Blog#8: Teacher Learning...in Atlantic City?

Upon reflecting upon my education, I now remember fondly not the most popular mathematics teachers (whose nicknames were typically something along the lines of “Easy A (fill-in-the-blank)” or were just plain cool), but those who were structured, disciplined, and truly mastered the art of teaching. The teachers I now recall most favorably are those who challenged me and those from whom I learned the most mathematical content. These teachers could easily be identified by gauging my progress early in the following school year when we reviewed the previous year’s concepts and I felt confident and not especially in need of the review.

It is amazing how maturity influenced my assessment of pedagogical practice. After reading Bransford, Brown, and Cocking’s “Teacher Learning” chapter, I began to contemplate all of the factors that affect teaching practices such as self-reflective abilities, prior experiences, professional development opportunities, and post-graduate education. It is difficult to compare teachers, as no two teachers I have had are all that similar in practice or demeanor. These differences exist as a result of many factors, including past educational experiences, teacher preparation programs, frequency of incorporation of self-inquiry and reflection exercises to improve practice, quality and quantity of profession development opportunities, and continuing education. These aspects result in an educators’ melting pot. Experience forms the person and likewise influences teaching methodologies.

While several of these factors are inherent, the one area in which schools are directly responsible is professional development. New teachers in my district are required to attend 60 hours of professional development seminars and courses during their first year (6 additional hours required in the event of each snow day). After the first year, the number of hours required for professional staff is 18. There exists a comprehensive (and impressive) professional development program within the district that offers many interesting opportunities for growth. However, loopholes in executing the professional development plan often cause the cancellation of these quality programs due to lack of interest. Most teachers I know “earn” their hours through summer team meetings (in Atlantic City or at the local pub) or other non-professional development events such as website maintenance and compiling team clothing orders, practices which have been approved year-after-year by building administrators ever since I joined the district five years ago. Although these activities build rapport and organizational skills, in my opinion, they do not enhance teaching and should not count towards the teacher’s mandated hours.

Professional development is an area in which every educator in the melting pot may be inspired to grow, or in the least, encouraged to reflect upon current practices which promotes self-improvement. If professional development trends remain similar, my hypothesis is that the popular “Easy-A” teachers back in the day may have frequented the same establishments as some of my colleagues for their so-called professional development. I cannot help but wonder how many of the teachers who positively impacted my life actively participated in professional development opportunities during their career.


References
Bransford, J.D., Brown, A. L., & Cocking, R.R., Eds. (1999). How people learn: Brain, mind, experience and school. Washington, D.C.: National Academy Press.