Professional Development For Teachers

Teachers need support to design new learning patterns to meet the increasingly complex and rapidly changing needs of students. Whether it’s integrating classroom technology, adapting to online and blended learning environments, or using data for lesson planning, teachers are provided with courses designed to broaden their competencies and guide them in the implementation of up-to-date best practices.

Professional development is important because education is a continually expanding and evolving field. For this reason, teachers must remain lifelong learners to be able to teach each new group of students. In addition to learning new teaching styles, techniques, and tips, professional development allows teachers to interact with educators from other areas of expertise and improve their own teaching skills.

Teachers can build their confidence and enhance their ability to energise their classrooms by taking part in professional development programs such as podcasts, books, online courses, and professional development networks.

Setting goals and developing your professional skills go hand in hand. It may seem difficult to dedicate the time for courses and seminars, but the extra effort is worth it to become the best teacher you can be. Having realistic and measurable career teaching goals will allow you to achieve what you desire. Set realistic and measurable goals, and see how far you can go as a teacher.

List of professional goals for teachers

  • Developing your career requires you to reflect, plan, prepare, and take action. Creating a calendar will help you set a schedule, be more focused, and achieve your goals. For example, every quarter should contain a goal of attending a professional development talk or seminar.
  • Take notes and absorb information about a subject you're curious about or are unfamiliar with, even if it's something as simple as a one-hour webinar. Take notes, apply the information, and make good use of your newfound knowledge.
  • As a teacher, it is important for you to ask yourself specific questions such as; What would I like to accomplish in my classroom? How can I create the best learning environment for my classroom by setting professional goals? In what ways can I improve my interaction with my classroom? And so forth. Once the teacher sets his or her goal, it is imperative that he or she works hard towards it to gain a sense of accomplishment.
  • The advancement of professional education has benefits for both teachers and students, but most importantly, it helps teachers become better educators and prepare them to serve in future leadership positions. Ultimately, professional development for teachers helps a teacher overcome all of the major challenges that they confront in the classroom, and it is a great way to achieve a classroom of their dreams.

Here is a list of development courses that will help to kick off your self-development journey.

Technical And Digital Skills

1 . How Do use Google Docs: The Complete Beginners Guide

With Google Docs, you can edit documents just like in Microsoft Word, using your browser online or offline, and on your mobile devices with the Google Docs mobile app. There are many useful features that you should know about. So if you’re looking to learn how to use Google Docs, this guide covers both the basic tips and some more advanced features that you may not be aware of.

2.1 How To Make a Powerpoint Presentation

This beginner’s guide will show you how to create a PowerPoint presentation from scratch step by step. While PowerPoint is supposed to be user-friendly and accessible, if you’ve never used it before, it might be intimidating. You’ll discover how to get from blank slides to slides like these in this post.

2.2 Tips For Good Powerpoint Presentation

This beginner’s guide will show you how to create a PowerPoint presentation from scratch step by step. While PowerPoint is supposed to be user-friendly and accessible, if you’ve never used it before, it might be intimidating. You’ll discover how to get from blank slides to slides like these in this post.

3.1 Growing With Canvas

Growing with Canvas has five content modules  that guide users through everything they need to know about using Canvas in their institutions, regardless of class or level. The course uses a combination of the video guides and the canvas guides to deliver the content. Students/Teachers test a range of  concepts through hands-on activities.

Digital Pedagogy

1 . Firki I Teach For India Online

Firki is Teach For India’s on-line trainer education platform. Firki affords asynchronous and synchronous getting to know experiences in the structure of courses, webinars, mastering paths, on-line gaining knowledge of circles and curated sources in partnership with a number of organisations. Firki was envisioned to spread Teach For India’s best teaching practices to all teachers and educators.

2. Bloom's Taxonomy

This section highlights the key instructional strategies that are currently producing the best results in education. Review Bloom’s taxonomy to see how you can improve your own teaching style and  pedagogy in your content area. Bloom’s taxonomy helps you create lessons that engage students to refine their thinking. You will find it essential for unit planning  and skill development. Asking students to think at higher levels, beyond simply remembering, is a great way to stimulate the students’ thought process. Different types of questions require us to use different types or levels of thinking. You will find it essential for planning units, building skills and pushing students to refine their thinking.

3. 21st Century Learning Design

Designed for educators of all levels and subjects, 21st Century Learning Design (21CLD) is a collection of eight modules. In this learning path, educators are provided with clear and practical methods for cultivating 21st-century skills through the use of digital technologies. The 21st Century Learning Design for Educators builds on research methodologies to offer a collaborative, practice-based approach to helping educators transform their approach to how they design enriching learning activities for their students. This comprehensive series consists of eight courses with videos, reading materials, rubrics for each dimension, and anchor lessons. Educators can actively participate by coding anchor lessons and redesigning their learning activities according to the 21CLD rubrics.

4. Transforming Digital Learning: Learning Design Meets Service Design

The demand for digital learning (and the experts who can deliver it) continues to grow rapidly. This course helps you to examine what online learning is, who needs it, who creates it and why. From the perspective of “teaching as  design science” you will explore design theories and practices that are changing the future of digital learning and digital literacy. This course is suitable for digital learning professionals such as teachers, trainers and other educators who wish to expand their knowledge of digital learning pedagogy.

5. Young People And Mental Health

Through this course you’ll learn what mental health is, what common mental health problems are, and how you can  support your student’s mental health. Each week consists of 2 different topics that are explained with the help of videos, personal stories, animations and short tasks.

Professional development podcasts for teachers

Teachers looking to expand their expertise, get advice on pedagogical practice, or learn new ways to energise their classrooms have a range of podcasts to choose from. Today’s podcasts offer practical advice from experienced educators on every topic and for every grade level. This accessible learning environment allows teachers to grow professionally wherever they are. Whether they’re doing laundry or driving home from work, teachers can use podcasts to create their teaching tools.

1 . The Cult of Pedagogy Podcast

Each episode aims to provide the audience with useful information regarding classroom management, teaching practices, education reform, or educational technology. The podcast host interviews educators, students, administrators, and parents to learn about the psychological and sociological inner workings of schools. Podcast listeners may quickly filter via podcast categories such as;- Theory of Learning, Innovation in technology, Collaborating and Book Evaluations.

2. Truth For Teachers

This popular podcast for grades K-12 is hosted by educator Angela Watson, whose professional development encourages teachers to be more mindful with their time and to abandon harmful and antiquated teaching techniques. Every Sunday, a new episode is produced to instil life, hope, and truth in the minds and hearts of educators.

3. Teaching Matters

Teaching Matters explores how students are changing and how teachers can keep up. The NPR podcast features educators who talk about their experiences and give tips on managing the classroom. Episodes explore a range of topics, such as how mobile smart technology can serve as both a distraction and a powerful learning tool, as well as how to address unconscious bias in schools and make needed changes.

Professional development books for teachers

When it comes to developing as a teacher, books may be excellent resources. They bring fresh approaches to old problems, push educators toward more innovation, provide much-needed insight into societal concerns, present critical research, and much more.

  • An urgency of teachers: The work of critical digital pedagogy, by Jesse Stommel and Sean Michael Morris
    Through a collection of essays, the book critically explores educational technology, online learning, and ways to teach digitally. It also offers strategies and principles for teaching in an online world.
  • Teach like a PIRATE: Increase student engagement, boost your creativity, and transform your life as an educator, by Dave Burgess
    Employing a motivational tone, the author offers ideas to engage and excite students about learning. This book offers inspiration, practical techniques, and innovative ideas that will help you to increase student engagement, boost your creativity, and transform your life as an educator. You'll learn how to: Tap into and dramatically increase your passion as a teacher. Develop outrageously engaging lessons that draw students in like a magnet.
  • How to differentiate instruction in academically diverse classrooms, by Carol Ann Tomlinson
    We differentiate instruction to honour the reality of the students we teach. They are energetic and outgoing. They are quiet and curious. They are confident and self-doubting. They are interested in a thousand things and deeply immersed in a particular topic. They learn at different rates and in different ways. And they all come together in our academically diverse classrooms. Written as a practical guide for teachers, this expanded third edition of Carol Ann Tomlinson’s groundbreaking work covers the fundamentals of differentiation and provides additional guidelines and new strategies for how to go about it.

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