When you research what makes (and breaks) effective professional development, you get several different takes on it. Stand alone professional development, even when delivered well, typically has about a 10% retention rate, meaning that average person, even when paying attention, will take and implement about 10% of the professional development. If you are like me, this fact doesn’t make it hardly seem worth it!

Professional development is the most impactful when all of the stakeholders are bought in and ready to go! Let’s take a look at the 3 main players in creating an effective PD plan. The service provider/consultant, the administration, and, of course, the teacher!

The Service Provider:

As a service provider, I’ve researched and experienced a few ways to bump this retention rate up- I mean, I don’t like to waste time any more than your teachers like their time, wasted, right? It’s my responsibility to make sure that I’m delivering effective professional developement for each group of teachers I have the privilege of serving!

1. Meet with the campus ahead of time and listen to the goals, challenges and pain points that the campus is facing.
2. Insert said pain points/challenges/goals into training whenever possible.
3. Make the training hands on and relevant. Teachers need to be active in the training to cement the learning as much as possible.
4. Provide time to for processing. Teachers need time to process the strategy or learning within the context of their own students, classroom or content.
5. Use the concept of “less and deeper” – less material given with a deeper level of understanding.

The Administrator

As an administrator, there are some things you can do to ensure valuable, effective professional development. Let’s be honest, you don’t have that much time throughout the year to equip your teachers! One wasted day can set the tone for the year!

1. Get teacher-input as to their goals and needs, and if possible, in the decision making process.
2. Work with the consultant – provide data, challenges, goals, and common terms that your campus is currently using and facing.
3. Avoid canned programs. While many of these programs are research-based, campuses, students and challenges vary. If the company or consultant is not willing to listen and customize, be wary!
4. Share excitement and outcome goals with your staff prior to the PD.
5. Always have a plan for follow up and implementation.

The Teacher

The teacher must be bought in authentically to the learning in order to for it to stick. Sure, I can bring a few teachers around by the end of the training, and I do, but if they can go into the PD ready to learn, that is where the magic happens!

So how do we get teachers on-board?

1. Take a teacher poll.
2. Ask teachers what they want to get out of a specific PD.
3. Give teachers the option to submit questions ahead of time.
4. Introduce the PD as a possible solution to the pain points they are feeling in the classroom.
5. Acknowledge obstacles or arguments teachers may have.
6. Set a clear purpose for the PD and then give teachers the opportunity to provide feedback.
7. Provide positive accountability and support with an implementation plan and make it top of mind for teachers throughout the year.

Professional development is necessary for any one in any industry! It can be impactful and game-changing. But it’s not a one-size fits all!

If your goals for your campus next year include cognitively engaged students, independent learners, effective Tier 1 instruction, and increasing learning for your students who struggle, responsive teaching is your solution, and I’d be honored to go on that journey with you! Right now, our back-to-school PD calendar is open, along with a spring sale! You can click here to get more information! You can also head to www.theresponsiveclassroom.org!