Usually a Teacher, sometimes a Student!.

Well...  We all know that sourcing PD Workshops and seminars as a CRT can be somewhat problematic.  PD for teachers usually has a significant portion which is aimed at full-time teachers supplying tactics that take time to implement in the classroom.  Unfortunately it rarely has that much time devoted to ways in which CRTs can implement the same theories on a much quicker timeline!

This can make sourcing your own PD, which we often have to do, more than a little daunting.

Topics;

The good news?  As a CRT drifting in and out of classrooms there's very little that won't prove relevant to your teaching sooner or later!  Even those long setup time strategies prove useful when you take over from a teacher that is using them!  You know exactly where you stand and know how to carry through on what they have set up.

While you need to pick Professional Development that improves your own knowledge and practice as a classroom teacher, it's a good idea to also keep an eye on what's going on in the schools you teach for.  Keep your finger on the pulse of their PD!  Being on the same page as the schools makes you far more likely to recieve work in these schools once they clue in to the fact that you can carry through on school policy and practice.

It also helps to integrate you into the school's community rather than being an outsider all the time!  You understand the "policy jargon" in general conversation and the teachers you replace will be far more comfortable just to supply you with what you need to know and walk away confident that the job will get done and get done well.  You begin to become an integral part of the community and will be fully recognized for your efforts and skills.

Format;

Sometimes you do need to be a little careful.  We've probably all been to "one of those PDs" where the information was all technical, leaving you to try and sort out how to apply it in a classroom and sometimes even if it does.  It was based on out-dated teaching practice.  It was just presented in such a dry manner that regardless of how good the information was?  You can't remember half of it because you were too busy doodling or watching the birds out of the window.

So what does current classroom practice teach us about our search for PD?  If "hands on" and other such buzzwords play such a big part in today's schooling why wouldn't you apply this to yourself?  There's such a large pool of research out there that prove that hands on learning improves engagement, the retention of information, the self-motivation of students of all ages from prep to university.

When selecting PD it is quite worth remembering that for those hours you are there you are no longer "the teacher", you are "the student".  So you can take all that stuff you know about helping to teach students things and get them to retain that information and put yourself in that position for those hours.

The Presenter;

Here's an interesting little insight for you.

Go to VIT's YouTube channel.  We've sent you here before but this time it's not the videos we want to have a look at, it's the channel itself.

If you look at the top 3 videos (as of right now).  They have been there for 6 months.  There's six views on the first, six views on the second and nine views on the third.  And two each of those are from me!

Now scroll all the way to the bottom and look at those 3.  These videos are from 2 years and 3 months ago (June 2010).  There's 120 views on the first, 177 views on the second and 163 views on the 3rd.

Now scroll up until you see this gentleman's face (Glenn Pearsall):

Glenn Pearsall - VIT Twilight Seminar 1 - 2011

These videos have been up about a year and a half (March 2011).  First video?  1008 views.  Second video?  543.  Then 652, 369, 643 and 605 views respectively.

More than 3 times as many (on average) as the videos that have been there for an extra 9 months and more than any that follow either.

Let's face it, YouTube is voluntary.  Why this guy?  What's making people want to watch his video more than the others?

Watch his presentation and then a couple of the others and you will begin to understand why.  While everyone on VIT's YouTube channel has something valuable to say, Glen Pearsall is a little different.  He's jokey, he's dynamic, he's engaging.  On top of having something valuable to say.  People want to watch him in action and want to hear what he has to say because of it.

The presenter is important to a PD workshop too.  A good presenter not only provides you with good information, they will engage you in the topic helping to ensure that you not only have a good time but retain as much of the information they deliver as possible and provide you with the enthusiasm which will motivate you to try these things out in the classroom.

It's that whole "I'm a student for a few hours" thing again.  If you provide your students with a fun and engaging classroom they will not only learn the information faster and retain the information for longer, they will be motivated to not only apply what they have learnt but also to learn even more.  You are just the same!

But....

Yes, there's always a "but".  Sometimes you just really need to know something and there's not a lot of choice in the matter.  You need to sit through a boring or generally non-productive PD to get those couple of things you need.  There's just no way around it; needs must when the devil drives.  You are better off having it at the cost of a bit of boredom or sitting through some largely unproductive information.

When you do have some choice though?

Put yourself in the shoes of a student and, knowing what you know as a teacher, pick the PD opportunity that's more likely to give you the most engaging experience on offer.

You'll learn more.  You'll remember more.  You'll even have more fun.

Regards, 

Mel.