What Hampers Growth | Professional Development

a teacher at work
What Hampers Growth

Despite the consensus on what makes for effective professional development, relatively few of this country's 2.8 million public school teachers work in environments designed to foster ongoing adult learning. Stigler and Hiebert, who compared videotapes of teaching practices in the United States, Japan, and Germany, conclude that in this country, "Teachers work alone, for the most part, and have little time to interact, much less collaborate."

In addition to isolation, teachers fight the clock to fit in the demands of the day — leaving little time for the reflection or collaboration that have been proven to improve teaching skills and invigorate teachers. The greatest challenge to effective professional development, according to a 1996 ERIC Clearinghouse report, is a lack of time. Teacher Quality reports that typical professional development activities last from one to eight hours — the equivalent of a day or less.

Money also plays a role in whether teachers can afford to focus on their own skills. During lean budget times, even a paltry budget for staff development tends to be one of the first items to be trimmed. And wealthier schools typically have deeper pockets for professional development than schools in high-poverty settings, reports the Department of Education in Promising Practices, creating "a strong disincentive for teachers to choose schools in urban and rural areas." This inequity "denies development opportunities to the very teachers who face the most challenge."

A report released in December by the National Staff Development Council (NSDC) reveals that school districts spend less than 1 percent of their budgets on teacher training. NSDC urges districts to increase their professional development budgets to 7 percent — comparable to what for-profit businesses sink into training their workers. Further, NSDC recommends that 25 percent of teachers' time — two hours out of every eight — should be devoted to their own learning.

What shapes a good teacher? An Idaho veteran recalls an experience that had lasting impact: "A few years into my career, I was reassigned to a small school. Physically, we worked in an open space so we could all see each other. We could hear what was going on in one another's classes. There were no closed doors. For the first time, I had people nearby to coach me. Because I was willing to be critiqued, I was able to learn and grow. Being part of that cadre turned me into a real teacher."

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