This weekend I dove into Teacher TikTok. It was fun and, at times, entertaining. I learned two things that are on the teacher's mind:
1. Requirements- for time beyond the contract, whether extending the school day, weekend or during unpaid summer time.
2. Professional development- the list here is even longer but can be summarized:
Booking snooty speakers.
The leaders of professional development are divorced from the reality in classrooms especially post-pandemic.
Professional development that does not walk the talk.
Professional development could be a video or email.
Professional development that does not consider the diverse needs of different teacher based on topic, experience and expertise.
Our professional learning in Art TEAMS is trying to provide an alternative that creates learning for teachers that is attentive to needs and presents new ideas but allow for time to process and design. We are focusing on respecting professionals and helping them achieve new things. However, I must also stress that everyone in our cohort chose to take this path. It follows that this work cannot be dictated and still expect to get the same outputs.
