Developing a Professional Development Program Model Based on Teachers’ Needs

This paper presents a model of a teacher needs-based (TNB) professional development program. The TNB model formed the foundation of three externally funded professional development programs. The objectives of this model are to maximize the effects of a professional development program, and to help participants sustain their learning over the long term. The goals, content, main activities, and structure of the present professional development program were decided based on teachers’ and administrators’ inputs. The structure of this model was a combination of traditional and reform types. The main activities of the programs were hands-on activities, collaborative work, reflections, discussions, self-monitored practice, and providing an inservice program. The effects of the program are discussed in the Findings. This study suggests ways to enhance professional learning: including the participants as decision makers and consumers, recruiting participants from the same context, connecting professional learning and practice, and building a partnership between university, public schools, and local education agents. The technical and simplistic view of teaching held in the 70s and 80s proposed that the goal of inservice teacher education be to increase teachers’ knowledge by bringing in outside expertise. In the 90s, the focus of professional development widened to include not only teachers but also the organizations to which they belonged (Loucks-Horsley, 1995). In recent years, effective professional development experiences have been designed to help teachers build a new understanding of teaching and learning through direct experience with strategies that help students learn in new ways (Garet et al., 2001). Developing a Professional Development Program (PDP) In order to develop a successful PDP, program developers go through both standard procedural and specific contextual issues. Jones and his colleagues (1992) listed the common issues considered by PDP developers: individually guided teacher activities, feedback on new teaching practices, opportunities for teacher input and involvement in establishing a PDP, an inquiry approach for addressing teachers’ pedagogical problems, and generating a knowledge base that facilitates effective teacher decision-making. The remarks made by Jones and his colleagues are critical to success, and yet they are directly related to teachers or can be controlled by teachers. Other issues to be considered in designing a PDP deal with specific contextual situations. Some of these issues are to be faced by teacher educators rather than classroom teachers. For example, providing resources, establishing organizational culture and structures, ensuring equity, developing leadership, supporting the effective use of standards and frameworks through professional development, and evaluating a PDP. Then again, additional contextual factors exist that are generated by those other than classroom teachers or teacher educators: the physical environment, policies, the local history of professional development, and parents and the community. Therefore, a PDP must be developed and conducted by classroom teachers, teacher educators, administrators, and parents/community collaboratively. Features of a Successful Professional Development Program (PDP) Adopting Multiple Strategies Like other teaching and learning processes, professional development cannot be handled by an isolated strategy. Each program uses a variety