Professional Learning

Video Transcription

In this tutorial, we'll be discussing professional learning. We'll begin by simply defining the term "professional learning" and by looking at how professional learning applies specifically to teachers. We'll discuss some characteristics of successful professional learning models, and then I'll share with you some specific professional learning models, including PLCs, learning partners or critical friends, study groups or networks, coaching, and mentoring models. Let's get started.

First, what does the term "professional learning" mean? Professional learning refers to developing the knowledge and the skills that are specifically related to your profession. So in regards to teachers, professional learning refers to any activity that we are engaging in that is helping us to develop our knowledge and skills as a teacher.

So in the world of education, professional learning is referred to by all sorts of different names, including "professional growth," "professional development," and "continuing education." In most cases, teachers are going to be engaging in these professional learning activities, which are really forms of adult learning throughout our entire careers. Sometimes you are going to be the adult learner yourself, and sometimes you may be a facilitator. You may be supporting your colleagues within the context of a professional learning community, or a critical friends group or a study group, or through peer coaching. So you might be involved in a wide variety of learning opportunities in professional learning models throughout the course of your career.

You'll find that these various opportunities in these different models are going to vary in structure and in content. In fact, you may even find that some of these programs may lead to formal qualifications. So you may be involved in a structured professional learning activity in your school, something like a PLC or a peer coaching environment. You might also find that you enroll in online self-paced programs, or there may be informal school based programs that you can be involved in. But no matter what the format, we find that there are some characteristics that tend to be common to all of the different professional learning models that really foster success.

First of all, the professional learning needs to be aligned with not only individual teacher goals but also with the school and district goals. The professional learning needs to be sustained over time, and the goals that you are working towards need to be revisited regularly. Furthermore, research shows that in the most effective schools the two most influential factors in increasing student achievement are teacher collaboration-- in other words, working with your peers throughout this process of professional learning-- and also incorporating adult learning for teachers. This helps to create successful schools and successful districts.

So again, there are a wide variety of professional learning models that your school or district might be implementing. All of these varying models do connect to the best practices and the theories of professional development and adult learning. And so depending on the many variables and the contributing factors of the teachers' needs in a particular school or district, there isn't just going to be one model that's going to fit all situations. And so your school or district needs to determine which model is the best fit for your situation. So let's take a look at several of these different models and discuss some of their characteristics.

The PLC is arguably the most common teacher learning community structure. A PLC typically consists of teachers and administrators who are working together to improve instruction and to improve school performance. PLC structure actually can include varying models of professional learning groups, including collaborative teams, data teams, critical friends groups, school action teams, school improvement teams. So you may find that the terminology that is used may vary and the specific structure may vary a bit as well. But no matter what the structure, a PLC needs to exist as a community of practice where the goals, and the mission, and the vision of the PLC are aligned to the goals, and the mission, and the vision of the school and of the school district.

Another type of professional learning model is called "learning partners" or "critical friends." This model involves individual teachers who are working together using a specific structure and a specific set of protocols with the overall goal of improving their instructional practice. So some elements that would be included here might be classroom observations and then debriefings afterwards, working together to discuss and solve problems, and team planning opportunities. The teachers in a learning partners or critical friends group are working together to challenge each other and to help everyone involved to improve their instructional practices.

Another professional learning model is study groups or networks. This is when teachers, administrators, and other stakeholders get together to discuss a common concern or a specific professional topic. Examples might include a child study team that meets to discuss the needs of a particular student or group of students, or a committee that is formed to address a particular issue that is occurring in the school, or a group of teachers getting together to work on their coursework from a common master's program.

So the study group or network model is not going to be as formally structured or as official as something like a critical friends group or a PLC. You may find that these groups do not tend to be sustained over time as they are meeting for that more specific purpose. And after that purpose has been resolved, you might find that the study group or the network dissolves afterwards.

Another professional learning model is the coaching model. In the coaching model, the coach is active in guiding others in reflecting on their practices and improving their instructional practices. Coaches are usually teachers or peer leaders. They do not tend to be administrators or evaluators.

In fact, in many of these models it is expressly stated that the coaches may not be administrators and may not have any evaluative power over the teacher because that takes away some of the elements of that coaching relationship. So whether your particular coaching model uses the term "coach" or if they use a term like "peer leader," no matter what the term is, that person is serving as the observer who is then helping the observed person to do some reflecting and, again, improve their instructional practices as a result.

And one final professional learning model is the mentor model. So in a mentoring model the mentors are usually more experienced teachers who are willing to share their knowledge and their experiences with their less experienced colleagues although it's not limited just to colleagues with less experience, it may also just be a colleague who has a desire to improve some particular aspect of their instruction or of their professional knowledge. So in a mentoring model the mentors do need to be formally trained in the process in order to be effective.

So having heard now about several specific professional learning models, here's a chance for you to stop and reflect. Which of these models most closely matches the professional learning model that you are involved in right now? Think about how the structure of that model impacts your professional development.

To dive a little deeper and learn how to apply this information, be sure to check out the additional resources section associated with this video. This is where you'll find links targeted toward helping you discover more ways to apply this course material. Thanks for watching. Have a great day.