Professional Learning in the Learning Profession: A Status Report on Teacher Development

1. National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org Professional Learning in the Learning Profession: A Status Report on Teacher Development in the United States and Abroad Stephanie Hirsh Executive Director National Staff Development Council MSP Program 2009 Regional Conference March 30 - April 1, 2009 Chicago, IL

2. NSDC Purpose: National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org Every educator engages in effective professional learning every day so every student achieves.

3. Effective Professional Learning: National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org • Results-driven • Standards-based • Job-embedded

4. Results-Driven: National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org What are students expected to know and be able to do? What must educators know and be able to do to ensure student success? What professional development must be offered to enable educators to develop the knowledge and skills needed to produce the results they want for students?

5. National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org

6. National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org

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8. National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org NSDC Definition of Professional Development: • Comprehensive, Sustained and Intensive • Collective Responsibility • Alignment with Standards

9. National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org NSDC Definition of Professional Development: • Learning Teams • Dedicated Time • Continuous Cycle of Improvement • External Assistance Providers

10. Job-Embedded Learning National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org At school everyone’s job is to learn.

11. National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org Professional Development Vision and Definition

12. National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org Professional Learning in the Learning Profession: A Status Report on Teacher Development in the United States and Abroad

13. National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org A Status Report on Teacher Development in the United States and Abroad • Authored by: • Linda Darling-Hammond, Ruth Chung Wei, • Alethea Andree, Nikole Richardson, • Stelios Orphanos, The School Redesign Network at Stanford University • Sponsored by: NSDC • Funded by: • Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation • MetLife Foundation • The Wallace Foundation

14. National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org Teacher Development Abroad U.S was compared to the industrial nations that are members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)

15. National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org Teacher Development Abroad

16. National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org Teacher Development Abroad Four advantages found: 1. Ample time for PD structured into teachers’ work lives - Planning is more collegial - Learning is ongoing and sustained and teachers can focus on issues or problems over time

17. National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org Teacher Development Abroad Ample time for PD structured into teachers’ work lives (continued) - Teachers devote non-classroom time to plan and learn together, and to develop high-quality curriculum and instruction - Their learning is built into their schedulesso it is ongoing and sustained and can focus on particular issues or problems

18. National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org Teacher Development Abroad 2. Beginning Teachers receive extensive mentoring and induction supports 3. Teachers are widely encouraged to participate in school decision making

19. National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org Teacher Development Abroad 4. Governments provide significant levels of support for additional professional development • - The Netherlands, Singapore, and Sweden • require at least 100 hours of PD per year, in addition to regularly scheduled time for common planning and other forms of teacher collaboration

20. National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org Teacher Development Abroad What else do we want to know?

21. National Center for Education Statistics’ • 2003 – 2004 Schools and Staffing Survey • (SASS) • - 130,000 public and private school teachers across all 50 states National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org Teacher Development in the United States • Data used in this study

22. National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org Teacher Development in the United States • Data used in this study • The NSDC Standard Assessment • Inventory (SAI) 2007- 2008 • - This measures teachers’ perceptions • regarding their PD as compared to NSDC standards • - 150,000 teachers in 5,400 schools

23. National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org Teacher Development in the U.S. • Learning Communities 9. The teachers in my school meet as a whole staff to discuss ways to improve teaching and learning. 29. We observe each other’s classroom instruction as one way to improve our teaching. 32. Beginning teachers have opportunities to work with ore experienced teachers at our schools. 34. We receive feedback from our colleagues about classroom practice. 56. Teachers examine student work with each other.

24. National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org Teacher Development in the United States • Most U.S. teachers participate in some form • of professional development every year • Much PD focuses on academic subject matter, • but not with much depth • 57% received fewer than 16 hours of PD on the • content of the subject(s) they taught in the last • 12 months

25. National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org Teacher Development in the United States

26. National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org Research Findings Professional learning can have powerful effects on teacher skills and knowledge and on student learning if it is: • Sustained over time • Focused on important content • Embedded in the work of learning communities

27. National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org Research Findings Substantial contact hours of PD (ranging from 30-100 hours in total) spread over 6 to 12 months showed a positive and significant effect on student achievement gains. (p.9) Darling-Hammond, D., Wei, R.C., Andree, A., Richardson, N., Orphanos, S. (2008). Professional learning in the learning profession: A status report on teacher development in the United States and abroad. Oxford, OH: NSDC.

28. National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org Research Findings • Intensive PD efforts that offered an average of 49 hours in a year boosted student achievement by approximately 21 percentile points. (p. 9) Darling-Hammond, D., Wei, R.C., Andree, A., Richardson, N., Orphanos, S. (2008). Professional learning in the learning profession: A status report on teacher development in the United States and abroad. Oxford, OH: NSDC.

29. National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org Research Findings • A five-year study of 1,500 schools that had active • PLC found • - A drop in student absenteeism and drop out • rates • - A shared sense of intellectual purpose and a sense of collective responsibility for student learning were associated with a narrowing of achievement gaps in math and science among • low- and middle-income students Darling-Hammond, D., Wei, R.C., Andree, A., Richardson, N., Orphanos, S. (2008). Professional learning in the learning profession: A status report on teacher development in the United States and abroad. Oxford, OH: NSDC.

30. National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org Promising Practices School-based coaching may enhance professional learning - Studies have found that teachers who receive coaching are more likely to enact the desired teaching practices and apply them more appropriately than are teachers who received more traditional PD Darling-Hammond, D., Wei, R.C., Andree, A., Richardson, N., Orphanos, S. (2008). Professional learning in the learning profession: A status report on teacher development in the United States and abroad. Oxford, OH: NSDC.

31. National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org Promising Practices • Mentoring and Induction programs for new teachers may support teacher effectiveness Darling-Hammond, D., Wei, R.C., Andree, A., Richardson, N., Orphanos, S. (2008). Professional learning in the learning profession: A status report on teacher development in the United States and abroad. Oxford, OH: NSDC.

32. National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org report on Teacher Development in the United States and Abroad Conclusion The U.S. lags in providing teachers time and chances to work together on issues of instruction, to collectively guide curriculum, assessment, and professional learning decisions

33. National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org report on Teacher Development in the United States and Abroad And finally. . . . • It is time for our education workforce to engage in learning the way other professionals do---continually, collaboratively, and on the job—toaddress common problems and crucial challenges when they work • Forward –Gov. James B. Hunt

34. Examine policies and contexts that support • implementation of more effective • professional learning tied to student learning • in states and school systems National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org report on Teacher Development in the United States and Abroad Phase 2 Future Area of Study

35. National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org report on Teacher Development in the United States and Abroad Phase 3 • Future Area of Study • Degree to which educators experience PD • linked to improved professional practice • and student learning, along with state-by- • state comparison data

36. National Staff Development Council www.nsdc.org Professional Learning in the Learning Profession: A Status Report on Teacher Development in the United States and Abroad Stephanie Hirsh Executive Director National Staff Development Council 17330 Preston Road, Suite 106-D Dallas, Texas 75252 972-421-0900 Stephanie.hirsh@nsdc.org