Book Club
 |
| Image courtesy of edson&area |
In my local school district, SD67, there is an ongoing Aboriginal Book Club that any member of faculty can participate in. The purpose of the book club is to expose people to excellent Aboriginal Literature for their own personal interest or for help integrating it into classroom teachings. Each month a new book is decided upon and participants meet informally at a local cafe and discuss the book - sound familiar? It is run like most other book clubs that you've either heard of or participated in. The book club platform translates quite well to professional development reads as well.
Expert Evenings
 |
| Image courtesy of blog |
As a lot of our professional development now centers around new tools and technology, book club could easily be adapted to Expert Evenings; this gives staff members or other experts in the community a chance to come in and share their knowledge surrounding a particular tool, method or practice. This could be organized so that one person is the expert and teaches those around them, or as a group a new tool/ skill is picked and worked with for the month before reporting back about their experiences. This gives people a low-risk chance to explore new tools and ideas with those around them.
Professional Blog/ Website
 |
| Image courtesy of CrenshawCommunications |
Sometimes we can't attend a book club or an expert evening so it becomes very important to keep a reference of all of this fantastic learning in an accessible spot! The Teacher-Librarian's blog/ website could be a good option for collating this wealth of information for others to refer to and peruse at their leisure. An excellent example of a blog that chronicles innovation in learning is the Through a Different Lens blog from SD67. Here, teachers from the district (and other districts) post sample lessons and explorations of how they are exploring learning from a different angle, or lens. The blog has become so popular and well utilized that it has been organized into various sub-headings such as Secondary, Math, or Place Conscious. Many of those in the district wouldn't be aware of the fantastic ideas going on around them if it weren't for this blog. This goes back to Will Richardson's idea of how important it is to "share everything" and the simple notion of blogging our practice can help elevate the teaching profession (Richardson, 2012, p.32).
These are just a few ideas that I have come across or heard about that will assist with on-going professional development. I'm sure there are so many more....what are your favourite ways to share your Pro-D?
I want to end with the fine words of Sir Ken Robinson...while not discussing professional development specifically he is addressing the need for innovation in education, and quite simply, there is no innovation without sharing our learning.
Resources
Richardson, W. (2012). Why School?: How Education Must Change When Information and Learning are Everywhere. [ebook] TED Publishing.
Robinson, K. (2010). Bring on the learning revolution! [video file] Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r9LelXa3U_I
Through a Different Lens (2018). [Blogpost] Retrieved from http://differentlensblog.blogspot.com/
I love your idea for Expert Evenings! I was thinking of a similar thing but with lunch. We have tried to get a book club for for good pro d books off the ground, but for some reason, we just can't make it work. You have inspired me to try again!
ReplyDeleteHey Ashley, Loved your examples of sharing and exchanging knowledge with our colleagues. The blog you pointed out sure looks good and I can see the extensive classification and wealth of information buried in it.
ReplyDeleteReminds me of the power of collective wisdom! Thanks for sharing.
I also loved the idea of Expert Evenings! There is so much expertise that exists beyond our traditional colleague group, and bringing in a parent or local expert is such a good opportunity for building community.
ReplyDeleteThe sd 67 blog is also a valuable resource. Thank you for sharing! In our district, documents and lesson ideas are organized in a digital notebook. This is a great reference as well, but the blog platform encourages contributions from multiple sources rather than relying on an “official” opinion or methodology. Another great reminder that we are all experts!
Expert evenings are a great idea but evenings are a coveted time spot in most people's lives. Perhaps it could be accessible via Hangouts or Skype? I work with an organization that was facing a drastic decline in attendance to their ProD, they started doing it via webconferencing and connected everyone in all of BC. You phone in for listening and talking, and you are also connected via the computer where you can type questions. I never went to one of the ProDs before, now I attend almost every single one while my kids are safely asleep in their beds. I have tried getting a book club off the ground MANY times, but my friends always say that it's another responsibility for them to do...maybe something low-key where you can just coming a listen? In my Practicum I joined a Primary program study group...it was right after school and we just brought ideas to share.
ReplyDeleteYou have discussed several ideas for supporting teacher professional learning. I like how you connected to the Will Richardson book and to other resources. Through A Different Lens looks amazing; what a great model and resource. I wonder, though, about the ICT aspect and whether a book club would engage as much as perhaps seeing the technology in action, etc.
ReplyDelete