Research-Based Professional Development: Teachers Engaged in Professional Learning Communities

Excerpt

One shot, workshop-based professional development is passé. It is common knowledge that teachers seldom apply what they learn during workshops in their classrooms. In spite of this fact, school districts and grant agencies pour millions of dollars into science teacher professional development programs that are primarily workshop based. Think of all the Eisenhower (currently Title IIa), National Science Foundation, and other funded projects that utilized a summer or after-school workshop model for science teachers. Teachers dutifully attended, received their stipends, and returned to the classroom with little support and scant application. The impact on students was hardly worth the millions of dollars. Many readers of this journal have facilitated or participated in such programs (I confess my guilt). Yet, workshop models of professional development remain prevalent because they are efficient. …