I. Chapter Summary

II. Building and Sustaining Professional Learning Communities [Model]

III. Making the Case for Online Professional Development [List]

IV. Creating a Coordinated Approach to Professional Development [Set of Graphics]

V. Professional Development Process and Communication Guide

VI. State Examples

VII. Resources & Readings

VIII. Next Steps

IX. Work Group Members

V. Professional Development Process and Communication

The Process and Communication Guide was designed to be studied, carefully considered, and discussed by leaders of staff development. The model is meant to illustrate ways that stakeholders may communicate their needs and visions to one another, with the goal being to alleviate the disconnect that exists among federal, state, and local educational agencies and local schools.

The Process and Communication Guide is a “six-layered” circle graphic, with each of the six circles having four concentric inner rings, and each of the six “layers” being divided into six pie-shaped sectors. The six layers are the following:

1. Planning Process Steps and Entities Represented in the Model:
This graphic serves as a key to the model. The six pie-shaped sectors are identified as steps in the professional development planning process. Moving from the top of the circle clockwise, the six steps are:

• Identify Problems
• Develop Focus
• Set Goals
• Design a Plan
• Take Action
• Analyze Outcomes

The concentric circles are also labeled, representing entities within education. From the center, moving out they are: Federal, State Education Agencies (SEAs), Local Education Agencies (LEAs), and Local Schools.

2. Defining Steps in the Planning Process Model:
Text labels on this graphic define the steps: Identify Problems, Develop Focus, Set Goals, Design a Plan, Take Action, and Analyze Outcomes.

3. National Staff Development Council (NSDC) Standards for Online Professional Development:
Text labels identify the NSDC Standards for each of the six steps in the planning process.

4. Resources Online:
Web addresses are provided for each of the six steps in the planning process.

5. Target Audiences in Local Schools, Local Education Agencies (LEAs), and State Education Agencies (SEAs):
Text labels provide information about the target audiences for each of the concentric circles in the model: Federal, SEAs, LEAs, and Local Schools.

6. Critical Communication Strategies:
Text labels list communication strategies for each entity, at each of the six steps in the planning process.

(All Web addresses used in the model are listed below).

View Professional Development Process and Communication Model. [New browser will open].

^ Return to Top

Resources Online

Identify Problems

NSDC Standards for Staff Development

SREB Standards for Online Professional Development

Writing Measurable Goals

NCREL: Professional Development: Learning from the Best

Personal Goal Setting Tools

National Center for Education Statistics

Develop Focus

District and State Improvement Plans, Process, and Tools

The Gateway to Educational Materials

Pathways to School Improvement

Set Goals

Rubrics and Assessment Design

State Standards

enGauge

Design a Plan

Online Professional Development by Jayne James and Gerald Bailey

Action Plan Template

Successful Online Professional Development

Treacy, B., Kleiman, G., & Peterson, K. Successful Online Professional Development
Learning & Leading with Technology Vol 30 No. 1 September 2002

National Education Technology Plan

Take Action

Tapped In

North Central Regional Education Laboratory (NCREL)

Blackboard

Action Plan Template

Analyze Outcomes

Indicators of Successful Professional Development

Best Practices for Education Research

Design Surveys at Survey Monkey

Design Surveys at Zoomerang

Design Surveys at ProfilerPro

Planning for Evaluation

^ Return to Top

#1: Professional Development Process and Communication Guide
[86 KB]

#2: Professional Development Summary & Tools
[694 KB]

Download the entire toolkit & more.