April 22, 2022
Professional Development is an annual requirement for all educators at all letters. Not only do we need to earn points to renew our certifications, but we need to continue to refine our craft as our students, their needs, and applications of skills in the world continue to evolve.
Most schools I have been connected with provide these on campus based on goals they have. Several school districts also provide a variety we can sign up for individually to complete either in person or online.
There are also many that exist online or around the world that we can take part in and then provide the information to our districts to have points awarded to them by providing details about it.
Did you realize that some of your professional networking or social media groups can also count as professional development? In this modern era of global connectivity where many of us connect with others in our field, don’t overlook it! I never thought about it until I was discussing this with a supervisor during a monthly check in chat.
If you find something that is engaging or relevant, share with your school leadership. They may be able to work it in on campus during training so it is on work time and not personal time or make it accessible to others that could benefit.
Save yourself time and headaches at recertification time and be sure to check with your district’s professional development or recertification specialists early to find out what they consider and the criteria needed for them. Don’t wait until it’s time to renew, especially since requirements can change between certification periods.
Whether they count or not, be sure you are doing your part to track your own details. I’ll have another blog post about Evaluations since we are in that season, but for additional tips, including how to track your progress, be sure to check out two prior posts about evaluations and tracking!
- Maximizing your Evaluation Jan 2022 http://addictedtoteaching.com/2022/01/01/maximizing-your-evaluation/
- Tracking Like a Star March 2021 http://addictedtoteaching.com/2021/03/12/tracking-like-a-star-how-to-maximize-your-evaluation/
Remember, many rubrics have a place for you to provide details on what you have done (in Florida, this is in Domain 4!) and help you get that Highly Effective rating, but you will need to reach for it since most institute-provided situations aim for Effective as the goal–you need to do your part to go above and beyond for the HE.
Take your time to check your information carefully, start well in advance so you can be mentally focused on the task, and talk to your evaluating supervisor if you have questions, just be clar and specific. They are truly there to support you and want to see you succeed, but they don’t know you have questions, or what they are, if you don’t speak up.
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