Professional Learning, most of its garbage, what should we do?

 

1. On definitions

Professional learning is itself a term that engenders a shift in thinking, previously referred to as professional development. It now comes to be limited to learning about teaching, but development can take many forms and is the most important way to view these opportunities. If you spend a week caving during your holidays, you will have developed yourself, if you’ve read widely, or binged TV shows or movies, or even indeed if you’ve spent time playing video games, or browsing social media - each of these things have developed you. As a person, as a teacher, and as a professional. A superb teachers with flawless content knowledge and pedagogy, with no outside life experience or other interests is unlikely to be effective. Because teaching is interacting with young people, or indeed people of all ages, and for that task, being a part of the world is of the utmost importance. So always view professional learning as personal and professional development, for to do otherwise strips life of much of its fun.

 

2.     The way the world should be

 

Professional learning has consistently not been shown to improve student outcomes in any clear and traceable manner. For this reason most view it as ineffective. Taking a broader lens, including the definitions outlined above, I feel it is crucially important that professional learning take a broader view. I also support the idea that you should always be willing to defend your own views on, and approach to, learning. Teaching is an endless commitment to learning, and this can take many forms. We as a profession need to be able to stand up and state, we learn, as individuals in different ways, at different times and for a range of different purposes. We also have the right to learn disconnected from, and without the need to directly reference or improve our students as a result of each of these opportunities.

 

Professional learning that works is:

Ongoing

Embedded in situ, or collaborative across boundaries

Closely aligned to school goals

Involves support and continuing engagements

Is free, or cheap, allowing many to participate

 

 

 

3.     The way to make the best of what you have

 

In my experience professional learning is made up of two parts, the social element and the knowledge element. We tend to focus far too much on the latter with the former being left to rot and die off.

 

For many of us, the only way to bridge the social gap is through joining the learning experience as a speaker. Taking the time to prepare a presentation of your own, meeting with other speakers and building the social ties from there.

 

The idea of milling about in the coffee line, or extending handshakes and business cards to other teachers at a conference isn’t something that’s typical for teacher gatherings. Though if you’re the type to strike up conversations of this type, then you’re in the minority, go you!

 

The idea of speaking at conferences is perhaps confronting for many, but the steps to getting there are difficult, though important professionally. Perhaps the easiest first step is to create an online profile on the platform of your choosing. Find like-minded, and otherwise, teachers and educators and build your connections there. This is a key step to even finding out what professional learning is available, with the next step being attending, and then finally speaking at these events.

 

Professional learning is always what you, and we, make of it. Sadly, most of its a bit dodgy, perhaps together we can change that?

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