Thursday, June 6, 2013

Always Look for PD Opportunities



One of the cornerstones of being a great educator is keeping up with professional development (PD). The field of education is constantly evolving, whether it be a new technology, a new method for class management, or a new approach for instruction. Being on the leading edge of these developments will help you hone your philosophy of education and develop your personal teaching style. You will be able to figure out exactly what works for you and your group of students to maximize learning potential.

The opportunities for PD, although immense, are often overlooked and lost completely. It is important to be proactive about PD and look for the various avenues that will help you grow professionally and give you confidence in the classroom. Professional organizations such as OAME and NCTM constantly present ways to develop as a teacher, becoming a member or even visiting their websites often is worth the time. PD opportunities are also widely available through your school board. If you are employed by a school board it may be beneficial to look into the workshops, courses, and conferences they host, as many include the latest information on the profession and are often free of charge. For example, in my first year supply teaching, a fellow teacher brought my attention to a Tribes course that our board was running - I took advantage of this opportunity and feel that I grew professionally and learned valuable information about the classroom community. Without my peer mentioning this course to me, I may have missed out on a chance to develop my approaches for engaging students and build classroom community. It is important to always be aware of the resources for PD that are around and available to you. This awareness can be as simple as, looking for and recognizing PD opportunities in the experiences you have in class each and everyday.

5 comments:

  1. Hey Linda,
    Yes - PD is extremely important, and sometimes we have a hard time knowing what will be beneficial to us, or we 'miss it' if we're not looking in the right place!

    I wanted to post this PD session that I found through a friend, in case anyone is interested!

    This is math PD for K-12 Educators - Free, Online, Stanford University...
    sounds super cool...
    EDUC115N: How to Learn Math
    [ https://class.stanford.edu/courses/Education/EDUC115N/How_to_Learn_... ][Image]
    https://class.stanford.edu/courses/Education/EDUC115N/How_to_Learn_... ]https://class.stanford.edu/courses/Education/EDUC115N/How_to_Learn_...

    COST: FREE

    ABOUT THIS COURSE

    In July 2013 a new course will be available on Stanford’s free on-line platform. The course is a short intervention designed to change students’ relationships with math. I have taught this intervention successfully in the past (in classrooms); it caused students to re-engage successfully with math, taking a new approach to the subject and their learning.In the 2013-2014 school year the course will be offered to learners of math but in July of 2013 I will release a version of the course designed for teachers and other helpers of math learners, such as parents. In the teacher/parent version I will share the ideas I will present to students and hold a conversation with teachers and parents about the ideas. There will also be sessions giving teachers/parents particular strategies for achieving changes in students and opportunities for participants to work together on ideas through the forum pages. The ideas I will share will be really helpful as teachers prepare to implement the new Common Core State Standards.
    CONCEPTS

    1. Knocking down the myths about math.
    Math is not about speed, memorization or learning lots of rules. There is no such thing as “math people” and non-math people. Girls are equally capable of the highest achievement. This session will include interviews with students.
    2. Math and Mindset.
    Participants will be encouraged to develop a growth mindset, they will see evidence of how mindset changes students’ learning trajectories, and learn how it can be developed.
    3. Teaching Math for a Growth Mindset.
    This session will give strategies to teachers and parents for helping students develop a growth mindset and will include an interview with Carol Dweck.
    4. Mistakes, Challenges & Persistence.
    What is math persistence? Why are mistakes so important? How is math linked to creativity? This session will focus on the importance of mistakes, struggles and persistence.
    5. Conceptual Learning. Part I. Number Sense.
    Math is a conceptual subject– we will see evidence of the importance of conceptual thinking and participants will be given number problems that can be solved in many ways and represented visually.
    6. Conceptual Learning. Part II. Connections, Representations, Questions.
    In this session we will look at and solve math problems at many different grade levels and see the difference in approaching them procedurally and conceptually. Interviews with successful users of math in different, interesting jobs (film maker, inventor of self-driving cars etc) will show the importance of conceptual math.
    7. Appreciating Algebra.
    Participants will be asked to engage in problems illustrating the beautiful simplicity of a subject with which they may have had terrible experiences.
    8. Going From This Course to a New Mathematical Future.
    This session will review where you are, what you can do and the strategies you can use to be really successful.

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  2. **I had to put the rest of the info for the course in a second comment; I was over the character limit!! Here's the rest:


    FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
    Who is this course for?
    This course is for teachers of math (K-12) or for other helpers of students, such as parents. After the summer I will release a student version of this course. This course provides an opportunity for teachers and parents to preview the ideas for students and think about how they may be useful, as well as learn from new research ideas and share ideas with other teachers and parents who enroll in the course.
    What is the course structure?
    The course will consist of eight short sessions, your watching /listening time will be 10-15 minutes per session. In those sessions I will combine some videos of me, interviews with students, cutting edge research ideas, interesting visuals, and some peer and self-assessments. The course will also include interviews with some of the world’s leading thinkers, such as Sebastian Thrun (Udacity/Google) and Carol Dweck (expert on mindset). If you engage with the materials actively, thinking and writing about teaching and learning, I anticipate that each session will take you somewhere between 1 and 2 hours.
    What is the pace of the course?
    The course will launch on July 15th, a good pace may be to take 2 sessions per week, but you can choose your own pace. The course will close on September 27th, 2013.
    How will I be assessed?
    Those who finish the course will receive a statement of accomplishment. During the course there will be no grades given. Occasionally you will be asked to complete a self or peer assessment. These are intended to help your learning, not to grade you.
    Can I collaborate with other teachers/parents?
    It will be ideal if you can take this course with others, and discuss the ideas together. There will also be opportunities to engage in discussions through the forum pages, and to share good ideas for teaching.
    Do I need to buy a textbook?
    You do not need to buy a textbook. My book “What’s Math Got To Do With It?” Penguin, 2009 (for the USA) or “The Elephant in the Classroom” Souvenir Press, 2010 (for the UK) will allow you to go into greater depth on some of the ideas.
    Can I get professional development hours from my district if I take this course?
    This is entirely at the discretion of your school district but a number of districts have said that they will be providing 16 professional development hours to their teachers who complete the course - which means finishing the course and also completing all of the assigned tasks.
    Does this course carry any kind of Stanford University credit?
    No.

    PREREQUISITES
    There are no prerequisites for this course.
    COURSE STAFF
    Jo Boaler
    Professor of Mathematics Education

    Dr Jo Boaler is Professor of Mathematics Education at Stanford University, editor of the research commentary section of JRME, and author of seven books, including "What's Math Got To Do With It" (US) / "The Elephant in the Classroom" (UK). Former roles have included being the Marie Curie Professor of Mathematics Education in England and a mathematics teacher in London comprehensive schools.

    - Hope this is of interest to some one out there! :)

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  3. Ooops, I meant, "Hey Lori," (I accidentally wrote Linda!)

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  4. Amazing Laurie! This is exactly the type of opportunity I was talking about - thanks so much for sharing it with us!

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  5. As someone who has never been to a PD day, I am curious to know if they are actually valuable? We had to do PLS days while in teacher's college, and I found that some of them were fantastic and others just so-so. What have been your experiences with PD? Obviously Lori you mentioned that the Tribes course was great for you, but have you been to any that are kind of a flop or not what you were expecting?

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