What are the current trends and imperatives in teacher professional learning? In August 2011 ACEE reviewed the literature and consulted with experts in the field; below we outline what we heard, and consider the implications for environmental education agencies.
Skip to ‘Implications for environmental education agencies’
What we have heard…
Given current realities in 2011-12, what are the main ways in which teachers will learn during the 2011-12 school year? ATA representatives have told us that:
- Professional development is mostly self-directed based on teacher personal needs
- On-line resources will be a major component in teacher professional learning due to the reduction of funding for face-to-face workshops and professional development
- In order to be utilized to their fullest potential these resources must be:
- Easy to find (Encana Environmental Education Resource Centre)
- Must clearly connect with Alberta’s curricular outcomes. These connections must be organized by grade and subject so that they are readily identified
- Partnering with vehicles such as conventions (see below) will provide opportunities for face-to-face workshops and presentations
- It will be a tough year for professional development; the more variety and multi-pronged the approach, the better the results!
- In order to be utilized to their fullest potential these resources must be:
Stakeholders told us at the 2010 “Creating a Legacy Together” symposium that in order to develop environmentally literate students, teachers need support in order to:
- Understand that environmental education is an excellent way to deliver on all Alberta curricula
- Motivate, empower, and engage students in meaningful environmental projects that help make a difference
- Create powerful and positive outdoor learning experiences
- Challenge students with higher order thinking problems related to the environment
- Create authentic inquiry-based learning experiences
- Teach the curriculum through cross-curricular models that use the environment as an integrating context for teaching and learning, and as a way of connecting learning to government, community groups, resources and issues
What can schools and school boards do? Symposium attendees stated that schools and school boards must:
- Identify environmental education as a priority, and environmental citizenship as an essential learning outcome
- Reduce barriers to environmental education and citizenship
- Encourage both outdoor education and locally developed environmental education courses
- Create a culture of environmental citizenship throughout the school
- Support relevant teacher professional learning
- Allow teachers time to plan and develop partnerships and relationships between school and community to strengthen environmental initiatives
What do the teachers themselves say? The 2011 ACEE needs assessment of almost 100 teachers told us that teachers need:
- Resources that integrate into curriculum
- Strategies to create a culture of stewardship in the school
- Preference for full day face to face workshops
- Reduce barriers to professional development opportunities such as lack of time and funds
- Make it easier to find resources
- Provide environmental education expertise from organizations or other teachers
- Provide opportunities to collaborate with other teachers and experts
The Alberta Teachers Association, schools, locals, and school districts say that excellent professional learning must:
- Build on teachers’ established knowledge, skills and attributes
- Enhance the implementation of curriculum, instructional strategies and assessment techniques
- Based on a shared vision and clearly stated objectives
- Focus on improving teaching and supporting learning
- Be grounded in research into effective teaching and learning
- Be interactive, continuous, reflective and part of the day-to-day work life of teachers
- Engage teachers in a collegial and collaborative dialogue
- Require ongoing monitoring and refinement
- Encourage teachers to explore, take risks and think critically
- Consider the needs of the teacher, school and jurisdiction
- Respect the professional judgment of teachers in determining their needs
- Be supported by adequate resources, including time, funding and infrastructure
- Be supported by networks of professional development committees, specialist councils, teachers’ conventions, school jurisdictions, regional consortia, universities and other stakeholders
Implications for Environmental Education agencies…
An important note: when it comes to working with teachers – think big, and act bold! Although the following can be used to refine your approach to teachers, remember – teachers love expert content, and the passion and excitement we can bring as professionals. So do what you can to incorporate the approaches suggested below, but don’t be intimidated by the details – remember, if you don’t get it exactly right, teachers are pretty good at adapting what they hear from you…
That said…
Professional development opportunities for teachers should…
- Align with curriculum and provide methods of assessment
- Be easy to find/sort through. If you haven’t already done so, add information about your professional learning opportunities to our searchable database
- Help create a culture of stewardship in the school
- Must address teachers realities, such as lack of funds and relief time for teachers
- Be designed in collaboration with individual schools and districts, if possible
- Be sustained with on-going support and dialogue between teachers
- Involve active learning experiences for participants
- Provide teachers with opportunities to adapt the practices to their unique classroom situations
- Be delivered in a variety of ways that allows teachers autonomy and caters to a variety of learning styles
Suggested Vehicles for Professional Learning in Environmental Education
The following are listed in order of decreasing importance.
- On-line Resources, Webinars, Video Conferences, Video Productions
- Will play a major role in teacher professional development in the 2011/2012 school year
- Teachers self select these resources so promoting them is key for teachers ability to locate and utilize them
- Must clearly align with curricular outcomes; cross-curricular resources are highly desired
- Planning is often done on the teacher’s own time, so resources must be brief, ready to use, and easily accessible
- The more variety the better!
- Teachers’ Conventions
- Conventions are an excellent way to reach large volumes of teachers at one time
- These will most likely be the best vehicle for face-to-face workshops for the 2011/2012 school year
- Check out Dr. Noels’ Top Ten Tips to get your proposal accepted.
- There are 10 convention associations in Alberta and the events that take place in February and March
- Proposals for workshops are accepted between April and the fall of each year. Deadlines vary.
- Booths are also available for both profit and non-profit organizations to promote their resources
- Conferences – District, Regional, and Specialists
- Global, Environmental & Outdoor Education Council, Science Council and the Social Studies Council are the best fits for Environmental Education
- Each council holds its own conference every year
- Presentations and workshops could be provided at these venues
- Workshops presented via consortia
- Liaise with the various Alberta Regional Professional Development Consortia’s Each consortia has a different director, so it is important to make contact with each to see how the programs fit with current initiatives
- PLC’s – Professional Learning Communities
- PLC’s may create great opportunities for organizations to be involved, they are only placed lower on this list because every district, and sometimes every school, is different in their approach to PLC’s and due to this it may be a more intensive venture to become involved
- PLC’s are often composed of grade or subject groupings, so distributing resources arranged by grade or subject groupings is best
- Teachers meet regularly during the school year, for two to three hours at a time; so resources will be best used if broken up into smaller segments that can be explored during short time frames
- Contact your local school district to discuss how you can be involved in PLC’s
- AISI – Alberta Initiative for School Improvement
- Currently in cycle 4, individual school and district project descriptions can be found here
- Due to budget constraints, AISI funding has been downsized by 50% over the last year; these budget restrictions will decreased professional development funding in the province by 50% for the 2011/2012 school year
References
Alberta Teachers’ Association (ATA). A Framework for Professional Development in Alberta. www.teachers.ab.ca/NR/rdonlyres/D39070F9-34AB-42D0-ABA4-67916EA5DF14/0/PD_ Framework.pdf.
Alberta Teachers’ Association (ATA). Position Paper on Professional Development. www.teachers.ab.ca/About+the+ATA/Policy+and+Position+Papers/Position+Papers/Professional+Development.htm.
Alberta Teachers’ Association (ATA). 2005. A Guide to Comprehensive Professional Development Planning. Edmonton, Alta: ATA.
Alberta Teachers’ Association (ATA). 2010. A Guide to Support Implementation: Essential Conditions. Edmonton, Alta: ATA.
Alberta Teachers’ Association (ATA). 2009. Looking Forward – Emerging Trends and
Strategic Possibilities for Enhancing teaching and Learning in Alberta Schools 2009-2012. Edmonton, Alta: ATA.
Alberta Teachers’ Association (ATA). 2010. The Courage to Choose – Emerging Trends and Strategic Possibilities for Informed Transformation in Alberta Schools 2010-2011. Edmonton, Alta: ATA.
Alberta Council For Environmental Education. Teacher Professional Development Needs Assessment – 2011. www.abcee.org/about-us/our-work/needs-assessments/teacher-professional-development-needs-assessment-2011/
Alberta Council For Environmental Education. Environmental Education and Citizenship in Alberta– 2030 – Based on the proceedings of the May 2010 ATA “Creating a Legacy Together” symposium. www.abcee.org/get-involved/ee2030/
