This video is intended for the campus leadership team and professional development committee at Round Rock High School (RRHS). The message in this video is about changes that should be made to make professional development at RRHS more effective. While our campus has made some positive changes in recent years, such as involving teacher presenters and enabling teachers to choose workshops during breakouts, there are still elements of ineffective professional learning that exist. This is evident by the persisting negative attitude of campus staff towards professional learning. Some quotes included in the presentations are based on the sentiments shared by campus staff. These feelings are not unique to our campus as evident in The Mirage report published by TNTP (2015). In order to improve student outcomes, especially for our special populations, we must make professional learning more effective. Effective professional learning enables more effective classrooms.

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What needs to change?

     To structure the proposal for changing professional learning, I identified three main areas for improvement, and recommendations for each of them, at our campus. These included making development activities relevant, long-term, and engaging for teachers. These three ideas are rooted in the 5 Principles of Effective Professional Development determined by Gulamhussein (2013). I restructured these principles to support the three solutions for improving professional learning. Gulamhussein’s first two principles connect to the need to change stand-alone workshops into long-term initiatives. The long-term nature recommended in my recommendations includes supporting teachers through the implementation phase of initiatives. The third and fourth principles relate to engaging teachers when presenting them with new ideas. Lastly, the fifth principle is about making professional learning relevant by being specific to the discipline of teachers (Gulamhussein, 2013). 

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How does my plan implement the five principles of effective PL?

1. Duration

     One of the biggest differences between this PL plan and the current RRHS practice is the long-term nature of the plan to include an implementation support phase. Initial learning will occur during the 5 of in-service days at the beginning of the school year. The duration of my PL plan is at minimum one semester with the option to extend based on the needs of teachers at our campus. Currently, the implementation support structure is planned for only the first semester with the option to extend into the second semester based on campus needs

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2. Ongoing Support

     The structure of this PL is divided into two phases: initial learning and implementation support. The second phase will be led by the department chairs and supervising assistant principals. Time is one of the most difficult resources to allocate to professional learning (TNTP, 2015). To maximize the use of existing resources and ensure discipline relevance, follow-up support meetings will occur at the monthly department meetings on PL days. Round Rock ISD has planned for one PL day each month of the fall semester for 2023-24 (Round Rock ISD, 2023). This calendar ensures there are four follow-up meetings during the fall semester.

     At the monthly department meeting, 30 minutes minimum will be allotted to implementation support for EB strategies. These meetings usually address results from district common assessments (DCAs) to track student progress. The data from DCAs can help teachers track the performance of EB students to determine if strategies are effective. Additionally, department leaders will be prescribed 5 questions to guide their discussion to identify the challenges, needs, and successes of teachers in their department in relation to supporting EB students. These questions include the invitation to collaborate in the creation of solutions to the challenges faced within the department. A call for volunteers to be observed during learning walks will also be issued during the meeting. The department leaders will submit a summary of their meeting minutes to the administration. The EB department chair, assistant principal, and I will review the meeting minutes to identify possible resources and additional professional learning that can support staff in the implementation of ideas.    

     Additional time can be allotted towards implementation support during the weekly professional learning community (PLC) meeting held by instructional teams. During this meeting, teachers on shared instructional teams can share the challenges they face and strategies that are successful with peers who teach the same content. The highlights of these conversations can be forwarded to the administration. Currently, it is standard practice for PLCs to submit weekly meeting minutes to their department chairs. 

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3. Active/Engaging

     The activities during the initial learning phase are designed for teachers to create materials that will be used in their classroom during the first unit of the year. Rather than simply passively watching a presenter model the strategies, teachers will actively interact with the learned strategies. Here are some examples from the course:

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• In Module 1, learners will use the proficiency level descriptions to identify the levels of EBs described in scenarios. 

• In Module 2, learners will identify activities in their classroom that align with the ELPS. 

• In Module 3, learners will identify key vocabulary terms in their first unit and create models of differentiated vocabulary activities.

• In Module 4, learners will create language objectives and a differentiated lesson plan for their first unit.

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4. Modeling

     Modeling strategies allow teachers to visualize how the learned strategies can be successfully implemented into instruction (Goodwin, 2015). To help teachers to be successful during the creation of these materials, examples are provided. Examples of language objectives are given for all four core discipline areas. Models of the vocabulary strategies taught in Module 3 are given using the term “cognates” from the course to help learners see how they benefit students when working with unfamiliar terms. In addition to the strategies and resources created by teachers, more strategies will be modeled for them. For example, the introduction activity of FlipGrid models a way for teachers to get students to speak in the classroom. Speaking is one of the four elements of language identified in the ELPS (Texas Administrative Code §74.4, 2007). 

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5. Relevant to Teachers

     Materials within the PL are designed to be relevant to all secondary general education teachers at Round Rock HS. Examples and resources of learning objectives and cognates are provided for each core subject area. During the learning activities, teachers are told to choose a lesson from their first unit so they can create the materials that will be used within the next month. By the end of the initial learning period, teachers will have identified ELPS-aligned activities, language objectives, tiered vocabulary with models, culture-building activities, and a fully developed lesson plan to implement during the instruction of their first unit. Teachers will feel more inclined to participate in the PL because it is directly tied to the planning of their instruction (Gulamhussein, 2013). 

     During the implementation support phase, teachers will be supported within their departments and professional learning teams. During department and PLC meetings, teachers will have the opportunity to share challenges and successes. The prescribed questions for these discussions encourage teachers to work together to develop solutions for challenges their colleagues are facing. By having these discussions with peers in the same discipline teachers will be able to collaborate with those who better understand the content area needs.