EARCOS Special Report

EARCOS Special Report >> Aligning Professional Development for Collaboration: Results of EARCOS Survey

As we noted in the most recent, Winter 2016 ET it is most important for EARCOS to understand the needs of our member schools. Twenty-nine of our members accepted our invitation to share particularly successful professional development initiatives in their schools and relevant processes that enhanced successful implementation. We extend our grateful appreciation to them for their responses and herein provide a short summary of what we learned.

Some will remember the Special Feature articles published in Winter 2016 ET, “EARCOS: Leading through Learning from its Members” and “Professional Development: Content, Context, and Process”. At that time, it was noted that successful initiatives leading to increased student learning results are characterized by mature school contexts, deliberate and planned professional development processes, ample resource capacity, and rich collaborative structures. Examples of these contexts and processes include, mature professional learning communities, planned time for peer observations/feedback, provisions for data dialogues to analyze student work/achievement, empowered action research groups, designated instructional coaches, and induction and orientation mentors. When such critical process elements are present and adequate resources are available, a chosen initiative has an elevated likelihood of success.

Armed with this understanding, we extended an invitation via a short survey to members regarding initiatives in their schools in which they are currently engaged, planning to launch or successfully implementing. Through the survey, we now have an increased knowledge of regional professional development pursuits that could allow us to serve as a collaboration clearinghouse. Also, the results help us understand the degree to which contexts and processes are in place to support particularly successful professional development initiatives identified by EARCOS members schools.

The survey identified the following successful initiatives. (In most cases, the initiatives were abbreviated.)

1. Creating observation and reflective discussion opportunities for teacher growth . . . 2. Expanding and developing mathematical curricular thinking . . . 3. Enhancements and refinements to teacher appraisal system . . . 4. Standards based assessment and reporting . . . 5. Developing student problem solving skills using real problems . . . 6. Maths professional learning community. 7. Coherent vertical articulation. 8. Structured word inquiry. 9. Play-based learning. 10. Regular curriculum review process. 11. Increasing teacher capacity to implement innovation across the school. 12. Project-based learning. 13. ELL training for all teachers . . . 14. Project Voice spoken word poets . . . 15. Curriculum alignment . . . 16. Intern program. 17. Next Generation Science Standards. 18. Implementing Daily 5 Programmme . . . 19. Changed to new curriculum mapping system and rewrote all curriculum . . . 20. Piloting Google Classrooms . . . 21. Focus Groups for whole school strategic planning . . . 22. Development of Bespoke Middle Leadership training . . . 23. Introduction of Professional Development learning afternoons . . . 24. DRA Reading Assessment and Running Records . . . 25. Focusing on feedback to improve student learning. 26. Using assessments to guide instruction. 27. Implementation of Writers’ Workshop. 28. Data-driven instruction and differentiation . . . 29. Reading and Writing Project workshops – Columbia Teachers College.

As you can see, there were only a few common initiatives among the respondents. But, what was shared among those responding were the availability of “mature professional learning communities”, which was reported to exist in 75% of survey responses. Over half and nearly half, respectively, of school members completing the survey reported that they had “provisions for data dialogues to analyze student work and achievement records” (59%) “planned time for peer observation and follow-on non-evaluative feedback” (48%), and “employed instructional coaches” (48%). The remaining processes were reported to be less available, nonetheless noteworthy. “Empowered action research groups” were reported to be present at a 28% level and “induction and orientation mentors” also present at 28% in member schools completing the survey.

The return rate for our survey represented nearly 20% of our membership and helps us better understand the variety of successful initiative in which our member schools participate. Most importantly, it might provide opportunities for member schools to collaborate. Please let us know, if you see initiatives in which you are currently engaged or planning to launch and wish to be connected with those survey respondents, who have current/recent experience and a willingness to share. We will do our best to connect you. Thanks again to those completing the survey.

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