Dive Brief:

• Lamar University professor George Saltsman argues in a piece for District Administration that teachers need more hands-on forms of professional development in order to effectively use new technology.
• He says most professional development is far to focused on talking at teachers; instead, he says administrators should aim for a “go and show” model that encourages teachers to quickly implement what they learned and receive feedback.
• Lamar University helped develop one such program, in partnership with Microsoft, that included online digital education courses and rewarded teachers who developed portfolios of their digitally-driven teaching.

Dive Insight:

Of note in Lamar University’s program is the fact that the university’s faculty help provide feedback to teachers. That accomplishes three things for administrators: it ensures they are getting feedback from experts, facilitates interaction with a third party rather than their direct supervisor, and takes a time-intensive burden off of administrators. Similar approaches could likely be developed elsewhere, in partnership with local colleges and universities.