Professional Development to help teachers reach a "totally different skill set"

For teachers to gain the “totally different skill set,” there needs to be a support system available for teachers.  With anything new, fear of failure is probably the biggest hurdle to overcome.  To enable teachers to try something different, they need to feel that there is someone to help them along the way.  Teachers and students need access to the tools and professionals that can help guide them to success.  So the professional development needed would need to be a playground with appropriate support so teachers can play and have some think time to really start to feel comfortable.  The PD needs to be ongoing and accessible online so teachers can get real time answers.  Also teachers will learn as they go and this a good model for students to see real world learning.   

Personalized Learning Strand Topics - Do Not Delete

Identity 

• Who are we?
• Where are we on PLPs and proficiency based education?
• What do we need to know?
• Who are our partners to assist us designing and implementing this plan?
• What do we need from them?

Goals

• As you develop goals for the strand, and your vision for personal learning plans and curriculum, consider these standards. These support the development of student-centered educational experiences that align with the state of Vermont's move towards personalized and proficiency based learning. 

Growth and Reflection

• What are goals and action steps in learning about and designing a PLP implementation plan?
• What changes do we need to make during our work at the Institute?
• How can we design an Action Research Project that will allow us to gather information to modify and revise our plan during the fall and beyond?

Transformation 

• What does the plan look like in phase two (after we have implemented the PLP process/cycle one full round)?
• What is that time frame for each cycle (each quarter, semester, year)?
• What does it look like for teachers and students in year two who have gone through the process already (is this a 1 year implementation plan (grade 7) , a two year plan (grades 7 & 8), a three year plan (grades 6-8) or a 4 year plan (grades 5-8)?
• How do proficiency based learning and assessments become a part of the PLP process?
• How do middle grades PLPs prepare students for learning opportunities (in and out of school) at the high school level?