3from4:15to5:45PM
Engaging Students—The Art of Effective InstructionWednesday,April18from4:15to5:45PM
Classroom ManagementMonday,April23from4:15to5:45PM
www.crcpd.ab.ca/programs/category/32#programs
Upcoming EventsApril
19–21 Career and Technology Studies Council Conference
20 PD Facilitators Meeting20 Convention Association
Meeting20(eve)–21 Spring Professional
Development Area Conference
26–28 Middle Years Council Conference
May
4–5 Association Instructor Training
4–5 English Language Arts Council Conference
4–6 Health and Physical Education Council Conference
19–21 Annual Representative Assembly
PD E-News, Volume 12, Number 3, Spring 2012, p 5
Career and Technology Studies CouncilCraigDeJongandLucindaHetlinger
Specialist Council Profile
WearefastapproachingtheannualCareerandTechnologyStudiesConference,tobeheldonApril19–21,2012,attheRiverCreeResortinEnoch(nearEdmonton).Theconferencescheduleincludesavarietyofinnovativeandcaptivatingsessionsaswellashands-onworkshopsfromAlbertaindustrypartners.The2012CTSConference:“SafeJourneys”willopenwithanaddressfromtheministerofeducation,theHonourableThomasLukaszuk.
Dr LindaDuxburyistheconferenceopeningkeynote,speakingon“EnteringtheDragon’sDen?WhatHighSchoolGraduatesCanExpectintheWorldofWork.”ThislookatdemographicandemploymenttrendsinAlbertaandCanadashouldbeparamountinourfutureeducationalframeworkdiscussions,aswere-visioneducationoverthecomingyears.Dr Duxbury’swordswillbesuretoinspireeducatorsasawholetomeettheeducationalneedswithinachangingprovinceandcountry.
TheclosingkeynotespeakeristheentertainingandprovocativeStephenMurgatroyd,whowillpresent“SlayingtheDragon:WhyUniversityIsNottheDestinationAlbertaNeedsforMostofItsStudents.”IencourageyoutoregisterfortheconferenceandshareinavaluableprofessionaldevelopmentexperiencewithCTSteachersacrosstheprovince.Pleasecontactlhetlinger@ecsrd.caforfurtherinformation.Theconferencescheduleispostedonourwebsite,www.ctscouncil.com.
InotherCareerandTechnologyCouncilnews,wehavebeenworkingtoprovidecontinuingprofessionaldevelopmentopportunitiesfortheteachersofAlberta.Thecouncil’sworkonplanningsessionsatteachers’conventionsanditssponsorshipofmini-CTSworkshopsandmultidaysessionsarejustafewofthewayswearetryingtofulfilltheprofessionaldevelopmentneedsofallCTSteachers.Ifyouhaveanysuggestionsabouthowwecancontinuetoimproveourservicetoyou,[email protected].
Spring Professional Development Area Conference, April 20(eve)–21, 2012ThespringProfessionalDevelopmentAreaConference(PDAC)willbeheldtheeveningofFriday,April20andSaturday,April21atBarnettHouse,inEdmonton.InvitationsweresentinMarchtoPDchairs,localpresidents,conventionassociationpresidentsandprogramchairs,specialistcouncilpresidents,regionalconsortiaexecutivedirectorsandAssociationrepresentatives,andmembersofProvincialExecutiveCouncil.
PD E-News, Volume 12, Number 3, Spring 2012, p 6
Introducing Eight New PD Facilitators to Support PD Leaders Across the ProvincePleasewelcomerecentappointeestothePDfacilitatorcorps.ContactyourregionalPDfacilitatorstohelpyouwithPDneedsassessments,PDsurveysupport,PDplanningsupportandarangeofotherservices.Contactinformationisavailablethroughyourregionalstaffofficer,thePDcollaborativesiteorbycontactingGayleneSchreiberat780-447-9447or1-800-232-7208,ext 447.
Sharalynn AndersonCoronation
Iteachhighschoolhomeeconomics,French,English,CALMandafewoptionshereandthere.Ialsoservedasanadministratorfornineyears.CurrentlyIteachGrade 8languageartsandsocialstudies,ECS,andGrades 1and 2music.Ialsoworkwithearlyreadinginterventionstudentsfromtimetotimeandfacilitatealeadershipclasswithjuniorhighstudents.
Farida GarrettCalgary
IamaFrenchandSpanishspecialist,currentlyteachingSpanishandESL.Inthepast,ItaughtFrench.Iamalearningleaderforfineartsandsecondlanguages.
Carmen HarfordCalgary
IteachatBandedPeakSchool,BraggCreek,RockyViewSchoolDivision.IhavealsotaughtatSpringbankMiddleSchool,Calgary,RockyViewSchoolDivision;CarselandSchool,GoldenHillsSchoolDivision;GreentreeSchool,GoldenHillsSchoolDivision;andSayreHutteriteColony,GoldenHillsSchoolDivision.
Steven P KaplanBarrhead
Ihavebeenteachingfor13 years,withexperiencerangingfromGrades3–11inallsubjectareas.Inaddition,IhavefiveyearsofadministrativeexperienceandamcurrentlyinmysecondyearasprincipalofasmallK–6schoolinPembinaHillsRegionalDivision.
Look Who’s Talking
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Pina MartinovichCalgary
Ihave28 yearsofteachingexperienceinbiology,chemistry,physicsandreligiouseducationatthehighschoollevel.IamcurrentlyteachinginEvergreenCatholicSeparateRegionalDivisionNo 2.Inthelastfiveyears,IhavebeenaschoolcounselloratJohnPaul IISchoolinStonyPlain,Alberta,workingwithchildrenfromGrades 1to 8.
Myrna McLeanLa Crete
Ihave29 yearsofteachingexperienceatallgradelevelsandamcurrentlyteachingGrade 4;Ihaveservedasvice-principalfor6 years.
David Teasdale Stettler
IhavebeenatWmEHayCompositeHighSchoolfor18 years,teachingCTS(computers,finance,carpentryandwelding),mathematics,andknowledgeandemployabilityforGrades 9to 12.Iamthefirst-everteamteacherwithAlbertaDistanceLearningCentre,deliveringMathematics 14and 24onlinewithstudentsintheclassroom.IamcurrentlytheleadonlineteacherforClearviewSchoolDivision,basedattheStettlerOutreachSchool,andcoordinateonlinelearningforClearviewschools.
Leslie Wolowidnyk-VogelTurin
Thisismyeighthyearasateacher;allmyteachingyearshavebeenwithHorizonSchoolDivision.Ihavetaughtmanygradesandmostofthesubjectsunderthesun.Mycurrentassignmentisathree-gradeESLclassroomwithplentyofdifferentiationbetweenthegradelevels.Itcanbechallengingattimes,butIwouldn’ttrademyexperiencesforanything.
RemindersIfyouareanewPDchair,pleasesendyourname,[email protected]
PleasevisitthePDcollaborativesite,https://collaboration.teachers.ab.ca/pd/publish/pages/default.aspx,forresourcestosupportPDleaders.UseyourTNETlog-in.
PD E-News, Volume 12, Number 3, Spring 2012, p 8
Nous sommes à l’écoute!
Lesecteurperfectionnementprofessionnelestheureuxdepartagersesdernièresnouvellesdontlelancementdedeuxnouveauxateliersquis’adressentànosmembresdesécolesfrancophones
oud’immersion,Ici,toutlemondeestlebienvenuetSoYou’reanAdministratorofaFrenchImmersionProgram?SupportIsontheWay!.
Ici,toutlemondeestlebienvenuestlefruitdutravailducomitéDiversity,EquityandHumanRights(DEHR)del’ATA.En2010,cetatelieraconnuungrandsuccèsauprèsdenosmembresanglophonesenAlbertaetdansnosréseauxnationaux;c’estpourquoinousavonsdécidédetraduireleguidedu
participantquil’accompagneetdecréerunatelierenfrançaisquenoussommesprêtsàprésenterdansvosécoles,lorsdevosjournéespédagogiques,devoscongrèsdeConseilsdespécialistesouentoutesautresoccasions.Envoicisadescription :
Dufaitdesgrandschangementsdémographiquesdesécolesalbertaines,lesméthodesetstratégiesd’enseignementd’autrefoisnesontpeut-êtreplusaussiefficacesdenosjours.Cetatelierpermetd’examinerleconceptdelacompétenceculturelle.Grâceàceconcept,vousapprendrezàreconnaitrecroyances,attitudes,politiques,structuresetfonctionnementdesétablissementsainsiquelesméthodesd’enseignementquipermettentauxécolesinterculturelles,d’aprèslesétudesdémographiques,debienfonctionner.
Lacompétenceculturellesuccèdeauxidéesdesensibilisationetdeprisedeconsciencedesdifférencesculturellesquitrèssouventaboutissaientàdeschangementsminimesdecomportementsindividuelsouorganisationnels.Aucoursdecetatelier,lesparticipantsdévelopperontdescapacitésquilesamènerontàévaluerleurproprecompétenceculturelleetprendrontdavantageconsciencedesdynamiquesdesinteractionsinterculturelles.
SoYou’reanAdministratorofaFrenchImmersionProgram?SupportIsontheWay!aétédéveloppéencollaborationaveclaDirectiondel’Éducationfrançaise,lesecteurperfectionnementprofessionneldel’AlbertaTeachers’Association,leConseilfrançaisetl’AlbertaRegionalProfessionalDevelopmentConsortium.Cettetrousses’adresseauxcadresdedirectiondesécolesd’immersiondelaprovince.L’EdmontonRegionalConsortiums’estdonnélatâchedegérerceprojetcollaboratifetl’atelieraccompagnelelancementdu
Deux nouveaux ateliers ParFrançoiseRuban,cadresupérieureausecteurduPerfectionnementprofessionnel
ICI,
TOUT LE MONDE EST LE BIENVENU
Enseigner dans une classe interculturelle
PD E-News, Volume 12, Number 3, Spring 2012, p 9
First Nations, Métis and Inuit Language and Culture Studies For Alberta ClassroomsDoyouwanttoexplorethiscurriculum?DoyouhaveaninterestinAboriginalstudentsuccess?Considertakingfourafter-schoolhourstodelveintothiscurriculumwithyourcolleaguesfromaroundtheprovince.
Pleasenotethatthisopportunityisopentoonly25 teachers.Thereisnochargetoattendtheseevents.
Inregisteringforthisseriesofwebinarsyouagree,tothebestofyourability,toattendallfoursessions,tobepartofarecordingthatwillbemadeavailabletoK–12educatorsthroughouttheprovinceandtoparticipateinresearchaboutthismethodofdelivery.
Dates,times,registrationandmoreinformationcanbefoundontheLearningNetworksite,atwww.learning-network.org/programs/month/April,orwww.crcpd.ab.ca/programs/category/6#programs.
manuelHandbookforFrenchImmersionAdministratorsduministèredel’Éducation,réviséen2010.Cedocumentestmaintenantaccessibleauhttp://www.education.alberta.ca/francais/admin/immersion/handbookimm.aspx.
L’ateliertraitede4 élémentsclés :
a) Les10 savoirsessentielspourunadministrateurdeprogrammed’immersion
b) Commentcréerunenvironnementimmersif?
c) Commentoffrirlesupportnécessaireauxprofesseursd’immersionetauxparentsd’enfantsenimmersion?
d) Oùtrouverlesressources?
Aucoursdupremiervoletdel’atelier,lesparticipantssontregroupésetleséchangessefontsousformedefaceàfacealorsquelestroisautressedonnentsousformede« webinaire ».Qu’undirecteurd’écoled’immersionsoitnouveaudanssonrôleoupas,qu’ilpuissecommuniquerenfrançaisounon,ouqu’ilsouhaitetoutsimplementmettreàjoursesconnaissancessurlesprogrammesd’immersion,cetatelierluiserafortutiledanslamiseenœuvreetlemaintiend’unprogrammed’immersion.Sivousdésirezoffrircetatelierdansvosécolesouorganismes,n’hésitezpasàcontacterEdmontonLearningRegionalConsortiumouFrançoise Rubanàl’ATAàl’adressesuivante :[email protected].
PD E-News, Volume 12, Number 3, Spring 2012, p 10
ThefollowingarticlewasfirstpublishedintheATANewsvolume 46,number 9.
Teachers Want a Balanced Approach to PDGayleneSchreiber,ExecutiveStaffOfficer,Government/ProfessionalDevelopment
InarecentstudyundertakenbyRockyViewLocal35,ATAstaff,internationalresearchersandteachersregisteredtheirconcernabouttheimpositionofdistrict-mandatedprofessionaldevelopment(PD).
TeachersdesireabalancedapproachtoPDthatisself-directedandinvolvescollaborativelearning.ResearchreflectsagrowingconcernthatPDisincreasinglyleveragedtoaccomplishgoalsthatliebeyondtheindividuallyidentifiedprofessionallearninggoalsofteachers.Asaresult,PDtimeandresourcescouldbecomeacontestedissue.Inaneraofmonolithiceducationalchange,teachershavebecomewaryofPDthatsupportsabewilderingarrayofdisconnectedschoolimprovementinitiatives.Teachershavelittletimeorresourceslefttoattendtotheirownprofessionallearninggoals.
LongitudinaldatafromtheATA’s2010PDSurveyfoundthatteacherautonomyinpursuinggrowthplangoalshasslipped.Only44.4 percentofrespondentsreportedthatteachershaveahighdegreeofautonomyandchoiceinpursuinggrowthplangoals.Bycontrast,48.9 percentindicatedthatteachershavesomedegreeofautonomy,and6.7 percentreportedthatteachershavelittleautonomy.In2009,51 percentofrespondentssaidteachershadahighdegreeofautonomyandchoiceandnoneindicatedthatteachershadlittleautonomy.Inotherwords,teachersnolongerfeelasconfidentastheyoncedidthattheyareincontroloftheirowngrowthplans.
Alsodisquietingwererespondents’concernsthatsomejurisdictionsexpectedteachers’professionalgrowthplangoalstosupportjurisdictionorschoolgoals.ThisisarguablynottheintentionofAlbertaEducation’sTeacherSupervisionandEvaluationPolicy2.1.5,whichdelineatesthepurposesandusesofteachergrowthplansandstatesthat“ateacher…isresponsibleforcompleting
duringeachschoolyearanannualteacherprofessionalgrowthplanthat:(i)reflectsgoalsandobjectivesbasedonanassessmentoflearningneedsbytheindividualteacher.”(http://education.alberta.ca/teachers/certification/standards/teacher.aspx,accessedJanuary5,2012)
ContemporaryPDresearchandliteratureadvocateforprofessionallearningconditionsthathonourautonomyandchoice,withapracticalcontentfocusrelatedtoteachers’dailypractice.Activeandcollaborativelearning,overasustainedperiod,whichisfocusedonasmallnumberoflearningoutcomes,isgenerallyseenasaneffectiveapproach.Opportunitiesthattakeadvantageofcollegialexpertiseandcollaborationincommonteachingtasksarecost-effectiveandappealingwaystosharepromisingpracticesandnewlyacquiredinformation.Collegiallearningincommunitiesofpractice,embeddedintothedailyworkofteachers,cantakemanyforms,suchascoplanningandcoteaching,mentoring,modellinginstructionaltechniques,reflectingonlessons,groupdiscussions,andcollaborativeplanningorassessmentofstudentworkorteachingresources.Itisnosurprisethat29 percentofRockyViewrespondentssaidtheprovisionofembeddedPDtime(duringthedayorweek)wasanimportantpriority,withafurther39 percentsayingitwassomewhatimportant.
Theimplicationsforteacherlearningandteacherefficacyareclear.Whenteachersareprovidedwithopportunitiesforfocusedandsustainedlearningabouttopicsandskillstheyhavechosentopursue,withsupportfromandinteractionwiththeircolleagues,asenseofengagementandenthusiasmislikelytofollow,andteacherlearningismorelikelytobetransferredintoclassroompractice.Thisapproachsoundsabitlikewhatteachersalreadyknowaboutstudentlearning:engagementfollowswhenrelevance,choiceandrespectforstudents’needsareconsistentlypresent.Perhapsitistimetodoawaywithone-size-fits-alllearningandprescriptiveoutcomesforteachers,too.
