Page 44 - School Planning & Management, November 2017

BUSINESS DOING MORE WITH LESS
Integrating video peer coaching into the district’s New Teacher Induction program revolutionized how the district provides professional development.
projectors on classroom walls; and install document cameras and sound enhancement technology in classrooms. “We needed to quickly train our 1,000 teachers how to use all of this technology, but we needed to get it done in one day with a very limited budget,” said Tim Klan, administrator of Information and Instructional Technology at Livonia Public Schools. “We formed the Technology Bond Professional Development Committee comprised of staff from multiple departments and grades to brainstorm how to ac- complish this.”
The committee’s answer was “Level Up LPS,” a one-day edtech conference equipped with a keynote speaker, workshops and breakout sessions, and a food truck rally. The committee was able to keep costs down by using existing or free resources. The event was hosted at one of the district’s high schools so there wasn’t a venue rental fee. The committee asked tech-savvy teach- ers to pilot the new technologies so they could lead the work- shops and breakout sessions. Student volunteers helped make sure the event ran smoothly and the food trucks came to the rally for free as long as the district met a minimum attendance, which was easy since all 1,000 staff members were required to attend. The only real expense was the keynote speaker. In addition to the keynote speaker, the event had between 30 and 35 breakout sessions and seven food trucks attended. The event is now an annual occurrence.
For districts looking to replicate this model, Klan suggests first consulting with teacher unions to ensure their contracts allow staff to participate in an all-day training. Then, find a location that is big enough to accommodate attendees and has the wireless network needed to accommodate the number of wireless devices. When planning the program, survey teachers early to confirm there are enough willing to lead workshops and breakout sessions. Livonia Public Schools found that allowing teachers to present as a team helped encourage participation. Klan’s last piece of advice was to ask for post-event feedback.
“The first Level Up LPS event was definitely a success,” said Klan. “Some of our attendees said it was the best PD they’d ever had, but there was room for improvement.” One piece of feedback was attendees felt they did not have the opportunity to reflect
on what they learned so the following year’s program carved out time for teachers to practice what they learned in computer labs. Additionally, the district now groups attendees by department
and grade-level at the end of the day so they can discuss what they learned and how they can incorporate it.
St. Vrain Valley School District: Video Peer Coaching
St. Vrain Valley School District struggled to balance between keeping its teachers in the classroom and finding time for profes- sional development. “Because we had resources like an adequate substitute pool, we often didn’t challenge our institutionalized practice of bringing in subs to pull teachers out for professional development,” said Diane Lauer, Ed.D, assistant superintendent of Priority Programs & Academic Support at St. Vrain Valley School District. However, the district began experiencing a teacher and substitute shortage and instead of seeing an obstacle, the district chose to see it as an opportunity to align its practices with its values and supporting research.
Shifting instructional practice requires authentic learning activities followed up with focused, ongoing support generally in the form of peer coaching. Therefore, the district is optimizing its peer coaching strategies by incorporating the use of video col- laboration to maximize professional learning. Instead of hiring substitute teachers, the district’s mentor teachers who act as peer coaches and the novice teachers receiving the coaching use Edthena. Novice teachers simply video record portions of their lessons, upload them to the password-protected portal, and then engage in peer dialogue with their teacher mentors in collegial support.
Integrating video peer coaching into the district’s New Teacher Induction program revolutionized how the district provides professional development. Video collaboration is now also used for curriculum adoption initiatives, for Lesson Study, and for Profes- sional Study Team work, and it has become part of the district’s revised teacher evaluation system. Teachers now have the option of substituting one of their two principal observations required each year with a peer observation from a colleague.
For districts interested in video collaboration, Lauer sug- gested thinking big, but starting small. First, incubate the prototype strategy with a small group of teachers and analyze the results. “Actively monitoring progress in the early phase of implementation gives you time to fail forward, learn from your initial mistakes, and iterate a second prototype that benefits from your new thinking,” said Lauer. Also, think through the technical problems and the adaptive challenges. For example, developing the skills to record video and upload it to a platform for sharing is a technical problem. Seeing the value of giving up a dependence on using substitutes for professional development is an adaptive problem. Lauer says leaders need to see the differ- ence and plan accordingly.
“We have saved tens of thousands of dollars on substitute costs and untold planning minutes lost from writing sub plans,” said Lauer. “Video peer coaching has shifted our culture.” SPM
44 SCHOOL PLANNING & MANAGEMENT / NOVEMBER 2017
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