Professional Article Review #8

Teaching the Teachers: At a Glance. (2013, September). Retrieved July 11, 2016, from http://www.centerforpubliceducation.org/teachingtheteachers

Teaching the Teachers: At a Glance

http://www.centerforpubliceducation.org/teachingtheteachers

Summary:

            This article starts out talking about how Common Core is biggest reform that has happened in education and how that reform will change how teachers teach.  The article then discussed how a one-time workshop model is no longer an effective form of professional development for teachers.  However, around 90% of teachers are still trained in a workshop model that has very little effect on helping the teacher implement new strategies in their classroom.  With teachers’ evaluations being tied to student success the teachers need a different kind of professional development in order to see improvement in student success.  The article discussed how teachers could learn about a new strategy in a one-time workshop model, but then the teacher has a hard time with implementing that strategy in their classroom when they return back to their school.  This is because they have no one to ask questions to or bounce ideas off of when they leave the workshop.  According to the article only 10% of teachers who attend a one-time workshop come back to their classrooms and implement that strategy with their students. However, if the teacher receives coaching, 95% of the teachers successfully implement the new strategy into their classrooms.  The article discusses how professional development should include the general teaching of the strategy in an active way and then should be followed up with more of the coaching strategy to get the results needed to help with student success in the classroom.  The article also touched on how the professional development needs to pertain to that teacher; learning about a generic topic is useless for teachers.  Finally the article talks about how a PLC can be a good form of professional development.  Through professional learning communities, the teachers in the same content area create instructional innovations, support each other during the implementation stage, and reflect on the results. 

Reflection:

            I agree with this article about the need for professional development to change.  We are seeing that a one-size fits all method is ineffective with our students, so why do we think that a one-size fits all will work with the teachers?  This article reaffirmed the need to have on going professional development on a strategy that is being learned.  I feel that our district is moving into this direction with the addition of the coaching positions.  The district has also brought back presenters to continue our learning of the strategy.  However, I still feel like the district doesn’t stick with a strategy long enough for us to see student success in the classroom with that strategy.