DALLAS–March 31, 2010– Maryland State Department of Education and National Staff Development Council jointly released today a resource guide for assisting schools and districts to evaluate the impact of teacher professional development on teaching practice and student learning.
Teacher Professional Development Evaluation Guide, written by M. Bruce Haslam of Policy Studies Associates, was developed originally for school districts and schools within the state of Maryland under contracts with Harford County Public Schools and the Maryland State Department of Education. NSDC supported modifications and enhancements to the resource guide to make it useful for schools and districts in all states and beyond. NSDC will disseminate the guide online at no cost.
The guide offers succinct recommendations for more frequent and more rigorous evaluation of teacher professional development to improve both the quality of professional learning and its results for teachers and their students. “Ongoing evaluation of professional learning is essential to guide improvements in the process,” says Stephanie Hirsh, NSDC’s executive director. “Many states and districts are committed to evaluating professional development and this resource will be a valuable tool to assist them with their efforts. We are grateful to Colleen Seremet and the Maryland State Department of Education and to Harford County Public Schools for allowing NSDC to make this resource guide available to educators beyond Maryland.”
“We are pleased to join with NSDC in sharing this guide with practitioners across the country and look forward to hearing from our colleagues as they use the guide. Many Maryland teachers and professional development coordinators have worked hard over the past seven years to define high quality professional development and to provide this tool and others to help us all improve our work,” noted Colleen Seremet, Assistant State Superintendent for Instruction in the Maryland State Department of Education
