Transforming Professional Development into Student Results

1. Transforming Professional LearningTransforming Professional Development Into Student Resultsby Douglas B. Reeves MASSP Women in Leadership August 18, 2010

2. Transforming PD into Student Results During Today’s Interactive Session we will be: • Discussing the reason to change our PD practices • Learning how to create high-impact professional learning for staff • Investigating how to sustain high-impact professional learning • Learn how high-impact professional learning impacts student achievement

3. Transforming PD into Student ResultsPart 1: What’s Wrong with Professional Learning? Table Discussion Questions: Discuss the difference between Professional Development vs. Professional Learning Does your building/district promote Professional Development or Professional Learning? Why?

4. Transforming PD into Student ResultsPart 1: What’s Wrong with Professional Learning? Leadership & Learning Matrix Organizational Results Antecedents of Excellence

5. Transforming PD into Student ResultsPart 1: What’s Wrong with Professional Learning? Three Characteristics of High-Impact Professional Learning: • Focus on student learning • Rigorous measurement of adult decisions • Focus on people and practices, not programs

6. Transforming PD into Student ResultsPart 1: What’s Wrong with Professional Learning? The Law of Initiative Fatigue • Resources: time, money, and emotional energy • Don’t ignore it! • Inverse Relationship

7. Transforming PD into Student ResultsPart 1: What’s Wrong with Professional Learning? Multitasking • Talked on the phone • Listened to voicemail • Read e-mail • Sent a text message • Held a personal conversation • Wrote an email • Create a “to-do” list • Other distraction

8. Transforming PD into Student ResultsPart 1: What’s Wrong with Professional Learning? Focus • Time at PD • Power Standards • Leverage • Endurance • Essential for next level

9. Transforming PD into Student ResultsPart 1: What’s Wrong with Professional Learning? Planning for High Impact Professional Learning What process does your district use to plan Professional Development/Learning? What was the most effective Professional Learning session you planned? Why do you believe it was successful?

10. Transforming PD into Student Results Part 1: Planning for High Impact Professional Learning Successful School Improvement Plan Characteristics: Comprehensive Needs Assessment Inquiry Process Prioritization Specificity Measurability Achievability Relevance Timeliness Monitoring

11. Transforming PD into Student Results Part 2: How to Create High-Impact Professional Learning 12:00 Discussion Topic: How do you maintain your school improvement focus? If you could focus on just one or two school improvement goals this year, what would they be?

12. Transforming PD into Student Results Part 2: How to Create High-Impact Professional Learning From Vision to Implementation • Focus • Assessment of student learning • Vision

13. Transforming PD into Student Results Part 2: How to Create High-Impact Professional Learning Vision Statements • Sample: Creating a World-Class Education Today to Shape Tomorrow’s Selfless, Global Leaders • Sample: Every Battlefield High School student will achieve personal success and become a responsible and productive citizen. • Sample: All Potomac Senior High School students will achieve personal success in their learning and become responsible and productive citizens.

14. Transforming PD into Student Results Part 2: How to Create High-Impact Professional Learning GBHS Administrative Team Vision Statement: Why do we exist? • To ensure a safe and orderly environment focused on teaching and learning • To support students’ academic achievement in every way possible • To encourage and develop responsible behavior for all students • To provide staff with support, resources, guidance, and motivation • To extend learning beyond the classroom, by providing opportunities for students to be involved in meaningful extracurricular activities, athletics, and after school events • To build positive relationships with parents by maintaining an open and honest line of communication • To continually communicate, support, encourage, celebrate, and enhance the performance of our administrative team so that we become the best and most effective team possible.

15. Transforming PD into Student Results Part 2: How to Create High-Impact Professional Learning Focus on Leadership • Leaders are fixated on the fact that student achievement is the criteria for evaluating teaching, the curriculum, and assessment strategies • Leaders focus on equity of educational opportunity through common curriculum and assessments • Leaders focus on developing other leaders

16. Transforming PD into Student Results Part 2: How to Create High-Impact Professional Learning Focus on Curriculum & Assessment • Identify important elements of curriculum • Collaborate to create new assessments • Work alone to provide responses for the new assessments • Exchange work and apply scoring rubrics • Return & Discuss to remove ambiguities RESULT: maximum opportunity for student success

17. Transforming PD into Student Results Part 2: How to Create High-Impact Professional Learning Action Research • Research Question • Student Population • Student Achievement Data • Professional Practices Observed

18. Transforming PD into Student ResultsPart 3: How to Sustain High-Impact Professional Learning Develop Teacher Leaders vs. Train Teacher Leaders • Competencies • Resources • Motivation

19. Transforming PD into Student ResultsPart 3: How to Sustain High-Impact Professional Learning Beware! Common Barriers to Teacher Leadership • Toxic Hierarchy • Compliance Orientation • Shooting the Messenger • Disrespect

20. Transforming PD into Student ResultsPart 3: How to Sustain High-Impact Professional Learning 6:00 Appointment How do you develop teacher leaders? What do you do to keep them motivated and focused on school improvement?

21. Transforming PD into Student ResultsPart 3: How to Sustain High-Impact Professional Learning Teacher & Administrator Evaluation • Marshall’s new teacher evaluation rubrics • Leadership Performance Matrix (Reeves, 2009)

22. Transforming PD into Student ResultsPart 3: How to Sustain High-Impact Professional Learning Bernice Johnson inherited many things from her predecessor at Monroe School. Settling into her second month as principal, she had a fine office with fresh paint and new furniture. Her administrative assist and was competent and reasonably courteous. The school itself appeared to be orderly and safe, and the physical facilities were well maintained. Bernice also inherited a staff that was demoralized and unfocused, and a professional development calendar that was crammed with disjointed workshops. The staff was surprised when Bernice attended the first mandatory after-school workshop, as neither her predecessor nor other building administrators had attended in the past. The meeting was held in the cafeteria, with teachers seated at tables with benches and no backs. The room was stifling, and the teachers, some of whom had been at the school since 6:30 a.m., were exhausted. They were used to the routine, however—two and a half hours of PowerPoint slides, punctuated by a break and a few table discussions. When the meeting adjourned at 5 p.m., Bernice thanked the staff and said, “I think you might have some ideas of how we could do professional learning differently this year. I’d appreciate it if you’d share those with me in the next few days.”

23. Transforming PD into Student Results What have you learned today? What will you change as a result of today’s session? What are your suggestions for follow up topics/seminars?

24. Transforming PD into Student Results THANK YOU  Jennifer Hammond jhammond@grandblancschools.org Jodi Kruse Jkruse@grandblancschools.org Cheryl Hemond chemond@grandblancschools.org