Leading Meaningful and Engaging Virtual PD

As we prepare for Back to School PD meaningful and engaging learning for adults will be just as important as it is for children. To help instructional leaders plan for meetings that model the type of learning we hope to see students participating in this fall, I have collected a few of my favorite resources to share.

Resource 1: A model virtual meeting agenda

We know that there is a difference between training and learning, but what does it look like to create an agenda that facilitates learning for adults? Here is a one hour agenda that I have been sharing with Instructional leaders looking to explore engaging online learning, in particular PBL-lite:

1. Pre-work with this BINGO grid I made.
2. Collect Knows/Need to Knows (K/NTKs)in a google doc table, related to facilitating engaging online learning, and/or PBL-lite 
3. Have teachers do a resource review including any of the following links. You may even consider assigning different grade levels or teachers to different categories or chapters of these resources:
   • This google doc filled with virtual learning resources that I have been collecting since March.
   • The new e-book for Keep it Real with PBL that provides adaptation to PBL-lite in virtual learning 
   • A social media audit using the hashtag #virtuallearning or #newtovirtual
4. Facilitate a  virtual discussion protocol to process what was viewed and current thinking on the topic. Need a protocol?  Innovator’s Compass is my new fav! Too many teachers to use a discussion protocol? Consider using Padlet- here is my favorite Visible Thinking Routine to use for PD.  
5. Create a collective Padlet with resources for your staff to come back to this school year. Here is a model I did with a group recently. 
6. Come back to the K/NTKs. What can your participants move from what they needed to know, to now what they know? What can they add as a new “Need to Know” ? Use the results for upcoming PD topics or virtual PLCs throughout the year. 

Resource 2: Curated Links for Leaders Leading Virtual Learning

Here are my top resources that I have been carefully reading and collecting for school leaders:

• Reopening schools in the fall, webinar 
• A framework for hybrid learning 
• SEL for leaders: The toll of the Pandemic on school leaders 
• The ONE thing to build relationships with teachers this fall 
• Pandemic Planning toll on principals 
• A scheduling map for reopening schools this fall 
• Leading Adult Learning 
• Articles from ASCD for school leaders 
• Custom support to help schools
• For school leaders transitioning to e-learning
• The COVID slide study 
• Why some kids are thriving in distance learning

Resource 3: Curated Links for Virtual Professional Learning

And here are my top resources that I have been carefully reading,  collecting and creating on virtual professional learning best practices:

• 5 Tips for leading PD virtually: synchronous meetings 
• Best practices for virtual meetings 
• Workbooks for project planning and modifications for e-learning
• FIVE PBL e-courses available for training teachers 
• Reading material on PBL 
• Virtual project coaching
• PBL Book Club 
• Training vs learning explained