National Staff Development
Council
www.nsdc.org
Teachers & Leaders Congressional
Roundtable
March 15, 2010
Common Questions About Effective Professional Development
Stephanie Hirsh
Executive Director
National Staff Development Council
Official Follow Up To Written Testimony
National Staff Development
Council
www.nsdc.org
NSDC Purpose
Every educator engages in effective professional learning
every day so every student achieves.
Answers to Unasked Questions
Though the hearing was an excellent
opportunity to present and discuss
relevant information from the field, there
are several questions the committee did
not have time to ask.
The following are responses to important
questions about professional development
that did not arise at the hearing.
Why should ESEA include an approach
similar to NSDC’s proposed definition?
1. To ensure teachers keep improving their performance.
There is compelling evidence that teacher performance plateaus at
four years – according to Urban Institute researcher Jane
Hannaway: “Teachers work in isolation. They learn what they learn
and then they plateau. They get no valid input.”
2. To ensure good practices spread from classroom to
classroom.
There was a 2.6 times greater variation across classrooms in the
same schools than school to school (OECD, 2008 – PISA
Science) .
3. Principals and teachers support collaboration.
Approximately, two thirds of teachers (67%) and three quarters of
principals (78%) say that greater collaboration among teachers
and school leaders would have a major impact on improving
student
achievement (MetLife American Teacher Survey, 2009).
4. To promote application of the most
important practices tied to student
achievement.
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Shared responsibility for student achievement
Instructional leadership by principals
Learning communities at school and grade/subject level
Data-driven decision making
Opportunities for teacher leadership
Induction and mentoring of new teachers
Collaborative work and deprivatization of practice
Classroom based and job-embedded support
External expertise support as needed
As documented in research conducted and/or summarized by: McREL;
Stanford; Ed Trust; AIR; Rand; University of Minnesota; University of
Washington, etc.
What are the critical components of effective
professional development?
Goal: Improve student achievement
and professional practice.
School Leadership
Team examines data
and establishes
priorities for learning
and action
Principal & Leadership
Team organizes faculty
Learning Teams use
into learning teams;
school priorities as
establishes a schedule
framework for
for learning time
professional
equivalent to several
development and focus
times or several hours
on the learning needs of
per week; and provides
their students.
skillful facilitator for
each team
Is there research to support the proposed
definition for professional development?
Yes!
• Students benefit when teachers learn from peers. “The
Importance of Peer Learning for Teachers” (Jackson, C.K. &
Bruegmann, E., 2009) reports that when the quality of a
teacher’s colleagues improve, the students of that teacher
benefit.
• In a five-year UCLA study of Title I schools, serving more than
14,000 students, the team documented the significant
contribution of teacher learning teams as part of the school
improvement model evaluated.
– Achievement rose by 41 percent overall, and by 54
percent for Hispanic students
Research Findings Continued …
• McKinsey & Co. (2008) studied 25 of the world's school systems,
including 10 of the top performers. Among the top three things that
matter most is ensuring that the system is available to deliver the
best possible instruction for every child. This is accomplished by:
building practical skills during initial training
placing coaches in schools to support teachers and guide
collaboration
selecting and developing effective principals
enabling teachers to learn from each other.
• L.D. Hammond and the School Redesign Network at Stanford
University (2008) conducted comprehensive study of state of
professional learning.
– The five-year study of 1,500 schools undergoing major reforms
found that where teachers formed active professional learning
communities, student absenteeism and dropout rates were
Why is it important to tightly define professional
development in federal law?
•
To allow for the monitoring of the quality professional development.
•
To provide guidance to states and districts on how to organize effective
professional development.
•
Educators will benefit from a framework that guides the improvement
process. Capacity building for system and school leaders may be
necessary to ensure they have skills to guide the process.
•
Schools will have flexibility as they examine their own data, consider
their own circumstances, weigh their options for action, study best
practices and research, and determine the steps they will take to
improve.
•
PD offers the right balance of structure and flexibility.
What does this PD definition have
to do with retaining great teachers?
MetLife Study of The American Teacher
(2009) :
– Teachers in schools with higher levels of
collaborative activities are more likely than
others to have high levels of career satisfaction
(68% vs. 54% very satisfied)
America’s Teachers on America’s
Schools, A PROJECT OF SCHOLASTIC
AND THE BILL & MELINDA GATES
FOUNDATION (2010)
– More than 4 in 10 teachers — regardless of the length of
time they have been teaching — say it is “absolutely
essential” to provide opportunities for relevant
professional development in order to retain good
teachers. And 8 in 10 say it is very important.
What is the work of learning
teams?
Examine data on
student and teacher
performance to
establish focus
areas
Collect data and
discuss impact of
new learning and
strategies on
students
Implement new
strategies in
classroom; Access
support from other
teachers or teacher
leaders and/or
coaches
Determine learning
agenda and strategy
for acquiring needed
knowledge and skills
Gain new knowledge
and skills and
identify opportunities
to apply in
classroom
How much will this cost?
It varies by situation, but the primary cost is time.
• In some districts there would be a cost to prepare the
leaders who will facilitate this new approach to professional
learning.
• In some districts there will be costs to support new staffing
models that ensure teachers have time during the work day
for team learning.
• And in many districts current resources can be
reallocated to support this approach to professional
learning as opposed to the more common and often more
expensive “adult pull out model.”
• Most of the cost is in the time – and many systems already
know how they can reallocate time to conform with the
definition.
What is the difference between
intensive support tied to teacher
evaluation and professional
development for all teachers?
• PD as part of the teacher evaluation cycle is driven
by individual needs of teachers typically defined by
teaching performance standards.
• PD as part of a learning community/school
improvement process is driven by needs of
students as determined by the data on their
performance.
• PD in the evaluation process is typically viewed as
remediation; PD in the learning community process
is growth promoting.
Is it possible to evaluate the impact of professional
development on student achievement and professional
practice?
• Yes! Several states already evaluate the impact
of professional development.
– Examples of States with professional development
evaluation systems include Florida, Iowa, and
Maryland.
– Florida Protocol System requires an onsite review of PD
systems every three years. Research documented high degrees of
fidelity to state PD standards produces improved student learning (See
teachinflorida.com) NSDC’s
– Standards Assessment Inventory measures the quality
of school-based PD as defined by PD standards used
in 40 states. Research has documented strong correlation between high
SAI scores and high student achievement. (SEDL, 2009). Instrument been used
in Georgia and Arizona districts to guide improvement.
For more information
Stephanie Hirsh, Ph.D.
Executive Director
National Staff Development Council
972-421-0900 or 214-732-1450
Stephanie.hirsh@nsdc.org
M. René Islas
NSDC Federal Policy Advisor
B&D Consulting
202-589-2835 or 571-274-5473
Rene.Islas@bakerd.com