On the Road to Oz| Professional Development

On the road to Oz
With Smarts, Heart, and Courage, Edmonds Educators Team Up And Journey Ahead
A fifth-grader and Pam Hopkins.
A fifth-grader from College Place Elementary presents her portfolio to Pam Hopkins, an assistant superintendent for the Edmonds district.

Story and photos by JOYCE RIHA LINIK

"But it is a long way to the Emerald City, and it will take you many days. The country here is rich and pleasant, but you must pass through rough and dangerous places before you reach the end of your journey."
— L. Frank Baum, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

EDMONDS,Washington — In the aftermath of a whirlwind teachers' strike in the late 1980s, educators in the Edmonds School District found themselves walking a difficult and unfamiliar road. In addition to the adjustment to decentralization, teachers were being whisked into the technology revolution and the standards movement. They faced the steady onslaught of new concepts, strategies, and skills that teachers must stay abreast of, while providing continuity in their classrooms.

Their journey has not been unlike that of Dorothy and her companions on the road to Oz. Before goals can be reached, there are gullies to cross, rivers to ford, and strange beasts to confront (lest we forget the Winged Monkeys). But, like the beloved characters in the Frank Baum classic, dedicated educators forge ahead, keeping sight of worthy objectives and working together to solve problems. Never mind that there is no wizard, no shortcut, no easy answer. To them, the goal is worth the effort, the journey is an opportunity to learn. And so, forward they march.

And they're making progress. So much so that the U.S. Department of Education named the Edmonds School District as a winner in the 1999 National Awards Program for Model Professional Development. Edmonds, one of only seven winners, was recognized for outstanding efforts to improve teachers' knowledge and skills, and raise student achievement. Located north of Seattle amidst towering fir trees, coffeehouses, and Northwest urban sprawl, Edmonds has become a place where teachers team up and pool resources to gain ground.

"How can I get there?" asked Dorothy.
"You must walk. It is a long journey, through a country that is sometimes pleasant and sometimes dark and terrible. However, I will use all the magic arts I know of to keep you from harm."

She's not wearing a pointed hat or sitting on a throne of rubies. There's no magic wand in sight. Still, Sally Harrison is undoubtedly the "Good Witch" of Edmonds, helping teachers throughout the district to find their way. Now in her 27th year of teaching, the last eight with the district office, Harrison is Executive Director for Teaching and Learning in the Edmonds School District. Around here, she's the teachers' teacher.

Since the U.S. Department of Education award, Harrison says, the phone has been ringing off the hook with educators wanting to know Edmonds' secret. "'What's the model?' they ask."

The funny thing is, there is no model.

"'Model' just doesn't fit what we do," Harrison says. "It's really not a model. It's a way of thinking, a way of working together."

Outsiders, it seems, don't like this answer. Many are looking for a quick fix, an easy-to-follow recipe that they can take home and replicate.

It's not that simple.

On any given day, Edmonds might be doing all sorts of things in the area of professional development — one site visit, one advisory board meeting, two workshops on curriculum mapping, one class on writing assessment. But observers who note these activities may miss that the how is as important as the what.

Harrison believes it's crucial to keep sight of the bigger picture. "The priority," she says, "is to provide high-quality instruction for kids. What needs to be included in learning opportunities for teachers keeps evolving. The objective is to increase individual and team or collaborative wisdom, and that can be accomplished in a lot of ways."

Over time, Edmonds has developed an interactive approach to professional development that can accommodate evolving content. "Heuristic" is an apt label, meaning that learning takes place through investigations and discoveries.

At the heart of this approach is a deep-seated respect for teachers and an emphasis on building strong relationships and solid, straightforward communication. Those at the district level view teachers and principals as capable professionals and value their input. Several advisory committees have been formed through which teachers have a voice in district decisions. Site visits have evolved from obligatory drop-bys with little communication to visitations that include all stakeholders, including parents and students, and candid discussions regarding both progress and challenges.

The district's philosophical commitment to professional development is backed up by real dollars. Edmonds invests 6 percent of its budget on professional development — about six times the national average, according to the National Staff Development Council. For the Teaching and Learning Division that Harrison heads, that means an annual budget of about $1.5 million for professional development from the district. Last year, her program also received $972,000 in grants that focused on professional development. The consistent funding base, Harrison says, shows that the district "has established a priority to support the change to a standards-referenced school system."

Harrison is in constant communication with educators throughout the district and spends her two-hour commute from Snohomish listening and responding to voice-mail messages. She is constantly asking teachers, "What do you want to learn and how do you want to learn it?" and "How did you learn that and how do we replicate it?"

Teachers play an integral part in planning their own professional development. And this involvement yields more than the obvious benefits. Of course, teachers acquire new knowledge and skills in development activities. But, in determining what sort of professional development would be helpful, they improve their ability to analyze their students' needs and their own needs as their students' teachers.

It's no surprise that teachers already pressed for time might say, "Just tell us what to do." But Harrison believes it's imperative for teachers to learn how to identify their own, as well as their students', needs. "It's like teaching your children to dress," says the mother of two. "Although it would be easier to do it yourself, they need to learn to dress themselves."

Participation builds a sense of ownership in the process, an element Harrison believes is necessary for the process to thrive long term, even with inevitable changes in personnel.

"It's important that they understand what they are doing and that it's their work. If the culture is strong enough," she says, "the work will go on as it should."

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