CraftED Community, we are so lucky to have progressive educator  Diana Sanchez share her thoughts on the PD Revolution with us! Read on for our interview on what’s causing this unrest and what is working in pockets across our country like Urban Discovery Academy in Downtown San Diego.

 

What do you believe is causing unrest amongst educators related to PD offerings?

From a teacher perspective, I think what causes so much unrest in regards to PD is that often times they are simply placed into a session. Teachers have very little say in the professional development which becomes “training” done to them. This often leads to a lack of follow through because they have disengaged from the session since choice wasn’t involved. On the other hand, choice comes with complexity as it can be completely overwhelming to select from a large course offerings. I have had the luxury of attending several conferences outside of my role as a classroom teacher. Every single time, I saw teachers completely lost, trying to figure out which session to attend. Many of them resorted to sessions that gave freebies versus attending sessions that met their personal growth needs.

 

What best practices have you seen in the realm of meaningful PD opportunities?

When I have seen meaningful PD opportunities it has been within the context for  the teacher. For example, as a grade 9 English teacher, I wanted to see what this looked like in my context, in my classroom within my curriculum focus. Often times, teachers are placed in trainings that speak generally towards the program without it being put into place of their teaching; what does it look like in a classroom setting; how would teachers and students engage with the program, versus receiving an overview. In a recent professional development that my staff engaged in, we went to a local non-profit to play with a new block system that integrates robotics. This STEAM program did not simply show us videos of students engaging with the tools but they had our teachers go through all the processes students would encounter. This allowed teachers to understand the proper steps and potential challenges students could face. This experience allowed teachers to share with one another what this would look like in the classroom and connect learning outcomes that could connect to robotic experience.

 

What advice do you have for teachers and/or school leaders, as it relates to developing deeper learning experiences for adults?

 This might mean that at times it is beyond the capacity of the leader, however, if you know your staff you can tap into the strengths of others teachers to lead learning experiences. Network is another avenue to pursue, we need to move away from the competitive nature amongst schools and instead build opportunities to collaborate with other schools to lean on. Seeing practices live is critical especially when teachers are new to an approach.

 

About the author:

Diana Cornejo-Sanchez has over 12 years of experience as a teacher and mentor to teachers.  Diana was a founding teacher at High Tech High Media Arts when it first opened in 2005, where she worked for over ten years and honed her expertise in project-based learning. As a teacher leader for High Tech High schools, Diana consulted globally with educators to create equitable and engaging learning opportunities for students.

Prior to joining the Urban Discovery Academy community, Diana worked as the Assistant Director of the Leadership and Professional Learning Team for the Jacob’s Institute of Innovations in Learning at the University of San Diego.  In this role, she worked alongside superintendents and their executive cabinet to develop systems to support and sustain district-wide initiatives for school districts. Additionally, she supported the districts in designing the optimal learning environment for teaching and learning.