EDL 271: Change Initiative

1. EDL 271: Change Initiative Michael A. Marsden Drake University

2. Professional Development Why start with professional development? What is our case for change? • Lacking effectiveness • Not perceived well by the staff • Many teachers have become content and have found a “comfort zone” What are the hopes for this change initiative? • Build a pillar of strength to provide support • Start small - the culture is too fragile to handle a large scale change • Begin to change the culture • Re-energize the staff and pull them out of their “comfort zone”

3. ASSESS THE SITUATION

4. PD every 2nd and 4th Friday • No sign-in sheet • Many teachers choose not to attend • Many teachers believe PD is a waste of time • Learning opportunities are rare • Most PD sessions are used for school updates or meetings in content areas • Most subjects taught only have one teacher • Have turned PD into time for Lead Learning Teams to prioritize standards • Every session for the rest of the year will consist of this • Most staff participation occurs when there is a guest speaker What do we have to work with?

5. ADDRESS THE ISSUE

6. ADDRESS THE ISSUE • Beginning of the school year • Take ownership • “This is a problem area for us and we need to improve upon it.” • Why is this a problem area? • Clarify a goal for professional development • What do we want our PD time to look like? • What do we want to get out of our PD time? • Remind the staff why professional development is important • So we can be the best teachers possible to provide an exceptional education for our students.

7. Richard ElmoreHarvardUniversity (Richard Elmore, 2013)

8. RICHARD ELMORE • Harvard University - Graduate School of Education Professor • Advocates focusing on the instructional core • The teacher and the student in the presence of content • “The instructional core helps us identify where we're trying to improve…the teacher, the student, the content – if you change one, you have to change them all.” - Richard Elmore • Believes there are only three ways to increase learning and performance: • increase the knowledge and skill of teachers • change the content • alter the relationship of the student to the teacher and the content (Henry, 2009)

9. SURVEY THE STAFF

10. Survey the staff • Beginning of the year and every semester • Get some input from the staff • What areas do you wish you could improve in? • What areas do you feel you excel in? • What areas do you wish the school could improve in? • What areas do you feel the school excels in? • Find common trends in responses • Craft some professional development sessions around common interests • Promote staff engagement in PD • Identify strengths of staff • Find successes to share

11. CHANGING PERCEPTION

12. Bring in guest speakers • 2-3 in the first semester • The highest staff attendance occurs when there are presenters from outside the district • Form a habit of attending professional development • Introduce a sign-out sheet • First PD session • Requires a careful, non-threatening approach • Keep staff accountable • Purposely being absent undermines the school’s efforts • Start documenting staff attendance Creating a momentum shift

13. OPEN LINES OF COMMUNICATION

14. Open Lines of Communication • Addressing the issues / Surveying the staff • Feedback forms • Following every PD session • To be submitted after each PD session • Gain some insight from the staff • Was this information valuable? • “I Used to Think…and Now I Think…” (Elmore, 2010, p. 1) • Find positives from PD sessions • Following every PD session • Celebrate successes during PD • (good debate, important questions, valuable advice, etc.) • Communicated through an email recap • Improve morale and perception

15. Timeline • Year 1 • Assess, address, and survey at the very beginning of the school year • Survey at the start of every semester • Introduce sign-out sheet at the end of the first PD session • 2-3 guest speakers within the first semester • Receive feedback throughout the year after every PD session • Communicate positives throughout the year • Year 2 • Activities dependent on results of year 1 changes (change is on-going) • Continue surveys, sign-out sheet, feedback forms, and continue to maintain lines of communication • Year 3 • Activities dependent on results of year 2 and 3 changes (change is on-going) • Continue surveys, sign-out sheet, feedback forms, and continue to maintain lines of communication

16. Budget Items • Guest Speakers – potentially the only expense • Cost dependent on speaker • Speaker dependent on staff preferences found in the staff survey • Does not have to cost • Examples: • Panel of former students who are now in college • Educators from nearby districts that have found success

17. References • Henry, S. (2009). Usable knowledge: The (only) three ways to improve performance in schools. Usable Knowledge: The (only) Three Ways to Improve Performance in Schools. Retrieved December 4, 2013, from http://www.uknow.gse.harvard.edu/leadership/leadership001a.html • Elmore, R. F. (2010). "I Used to Think . . . and Now I Think . . ." Harvard Education Letter,26(1), 1. Retrieved December 4, 2013, from http://hepg.org/hel/article/434 • Richard Elmore. (2013). In Solution Tree. Retrieved December 4, 2013, from http://www.solution-tree.com/authors/richard-elmore.html