Developing Effective Professional Leadership

Connecting and Communicating My Ideas

March 7, 2025

There have been many times when I have heard fellow educators mumble, “I would much rather be here with students today” during professional development training because professional development and in-service meetings all have similar ideas. To most teachers,  professional development is an attempt by the administration to influence them and is a waste of time and money. We should be excited to have the opportunity to have time to collaborate with our colleagues on projects that we are working on for our students, but unfortunately, we all know that we are most likely going to be stuck sitting in training with an instructor who will go over PowerPoint slides, who doesn’t work in our building, work with our students, or work with the curriculum that we are teaching. Some professional development has been productive, but overall, there is a general lack of satisfaction with it This comes from how professional development is done.

We don't expect our students to learn that way, so how can we as adults be able to learn that way?  

We need to make our PL time work for us instead of against us. We need to use what little time we have to collaborate wisely and with purpose. We are supposed to be here to help our students achieve their highest potential, but we are never allowed to achieve our potential by working together to make that a reality. 

The links below present my ideas for Effective Professional Learning.

Final Submission

Professional Learning- Session 1

 

Planning the Alternative PL

February 23, 2025

 

"Professional development can no longer just be about exposing teachers to a concept or providing basic knowledge about a teaching methodology. Instead, professional development in an era of accountability requires a change in a teacher’s practice that leads to increases in student learning" (Gulamhussein, 2013).

 

Effective professional learning follows five key principles that ensure meaningful changes in teacher practice and student learning outcomes:

 

1. Professional Learning Should Be Sustained and Ongoing

• One-time workshops are ineffective; teachers need long-term, continuous training that allows them to refine and implement new strategies over time.
• Professional development should last at least fifty (50) hours for real instructional changes to occur.
  
  

2. Professional Learning Should Provide Support for Implementation

• Simply learning new concepts is not enough—teachers need ongoing coaching, mentoring, and follow-up support to integrate new strategies into their teaching practices effectively.
  
  

3. Professional Learning Must Be Active and Engaging

• Teachers learn best through hands-on, interactive experiences, such as modeling, peer collaboration, and practice rather than passive listening.
• Opportunities to apply learning immediately in the classroom lead to better retention and effectiveness.
  
  

4. Professional Learning Needs to Be Specific and Practical

• Training should focus on concrete, evidence-based instructional strategies that teachers can immediately apply in their classrooms.
• Abstract theory alone is insufficient—teachers need real-world examples and clear implementation steps.
  
  

5. Professional Learning Should Be Tailored and Differentiated

• Teachers, like students, have different needs and experience levels; professional learning should be customized to address their specific challenges, grade levels, and subject areas.
  
• One-size-fits-all approaches are less effective than targeted, role-specific training.​

 

With these principles in mind and put into practice, professional learning moves beyond just exposing teachers to new ideas; it engages all staff in lasting changes in instructional practice resulting in improved student outcomes.

 

 Fink's Three Column

 

Alternative PL Timeline

 

Alternative PL Outline

 

PL Plan Outline

BHAG: Teachers will be able to effectively incorporate Blended Learning which will allow learners to have more choice, ownership, and voice through authentic learning activities no matter what discipline the teacher is teaching.

 

Duration: (2 years minimum):

• Monthly sessions throughout the year and discussions within the bi-monthly (2x/month) department meetings.

 

Ongoing Support:

• Instructional Coaches: curriculum and technology
• Peer Coaches: peer collaboration content specific

 

Active Learning Environments: 

• Live modeling with staff

• Workshops specific to all subject areas
• Project reflection
• Physical and virtual communities

 

Modeling: 

• Staff presentations to showcase student-created writing projects and ePortfolio use, effective lesson ideas, and hands-on lesson planning with other staff members.

 

Specific to Discipline:

• I will utilize our MTSS coaches and Intermediate Unit staff, who are versed in Blended Learning, to help with the initial implementation in all subject areas.
• I will request that our local Intermediate unit provide ongoing, specific subject support to help content area teachers in how to best facilitate the courses in the content areas.

 

How will I Foster Collaboration?

• I, with the help of our MTSS coaches and IU personnel, will create a course specific to the Professional Learning plan and include a course in our LMS where individual content teachers can contribute materials. During the designated PL meeting time, staff can share project ideas and strategies. 
• This format will hopefully allow for cross-curricular teaching among all the content areas as teachers will have access to all the materials in the PL program.
• New teachers to the profession and/or district will be given a coaching teacher to help them understand the processes and development of the content course they will be teaching. There needs to be the ability for fresh voices to express, plan, and implement any ideas they may have as new teachers enter the profession with new tools that seasoned teachers may not have.

 

Who will lead what components? 

• Introduction and discussion of Blended Learning will be led by the district curriculum coordinator, building administration, MTSS coaches, IU personnel, and me.  These introduction sessions will be broken out into the following:
  • Overall Introduction to Blended Learning
    • Introduction to the work of Horne and Staker
      • MTSS coaches and IU personnel
    • Department (content area) evaluation of current resources and activities 
      • Department chairs, department members, MTSS coaches, and IU personnel 
• Development of LMS coursework by department within each content area
  • Department chairs, department members, curriculum coordinator, MTSS coaches

 

Audience and their needs: (Administrators, Department chairpersons, professional and paraprofessional staff)

• Initially, I will focus on content area department chairpersons, the curriculum coordinator, and the administration in our building. We will meet to discuss the scope and sequence of courses in each department and the number of teachers in each department who teach the same courses.
• Secondly, department chairs, building administration, MTSS coaches, the district curriculum coordinator, and I will meet with each department to discuss the process moving forward.
• Next, we will utilize face-to-face and online meetings, and feedback in the way of Google Forms and other data-gathering means to gauge understanding and progress.
  • A discussion forum will be provided for all staff to ask questions, request additional help from any of the Lead Team members, and discuss with each other the process and progress.

 

Instructional Design of your PL:

• I will be using my BHAG & 3 Column Table. I believe my BHAG is focused on my primary goals and my 3 Column Table will allow me to plan specifically what will need to be covered in our PL sessions.

 

Schedule/timeline

• Present the 5 Principles of Effective Professional Development to content area teachers: Get Teacher Feedback
• Develop Sessions Based on the BHAG and 3-column table
• Set up PL in our LMS 
• Create session folders and start adding materials
• Include teacher sign-up sheet for workshops (Google Forms)
• Add reflective journal entries and portfolio project ideas/examples

 

Resources for the Professional Learning plan:

• Blended (2014)- Horn and Staker
• Start withWhy (2009)-Simon Sinek
• Gulamhussaein’s 5 Principles of Effective Professional Development
• Fink’s Self-directed Guide to Designing Courses for Significant Learning
• My BHAG and 3-Column Table
• Laptops/Chromebooks
• Google Classroom as the LM- Google Suite
• Virtual Communities
• Common Core and Pennsylvania State Standards
• Canva
• Edtech tools: Ed Puzzle, Nearpod, Mentimeter, Poll Everywhere, etc.

• MTSS Coaches, IU Staff, Building and District administrations

 

Fostering Collaboration:

 

• Professional Learning Communities (PLCs): Educators will engage in structured peer discussions and action research projects focused on implementing the Blended Learning classroom model.

• Cross-disciplinary collaboration: Teachers will have opportunities to work with colleagues across subject areas to develop interdisciplinary learning strategies that could possibly incorporate Commonwealth Education standards and skills.

• Virtual Collaboration Tools: Utilize tools such as discussion boards, shared documents, and video conferencing to facilitate ongoing collaboration. A dedicated online space will allow educators to share experiences, best practices, and challenges

 

References:

Andrews, T. M., Leonard, M. J., Colgrove, C. A., & Kalinowski, S. T. (2011). Active Learning Not Associated with Student Learning in a Random Sample of College Biology Courses. CBE Life Sciences Education, 10(4), 394–405. http://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.11-07-0061 

 

Goodwin, B. (2015). Research Says/Does Teacher Collaboration Promote Teacher Growth? Educational Leadership, 73(4), 82–83. Retrieved from http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/dec15/vol73/num04/Does-Teacher-Collaboration-Promote-Teacher-Growth%C2%A2.aspx

 

Gulamhussein, A. (2013). Teaching the Teachers Effective Professional Development in an Era of High Stakes Accountability. Center for Public Education. Retrieved from http://www.centerforpubliceducation.org/system/files/2013-176_ProfessionalDevelopment.pdf

 

 

Alternate PL- Call to Action

February 16, 2025

Alternative PL- Call to Action

 

Call to Action Video

My Why:

 

There have been many times when I have heard fellow educators mumble, “I would much rather be here with students today” during professional development training because professional development and in-service meetings all have similar ideas. To most teachers,  professional development is an attempt by the administration to influence them and is a waste of time and money. We should be excited to have the opportunity to have time to collaborate with our colleagues on projects that we are working on for our students, but unfortunately, we all know that we are most likely going to be stuck sitting in training with an instructor who will go over PowerPoint slides, who doesn’t work in our building, work with our students, or work with the curriculum that we are teaching. Some professional development has been productive, but overall, there is a general lack of satisfaction with it This comes from how professional development is done.

We don't expect our students to learn that way, so how can we as adults be able to learn that way?  

We need to make our PL time work for us instead of against us. We need to use what little time we have to collaborate wisely and with purpose. We are supposed to be here to help our students achieve their highest potential, but we are never allowed to achieve our potential by working together to make that a reality.

My What

 

I created a slide presentation to highlight the five principles of effective professional development, drawing on insights from the literature and emphasizing the valuable opportunities that could be lost without them. My goal was to reimagine professional development by focusing on Gulamhussein’s five key principles. The presentation stresses the urgent need to transform how teachers engage in their own learning.

My How

 

I designed my presentation with Canva, taking advantage of its visual features to create an engaging and powerful message. I structured the content around five key principles and emphasized the advantages of transitioning from a passive "sit and do" approach to a more proactive "go and show" model of professional development. Each slide was carefully crafted to highlight one of the principles, using a blend of compelling visuals and succinct text to ensure clarity and retention. I will also utilize speaker notes to keep the audience's focus on the message. Using the elements of Duarte and Sinkek, I presented each subtopic of my presentation with a little text as possible and utilized the speaker notes function to create the script that I would use to present the information.

 

References:

Andrews, T. M., Leonard, M. J., Colgrove, C. A., & Kalinowski, S. T. (2011). Active Learning Not Associated with Student 

      Learning in a Random Sample of College Biology Courses. CBE Life Sciences Education, 10(4), 394–405. http://   

      doi.org/10.1187/cbe.11-07-0061 

 

Duarte, N. (2010). TEDx Talks. Nancy Duarte uncovers common structure of greatest communicators 11/11/2010 [Video].

      YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch? v=1nYFpuc2Umk

 

Duarte, N. (2009). What are some tips for presentation design? [Video]. YouTube.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?

        v=hT9GGmundag

​

Goodwin, B. (2015). Research Says/Does Teacher Collaboration Promote Teacher Growth? Educational Leadership, 73(4),

      82–83. Retrieved from http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/dec15/vol73/num04/Does-Teacher-

       Collaboration-Promote-Teacher-Growth%C2%A2.aspx

 

Gulamhussein, A. (2013). Teaching the Teachers Effective Professional Development in an Era of High Stakes Accountability.

       Center for Public Education. Retrieved from http://www.centerforpubliceducation.org/system/

       files/2013-176_ProfessionalDevelopment.pdf

 

Sinek, S. (2018, January 10).Life Mentor. Simon Sinek - How to present properly(Part 5) [Video]. YouTube.

      https://www.y outube.com/watch?v=msvmLlAkOno