ICT and Professional Development

1. ICT and Professional Development EDER 679.10 David Harding Steffen Tweedle June 5, 2003 Tweedle and Harding, 2003

2. “Educators at all stages of their careers have a responsibility to act -- beginning teachers to add new ideas and energies to the profession, and to avoid succumbing to the stale breath of routine; mid-career teachers to get out of the doldrums; and veteran teachers to pass on wisdom instead of cynicism” (Fullan & Hargreaves, 1992). Tweedle and Harding, 2003

3. What is Professional Development? The basics… “Activities to enhance professional career growth." -thesaurus of the Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC) database “The sum total of formal and informal learning experiences throughout one's career from pre-service teacher education to retirement" (Fullan, 1991) Tweedle and Harding, 2003

4. What is Pro-D in terms of ICT? A broader definition of professional development that includes the use of technology to foster teacher growth: "Professional development ... goes beyond the term 'training' with its implications of learning skills, and encompasses a definition that includes formal and informal means of helping teachers not only learn new skills but also develop new insights into pedagogy and their own practice, and explore new or advanced understandings of content and resources. [This] definition of professional development includes support for teachers as they encounter the challenges that come with putting into practice their evolving understandings about the use of technology to support inquiry-based learning.... Current technologies offer resources to meet these challenges and provide teachers with a cluster of supports that help them continue to grow in their professional skills, understandings, and interests.“ (Grant, n.d.) Tweedle and Harding, 2003

5. Overview Two lenses: Individual vs. Staff Pro-D A distinction between personal or individual development and staff development is made in this presentation. It is through these lenses that we must view this intellectual excursion into the topic of professional development. ICT leader The first lens is held by that of an educator who is concerned with professional development as it relates to their personal classroom, their personal health, etc. The second lens is held by that of an ICT leader who, though most likely an educator herself, is concerned with the professional development of her staff as a whole. Educator Tweedle and Harding, 2003

6. Individual Pro-D The majority of researchers agree that ICT professional development will thrive in a collaborative culture, oft referred to as, interactive professionalism. Fullan and Hargreaves (1992) advocate that teachers begin with themselves to build the foundation of interactive professionalism for professional development Tweedle and Harding, 2003

7. 12 General Guidelines for Teachers…for InspiredPersonal Professional Development A proposal made by Fullan and Hargreaves (1992) states that if teachers practice the following twelve guidelines in various combinations, the results will be cumulative, contagious and will maximize interactive professionalism. By the way…it does no harm to assist the principal with some well-meaning training too! He/she often makes or breaks the collaborative culture. Tweedle and Harding, 2003

8. Individual Pro-D 1.Locate, listen to, and articulate your inner voice. Teachers must have the desire to reflect on their practice and reflect deeply Tweedle and Harding, 2003

9. Individual Pro-D 2. Reflect In, On and About Action • go beyond personal impressions and gather data from your students • engage in peer coaching, team teaching, mutual observations & request appraisals. • reflect on context of your work & working conditions; speak-out for change ! • evoke positive personal images • recollect and dwell on WHY positive experiences release positive energy • TECHNIQUES FOR DEVELOPING STRONG FORMS OF REFLECTIVE PRACTICE: • *professional reading *professional dialogue *teacher support groups *teacher research • *sharing autobiographies and life histories • *take stimulating courses and advance qualifications. Tweedle and Harding, 2003

10. Individual Pro-D 3. Develop a risk-taking mentality • be selective (try it with one or two things) • do it on a small scale • take a positive risk (towards a positive vision, rather than refusing to do something) Collaborate with a colleague to try out a new practice Tweedle and Harding, 2003

11. Individual Pro-D 4. Trust processes as well as people. • 5. Appreciate the total person in working with others. Tweedle and Harding, 2003

12. Individual Pro-D 6. Commit to working with colleagues. 7.Seek variety and avoid Balkanization. Tweedle and Harding, 2003

13. Individual Pro-D 8. Redefine your role to include responsibilities outside the classroom. • 9. Balance work and life • [see the Parable at the end of this presentation] Tweedle and Harding, 2003

14. Individual Pro-D 10. Commit to continuous improvement and perpetual learning. • 11. Monitor and strengthen the connections between your development and students’ development • {more to come on this in next section on general professional development by the staff} Tweedle and Harding, 2003

15. Individual Pro-D 12. Push and support principals and other administrators to develop interactive professionalism. • COACH YOUR PRINCIPAL TO.. • understand the culture of the school; • value your teachers by promoting their professional growth; • iii) extend what you value—encourage a wide repertoire of strategies; • iv) express what you value by what you do and who you are daily; • v) promote collaboration—“our vision”, not cooptation—by: • -sharing power, rewarding staff, patience, openness and inclusiveness • -expanding leadership roles • -patience Tweedle and Harding, 2003

16. Individual Pro-D Coach your principal to…(cont.) • make flexible menus, not mandates; • vii) use bureaucratic means to facilitate, not to constrain; • FACILITATE with: • -public endorsements and official policy • -school organization, planning and scheduling • -decision-making structures • -staffing procedures • -growth-based evaluations/appraisals • viii) connect with the wider environment—for example : -principal peer coaching • -visiting & connecting with other schools to compare/contrast • -sending teacher teams on visitations • -represent the school in its community Tweedle and Harding, 2003

17. Individual Pro-D Resources • ICT Professional Growth Plan • Attempt to create your own ICT professional growth plan for the next school year using the following Telus 2Learn Professional Growth Planning Tool available at http://www.2learn.ca/Profgrowth/PDplanningTool.html Tweedle and Harding, 2003

18. Staff Pro-D… • A transition to our second lens… Tweedle and Harding, 2003

19. Staff Pro-D • Mackenzie advocated ten ideas for an ITC Pro-D leader that will serve as a prevention against or prescription for ‘Screen Saver’s Disease’, the term McKenzie employs as a descriptor for the condition that many computers find themselves in as a result of being operated by under-trained, purpose-barren, time-deprived teachers. He posits that following these ten suggestions, which reflect the best technology learning practices gleaned from districts and schools with vibrant technology use, “can help you convert a ho-hum staff development program into a dynamic campaign.” Tweedle and Harding, 2003

20. Ten Suggestions for a ‘dynamic’ ITC Pro-D • Designate student learning as the cause • “Teachers value increased student achievement as an outcome of professional development more than any other variable…and judge the value of their professional development activities by how much they see a leap in student learning.” (Lockwood, 1999) • Clarify purpose: Problem-solving and decision-making • Replace staff development and training with adult learning • “Choice is the cardinal design concept behind adult learning.” Giving your staff a voice in how they learn engenders a willingness to learn. If the choice is taken from them, “it sets up a parent-child relationship often inspiring resistance and resentment rather than growth.” (Mackenzie, 1998) • “…the system must be delivered in accordance with recognised principles of adult learning and development.” (Szabo, 2001) Tweedle and Harding, 2003

21. Ten Suggestions (cont.) • Address the emotional dimension-the challenge of transfer • “The basic assumption is the major reason that IT has failed to reform education is not in the technology, but in the tendency of individuals and institutions to resist change.” (Szabo, 1998) • Create teams and a culture of ‘just in time’ support • Use surveys and assessment to guide planning • “People most affected by the change must be empowered to make the decisions and control the direction the change proceeds.” (Szabo, 1996) • “Needs assessments help us identify problems that are worthy of our training efforts and expenditures.” (Guhlin et al., 2002) • Provide time for invention and lesson development Tweedle and Harding, 2003

22. Ten Suggestions (cont.) • Hook the passions of ALL teachers • Spend 10-25% of the technology project budget on staff learning and provide 15-60 hours annually per teacher for several years • “The essential components of a technology implementation plan includes…allocation of sufficient time and funds…and development of a plan to extend professional development.” (Rodriguez, 2000) • Persist • “Professional development takes time and must be conducted over several years for significant changes to occur.”(Speck,1996) Tweedle and Harding, 2003

23. So… We’ve looked a ICT Pro-D through both a personal planning lens and a collective planning (staff) lens. The question still remains, however: How do we know that our Pro-D is actually effective? We wouldn’t want to be just “doing pro-D” as an obligation without seeing its benefits in our learners… The Indicators of Engaged Learning from the Learning with Technology Profile Tool is a set of criteria that evaluates the utility of a planned Pro-D enterprise. http://www.ncrtec.org/capacity/profile/profwww.htm Tweedle and Harding, 2003

24. Indicators of Engaged Learning Bolstering Mackenzie’s (1998), Marzano and colleagues (1990) suggestions, the NCREL (2003) suggests that new school programs should support a profile called the… Indicators of Engaged Learning: ] 1. VISION OF LEARNING 5. LEARNING CONTEXT 2. TASKS 6. GROUPING 3. ASSESSMENT 7. TEACHER ROLES 4. INSTRUCTIONAL MODELS 8. STUDENT ROLES • (http://www.ncrtec.org/capacity/profile/profwww.htm) • These indicators provide an excellent basis for evaluating any school improvement initiative • Correspondingly, shouldn’t professional development programs encourage teachers to reflect on philosophy, construct effective practice, build skills, redefine roles, and most importantly, model Indicators of Engaged Learning? Tweedle and Harding, 2003

25. Indicators of Engaged Learning 1. VISION OF LEARNING • Responsibility for Learning Learners take charge and are self-regulated learners. • Strategic Learners continually apply and transfer learning to develop and refine both traditional and creative problem solving strategies. • Energized by Learning Engaged learners derive excitement, pleasure and self-motivation from learning. • Collaborative Learners gain and value the social skills to work with others and accept that problems/issues have multiple points of view. Tweedle and Harding, 2003

26. Indicators of Engaged Learning (cont.) 2. TASKS • Authentic Relevant tasks bear a close relationship to real world problems, requiring in-depth study. • Challenging Tasks are complex and typically involve sustained amounts of time. • Multidisciplinary Disciplines are wholly and appropriately integrated in order to solve problems or address issues 3. ASSESSMENT • Seamless and OngoingInstruction and assessment are integrated. • GenerativeLearners and their mentors create the assessment criteria and/or tools. • Performance-BasedAuthentic tasks, projects, or investigations that require observing, interviewing and/or examining student artifacts and presentations assess what learners actually know and can do. Tweedle and Harding, 2003

27. Indicators of Engaged Learning (cont.) 4. INSTRUCTIONAL MODELS • InteractiveMentors respond to learner needs and interests, and students can make key decisions regarding their learning. • GenerativeLearners are encouraged to construct/produce knowledge by solving problems, conducting meaningful inquiry, engaging in reflection, and building a repertoire of effective strategies. 5. LEARNING CONTEXT • Collaborative School is a learning community. • Empathetic Diversity and multiple perspectives are valued • Knowledge building made public. Tweedle and Harding, 2003

28. Indicators of Engaged Learning (cont.) 6. GROUPING • FlexibleGroups are formed and reformed according to the purpose of instruction and common needs and interests. • Equitable and Heterogeneous 7. TEACHER ROLES • FacilitatorMentors create opportunities for learners to work collaboratively to solve problems, do authentic tasks, and share knowledge and responsibility. • GuideMentors plan to adjust the level of information and support according to learners ' needs then help learners construct their own meaning through modeling, mediating, and coaching. • Co-Learner/Co-InvestigatorMentors learn along with learners, and learners may serve as teachers. Tweedle and Harding, 2003

29. Indicators of Engaged Learning (cont.) 8. LEARNER ROLES • Explorer Learners discover concepts and connections and apply skills by interacting with the physical world, materials, technology, and other people. • Cognitive ApprenticeLearners observe, apply, and refine through practice and ongoing feedback the thinking processes used by practitioners in specific content areas. • ProducerLearners generate knowledge and products for themselves and the community which synthesize and integrate knowledge and skills. • TeacherLearners integrate and holistically represent what they have learned to instruct others. Tweedle and Harding, 2003

30. Indicators of High-Performance ICT The NCREL (2003) also makes suggestions as standards for High-Performance ICT for all learners. These standards should be honored for any pro-d program for teachers. Teachers should thrive by standards they wish to establish for students, otherwise the pro-d process reeks of insincerity (Warlick, 2002). Indicators for High-Performance ICT (NCREL, 2003) A. ACCESS Connective Ubiquitous Designed for Equitable Use Interactive B. OPERABILITY Interoperable Open Architecture Transparent C. ORGANIZATION Distributed Designed for User Contribution Designed for Collaborative Projects D. ENGAGABILITY Enables Learning by Doing Access to Challenging Tools Provides Guided Participation E. EASE OF USE Effective Helps User Friendly/User Control Fast [speed] Available Training and Support & Provides Just Enough Information, Just In Time F. FUNCTIONALITY Diverse Tools Media Use Supports Project Design Skills Promotes Programming and Authoring Tweedle and Harding, 2003

31. Guiding Questions • Though aspects of all guidelines for personal Pro-D are useful, which combination of three guidelines of the do you think are most important to maximizeinteractive professionalism? • Thinking as an ICT leader at your school, which of the ten suggestions, if employed, would “help you convert [your] ho-hum staff development program into a dynamic campaign”? • Do you believe that professional development programs should model Indicators of Engaged Learning? • What other forms of Pro-D can you suggest that are authentic? • How does the way ICT Pro-D is organized and implemented differ in other parts of the world from BC or Alberta? Think along the lines of whether the control or responsibility for Pro-D is centralized within the school, the district, the province, or the country. Tweedle and Harding, 2003

32. Rock Parable relating to having a balanced life as a teacher. A philosophy professor stood before his class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, wordlessly he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar, and proceeded to fill with rocks, rocks about 2 inches in diameter. He then asked students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was. So the professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles, of course, rolled into the open areas between the rocks. He then asked for students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was. The professor picked up a box of sand poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He then asked once more of the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous ‘yes’. The professor then produced two cans of beer from under the table and proceeded to pour their entire contents into the jar effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed. Tweedle and Harding, 2003

33. Rock Parable (cont.) “Now,” said the professor, as the laughter subsided, “I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The rocks are the important things -- your family, your partner, your health, and your children -- things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.” “The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job your house and your car. The sand is everything else. The small stuff. If you put the sand into the jar first,” he continued, “there is no room for the pebbles or the rocks. The same goes for your life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you'll never have room for the things that are important to you.” “Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your partner out dancing. There will always be time to go to work, clean the house, give a dinner party and fix the dishwasher. Take care of the rocks first -- the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.” One of the students raised her hand and inquired about what the beer represented. The professor smiled. “I'm glad you asked. It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of refreshments.” Tweedle and Harding, 2003

34. ITC Pro-D across the world... • Alberta PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT FOR TEACHING TECHNOLOG ACROSS THE CURRICULUM Best Practices For Alberta School Jurisdictions February, 1999 http://ednet.edc.gov.ab.ca/technology/bestpractices/pdf/pdfortechnology.pdf • BC • Provincial level: BCTF • http://pdonline.bctf.ca/conferences/PD-Calendar.html • School District level • Vancouver School District: • http://www.vsb.bc.ca/educators/prod/WebLinkstoProfessionalDevelopment/default.htm • Langley School District: • https://apps1.sd35.bc.ca/workshops/ • US, NZ? Tweedle and Harding, 2003

35. References Alberta Education. (1999). Professional development for teaching technology across the curriculum: Best practices for Alberta school jurisdictions. Edmonton, AB: Author [Online]. Available: http://ednet.edc.gov.ab.ca/technology/bestpractices/pdf/pdfortechnology.pdf Fullan, M. & Hargreaves, A. (1992). What’s worth fighting for? Working together for your school. Mississauga, Ontario: Ontario Public Teachers’ Federation. Grant, C. M. (n.d.). Professional development in a technological age: New definitions, old challenges, new resources [Online]. Available: http://ra.terc.edu/publications/TERC_pubs/tech-infusion/prof_dev/prof_dev_frame.html Guhlin, M., Ornelas, L. & Diem, R. (2002) Methods that Work: Educator Competencies for Technology in Texas Public Schools, Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association (AERA) (New Orleans, LA, April 1-5, 2002). Available at http://ericit.org/fulltext/IR021411.pdf Guskey, T.R. (1997). Putting it all together: Integrating educational innovations. In S. D. Caldwell (Ed.), Professional development in learning-centered schools (pp.130-148). Oxford, Ohio: National Staff Development Council Joyce, B. & Showers, B. (1988). Student achievement through staff development. New York: Longman. Tweedle and Harding, 2003

36. References (cont.) Learning With Technology Profile Tool [Online]. Available: http://www.ncrtec.org/capacity/profile/profwww.htm Lockwood, A. T. (1999). The promise and potential of professional development. Unpublished manuscript. McKenzie, J. (1998). Secrets of success: Professional development that works [Online]. Available: http://staffdevelop.org/secrets.html New Zealand Ministry of Education (2002). What makes for effective teacher professional development in ICT [Online]? Available: http://www.minedu.govt.nz/index.cfm?layout=document&documentid=7838&indexid=6920&indexparentid=1024&goto=00-02#TopOfPage North Central Regional Educational Laboratory Website (2000).Providing professional development for effective technology use [Online]. Available:http://www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/issues/methods/technlgy/te1000.htm Planning for Professional Growth - ICT professional development links from the Telus 2Learn website (2001) [Online]. Available: http://www.2learn.ca/Profgrowth/pgm.html Tweedle and Harding, 2003

37. References (cont.) Rodriguez, G., (with Knuth, R.) (2000). Providing professional development for effective technology use. Pathways to School Improvement [Online]. Available: http://www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/issues/methods/technlgy/te1000.htm Speck, M. (1996, Spring). Best practice in professional development for sustained educational change. ERS Spectrum, 33-41. Strong, R., Silver, H.F., Hanson, J. R., Marzano, R.J., Wolfe, P., Dewing, T. & Brock, W. (1990) Thoughtful education: Staff development for the 1990s. Educational Leadership, February, 1990. Szabo, M. (1996). Change in the use of alternative delivery systems through professional development within colleges and universities, Paper presented at the annual meeting of Ed-Media/Ed-Telecomm 96. Boston, MA. Available at: http://www.quasar.ualberta.ca/IT/research/Szabo/Change.html Szabo, M. (2001, March). Smoothing the transition to the instructional technology age: A change model based on professional development and innovation diffusion. In J. Price, D. Willis, N. Davis & J. Willis (eds.). Conference Proceedings of the SITE 2001 Conference. Charlottesville, VA: Association for the Advancement of Computers in Education, 2811-2817. Available at http://ericit.org/fulltext/IR020935.pdf Tweedle and Harding, 2003