We know how important it is for you to keep your instruction current through regular professional learning events, but how do you choose the right virtual event? How can you fund PD right now if your school doesn’t have the budget? Will a virtual event be as effective as in-person PD? Although we don’t have all the answers, we would like to share some great funding resources and some thoughts on the benefits of virtual PD.
“I can’t wait to return to in-person professional development. It’s deeply meaningful and energizing in all aspects. There’s no doubt that being in the room physically together adds energy to the professional development experience, humans are like that. Guest speakers and their ideas are humanized for faculty members when they visit, their ideas no longer abstractions from far away, the possibilities for local application blossom, and faculty connect personally. And gosh, some speakers are just darn fun, leading crazy cheers, asking for volunteers for interesting demonstrations, singing parody songs related to education, and giving away nice prizes.
If done effectively, we can do all of these positives via virtual training as well, and with local facilitation, we can even do those crazy cheers and give away prizes, if that’s needed. Virtual trainings have definite advantages:
First, schools cut out the speaker’s travel expenses and with budgets already strained, this is a huge consideration.
Second, participants have direct access to the speaker. Auditorium keynotes, for example, can be antiseptic and frustrating, even when the guest speaker is physically present. In the virtual training experience, however, your own screen fills your visual focus, there are no distractions, and you control your own environment during the session.
In addition, a full day’s live session can be turned into two half days or four, 90-minute live sessions, spread across a month or two so as not create Zoom or PD fatigue. A two-day seminar can be turned into four half days, allowing the other half of each day to be used in discussion of the ideas or other professional duties.
There is simply less drain on the school funds, but a greater dexterity, and in most cases, more creative and focused experience for participants that comes with virtual professional development done well in short chunks, half-days, full-days, or multiple days.
Thank you for all you’re doing for educator development. I know it’s a tough time for everyone, but our students are worth our enterprise.” – Rick Wormeli
Click here for Rick’s full statement.
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Email professionaldevelopment@sde.com to learn more about our customized, high-quality staff development!