Planning for Effective, Sustained Staff Development in a Standards-Based, Results-Driven Setting | Esther B. Coleman and Tammy Ferguson
Program Description
Dr. Joellen Killion of the National Staff Development Council defines effective staff development as "planned, coherent, in-depth actions and support systems designed and implemented to develop educators' knowledge, attitudes, skills, aspirations, and behaviors to improve student achievement."
Principles of this program are founded upon the following beliefs:
- Staff development programs should be data-driven, clearly defined, and grounded in research focused upon theories of change.
- Division initiatives, school improvement plans, and individual professional growth plans should be sharply aligned to ensure that fiscal and human capital effectively implement programs and evaluation that comply with standards and authentic design.
- Key stakeholders in the division must be considered in planning, delivery, follow-up, and evaluation.
- Learning teams combine the analysis and decisions making as well as the teamwork required for results-based staff development. Additionally, as teachers plan and implement strategies based on their analyses, student growth is the result.
This program teaches educators how to develop staff development programs that derive from logic models and theories of change in accordance with standards and principles of the National Staff Development Council - NSDC.
Virginia Standard(s) Addressed
Planning & Assessment (ISLLC standard 3)
Instructional Leadership (ISLLC standard 1)
Safety & Organizational Management for Learning (ISLLC standards 2 & 3)
Communication & Community Relations (ISLLC standard 4)
Professionalism (ISLLC standards 5& 6)
Program Goals and Objectives
By the end of this program, participants will demonstrate the ability to develop staff development programs that are "planned, coherent, in-depth actions and support systems" that will "develop educators' knowledge, attitudes, skills, aspirations, and behaviors to improve student achievement."
Program Format
Instructional Strategies will include the following:
- Engagement in a participant-centered approach to learning and transformation emphasizing the importance of individual change as a precursor and foundation for larger organizational and community change.
- Utilization of clear and detailed training materials to implement the workshop strategies as part of their follow-up activities.
- Participation in follow-up electronic dialogue with facilitators and other participants.
- Completion of electronic follow-up activities to include implementing lessons and their impact.
The program will focus on the following knowledge, skills, aspirations, attitudes, and behaviors in the following areas:
Planning
- Using disaggregated data to determine adult learning priorities, to make programmatic decisions, and to support continuous improvement
- Promoting the preparation of theories of change and logic models in program planning
- Providing access to technologies that support intra- and inter-departmental planning
- Preparing school site leaders to design effective learning experiences based on data and research and learning teams
Delivery
- Ensuring that teachers and school leaders possess deep content knowledge and that they base plans for instructional strategies on research in best practices
- Developing groups of school leaders to work as teams for providing support to school sites as they, in turn, form learning teams
- Encouraging departmental members to participate in learning teams for planning and problem solving
Follow-up
- Promoting the notion that effective professional learning is dependent upon transfer into classrooms and that, as such, they require long-term, sustained, staff development programs based on division-wide priorities
- Providing follow-up human and technological support for major change initiatives that include supportive technologies
Evaluation
- Developing the capacity of division and school-based leaders to conduct effective formative and summative evaluations of staff development programs for specific audiences
Target Audience
School and district level administrators, school staff.
Self-Selection and/or Identification Through School Division
Yes/yes.
Duration of Program
Tailored to the needs.
Outcomes Measured
Measurement of outcomes will focus upon the program goal transformed into outcomes and will answer the following evaluation question within an NSDC evaluation framework:
· Does a critical mass of participants (percentage to be determined with client) have the ability to develop staff development programs that are "planned, coherent, in-depth actions and support systems" that will "develop educators' knowledge, attitudes, skills, aspirations, and behaviors to improve student achievement?"
Program Evaluation
The evaluation process is ongoing and will include multiple sources of information. Central to the evaluation process are follow-up activities to be completed by each participant.
Participants will complete pre- and post-surveys of their awareness, attitudes, and behaviors in a number of areas and will measure change in student behaviors. These evaluation elements measure the degree to which the specific objectives are achieved by measuring change. This change is determined by self-reporting of the participants' changes in skills, knowledge, or attitudes that the component is designed to teach. This information is vital if points are to be earned for license renewal.
Program evaluation is centered upon participants' growth in the following areas (the evaluation framework is developed in accordance with standards and principles of the National Staff Development Council - NSDC):
- Knowledge
- Attitudes
- Skills
- Aspirations
- Behaviors
Contact Information
Esther Coleman
Educational Consultant
2304 N. Main Street
South Boston, Virginia, 23452
Phone Numbers: 919-932-7711 Office | 561-707-6094 Cell
ebellcole@aol.com