Excerpt

It's no secret that educators are dissatisfied with professional development (PD), with only 29% expressing high satisfaction with the opportunities offered to them. Educators aren't asking for much—just training that helps them become better teachers so they can help their students succeed in the classroom. However, traditional approaches to PD have employed a one-size-fit model, assuming that all educators have similar goals and needs. Given that the fifty largest school districts in the US spend $8 billion a year on PD programs, it's in their interest to make sure their money is well spent. Until recently, though, that hasn't been the case, with these programs failing to meet expectations and impart the critical skills teachers need.

Educators want training tailored to their individual needs, teaching contexts, and specific challenges. To successfully meet their needs, PD must be flexible, enabling educators to access learning anytime and anywhere. The good news is that PD for educators is improving, with companies like MobileMind leading the way in providing school districts with tools to help them deliver and achieve the best outcomes possible. Innovative solutions like MobileMind's learning hub make it easy for teachers and administrators to integrate learning experiences into their busy day.

The learning hub offers solutions like micro-courses, activity-based learning, and digital badging, all of which keep educators motivated and cater to their individual needs. Improving PD for educators requires more than just adopting new technologies, though. School districts must change the way that they perceive and approach educator training.

In this eBook, we explore the modernization of PD and how innovative learning hubs like MobileMind are helping to shape its future, ensuring that it's continuous, engaging, and most importantly, impactful.

The Changing Face of Professional Development for Educators

If we look back at the history of PD for educators, we’ll find that it was often characterized by a cookie-cutter approach, where teachers periodically attended workshops and seminars. There's no doubt these sessions were useful and informative, but they often didn't reflect the realities of the classroom or take educators' individual needs into account. As school reform gained steam in the mid-1980s, there was an increasing recognition of the need for more effective PD models.

Fast-forward to the present day, when the traditional approach to PD has faced increased scrutiny. One of the main issues is its inability to address the diverse and constantly changing needs of today's educators. Traditional PD often operates on a deficit model, focusing on what teachers are doing wrong rather than building on their strengths. These models often lack follow-up support, leaving teachers without any guidance on effectively implementing new classroom strategies, leading many to question the efficacy of conventional approaches in improving teacher performance.

As a result, we're seeing a shift toward more personalized and digital forms of training, with school districts increasingly recognizing the need for PD for educators to be more relevant, flexible, and accessible. MobileMind is an example of the modern shift in PD, addressing the limitations of traditional approaches by offering school districts a learning hub that enables educators to take micro-courses tailored to their specific needs and interests. This method helps make PD more relevant, and teachers can immediately apply what they've learned in the classroom.

This new approach to PD is also building a culture of continuous learning and growth, where PD isn't something that educators do a few times a year. Instead, PD becomes something they can access whenever they identify a need for it, giving them a choice and voice in their professional learning journey and allowing them to tailor their development to their immediate and specific needs. Online learning hubs like MobileMind enable educators to regularly update their skills and knowledge, encouraging them to stay on top of educational best practices and technological advancements. When school districts embrace these modern solutions, they ensure that educators are well-equipped to meet their students' diverse and complex needs.

Personalization in PD

Personalization is a fundamental aspect of modernizing PD for educators, changing how they learn and grow in their careers. It acknowledges that each teacher and administrator has unique skills, experiences, and learning objectives. When learning is tailored to the individual educator, it directly and positively impacts their engagement, resulting in more effective PD outcomes. In contrast, traditional methods often lead to a lack of engagement and minimal application in the classroom.

For example, micro-courses offer educators bite-sized, focused learning opportunities they can engage in at their own pace, making PD more manageable and less overwhelming than traditional methods. Simultaneously, learning paths give teachers a tailored roadmap based on their specific goals and areas they need to grow. All of this helps them gain a deeper understanding of the material that they're learning so they can apply their new skills and knowledge in the classroom. When educators see that their learning content is relevant and directly applicable to their teaching context, they're more likely to be motivated to invest time in their professional growth.

If we look at the MobileMind learning hub, we can see how personalization works in action. It empowers school districts to create and scale personalized training across the board, giving leaders the tools to craft learning experiences that are suitable for educators at all roles and skill levels. These customization options ensure that training meets the needs of all educators, regardless of their starting point.

Collaborative and Community-Driven Learning

As school districts seek to modernize their PD programs, collaborative and community-driven learning has increasingly become part of the discussion. When used correctly, this approach can be a highly influential component of personal development, leveraging a community's collective knowledge and experiences to foster a more dynamic and enriched learning environment. Instead of being used as a supplement, districts should strive to make this learning method a central part of their PD programs for educators.

Collaborative and community-driven learning works just as you'd expect, with educators sharing resources and best practices to benefit the whole. When educators come together, they bring a wealth of diverse experiences, insights, and teaching strategies. This resource exchange—lesson plans, classroom management techniques, or innovative teaching methods—enriches each educator’s toolkit. Moreover, by sharing this information with each other, everything can be tested and refined through collective wisdom and experience.

When school districts use a community-driven model to leverage educators' knowledge, they change the learning experience. Educators are no longer isolated learners; instead, they become part of a more extensive network where they can contribute and benefit from a shared pool of knowledge. This type of environment encourages them to learn from, support, and inspire each other by creating a space where they can openly discuss challenges, co-create solutions, and celebrate successes together.

Learning hubs like MobileMind embody the collaborative and community-driven ethos. School districts can contribute to and benefit from shared learning resources in MobileMind. If a school district wants to create a course from scratch, it can do that. It can also use or adapt micro-courses developed by others within the MobileMind Community. Districts can even use MobileMind's one-click cloning feature and editing tools to tailor shared content, streamline course creation, and adapt resources to best meet their needs.

Activity-Based Learning and Recognition

Traditional PD for educators was often a passive activity, where teachers received information from instructors or books without actively interacting with the material or using it in real-life scenarios. As school districts move toward modernizing their PD programs, this paradigm has begun to shift, with hands-on, practical learning approaches being increasingly embraced.

This approach, known as activity-based learning (ABL), emphasizes learning through direct experiences and experiential learning activities. Unlike the traditional lecture-based instruction model, ABL focuses on practical tasks, so educators can actively participate in their learning. Problem-solving talks, collaborative projects, or real-world challenges that require educators to apply their knowledge and skills in a concrete manner are all characteristic of this approach. ABL immerses learners in interactive and meaningful activities, enhancing the long-term retention of the information learned.

Along with ABL, digital badging and microcredentials have become essential for modernizing PD for educators and with good reason—after all, who doesn't like to be recognized for their hard work? Digital badges serve as electronic symbols representing competency in a skill or the completion of a learning module. However, they're not just visual tokens for educators to admire in the privacy of their own homes. They have real-world value, and educators can quickly see who has gained competency in a specific skill, motivating them to meet their learning goals.

At the same time, microcredentials, often represented as digital badges, enable school districts to recognize the specific skills and competencies that educators have acquired over time. In the past, educators had to earn an advanced degree or complete a course to receive recognition for their PD efforts. With microcredentials, educators are recognized for achieving their professional goals more often, which can increase motivation and satisfaction with PD courses.

Digital badging and microcredentials also have real-world applications, giving educators a way to demonstrate their mastery of new skills and providing school districts with a way to track and validate the PD of their staff, ensuring that they're current with the latest teaching methodologies and technologies.

MobileMind has integrated activity-based learning, digital badges, and microcredentials into its learning hub, where educators can engage in practical, hands-on learning activities directly applicable to their teaching context. When educators complete a group of related activities, like micro-courses, they're awarded digital badges as proof of their newly acquired skills and knowledge, providing them with clear and verifiable records of their professional growth.

This competency-based approach to learning enables leaders to monitor the progress of educators as they complete activity-based micro-courses so it can quickly be ascertained who has understood the concepts taught during a course and who may be having trouble understanding them. This feedback gives school leaders the means to follow up with those who may be struggling to ensure that everyone progresses and successfully completes these courses.

Integrating Technology in PD — A Hands-On Approach

Technology has an integral role in the modernization of PD for educators. Day after day, we witness how the world is becoming increasingly digital, and teachers who aren't adept at using technology risk falling behind in their teaching methods and professional growth.

A benefit of using a learning hub like MobileMind is that it enables teachers to gain the practical skills needed for success in the digital world. It leverages digital tools to provide technology-based learning experiences that are interactive, engaging, and personalized. For example, educators can access multimedia content, including videos, interactive simulations, and digital workshops, through online learning hubs, which cater to various learning styles and can be used at the educator's convenience without the constraints of time and location.

School districts can integrate technology into their PD programs in various ways, such as online classes and webinars where teachers can learn new skills and stay up to date on the latest educational trends. Social media and online communities can also be used as forums to encourage educators to collaborate, share resources, and engage in professional discussions. While less common, virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) are likely to become more common as ways to modernize PD efforts in the future. VR and AR can be used to simulate classroom environments for training purposes, providing educators with a safe space to test, practice, and refine new techniques.

When it comes to helping school districts integrate technology into their PD for educators, MobileMind's patent-pending guided learning technology stands out. It provides educators with step-by-step instructions and hands-on challenges within the actual tools that they use. For example, if an educator is using their Google Slides account, they will receive guided training directly within that tool, making the training highly relevant and immediately applicable. Guided learning helps accelerate the learning process and ensures that educators are comfortable and proficient with the technology before using it in the classroom.

Measuring the Impact of Modernized PD

When school districts invest in PD for educators, they expect a positive return because PD is only worthwhile if it is effective. Measuring the impact of these programs allows districts to gauge whether they're benefiting educators and make adjustments as necessary. As districts increasingly move toward digital and personalized approaches, the methods for assessing how well these programs are working must change.

Teacher compliance and engagement are two important indicators that a PD program is effective. When teachers feel that PD isn't worthwhile, they'll often disengage. After all, busy educators already have a great deal on their plates—grading papers and exams, lesson planning, and classroom management. An effective program encourages them to put in extra time outside the classroom to improve their skills. When school districts make digital learning hubs part of their PD programs, they can use data analytics to track participation, completion, and engagement rates.

Direct feedback from teachers is also essential for determining the effectiveness of PD programs. Districts can gather this qualitative data in several ways, including surveys, interviews, and focus groups, all of which can be invaluable in providing insight into how relevant and valuable the training is, what impact it has had on teaching practices (if any), and identifying areas for improvement. Continuous improvement is a fundamental component of modernized PD programs and involves regularly reviewing and updating content and methods based on feedback and data analytics. This iterative process helps districts ensure that their PD programs are relevant, engaging, and effective in improving teaching practices.

Data-Driven Decision-Making in PD

School districts need as many data points as possible to make effective decisions regarding their PD programs. That's where analytics and reporting come in, as they go beyond subjective assessments to offer a clear, objective view of the effectiveness of PD programs, all backed by data. Analyzing participation rates, feedback scores, and performance metrics enables leaders to identify successful elements of their PD and areas needing improvement, ensuring their initiatives are effective and aligned with the specific needs of educators and the district's goals.

With this data, leaders can customize future training to better meet educators' needs. For example, if the data shows that educators have a particular interest in digital literacy, future PD sessions can be focused more heavily on that area. Similarly, if certain teaching methods or tools are not resonating with educators, they can be adjusted or replaced in subsequent training. This data-driven approach helps ensure that training is relevant and engaging and directly addresses the areas that educators find most beneficial to their professional growth.

A learning hub like MobileMind has reporting capabilities that facilitate data-driven PD decisions. It simplifies the process for district leaders to report and track professional learning at various levels—district, school, or specific groups. Leaders can monitor and report on multiple metrics, including continuing education hours, compliance reporting, learning progress, badges earned, last access, courses completed, and external PD hours submitted in MobileMind.

This comprehensive reporting allows for a nuanced understanding of how PD is impacting educators. For example, tracking badges earned and courses completed can highlight areas of high engagement and interest, guiding future PD content. Monitoring continuing education hours and learning progress helps ensure compliance and identifies areas where additional support may be needed. These tools give leaders the tools that they need to make informed decisions about PD programs, ensuring that they're effective and meeting educators’ needs.

Implementing Modern PD Solutions

Before a school district begins implementing a modern PD program, its leaders must clearly understand the district's requirements and are committed to overcoming common challenges, all of which require strategic planning. The first step in this process is conducting a thorough needs assessment, which involves defining the district's goals and taking inventory of available resources. Districts should prioritize engaging stakeholders—teachers, administrators, and IT staff—in the decision-making process because their buy-in will determine the program's ultimate success.

People are often resistant to change. Educators are no different, and leaders must be prepared for this as they seek to modernize their district's PD program. Clearly and consistently communicating the benefits of the system can help mitigate resistance. Many people are frustrated with PD. Implementing a new system gives districts the opportunity to explain what'll be different this time around by emphasizing that personalization, micro-courses, and competency-based learning will be at the core of the new system.

In addition to gaining buy-in from educators, districts must address technological challenges, such as ensuring that the necessary infrastructure is in place and that teachers have the skills to use the new technology effectively. Budget constraints can be managed by seeking funding opportunities and prioritizing resources to support the most critical aspects of the program.

Scalability and adaptability are crucial for the long-term success of PD programs. This means choosing solutions that can grow and evolve with the district. Scalable solutions can accommodate increasing numbers of learners and expanding educational needs without significant additional costs or resources. Adaptability involves updating and modifying the PD content and delivery methods to keep pace with changing educational trends and technologies.

Solutions like MobileMind's learning hub make it easy for districts to leverage technology to enhance PD for educators. For example, it has a range of digital tools and resources that can be tailored to a district's specific needs. Its scalability enables districts of all sizes to benefit from its offerings, while its adaptability ensures that the content remains current and relevant.

Looking Ahead: The Future of PD for Educators

Personalization and customization will continue to play a significant role in PD for educators in the future. These programs will be designed with the educator in mind and closely aligned with their individual needs, teaching styles, and career goals. PD will move toward lifelong learning models where it’s an ongoing process instead of a series of isolated lectures and workshops. Competency-based PD will be the norm, with educators progressing through training based on a demonstrated mastery of skills rather than time spent in training.

We expect to see emerging technologies like artificial intelligence, VR, and AR play a more significant role in PD, making learning experiences more immersive and interactive. These technologies will enable educators to practice and refine their skills in simulated environments, making PD more engaging and effective. Moreover, using data analytics and machine learning will provide deeper insights into the effectiveness of the programs, allowing for more targeted and impactful learning experiences.

Educators and districts will need to embrace a mindset of adaptability and lifelong learning to keep pace with changing trends. Staying up to date with the latest educational trends and teaching methodologies will be a critical part of that. Teachers will need to seek out PD opportunities that enhance their current skills and prepare them for future challenges and innovations in education.

PD will continue to evolve as we move into the future, with innovation and technology at its core. A learning hub like MobileMind will have a big role in driving these changes with solutions that are adaptable, personalized, and aligned with the future needs of educators and the education sector at large.

There is no other modern professional development solution consolidating all training efforts while providing a learning hub that streamlines and integrates remote and in-person professional learning for schools. Are you ready to level up your district's professional learning with MobileMind? Schedule a professional learning consultation here.