Welcome Back to Terrible Trope Tuesday!
Where we breakdown longstanding norms of teacher professional development sessions to get better results.
As well intentioned as a post-training survey may be to elicit feedback from teachers regarding the quality and applicability of a training session, it ultimately fails to provide any information that could possibly be valuable toward the actual goals of any professional development initiative.
This week, we tackle: Teacher Professional Development Surveys
To better understand this premise, we must first define the purpose of any professional training session whether it be a two-hour after school inservice, a 45-minute data and planning meeting or a full day seminar.
What is the purpose of professional development or teacher training?
Is the purpose to provide information and an opportunity for discussion regarding a given concept or practice, or is the purpose to improve teacher effectiveness and thereby increase student outcomes?
You may be tempted to say both, but that is again a fallacy. If you were to go to a nutritionist, would the purpose be to learn about and discuss your personal nutrition needs, or would the purpose be to lower your blood pressure, decrease your weight and increase your lifespan? One of these choices focuses on process while the other focuses on product.