We must first understand constructivism to add elements to improve learning in a professional development environment. Constructivism is a theory of learning and knowledge that suggests learners actively construct their understanding and knowledge of the world through experiences and reflection (WGU, 2005). Constructivist classrooms succeed by focusing on four main areas: shared knowledge, shared authority, teacher guidance, and small group learning (WGU, 2005). These classrooms differ from traditional ones by prioritizing student questions and interests, building on existing knowledge, and emphasizing interactive learning (WGU, 2005). Teachers act as facilitators, helping students construct their understanding through dialogue and collaboration (WGU, 2005). The environment encourages small group work, collaborative activities, and open discussions to support student success.
With the same constructivist elements in mind, you can apply this to professional development for adults. Adults learn through the same processes by constructing their knowledge through real-world experiences and reflection. Professional Development can improve learning when facilitators engage in active learning, collaboration, open-ended questions, answering educators' questions, and honing in on their interests in the development. One learning activity isn’t enough. The learning activity during professional development has to engage in the previous elements for it to be a success. Goodwin shared that, “Effective PD requires follow-up support focused not on adoption but rather on adaption.” (2016). Goodwin also shared that professional development collaboration depends on quality and quality does matter more than quantity (2016). Essentially, how effective is the collaboration versus how much collaboration is happening?
Effective collaboration between adults in professional development courses will also hinge on clear goals, open communication, mutual respect, diversity of skills, clear roles, accountability, flexibility, and adaptability. When educators, for example, share a common purpose, communicate openly, respect each other's contributions, and hold themselves accountable, they create a positive environment. Embracing diverse perspectives and remaining flexible in facing challenges further enhances professional development collaboration's effectiveness, ensuring that teams can achieve their objectives efficiently and successfully.
In the EdCan Network Le Réseau Édcan’s YouTube video on collaborative professional development, they reinforced several key points mentioned earlier. They emphasized the role of principals as effective facilitators when they actively engage as lead learners alongside their team of educators (EdCan Network Le Réseau Édcan, 2016). Additionally, technology plays a crucial role in professional development by enabling adults to document and reflect on their learning experiences (EdCan Network Le Réseau Édcan, 2016). The video further highlighted the importance of diverse collaborative teams in exploring professional development topics. Encouraging educator interest and choice in development initiatives is also emphasized as a means to foster lasting knowledge retention.
References
EdCan Network Le Réseau Édcan. (2016, May 19). Innovation that sticks case study - OCSB: Collaborative professional development [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/iUusuw-xdr4?si=6A5eeqD-tgNxRcQ4
Goodwin, B. (2016). Does Teacher Collaboration Promote Teacher Growth? [PDF]. Retrieved from https://www.dropbox.com/s/hml95bj705dvkzw/Does%20Teacher%20Collaboration%20Promote%20Teacher%20Growth.pdf?dl=0
WGU. (2005, April 6). What Is Constructivism? WGU. https://www.wgu.edu/blog/what-constructivism2005.html
Comments