As an educator for over 27 years, I have participated in my share of required professional Learning (PL). Some of the sessions/workshops/offerings have been AMAZING while others have been ho-hum at best. My colleagues and I have spent many hours commiserating about dreadful PL we were required to attend and celebrating when we learned that the conference(s) we requested had been approved.
Once I became a leader, I began to reflect more on why we were so excited to go to a conference that required a ton of preparation, travel, and time away from our families but dreaded when PL was easy to attend and co-located. Could we recreate the excitement about going to a conference with our own offerings?
After talking with colleagues, I began to understand the reason we enjoyed going to conferences boiled down to these things:
We were able to select the conference AND the session(s) we attended
We had opportunity to meet with others during unstructured time
We were treated as professionals
Inspiring speakers and presentations on topics that were relevant to our specific learning needs
We returned excited and enthusiastic and ready to try new things
I then had to unpack why we dreaded the local PL offerings:
It was frequently one-size-fits-all
The focus was frequently training, not development or learning
We had no choice in attending or how we participated
There was no built-in unstructured time
We frequently left feeling bogged down and overwhelmed
Now that we were armed with good information, my team and I had to make it actionable. As we embarked on creating the plan for the following year, we took all of the above into consideration and came up with some guiding principles. What follows is our attempt to codify and share what we learned.
Pre-planning – Prior to planning for the next year, my team sent out a survey to all stakeholders and asked for feedback. We wanted to understand what was working, what they wanted more of, what they wanted less of, topics they were interested in, and their goals for PL sessions.
It takes a committee – As leaders, we frequently felt it was our responsibility to plan everything. When it comes to a year-long PL plan, however, it is better to create a committee of enthusiastic people, representing all stakeholder voices, to assist in planning and implementation. As leaders, our role is to support the team by providing a clear vision, validating the process, providing resources, and ensuring the offerings align with goals and requirements.
Variety – One of the great things about a well-designed conference is the variety of options. In many cases, there are interest/affinity tracks and within the tracks are different formats. Some people actually prefer a 'sit-n-git' while others prefer a hands-on workshop experience. It’s OK to offer more than one modality for a single topic! In addition to modality, we found if we offered multiple times (before school, during planning, after school) and multiple access points (in person, video conference, hybrid) the more likely people were able to attend.
Unstructured time – I realized, for me, what made a conference so much fun and why I left feeling energized was the time provided to talk with others. In my regular work life, I had little time to sit down and just talk (gossip, vent, make meaning, share, etc.). I also realized that I craved the opportunity to learn from my colleagues. Initially, it felt odd to schedule unstructured time into our regular PL sessions. I worried that participants would feel like we had not planned anything for them and become resentful. The opposite turned out to be true. Providing opportunities to engage with others in a less structured way was exactly what they had been missing. When we offered that time, we were explicit that this was something they had requested and we were honoring their wishes. By creating a lens through which to view the unstructured time, we were able to minimize concerns.
Trust – It is important to have trust in people and to honor their expertise. We realized there was no need to go outside our district to find great presenters; we already had people who were knowledgeable in the topics we needed. I had to learn to allow the committee to make decisions about presenters while I served as a sounding board. Not every meeting went perfectly, but having our stakeholders take ownership of their learning was powerful. It created understanding, buy-in, and trust. They felt heard, and that was more important than having total control.
Bring in a rock star, occasionally – From time to time, however, it is important to bring in a leader in the field the staff is excited to learn from. Due to costs, this may only be once a year or less, but it is worth it if you can find the money. Solicit ideas from the group and see if anyone has a connection to the speaker. Sometimes you can get a nationally recognized expert for less if they live close or they have a connection with the team.
Frequent, real-time feedback – Many people reported they felt previous iterations of PL were something that was done to them as opposed to being done for them. One of the ways we combated this was by providing many avenues for people to express themselves. We also offered a variety of ways to gather feedback including surveys, focus groups, informal discussions, and one-on-ones. To demonstrate we valued their input, after each session/survey, we sent out a recap that included all feedback to create transparency. We also included how the feedback was used. For example, if a desire for more time with a topic was indicated, we noted that and then added another opportunity to our calendar. Sharing feedback is a good first step, but showing how it directly impacted the plan was meaningful.
Actionable – The experience of leaving a conference tired but energized was something that was ubiquitous among team members. How could we get that same energy after leaving our PL sessions? We realized that previous PL often stayed in training mode (we are teaching you this because it is the new device/platform/mandate) or remained in the ether (the land of theory, thoughts, and vision with no practical next steps). We also realized the maker concept of “make-n-take” was a good format for us. We ensured for every PL session there was a practical component that participants could take with them and use immediately. In some cases, this proved a challenge to the planning team. When we were at a loss, we sent out a request for support/ideas from the larger group. Inevitably, someone had a great idea they were excited to share. In honoring the innate wisdom of people and trusting them with their own learning, we were able to create energy and excitement.
When I reflect on that year, I realize there were a lot of things that went well and I felt like we created opportunities that were impactful. The feedback we received was both positive and also filled with suggestions and great thinking for the next year. Our PL was maybe not as exciting as traveling to an exotic location but, overall, it felt like offerings were more personalized, and consequently, our stakeholders left energized and excited.
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