Guest Discussion Part II: What’s Happening In State PD

Dear Colleagues,

Welcome to Part II of our guest discussion of What's Happening in State Professional Development! Thank you to this month’s guest discussants Nancy Dionne (ME), Debra Hargrove (TX), Federico Salas-Isnardi (TX), and Glenda Rose (TX), for sharing their work with us. Their bios are linked below.

If you haven't yet, please register here for the webinar that is scheduled for this coming Monday, February 9, 2015, 3:30-5:00 pm Eastern.

We had an exciting discussion last month, and the webinar archives and summary will be posted here shortly.

In the meantime, please reply and tell us what you’re looking forward to discussing next week.

Thanks,

Jackie Taylor, SME

Evidence-based Professional Development Community of Practice

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Nancy Dionne

Nancy Dionne is the Professional Development Coordinator for Maine Adult Education. Nancy began her service at the Maine Department of Education as Professional Development Specialist for Adult Education in 2010. Her responsibilities include coordination and management of state-wide professional development activities. The work includes responsibility for professional development supporting EL Civics, STAR, Leadership Excellence Academy, Maine College Transitions, NELRC and LINCS initiatives as well as state, regional and federal initiatives.

Nancy earned her B.S. in Elementary Education from the University of Maine at Farmington. Beginning her career as a first grade teacher, her pathway in the field of education has led her on a forty-two year journey in the education field with work ranging from preschool to college prep services. Public school teaching was followed by work implementing county wide licensed day care services. She has done long term substitute teaching, private school teaching and provided educational services as a Head Start home visitor/teacher. The Head Start work lead to becoming a member of the local Head Start management team as a Family Service Coordinator and supervisor of home visitors. Her work with adult education began when she worked as an Even Start Family Literacy Coordinator and was followed by planning, developing and coordinating a college transitions program as a Maine College Transitions Coordinator. Nancy was hired by the Department of Education in 2010 to fill the newly created position as Professional Development Specialist for Adult Education.

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Dr. Debra L. Hargrove

Debra is the Director of Professional Development Design for the Texas Research-based Adult Instruction Network Professional Development Consortium (TRAIN PD) at Texas A&M University. Prior to joining the TRAIN PD team, Dr. Hargrove spent the past 14 years in Florida, developing and directing Florida TechNet, a technology and distance learning professional development project. She spends most of her time developing and designing effective online PD for Texas adult educators and is passionate about integrating digital technologies into the adult education classroom. Debra is the voice of TRAIN PD on Twitter @TCALLtweets.

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Federico Salas-Isnardi, PD Consortium Director (Link to bio)

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Glenda Rose, PD Center Specialist (Link to bio)

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Comments

Greetings all, as the Professional Development Coordinator for Maine Adult Education I look forward to sharing information on Maine's PD system during Monday's webinar.  I look forward to the upcoming discussions and hearing from others about their PD systems and particularly about designing and delivering effective PD and what systems might be in place for follow-up, reflection and extension of training activities. I feel that follow-up is critical for practitioners to implement new methods of instruction.

Hi friends, my colleagues and I have been busy this week presenting and networking at our state conference. We are SO excited to be sharing with you all the great things that are going on in Texas. Our new State Director is very supportive of Professional Development and Distance Learning, and has designed a great model of PD that we'll share next week. 

Have a great weekend and we'll "see you" next week!

Best,

 

Hello All,

Thank you Nancy and Deb for your introductions! Deb, I bet you all are very excited! I'm always energized coming back from conference. With you, Federico, and Glenda just geting back from your state conference today, I have no doubt we'll feel that energy on Monday's webinar about What's Happening in State PD (2/9) (still time to register). 

Speaking of which, we'll do some things differently, based on participants' feedback in January. For example, participants will have the opportunity to opt in to smaller breakout sessions of their choice, based on hot topics that surfaced during our January webinar.

So get ready, everyone. You will want to identify the group you wish to join -- and bring any resources along with you that you would like to share.

Here are the categories:

  1. Certification and credentialing
  2. Providing incentives for PD
  3. Designing /delivering effective professional development
  4. Implementing what is learned from PD
  5. Paid PD 

Resources could be links, titles of research, books, articles, videos, webinars, podcasts, etc.

Can't wait!

Jackie Taylor, SME

Evidence-based Professional Development

Dear Colleagues,

Thank you to all who participated in today’s kickoff webinar for Part II of What’s Happening in State Professional Development.  I appreciate our guests’ informative and engaging presentations (thank you, Nancy, Federico, Deb, and Glenda!); Kratos’ support (thank you Jessie and Isabel!); and your participation! Interesting work is certainly happening in professional development, and I’m honored to be a small part of the conversation.

During the course of our two-part discussion, five main themes have emerged thus far:

  • Designing / delivering effective professional development
  • Implementing what’s learned from PD
  • Certification and credentialing
  • Providing incentives for PD
  • Paid PD

For the remainder of this week (and our guests’ commitment to us), I suggest that we discuss 1-2 themes / day, beginning on Tuesday morning, 2/10. Here is the schedule:

  • Tuesday (2/10): Designing / delivering effective professional development
  • Wednesday (2/11): Implementing what’s learned from PD
  • Thursday (2/12): Certification and credentialing
  • Friday (2/13): Providing incentives for PD and Paid PD

Next week, I encourage us to discuss items that haven’t yet been addressed, as well as what’s needed to advance our field of adult education PD. I also encourage us to come away with some recommended discussion priorities for the EBPD Group for 2015.

Thanks again for joining us. And for those who experienced today’s tech trouble, you are tech troopers! They should create a special digital badge for that. :D

Looking forward,

Jackie

Jackie Taylor, SME

Evidence-based Professional Development Community of Practice

Good day or evening!

As you well know, the part-time nature of the adult education workforce poses unique challenges in professional development. During the course of our two-part discussion, participants have identified a variety of issues they face in PD; one of which is designing and providing quality, intensive professional development over time.

What projects have you been involved with lately, either as a participant or staff development professional, that have engaged you or others in meaningful professional development learning experiences over time? What have been the successes and/or challenges that have accompanied them?

Staff development professionals, how do you engage teachers in quality, intensive PD over time?

Consider:

  • Components of effective PD (content focus, active learning, coherence, duration, collective participation)
  • Delivery methods that work best for a mostly PT adult education workforce
  • Accommodating for a variety of teacher work schedules

I look forward to hearing from you,

Jackie Taylor, SME

Evidence-based Professional Development

I was having a discussion about PD with someone in the state higher education organization.  I was making the point that I don't have to convince adult education teachers to get their minimum PD (which is between 12 and 24 hours in Texas, depending on the teacher's background).  Adult education teachers are generally on the low end of the education status pole, after college professors, K-12 teachers, development education and continuing education (if we're lucky!).  Most of us don't have full-time jobs in adult education, so we work in other fields or work for two or three different organizations.  All that to say, we are in it because we are vested in the lives of our students.  We believe in helping people achieve better outcomes for themselves, their families, and their communities.  We don't have to be convinced that we need to become better at what we do.  We are driven to do it.  Unfortunately, though, with so many part-time instructors, most of what we have been able to do on the PD side have been one-shot workshops.  While these are an important component of PD, they are not, in my opinion, the best way to effect change in the classroom.

On the other hand, it is logistically a nightmare to have sustained professional with this population.  I've had a couple of successful endeavors.  Two that come to mind are a semester-long, hybrid book study on Where Great Teaching Begins by Anne Reeves.  This book is written from a K-12 angle, so we had a lot of discussion about its appropriateness over the course of the semester, but by the end, the participants all felt they had learned a great deal about designing effective instruction.  We wrote a summary of that experience which can be found on our website: http://www-tcall.tamu.edu/newsletr/winter13/winter13c.htm.

The second was one that covered adult learning theory, integrating technology, and project based learning.  This "academy" was also a semester long and also delivered in a hybrid fashion.  We had a face-to-face meeting to cover the ideas and practice any of the skills necessary.  Participants had a few weeks to try what they learned in their own classrooms and then report back on a webinar / conference call before I headed back out for another face-to-face.

Deb Hargrove and I are now working on redesigning some standardized trainings for our state into online delivery - facilitated or on-demand.  We already have our goal-setting required training (thanks to AnneMarie Molinari, our previous DL Manager for AEL in Texas)  and our Distance Learning in Texas training (thanks to Deb). 

One of the things that I want to try here soon is flipping my one-shot workshops.  If I can get folks to get the concepts down before I arrive, we can spend a lot more time on application.  Has anyone had any success with this?  My concern is that I'll send out the video and only a handful will take the time to view it, and then I'll spend the same amount of time covering concepts.

I can't wait to hear what everyone else has done / is doing.

Glenda

Something else I'd like to add to Glenda's response is that we are also keeping the AALPD Adopted PD Standards in mind when we are developing new PD Content. When I was charged with designing this new DL intiative I pulled out the Standards and placed them on my desk as a daily reminder of "WHY" I'm writing this curriculum. We can get caught up in the aesthetic design of something, and forgetting WHY we are creating something. 

Sure, it should look appealing, but we need to remember that PD should:

Deepens practitioners’ knowledge of content areas, instructional strategies, and assessment strategies based on research and professional wisdom to help learners meet their goals.  

Prepares practitioners to create supportive learning environments and hold high expectations for all learners. 

Uses data from multiple sources (e.g., needs assessment of practitioners, programs, teachers, and funders; student data) to determine PD priorities, monitor progress, and help sustain continuous improvement for programs and learners. 

Uses multiple evaluation strategies to guide improvement and demonstrate its impact. 

 Enhances practitioners’ abilities to evaluate and apply current research, theory, evidence-based practices, and professional wisdom.

Occurs over a period of time, uses teaching and learning strategies appropriate to the intended goals, and employs a variety of delivery approaches and methods. 

Models theories of adult learning and development.

Fosters program, community, and state level collaboration. 

Builds learning communities that foster collaboration and peer learning among practitioners.

Requires leadership at the state and local levels that promotes effective professional development and fosters continuous instructional improvement. 

Provides policies and guidelines to support practitioners in accessing and benefiting from quality professional development and in accessing career pathways. 

You can find these standards on the AALPD website: http://www.aalpd.org/AALPDStandardsandIndicatorsFinal.doc

We can't forget "the WHY"

Interested to know how many others have been using Standards in their PD content development.

Glenda I feel you said it well…adult education practitioners are in it because they are invested in the lives of their students. Adult educators are dedicated, caring individuals. They work long hours with little compensation or benefits and their reward is in seeing their students reach their academic, career and life goals. They do appreciate the PD opportunities offered but often lack the hrs. in their schedule, or classroom coverage to participate.

Since 2010, Maine has been invested in offering more extended, sustained professional development opportunities. Before that there were a few offerings which demonstrated the effectiveness of sustained PD. Two cohorts of directors were involved with the two year Leadership Excellence Academy and reading teachers with the STAR reading program. These were proven models of effective PD which led the participants to implementation of the new practices in programs and classrooms.

In 2010 Maine Adult Rural Technology Initiative funds were utilized to develop and deliver a hybrid or blended 10 week Technology Integration course. To date we have offered the course five semesters with 2-3 cohorts participating per semester in the earlier offerings. Since then we have developed four additional hybrid courses: Universal Design for Learning/Differentiated Instruction, Teaching in the Blended Classroom, Developing an Online Course and Teaching and Learning through Interactive Video Conferencing and offered them  twice a year. Courses range from 8-12 weeks. These courses demanded time and energy of the participants and participating programs were offered stipends to support and compensate staff f. The question I have is do the course completers change their instruction to the point of continuing beyond course completion. If so, do they continue with it weeks…months …years? My feeling is that we need to follow-up with course completers. Are there supports we can offer to help them to continue applying the new practices? I would love to hear how people are creating and supporting learning communities as well as other methods of extending the learning, providing time for reflection and networking with classmates and continued implementation of the new practices.

Glenda,

I love to hear that you are interested in 'flipping' your one-shot workshops or webinars. Flipped PD is an area I am actively researching and trying out with adult educators. While I do NOT have all the answers, I can give you the following insights/thoughts:

Remember that at its core, flipping is NOT technologically dependent. Video and online tools are the *cool, hot new way* to flip, but flipping is about more passive, FOCUSED content learning *outside* the classroom and ACTIVE learning in the face to face setting.  If you have physical contact with your instructors  (like at a multiple day workshop) - you can hand them a piece of paper with key concepts for day 2 (telling them to read) and give a quiz at the start of the next day - this is a flip. Technically your high school English teacher asking you to read the chapter for homework, and then be ready to discuss it in groups during class the next day IS a flip - just a more "old fashioned" one.

That said, unlike your HS English teacher, pre-work for a flip should be SHORT, and VERY focused on the key concepts.  It should cover key points, skills or generate questions that you will follow up on in an *active*  way face to face.  Videos should be around 2-3 minutes long, with 5 mins as the MAX.  Readings should be 1-2 pages long. While you can combine 2-3 of these in your pre-work (watch a 2 minute video and read these 2 single sheets), if you ask someone to read a 12 page report or watch a 15 minute (or longer) video before coming to the workshop....they simply won't (at least NOT for a one-shot - extended, job-embedded PD is different). Ask yourself, "What are the KEY ideas" (or experiences) that I want them to have when they walk in the door."  Alternatively, use the pre-work as a tool to get to know your participants, their concerns, questions and barriers relating to a topic. This part takes 15 mins of the beginning of any of my 1-shot workshops.  Moving it to *before* the session not only gives me an extra 15 mins, but allows me to better target exactly what we do (or do not) need to talk about.  OR...choose a reading or video that will form a CORE for discussion (a real-life scenario or M-Lots video, for example) so that you don't have to take up session time reading/viewing it, AND they have already had a chance to think about it.

With that in mind, almost all examples of the flip have an accountability piece for the "outside work."  It also is important to keep this accountability task, SHORT, *low key* and non-threatening - like a very short open book/note quiz via Google From, or a Socratic request for questions/issues to discuss the next day, or a survey with no wrong answers, etc. Flipped experts counsel us not to "just send out a video and ask them to watch it" - btu to ask them a key question about it and require them to respond. This accountability piece is supposed to serve 2 functions: provide motivation/pressure to complete the activity (someone will be checking up on me), and information to the facilitator on how well they understood the concepts, their questions/concerns, etc. that you can use to customize the face to face portion of the class. NOTE this means that how folks react to the pre-work can CHANGE what you do face to face - flipped PD should be more dynamic and flexible (more customized).

So - what do you do with folks who "don't do the homework"?  Assuming you know what % of folks completed it, you would then know how to adjust your session. In general, I'd advise NOT taking time to explain to those who haven't done the work. Assume they are passionate, dedicated professionals and they will either catch up quickly or ask someone at the table. If you'd like, you can provide a handout summarizing the "pre-work" that would help those trying to catch up. Alternatively, put some teeth behind it - have there be consequences. When I did the flipped online event last April/May, folks who did not complete the pre-work did NOT get a link to the webinar. We told everyone this up front and gave them lots of e-mail reminders. Out of 50 registrants, 19 did not get a webinar link sent to them.  Interestingly, the normal stats for a free online one-shot webinar are 50 registrants for roughly 20-25 attendees.  For that 'flipped' event, I had 50 registrants, 31 who completed the pre-work, and 25 attendees. Of the 25, 17 of them completed a "post webinar" activity (post to links - you can see them here).  SO 35 folks got "a taste" of the flipped approach; 25 received the whole training (roughly 2hrs 15 mins) and 18 provided plans for application (or actually applied it!).  So upping the accountability resulted in MORE folks learning MORE (not driving folks away - a real concern in voluntary free PD).

And then, in my experience, "Flipping" a one-shot really can't work unless you know who is coming and have enough "pre-work" time. For non-local workshops or webinars you really *have to* have pre-registration of all folks DONE at least 1 (preferably 2) weeks before your event.  This way you can get the pre-work to them, give them enough time to complete it AND give yourself enough time to adjust the session based on their responses.  Even for local workshops, it is a very good idea to plan a bit of time for yourself to look over their responses and make adjustments.  Oh, and for PD flips that DO contain an online component (even if it is only e-mail), registration should be done ONLINE, in a way that *confirms* a working e-mail address.  (Folks who want to fax in a handwritten registration or "don't use e-mail much" are NOT good targets for flipped PD with an online component.)

Lastly, flipping PD involves a paradigm shift for YOU, the attendees AND administrators.  Be patient, start small and have low expectations to start.  as you change the mindset of folks, you should be able to ask MORE for pre-work, and get them to report back how they have applied it (which links to what Deb Hargrove is talking about to).  Once you have the hang of it, flipped PD can become another component in a larger hybrid or extended PD model as well!

Hello everyone!

Thank you to Debra Hargrove and Glenda Rose for getting us started yesterday with our online discussion. Please check out their posts and share your experiences. Even though we are starting a topic a day, feel free to continue the discussions in any of the daily topics, or start your own.

Today’s topic is sharing ways in which we help teachers implement what they learn through professional development. Please share your thoughts on any of the following:

  1. How do you engage teachers in follow up and reflection?
  2. What structures do states or programs have in place, or what’s needed, to help teachers implement what they learn through PD?
  3. How do you address the challenge of meeting the needs of participants who need something they can use the next day while also laying the basis for long-term growth?

As a community, we benefit most when we make time to share. Thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts and experiences.

Looking forward,

Jackie Taylor, SME

Evidence-based Professional Development Community of Practice

At the state-funded PD center where I work, we are trying to "force" teachers to apply what they learn in PD activities to their classroom. Most of the training we offer, both in-person and online, includes one or more required assignments that participants submit to us for individual feedback before we issue their certificate with PD hours. Assignments vary from answering reflective questions to developing lessons or materials and implementing them in the the classroom. As much as possible we try to assign tasks that allow for the diversity of classrooms and programs we have across the state, and for the diversity of teacher experience. Staff or outside consultants review each task and give personalized feedback. The feedback allows us to correct misunderstandings, clarify content, suggest additional resources based on the teacher's context, answer questions, etc. Reviewers sometimes return assignments for additional responses before approving and issuing a certificate. We believe this "applied learning" approach pushes teachers to try out new ideas. Of course, it may or may not lead to actual change in quality of instruction, but it pushes training participants further than just attendance in a course or workshop would. 

We are also on the brink of piloting a virtual observation system. Teachers would videotape themselves in the classroom and submit the footage to us for feedback. While we don't expect that teachers will leap at the opportunity, we believe program administrators will encourage them to give it a try. Feedback will go directly to the teacher, not the program administrator. 

Laurie,

Glenda and I actually had this very conversation this morning, regarding how to assist teachers in implementing what they've learned into their classrooms. As we mentioned on the webinar, we are currently working with our department chair on the development of a Transfer of Learning Instrument. Up to this point, there has been limited training activities that continued in some form or fashion AFTER the training occurred. We wondered if there would be any significant difference in implementation of what was learned in a training if we included a prework assignment AND a post work assignment/activity. In our D-Learning in Texas online course modules we included one or two discussion forums that encouraged each participant to actually complete some activity in the classroom with students and then post the results or any reflections as a result of that implementation. In one module, we ask them to create a flyer or poster to help market their programs, and have them post them to share with others. We've just started this, so we don't have much to report yet. 

How are others helping their teachers implement what they've learned?

 

Debra I am very interested in your comment about working on the development of a Transfer of Learning Instrument. I wonder if practitioners could be encouraged to use the instrument and to submit them for review and response over a period of time following the PD. Of course this means there needs to be time commitment by trainers or consultants for the continued support. I feel like implementing something new can only be done in stages, one step at a time. It’s like when we hold a workshop and say take one thing you’ve learned back and give it a try. When trainings are extended over time they are gradually adding new learning to their practice but when the course is over perhaps they need to go back to the most important new learning and not all of it at once. Expectations should be to gradually incorporate it into practice. It really does take time, energy, focus and encouragement.

Nancy,

Our wish would be that at the end of our grant cycle and research period, that we'll have gathered enough data to be able to statistically say that extended, research-based PD DOES promote new learning and positive outcomes for the teacher and the students they serve. It's an exciting endeavor for us.  I promise to keep everyone posted on our process.

Hi Jackie and all,

Sure... So, for many years, I've always wanted to find out if what I shared as a trainer and facilitator actually LED to some change in the teachers behaviors.  And if so, did that change resonant in their students performance. In other words, do students benefit from their teachers engaging in continued professional development, that promoted demonstration, reflection and integration of new skills. 

Our department Chair, Dr. Fred Nafuko did his doctoral work at LSU with a professor who developed such an instrument (that now is proprietary and offered to the businesses). Dr. Fred, Dr. Rose (Glenda), Harriet and I met months ago to begin the discussion on whether we could create such an instrument, would it be grounded in good statistical research and would it be a valid and reliable instrument with which to determine if sustained PD, either Face to Face, Online or Hybrid in delivery was beneficial to program outcomes.

He and his team began to develop the instrument. He presented a draft to use a few months ago. We made some suggested edits and then he sent it to the University IRB for approval. After a few rounds of clarification, they gave us the approval. We met (virtually) with Dr. Nafuko last week to discuss how we would begin our data collection. Here were our questions and our thoughts on each:

1. Do we want to include every single person who attended one of our trainings, without regard to delivery mode?

Yes. We decided to use everyone that participated in a TRAIN PD team training since August of 2014.

2. Did we want to separate the data by length of training (one hour, half day, full day, multiple days)?

Yes. We decided to separate our data into two distinct categories: 1: Less Intensive (Any training delivered on one day, with no pre or post work activities.) And 2: More Intensive (Training that is 3 hours or more, includes prework (such as a Flipped Assignment or reading), and then a post refection/implementation activity.)

3. If we're going to use our data from ALL of the TRAIN PD team's trainings, how will we know WHICH training topic actually encouraged transfer of learning? How will we send it to Dr. Nafuko? First, we've only had  ONE More Intensive training so far, but we will attempt to incorporate that process in the trainings that Dr. Rose and I do for the remainder of the year.

Dr. Rose has facilitated more trainings than anyone else on our team this year, so we decided to separate our data into two cohort groups:

Cohort  1: All of the participants in our TRAIN PD trainings MINUS Dr. Rose's.

Cohort  2. All of the participants that have trained under Dr. Rose. Now, with that being said, we are separating each data set by a descriptive code, which will tell us WHICH training the participant is responding to, which will allow Dr. Rose to see specifically WHICH training(s) show promise for Transfer of Learning.

It's so new to us, that we're still feeling our way around.. so we may have to change something in the process. But that should give you an idea of what we're currently working on.

 

Hi Debra,

Thank you so much for this level of detail. I find it helpful in conceptualizing your team's work on the Transfer of Learning Instrument and it sounds very exciting! If I'm understanding correctly, Dr. Rose will be getting direct feedback from this instrument on her trainings since the participants in Cohort 2 are all participants from her trainings. Will the trainers who have participants in Cohort 1 also be able to get specific feedback on the trainings they have offered?

Also, will the instrument give results on the models of training that lead to the most transfer, regardless of topic? And if so, has your team given thought to the implications this work may have on future training topics and designs specific to adult education teachers' needs in Texas?

Thanks again,

Jackie Taylor

Hi Jackie,

Yes, we chose to use Glenda's data, as she has been the one on our team who has conducted the most training since our grant began. We did not differentiate between "delivery mode" of the training just yet. At this point, we wanted to first see if the "topic" of the event (conducted by the same person) made any significant difference in transfer of learning. We know how each of the training events were delivered, so we can factor that in at a later time. And you're right, it should be VERY interesting to be able identify what delivery mode of training might offer the highest return or transfer of learning.  I'll be sure and keep everyone posted.

Those of us in Cohort 1 will not be able to receive feedback based on our training delivered, only if transfer of learning occurred. We hope to be able to begin including the other team members as we move forward. There was just not enough data from the rest of team to include as separate cohorts.

Hi Deb, All,

Thanks again for the details. You may have said this in last week's webinar. But would you please remind us when you think you may have results to share? Not only am I excited to hear the results, but I also encourage you to document and publish your team's work. The COABE Journal of Research and Practice for Adult Literacy, Secondary, and Basic Education would be one journal to consider. I welcome others' suggestions for additional venues as well. Publishing our work and our research, including action research, is one key to advancing our profession.

Jackie Taylor, SME

Evidence-based Professional Development COP

 

Several folks in recent conversations have mentioned using 'hybrid' PD models without going into detail as to what that is - although all had an "extended" component. I think that they Hybrid models are a key to measuring application of PD to practice. The trick is all in the design of the Hybdrid PD.

Let's consider a semester-long PD event that is "job embedded"  - this means that you have a) a core of at least 2 folks participating - administrator and peer (with 3 being better admin and 2 peers) per program b) these folks have locally determined PD goals (based on data), ex: "we need to increase student skills for post-secondary success" and c) focused PD on this topic that assumes hands-on implementation with learners.  Essentially, this is 'problem-based learning' for educators/the program.  Training and support for this process can be delivered in any number of hybrid approaches - face to face weekly meetings amongst the participants on site, online course(s) (like in the LINCS Learning portal), e-mail or online discussions amongst participants across sites, monthly online meetings/webinars to problem solve - ask experts, report out on progress, etc.  Support therefore exists at the local peer and admin level, the regional peer level and from expert facilitators.

During and at the end of this approach to PD, facilitators are able to gather LOTS of evidence of application (or not) from lots of sources.  And programs can report (through data - remember we started with data, right?) on the efficacy of their proposed solution.  Again, folks have mentioned that this takes more time - and compensation for PD time and efforts helps to make things go more smoothly/ensures participation all the way through. I'm never going to say AE teachers don't need to be paid more/for more of their time, but if the PD is simply a part of "what we are doing to solve our problem," then it becomes something that simply part of our everyday jobs - NOT something extra that we feel needs extra compensation. [OK, I admit, almost ANY change to the way programs work is going to require planning time - which is classically underfunded - so *any* change measure would be enhanced by *at least* planning time funds...]

Way back in 2007 (is that way back? really?) Jackie and I developed a hybrid PD model where folks attended an all day workshop on a topic (like writing) and then participated in an online course designed to assist them to put into practice what they had learned in the face to face setting.  This was *reasonably* successful (certainly more so than just the one-shot workshop). It could have been so much more successful, however, if it had been local program driven, with local peer support structures in place, and based on data/baseline measures. I admit to being REALLY excited by what Pennsylvania has put in place for  a PD system - very similar to what is described above.

Dear Colleagues,

A few years ago, our LINCS EBPD group (when it was a discussion list) hosted a very robust discussion of “Teacher Certification and Credentialing in Adult Education” that explored the issues and considerations around certification and credentialing in adult education. Since that time, have states furthered their work in teacher certification and credentialing? If so, please tell us about it. If not, why not?

  1. Does your state or program require teachers to have/earn certification or credentials in AE? Does it offer a state certification or credential in AE?
  2. What successes or issues have you faced with certification and credentialing in AE?
  3. What are the priorities for you in addressing the needs of part-time teachers seeking certification or credentials in AE?

Looking forward,

Jackie Taylor, SME

Evidence-based Professional Development Community of Practice

Hello Jackie, I live in the state Georgia and they have been talking for at least the past two years about a teacher certification in adult education. Fortunately, I came to the adult education arena with a Master’s degree in Adult Education and will soon have a specialist. In working in the adult education I found that most of the teachers hired in the adult education system have k-12 certification and it appears those are the candidates they seek. The issues I have seen are few k-12 educators have the foundation needed to effectively educate adult learners. From my experience, they educate from a pedagogy perspective. As you know k-12 is a very different system from adult education. I say that with the respect that adult learners as we know have a need/desire to "own" their learning. With new demands being placed on adult educational systems, adult educators need to know how to effectively education adult learners as well as formal certification/credential providing evidence they have demonstrated this competence. Certification and credentialing is very much needed in the field of adult education. I hope that soon the talk about adult educators becoming certified will soon become a reality because it is definitely needed.

In Maine teachers must have certification in the subject area they teach or an adult education endorsement on a teacher certificate.  For an adult education endorsement applicants must have 24 semester hrs. in areas relevant to the endorsement area being sought. These correspond to the 7-12 endorsement. These certifications allow the holder to teach in adult education diploma or credential classes. Maine also tends to hire K-12 certified people as well as Georgia. I’m sure it’s true for many states.  Although K -12 is a different system from adult education, good teaching is good teaching. The movement for mass customized learning in k-12 seems to be catching up with good adult education instruction. Instruction must be structured to meet the needs of individual students. It must be relevant to the student. Adult students need to “own” their learning. This is becoming an expectation of K-12 students as well. Perhaps in the not so distant future all instructors will teach following the lead of fully engaged students.

I am a little surprised and slightly dismayed that states are reporting that they only hire K-12 teachers for adult education.  The logic there escapes me.  I was never interested in teaching children.  I started off with adult learning before I graduated high school and started teaching adult ESL professionally (or, rather, for money - there is serious doubt about how professional I was at the time) in 1987.

Over the years, one of the things that I have noted is that teachers coming from K-12 into adult education are "hit or miss" as far as making the transition from teaching children to adults.  Many have had no training in adult learning theory and how the adult classroom is substantially different from the K-12 classroom.  So, myself, holding a doctorate in Foreign Language Education, a Masters in Applied Linguistics with a graduate certificate in TESOL and nearly 30 years of experience teaching adults would not be able to get a job teaching ESL to adults, but a 2nd grade teacher right out of college could?  That is concerning to me.

Texas also implicitly encourages programs to hire certified teachers, by way of requiring fewer PD hours of those teachers their first year in adult education.  This is probably because the system was previously under the Texas Education Agency, which oversees the K-12 program in the state.  One of the failures in Texas with regard to the now unavailable Texas Adult Teacher Credential (which I hold) was that it offered no professional incentive for teachers who completed the process.  I believe Federico will be chiming in more on that later.

Nonetheless, I think we have come a long way  in adult education.  When I first started, I was able to teach with just a high school diploma.  Even in the 90s, most of my adult education colleagues had art degrees, or history, or something totally unrelated to education, adult or otherwise.  I think it is important professionally to hold ourselves to a higher standard.  Adult educators should at the very least have a foundation in adult learning theory and strategies that work in the adult education setting.  

This, of course, is just my personal opinion.

I'll leave the official policy of Texas for Federico to address. 

Peace,
Glenda

 

Sorry to "chime in" at the last minute but I hope my colleagues will continue this discussion as I have questions for what to do going forward.  As Glenda mentioned, the credential in Texas was discontinued. 

Although state law gives the Texas Workforce Commission the charge to develop guidelines for adult education teacher certification, Texas has no current process to certify or credential adult education and literacy teachers.  For ten years until last year, Texas had the Texas Adult Education Teacher Credential and for 6 we also had an adult education administrator credential. These two credentials were discontinued in 2014.  Glenda mentioned she completed the Texas Adult Education Teacher Credential and I completed the Texas Adult Education Administrator Credential.  We can both relish the fact that we hold a paper that's a relic of our history...

Our credential was based on a high quality process of peer-reviewed reflections of an individual’s participation in sustained professional development.  The credential used an electronic portfolio of teacher reflections and documentation of PD.  The whole process, even the intake of interested staff and the necessary orientation to the credential process were available online.

The teacher credential was based upon the following Six Core Content Areas

  • Principles of Adult Learning

  • Teaching/Learning Transaction

  • Diverse Learning Styles, Abilities and Cultures

  • Integrating Technology into Adult Learning

  • Accountability and Assessment

  • Contextual Learning

While the credential was successful by its own measures, it faced two major drawbacks: one was that it was not recognized by the bureaucracy of educator certification because it lacked a standardized curriculum and an examination.  We wanted a system based on personalized PD, teacher reflection, and peer review.  The requirements of certification were incompatible with that vision.

Another problem was that, since it was not a recognized certificate, it had to be optional; it could not be mandatory.  In addition, as Glenda said, there was no incentive for teachers to pursue it other than a loosely defined sense of professionalization of the field.  No guarantee of promotion or additional moneys, no full-time jobs readily available for the teacher who completed the credential, not even the certainty of continued employment in our field.   As Michael Cruse suggested, it might be good if there was an increase in pay for completing a certification/credential or for pursuing required PD (in Texas PD hours are mandatory but there is no pay increase; the incentive, as it is, is to be eligible for continued employment. ) In the end, as well designed as the Texas Credential was, the system became expensive (administration of the credential, peer reviewers, maintenance of the electronic portfolio system, etc.)  Too few teachers completed the credential in the 10 years it was in existence and the state came to see it as an expensive initiative with little return on investment. 

So the question now is in what direction should the state move? Is a credential or a certification needed in our field? Can it be more than simply the recognition of our professional development if it is not required and having it carries no significant employment advantages?

I would like to hear your opinions.

 

Good day or evening, all!

Today is the last “official” day of our guest discussion. Thank you to Glenda, Deb, Nancy, and Federico for your support in helping us to dive deeper into the issues. We’ll start exploring three topics today: Paid PD, Incentives for PD, and Identifying our own top PD needs so that we can target our time together.

The nature of our part-time workforce underlies all of our work in designing, providing, and evaluating the effectiveness of professional development. It provides unique challenges that shape the nature of the PD offerings we provide. Adult educators often hold two or three part-time jobs to make ends meet. Yet we teach adult education because helping others change their lives through literacy is a passion. And as Glenda Rose noted earlier this week, “We don't have to be convinced that we need to become better at what we do.  We are driven to do it.”

So should teachers be paid to participate in professional development? And if so, how much of their time should be compensated? Whether you teach or provide staff development, how does the issue of paid PD impact you in your work?

Looking forward,

Jackie Taylor, SME

Evidence-based Professional Development COP

Jackie,

Massachusetts has, since the creation of the System for Adult Basic Education Support (SABES) in the late 1980's, paid for a minimum number of hours of professional development time, 50 hours per year for full-time, and less for part-time practitioners. This has been helpful, fair -- especially considering how underpaid many adult education practitioners are, and generally well-received.

Another strategy would be to pay instead for demonstrated professional development learning outcomes that could be acquired through state-funded PD. A menu of learning outcomes could be provided to teachers and programs or schools. Programs or schools would decide which ones they thought were important enough to pay for, skills and knowledge that they believed would result in students' attaining their objectives, and/or in being able to demonstrate measurable learning gains, or attaining diplomas, certificates and/or perhaps meaningful digital badges. If the adult education State Education Agency thought certain sets of skills and knowledge were important enough, for example a set of numeracy and math teaching strategies capable of helping students pass difficult new high school equivalency math tests, they could provide in their RFP's and contracts with programs or schools the ability to increase salaries for the teachers who acquired these skills and knowledge. Of course, if a teacher took an assessment that demonstrated that s/he already had the skills, PD would not be needed, but a meaningful digital badge or PD certificate could be issued to the teacher, and the teacher's pay could be increased to acknowledge the teacher's skills and knowledge.

David J. Rosen

djrosen123@gmail.com

Hi David,

Thank you for sharing this idea! Do you have examples of where you've seen this successfully in action? I do like the idea of incentivizing application of what is learned through staff development. I'm curious to know where it's been used and the results.

Thanks again,

Jackie Taylor

 

Hello Jackie and others,

A few years ago, in manufacturing and other sectors, Pay for Knowledge or Pay for Skills was getting a fair amount of attention. I know of one study of Pay for Knowledge/Skills in K-12 education (although there may be more), but I am not aware of any in adult education. The K-12 study is quite interesting, and the introduction explains a lot about the theory.  http://www.information.literacy.org/sites/default/files/researchreport/790_rr50.pdf

I wonder what you and others here think about this idea. I believe it would take an innovative state and/or program/school to experiment with Pay for Knowledge for adult educators. Ideally the U.S. Department of Education would support an effort to encourage this experimentation. It could be a great leap forward for professional development and instructor and program quality, however; and it may be that adult basic education might offer fewer constraints that K-12 or higher ed in experimenting with, and then implementing such a system if it were found effective.

David J. Rosen

djrosen123@gmail.com

 

Happy Valentines!

Our guests have agreed to extend the official guest discussion through Tuesday, 2/17, COB so that we may continue exploring issues in staff development. Thank you, Deb, Nancy, Federico, and Glenda!

Question: What incentives have you enjoyed or found effective in helping teachers participate and benefit from professional development?

Here’s a brief summary of what’s been discussed on incentives thus far, with links to the posts:

Michael Cruse, Pay Discrepancies – Michael argues that salary increases should accompany acquisition of degrees and certifications in states where they issue adult education licenses and require PD to maintain them. He points out that the increases should be on par with K-12 and higher education teaching positions.

Astrid Liden, Teacher Partners – Adult education teachers in MN are required to hold a valid K-12 license and must earn CEUs to maintain licensure -- so there is a built-in incentive to pursue professional development. One successful strategy they use is “teacher partners”. Teacher partners meet weekly and provide accountability and a place to process what they’re learning / implementing. MN has run a 24-30 person cohort using “teacher partners” for the last several years and they have nearly a 100% completion rate.

Andy Nash, Integrating Technology Project – The New England Literacy Resource Center (NELRC) borrowed the idea of teacher partners from MN and several others to help practitioners integrate what they learn in PD. The project has elements built in to address the PT nature of the workforce, such as holding it all online, asynchronous, teacher partners, and stipends for completion.

Peggy McGuire, Transparency and Appreciation – She asks, what might lead someone to make PD a priority given all of the various ways adult educators use their time and energy? “Don’t we all need incentives to do our best?” Peggy recommends being transparent with teachers about how / why the structure / content of the PD is designed to help them reach their own goals around quality, effective PD.

I look forward to hearing what others think.

Jackie Taylor, SME

Evidence-based Professional Development

Hello Jackie,

You have asked, "What incentives have you enjoyed or found effective in helping teachers participate and benefit from professional development?"  I would like to re-frame the question, and ask "Why do teachers try to improve what they do?" In this re-framing, a teacher might ardently pursue professional improvement, even systematic professional improvement, but might or might not include PD courses as the means to that improvement. Or, more likely, they might have professional development courses as a part of their improvement plan, along with independent study, and program-based professional development.

One example of this is the Massachusetts adult basic education teacher license. It does not require professional development; it does have high standards and exacting ways of measuring teacher competence and performance; It is not mandatory; it does not necessarily lead to increments in pay. Most of those who pursue this credential do so for their own personal satisfaction and pride as adult basic education teachers. However, there are relatively few Massachusetts adult basic education teachers who have pursued it. This example provides these insights: some adult basic education teachers will make an extraordinary effort and commitment to their professional improvement without assured economic incentives; however, most will not, or more likely cannot make an investment without a clear return, especially as there are opportunity costs if one must work part-time to participate in courses.

This suggests to me a strategy that might lead to rigorous, productive and widespread adult basic education licensing;

1) At the state level, design a reward system for professional growth that is competency-based and incremental, that includes small "micro-credentials"

2) Provide both the following kinds of rewards to teachers who acquire the competencies and micro-credentials:

  • Public professional recognition of acquisition of knowledge and skills
  • Increased pay for the demonstration of knowledge and skills (and acquisition of the "micro-credentials" 

3) Provide a promise, a contract with the field, that attainment of an adult basic education license will be recognized, appreciated and financially rewarded.

The underlying concept is a career path, in this case one for adult basic education teachers.

I would like to see: 

  • Adult education professional developers rally around a career path -- or possibly career paths -- for adult basic education teachers
  • State Education Agencies use some of their public funding to reward programs and schools that support career path models for teachers, and to help programs and schools pay teachers who acquire the skills, knowledge and micro-credentials
  • The U.S. Department of Education financially support the development of state adult basic education career path models, with micro-credentials (digital badges, for example)
  • All these efforts building in substantial evaluation components so we can answer the question of whether a career path for adult basic education teachers leads to significant improvement in what teachers and their students can achieve.

I welcome readers' thoughts about this.

David J. Rosen

djrosen123@gmail.com

 

 

 

Thank you, David, for sharing your ideas and for always being so forward thinking and creative with them. I especially like the details you've outlined to advance career pathways for *adult educators* in adult education. It is an issue that I know COABE and NCL are both passionate about.

Where do we begin in developing career paths for adult educators? I wonder if anyone here is interested in thinking this through, what such a system would look like. This way, states that are interested could adapt / adopt the concept or it could be funded when funding becomes available.

Jackie Taylor, SME

Evidence-based Professional Development COP 

Dear Colleagues,

As our guest discussion winds down today (I will be posting a summary soon), what would you like to see the Evidence-based Professional Development Group do or discuss in 2015 to help you advance your own learning goals? Also, what haven't we explored that we should explore in order to advance our field of practice?

Your input here can help shape the direction you want to see our EBPD Group take with respect to discussion topics, formats (webinars, chats, asynchronous postings, etc) in 2015.

Looking forward to hearing from you,

Jackie Taylor, SME

Evidence-based Professional Development Group

Dear Colleagues,

Please see below for a summary of our Part II discussion of What's Happening in State Professional Development. The next step is for us to respond to our current PD needs as PD providers, which you can find here.

See below, and I encourage you to continue the discussion by adding your perspectives.

~ Jackie Taylor

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Topic 1: Designing and Delivering Effective PD

How do you engage adult education teachers in quality, intensive professional development (PD) over time?

Glenda Rose shares her experiences with extended PD: a hybrid book study on Where Great Teaching Begins, by Anne Reeves (See a summary of the experience here.) Another extended PD experience she noted was a semester long Academy, using a hybrid model, which covered adult learning theory, integrating technology, and project-based learning.

“Is it worth the time to “flip” a PD workshop?” Glenda asks. In other words, if only a few people view a video prior to the workshop, then the presenter needs to spend time during the workshop covering what was sent out in advance of the session. What success have others had flipping PD workshops?

Duren Thompson, from the Center for Literacy, Education and Employment (CLEE), offers several tips from experience on Flipped learning for PD, including:

  • Flipping is not technologically dependent
  • Flipping is about more passive, focused content learning outside the classroom and active learning in the face to face setting
  • Pre-work for a flip should be short, and very focused on the key concepts
  • Almost all examples of the flip have an accountability piece for the "outside work"
  • How folks react to the pre-work can CHANGE what you do face to face - flipped PD should be more dynamic and flexible (more customized)

She offers several more tips and recommendations, which can be found here.

Debra Hargrove reminds us: Don’t forget the “WHY” of it. Why are we designing the PD in the first place? What makes it quality? See AALPD’s PD Quality Standards and Indicators – who has used the standards and what have you found most useful about them? Tell us here.

Nancy shares Maine’s increasing investment in extended PD. Examples include two cohorts in the two year Leadership Excellence Academy and the STAR reading program. Maine has also developed five hybrid courses: Technology Integration, Universal Design for Learning/Differentiated Instruction, Teaching in the Blended Classroom, Developing an Online Course, and Teaching and Learning through Interactive Video Conferencing. The courses have been offered twice a year and range from 8-12 weeks.

How are you creating extended learning opportunities for adult educators? Share your experiences here.

Topic 2: Helping Teachers Implement What They Learn Through PD

Laurie Martin, Debra Hargrove, Duren Thompson, and Nancy Dionne are discussing ways in which to help teachers implement what they learn in PD. Laurie shares that in her state (she didn’t mention which one), the PD system requires teachers to submit one or more required assignments for feedback before they are issued a certificate for their PD hours. PD staff or consultants give outside, personalized feedback.

Texas is working on a Transfer of Learning Instrument. The instrument is being developed in collaboration with Dr. Fred Nafuko, Professor and Department Head, Educational Administration and Human Resource Development at Texas A & M University. It investigates the question:  Do students benefit from their teachers engaging in continued professional development that promoted demonstration, reflection and integration of new skills?

Debra’s team wanted to know whether they could create a valid, reliable instrument grounded in good statistical research that could be used to determine if sustained PD (Face to Face, Online, or Hybrid) was beneficial to program outcomes. See their considerations in creating the instrument with Dr. Nafuko here. Debra will be sharing more as they learn more.

Duren adds that the best hybrid PD that leads to improved practice linked to student outcomes is locally driven, with local peer support structures in place, and based on data/baseline measures. (See “Diverse models of PD to support, follow up, and measure”.)

Topic 3: Certification and Credentialing in Adult Education

Since our 2011 guest discussion of Teacher Certification and Credentialing in Adult Education, have states furthered their work in teacher certification and credentialing? If so, please tell us about it. If not, why not?

Taria Willis points out that many states tend to hire K-12 certified teachers to teach adult education, yet few K-12 educators have the foundation needed to teach adults. “It’s important professionally to hold ourselves to a higher standard,” Glenda Rose states. Yet as Nancy Dionne states, “Good teaching is good teaching.” More and more K-12 educators are structuring instruction to the individual needs of students so that young people can “own” their learning just as adults need to do.

Federico Salas-Isnardi describes the successes and issues they faced with the Texas Adult Education Teacher and Administrator Credentials and why the funding for the program was cut. “So the question now is in what direction should the state move? Is a credential or a certification needed in our field? Can it be more than simply the recognition of our professional development if it is not required and having it carries no significant employment advantages?” Please visit Federico’s post to respond to his questions.

Topic 4: Paid PD

Whether you teach or provide staff development, how does the issue of paid PD impact you in your work?

David Rosen shares that while Massachusetts pays teachers for a minimum number of hours for PD annually, he proposes that we consider an additional (new) approach:  Pay teachers for demonstrated PD outcomes. See the report:  The Variety of Knowledge and Skill-based Pay Design: A Comparison of Seven New Pay Sytems for K-12 Teachers.

“It could be a great leap forward for professional development and instructor and program quality, however; and it may be that adult basic education might offer fewer constraints that K-12 or higher ed in experimenting with, and then implementing such a system if it were found effective,” David concludes.

Topic 5: Incentives for PD

What incentives have you enjoyed or found effective in helping teachers participate and benefit from professional development?

Davie Rosen re-frames the question in order to include independent study and program improvement. "Why do teachers try to improve what they do?" He then shares an example, the Massachusetts adult basic education teacher license. David encourages us to consider what “career paths” for adult educators would look like. States could develop competency-based, incremental rewards systems, or “micro-credentials” that includes increased pay and professional recognition.  Please share your ideas here.

Topic 6: Professional Developers’ PD Needs

Based on our discussions this past month, what are your top PD needs? This could include:

  • Where do we need more focused discussion?
  • What topics interest you or fit with your own PD plan as a professional development provider? (For example, Flipped PD; State Leadership in WIOA; PD around the new GED, CCRS, etc.)
  • Which areas do we need to focus our attention in order to advance the field of adult education professional development?

Tell us here so that you have a voice in the topics we will explore with guests and other subject matter experts.

Join the conversation today by visiting: What’s Happening in State PD, Part II

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Dear Colleagues ~ Thank you to Debra Hargrove, Nancy Dionne, Federico Salas, and Glenda Rose, for participating as guests in Part II of What's Happening in State PD. We have lots of rich information, insights, and resources shared so I encourage you to check out this thread of conversation if you didn't have time to participate last week. 

Please take 5 minutes to reply and tell us one thing you liked most about the discussion and / or would like to see for future discussions.

Looking forward,

Jackie Taylor

Good day or evening! Thanks to those who are providing feedback. This is what I'm hearing thus far. Please feel free to add your feedback in reply, or email me direct at jackie@jataylor.net. Responses will be shared without attribution.

Jackie Taylor

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"One issue (and it came up today on another LINCS discussion) is the use of technology. As a “classroom technology expert” (ha!) in the State of Texas, I find that many of our instructors are severely behind in the use of technology.  A lot of this seems to be because of the part-time nature of our field, with a lot of retired K-12 teachers filling in those part-time spots.  I’ve given dozens of trainings on integrating technology, but the only time I’ve seen older teachers really embrace it was when it was very step-by-step over the course of several months.  Funding for that kind of project is difficult to come by.I think it would be interesting to hear how other PD folks are dealing with this challenge."

"I wish I would have had more time to pose questions on this form but there is nothing you can do to fix that. I appreciated the part on flip training. The one comment I would make is that the discussions seem to start a the mid experience level. In my mind it is the people with the least amount of experience that are more likely to find, make, time to seek out these kinds of opportunities I now that we all have a tendency to want to push the training forward and forget how long we have been doing what we do. But we must remember the people who are just joining us on our journey and loop back to the basics. Thanks for the opportunity to give my two cents worth."

"What I like most is that you send us these summaries. I continue to struggle finding LINCS a useful forum because I'm drowning under the repeat postings to multiple discussions and don't have time to find the relevant messages. So I appreciate the old-fashioned email summaries and wish there were an easier way to participate. Thank you!"