Professional Development Planning for Gifted Programs © 2011 by The Johns Hopkins University. All rights reserved.
Characteristics of Adult Learners 2 Are autonomous and self-directed Have life experiences and knowledge Are goal-oriented Are relevancy-oriented Are practical Need to be shown respect
Sources of Motivation for Adult Learners 3 Social relationships External expectations Social welfare Personal advancement Escape/stimulation Cognitive interest
Elements of Learning That Must be Addressed 4 Motivation Reinforcement Retention Transference
A Paradigm Shift in PD Dettmer, Landrum, & Miller (2006) 5
Goals of Professional Development 6 To support educators to help all students achieve to high standards of learning and development (U.S. DOE, Goals 2000) To change individuals’ knowledge, understanding, behaviors, skills, values, and beliefs (Southwest Educational Development Laboratory, 1994)
Professional Development Cycle District/School Educational Goals Design Needs Assessment Evaluation and Improvement (ongoing) Share PD Learning Best Practice Research (ongoing) School PD Goals PD Content, Process Activities Research PD Implementation 7
A Need for Professional Development Planning 8 Self assessment as a first step Creation of a Professional Development Plan, based on your self assessment What goals and outcomes will you set for this next year? How will you plan to accomplish them? How will you assess whether they were achieved?
Self Assessment 9 Goals for the year Outcomes Strategies for attainment How do I know I have achieved the desired outcomes?
Activity: What is your plan? 10
Implementation Barriers 11 Time to plan Time to implement, given the requirements and exam pressures Resources to carry out differentiation Expertise in my school to use differentiation techniques Problems with language facility to handle high-level tasks
Activity: Ways to Overcome Barriers 12 At your table, discuss how you might overcome each barrier cited. What can YOU do to help the process move forward?
Activity: Planning for Professional Development 13 Work in your assigned group. Select a topic for a professional development activity in gifted education. Your task is to develop a plan (outline) for a professional development session about this topic. The session you design should incorporate principles of adult learning. How will you instruct others in your school about what you have learned this week?
Planning for Professional Development (cont.) 14 Why did your group select its particular topic? What principles of adult learning were incorporated into the session? How might you improve this session? Would this session be best for novice or experienced teachers? Does it matter?