Central Okanagan Teachers’ Association
COTA
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT HANDBOOK
2017 - 2018
This handbook has been developed to help Pro-D School Representatives and the Local Specialists Associations in utilizing the Pro-D funds available for their use each year.
We acknowledge the efforts of many of our colleagues, locally and throughout the province, and COTA’s office staff who have contributed to the development of this book.
TABLE OF CONTENTS 2017-2018
District Pro-D Chairperson / 3Job Description / 4
Pro-D Chairperson / 5
P.D. Definition / 6-7
Declaration / 8
Contract Article / 9
COTA P.D. Policies / 10-12
Funds Transfer / 13-14
Ways to Grow Professionally / 15
Acronyms / 16-18
School Based Pro-D / 19
Organization & Responsibilities of the School Committee / 20
Responsibilities of the School Chairperson / 21
Pro-D Policy / 22
Annual School Report on Individual Pro- D / 23
Sample Needs Assessment Surveys / 24-25
Self Directed PDP Planning Document Guidelines / 26-27
Teacher Professional Growth Plan (P.G.P.) / 28-31
P.D. Funding / 32
Jt. Pro-D Terms of Reference / 33
Quick Reference Sheet for Joint Pro-D Committee / 34
D.I.G. (Differentiated Instruction Grant) / 35-37
T.O.C. Pro-D – Request for Reimbursement / 38
Organizing the Distribution of School Pro-D Funds / 39
Leave of Absence On-line Process / 40
Personal Pro-D Application for Reimbursement / 41
L.S.A.’s - General Information / 42
List of L.S.A. Presidents / 43
The LSA Fund / 44
Grant Request Form – PD-LSA1 / 45
Memo – Bank Accounts / 46
Year End Report – PD-LSA2 / 47
Financial Reporting / 48
Bank Account – PD-LSA3 / 49
Action Plan to Support Teacher Leadership in Pro-D / 50
Pro-D Leadership Application / 51-52
February Conference Planning / 53
P.S.A. Application Form / 54
Pro-D Personnel / 55
Pro-D School Reps / 56
Agendas/Minutes / 57
Standard School Calendar / 58
The
District
Professional
Development
Chairperson
1. Shall, subject to the direction of the Executive Committee, the Representative Assembly and the general membership, direct the professional development activities of the Association.
2. Shall set up a Professional Development Committee.
3. Shall arrange for meetings of the Professional Development Committee to be held and shall arrange that a record of the proceedings of these meetings be kept.
4. Shall, subject to the direction of the Executive Committee, the Representative Assembly and the general membership, plan programs for Professional Days and Conventions.
5. Shall maintain close liaison with local specialist associations and shall assist local specialist associations in organizing Professional Days and other local professional development activities.
6. Shall prepare a budget for the expenditure of funds allocated to the Professional Development program.
7. Shall make allocations of professional development funds to school staffs and shall maintain records of the professional development funds allocated.
8. Shall prepare as and when required a typed Professional Development committee report for meetings of the Association.
9. Shall participate on a committee developing a local program of non-credit courses for teachers to be held during the summer months (i.e. Chautauqua).
10. Shall attend all Executive, Representative Assembly and General Meetings of the Association.
11. Shall maintain and update annually the locally developed Pro-D handbook.
Professional Development CHAIRPERSON
FOR 2017 - 2018
Joe Jamison
School: Central School (Monday, Wednesday, Friday PM)
Ph: 250-870-5120
COTA Office: (Tuesday, Thursday, Friday AM)
Ph: 250-860-3866 Fax: 250-862-3024
email:
www.mycota.ca
From the BCTF Members Guide
1. Definition of Professional Development
Professional development is a process of ongoing growth, through
involvement in programs, services, and activities designed to enable
teachers, both individually and collectively, to enhance professional
practice.
2. Purposes of Professional Development
The purpose of professional development is to assist members in:
1. building and strengthening themselves as a professional body.
2. establishing and maintaining a professional relationship with
students/parents.
3. initiating curriculum and instructional reform directed to
improve teaching and learning.
4. developing, discussing, revising and applying educational theories.
5. improving the quality of professional practice through
career-long professional development.
6. engaging in professional and collegial conversations.
For the Department for Education and Skills
(DofES, qtd. in Rhodes et al., 2004, p. 50) in England and Wales, professional learning for teachers includes:
• having time to engage in sustained reflection
• participating in accredited provision through a structured program of learning
• creating learning opportunities from everyday practice
• developing the ability to identify own learning needs
• developing the ability to identify the learning needs of others
• developing an individual learning plan
• accessing mentoring, coaching and networking
• assimilating professional dialogue and feedback
• planning longer-term career aspirations
Knowles (qtd. in Rhodes et al., 2004, p. 51) stated the following in terms of understanding engagement in adult learning:
• Adults learn best when they are involved in diagnosing, planning, implementing and evaluating their own learning.
• The role of the facilitator is to create and maintain a supportive climate that promotes the conditions necessary for learning to take place.
• Adult learners have a need to be self-directing.
• Readiness for learning increases when there is a specific need to know
• Life’s reservoir of experience is a primary learning resource and the life experiences of others add enrichment to the learning process.
• Adult learners have an inherent need for immediacy of application
• Adult respond best to learning when they are internally motivated to learn
Rhodes, C., Stokes, M, & Hampton, G. (2004). A practical guide to mentoring, coaching and peer-networking: Teacher professional development in schools and colleges. London, ENG: Routledge Falmer.
Charlie Naylor
BCTF Research
Declaration of Continued Education Principles or Why We Have Pro-D
The following declaration is a statement of policy representing the collective professional opinion
of the members of the BCTF. It is based on values and principles that reflect a democratic perspective on public education and is intended to provide a provincial standard of continuing education principles.
1. It is the responsibility of the individual teacher to make a continuing effort to develop professionally.
2. Participation by teachers in professional development should be on a voluntary basis.
3. An effective needs assessment process should be the starting point of professional development. Planners of professional development should work as colleagues with the users in identification of needs, the planning of the training, and the continuing tailoring of the activities to fit the teachers’ needs.
4. Professional development activities should include the growth of competence, collegiality, influence, social, and personal development and health.
5. Effective professional development requires a commitment of adequate resources, time, and organizational support.
6. The individual teacher should be given the opportunity and the time to pursue his/her professional Development objectives.
7. The organization and delivery of pro-D programs are most effectively achieved at the school staff level or with other intact groups.
8. Effective professional development activities incorporate presentation and discussion, demonstration or modeling, practice and subsequent practice with feedback.
9. Collegial support, on-site coaching and on-going support should be available to the individual teacher to allow for adequate internalization or behavior change.
10. The idea of teachers teaching teachers should be promoted in the provision of professional development program.
11. Professional development programs should incorporate a wide repertoire of teaching approaches, and no one professional development program should be viewed as a universal panacea for the improvement of teaching.
From an article “Continuing Education”
By Dale Kelly and Liz Lambert.
SECTION F PROFESSIONAL RIGHTS
ARTICLE F.20 PROFESSIONAL IMPROVEMENT
1. The Employer and the Local shall maintain a District Professional Development Committee.
The Committee shall be comprised of five (5) representatives each of the Local and of the Employer plus the Local's Professional Development chairperson, who will chair the Committee.
2. The Employer and Union shall establish a fund for the purpose of promoting the professional development (excluding credit courses) of the teaching staff of the school district.
3. The Employer shall place $195.00 per fulltime equivalent employee and the Union shall place $35.00 per fulltime equivalent employee into the Professional Development Fund.
a. The Employer shall place an additional $5,000 in this fund for the purpose of professional development for teachers teaching on call.
4. The cost of teachers teaching on call for employees granted any professional development leave of absence shall be borne by the Professional Development Fund.
5. The Professional Development Fund as established by the Employer and the Local shall be administered by the District Professional Development Committee.
6. Each school staff shall elect a Professional Development Committee.
a. The Committee shall be chaired by a teaching employee.
b. The principal shall be an ex-officio member of the Committee.
7. The terms of reference shall be established by the District Professional Development Committee and shall be in effect when approved by the Local and the Employer.
8. The Professional Development fund will not be required to finance district "required" inservice or conferences.
COTA Professional Development
Policies and Procedures
POLICIES
1.0 Definition of Professional Development
Professional development includes a variety of programs, services, and activities empowering teachers to continually grow, both individually and collaboratively, while having an ongoing positive impact on teaching and learning.
2.0 Purposes of Professional Development
The purpose of professional development is to assist teachers in improving the quality of our practices by
· nurturing the development of professionals;
· enriching and maintaining professional relationships with students and parents;
· initiating curriculum and instructional reforms improving teaching and learning;
· discussing, assessing and applying educational theories;
· thoughtfully engaging in professional and collegial conversations.
3.0 Professional DevelopmentPrinciples
3.1 PRINCIPLES
a. Each teacher is responsible to the profession
b. Our professional autonomy is essential and dependent on members responsibly using their Pro-D Days through ongoing, active learning.
c. Pro-D is driven by individual and/or collaborative reflection and assessment of needs.
d. Flexible and differentiated professional development opportunities are essential to meet the various learning needs of every teacher.
e. Pro-D encourages collegiality, informs teaching practice and enhances student learning.
f. Effective professional development requires commitment, resources, time and support to meet teachers’ needs.
3.2 PROCEDURES
a. That where circumstances permit, members of the public should be invited and encouraged to attend professional development day activities.
b. For the purpose of the five professional development days, the dates run from July 1 to June 30 of the following year.
c. That COTA supports the province-wide PSA day as the October Pro-D day.
d. The COTA supports the third Friday in February; or as determined by the Zonal PD Chairs; to be a zone professional development day.
e. That teachers, as autonomous professionals, determine, with colleagues and/or the local union, the content of his/her professional development activities scheduled for professional development days, and further, that professional development days are not used for school goal setting and/or School Improvement Plans, marking, accountability, assessment tools, or voluntary activities (e.g. sports tournaments, science fairs, music festivals, drama productions).That where the employer directs that Professional Development days are to be held outside of the school year book ends (the first working day after Labour Day and the last working day in June), the COTA will support members in exercising their right to choose not to participate.
f. That COTA encourages teachers to fill in the self-directed professional development form on mycota.ca to create a log of professional development. Self-directed forms shall be completed by June 30 for the August Pro-D days, or as soon as possible in the new school year when teachers are assigned to a school after June 30th, and ten days prior to the October and February Pro-D days.
g. The COTA Pro-D Committee recognizes that Pro-D money is allotted to school Pro-D committees on a per individual FTE (Full-Time Equivalent) teacher basis. Funds are kept on a per teacher basis in a personal school based Pro-D account. It is the responsibility of a school Pro-D committee to disburse funds according to its policies.
h. When a teacher moves schools the funds in the teacher's personal Pro-D account will transfer with them to the new school's personal Pro-D account. The transferring teacher will fill out the Pro-D Transfer Fund form, the Pro-D rep from the last school will sign and write in the amount to be transferred. This must be done by October 31st otherwise the funds will remain in the past school Pro-D account. If a teacher transfers after October 31st, they will have one month to submit their Pro-D Transfer Fund Form.
i. If a COTA member ceases to be a member of the COTA his/her allocated Professional Development funds will transfer to the school Pro-D account of the school in which he/she last worked. All outstanding claims incurred prior to the termination of the member’s contract must be submitted no later than 30 days from the contract termination date. If contract termination is June 30, members must complete their claim by September 15 of the same calendar year.
j. A teacher on a temporary contract is eligible to receive Pro-D funds from the assigned school, on a pro-rated basis. If a teacher is hired on a temporary contract commencing after September 30th, pro-rated funds may be accessed through the school Pro-D account. That the teacher may access any accumulated Pro-d funds, within 2 school months at the end of the contract if they do not receive a subsequent contract.
3.3 SCHOOL-BASED PROCEDURES
a. Every school shall elect a Pro-D Committee (as per the Contract Article, F.20.6) to facilitate staff development.
b. The Pro-D Committee will elect a school Pro-D representative, in September, for the school Professional Development Committee for the current school year.
c. The committee shall be familiar with the contents of the COTA Professional Development Handbook.
d. The committee will develop and review school procedures regarding the allocation of the school-based Pro-D funds and shall administer these funds in a fair and equitable manner. The school procedures are to be presented and voted on by teachers, and then submitted to the COTA Pro-D Chairperson by October 31st.