As a K-12 science department chair, I’m looking for professional development (PD) opportunities for our teachers. It’s hard to find speakers and programs for a small group. We have a very small budget, so traveling for conferences is not an option, either. Are you familiar with other options? —K., Minnesota

Continuing education is an important part of any job or profession. It is impossible as undergraduates to learn everything we need to know as teachers, especially about content or strategies that didn’t exist at that time or technology that was yet to be invented.

All teachers, including science teachers, have two fields that require continuing education—teaching practices and subject-area content. In my school district, it was easy for us to plan PD in teaching practices. Topics such as cooperative learning, assessment, classroom management, technology applications, curriculum design, questioning strategies, and reading/writing applied to virtually all of the subject areas. Teachers from different subjects could be part of the same workshops. We often used our own staff as facilitators for these sessions to capitalize on their experience and expertise.

But content was another issue, especially for science teachers.

It was difficult (and costly) to find facilitators to provide workshops or seminars on relevant content (as well as on national and/or state standards, safety updates, and cutting-edge lab technology) for the 8.5 secondary science teachers in our district. So once a year we science teachers (including biology, chemistry, earth science, and physics) combined with other schools for the generic “large group in an auditorium with a guest speaker.” These sessions were often redundant or irrelevant, and research has shown these one-off presentations, lacking context or follow-up, can be ineffective.

Add to the mix the fact that many districts are in a financial bind. When making cuts to programs, facilities, and staff, PD often goes on the chopping block as well. For both reasons (effectiveness and finances), many schools provide an option for and encourage self-directed PD, especially for veteran teachers. Although sometimes referred to as “do-it-yourself,” I’ve found this form of PD to be more collegial than traditional “sit-and-git” events.

In my district, teachers (or groups of teachers) worked with administrators to set learning goals focused on district priorities and personal needs, design a learning strategy, identify relevant resources, document their activities, describe how they will apply the new knowledge or skills, and submit a final report/reflection. In return, they received PD hours and were excused from two in-service days during the school year if they used the summer or their own time for the PD project.

There are many activities that could be part of DIY PD: Local mini-conferences, EdCamps,  Professional Learning Networks (PLNs), online courses and web seminars offered by higher education and other organizations, action research, social media, book study groups, peer coaching, mentoring programs, onsite visits and tours, and independent study.

From your leadership perspective as a department chair, the learning experience of planning, administering, and evaluating a DIY program would be another form of professional development. It might be helpful to first study the options and pilot the program with a cross-section of interested teachers.

It would be easy for science teachers to design PD opportunities using the resources of NSTA’s Learning Center: the NSTA journals, e-mail lists, discussion forums, Science Objects, and web seminars.

A project such as this requires work on the part of the teachers, more so than sitting through a few presentations each year. It also requires a level of trust and professionalism between administrators and teachers. My own experiences with DIY PD (which included action research, peer coaching, mentoring new teachers, and independent study) were satisfying, relevant, and helped me become a better teacher.

Update: You might also be interested in events such as NSTA’s Virtual conferences. No travel required!

I remember the first time I attended a professional association conference when I was a child care provider beginning my career and was thrilled to be among so many educators who were passionate about improving themselves professionally. If you can’t attend a conference in person, a virtual conference may meet some of your needs for professional development.

Join me next week on Wednesday, June 29, 2016 in my happy space–talking with other early childhood educators about science education at the virtual conference, “Engaging Students in Science: PreK-6.” I will be presenting one of two sessions, along with Christine Royce, Professor in and Department Chairperson for the Teacher Education Department and co-director for the MAT in STEM education program at Shippensburg University. She is the co-author of the NSTA Press Book, Teaching Science Through Trade Books, which is related to one of her more familiar roles as the co-author for the ”Teaching Through Trade Books Column” in Science and Children. This National Science Teachers Association virtual conference will be archived for registrants.

I have seen how engaging in science investigations motivates students to develop and use their early literacy and math skills as they learn about the nature of science and specific science content. In the first part of my session, we will take a quick look at the research that calls for teaching our youngest learners to explore scientific ideas and then examine how young children use science and engineering practices in common activities in early childhood PreK-2 programs. In the second part, we will use photos (and materials if we have them at hand) to engage in one activity that can be part of an on-going inquiry into properties of water. Discussion will support how to extend children’s thinking from a simple “sink or float” activity to an on-going investigation.

Hope to see you on Wednesday, June 29, 2016 at 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. ET
9 a.m. – 12 p.m. CT
8 a.m. – 11 a.m. MT
7 a.m. – 10 a.m. PT
Member price: (Includes 1 e-book) $63
Nonmember price: (Includes 1 e-book) $79
Attendance/Participation Certificate: $9.95

(NSTA Press e-books: Science Learning in the Early Years or Teaching Science Through Trade Books) 

The free and open to all NSTA Learning Center early childhood and elementary science forums are other virtual communities for finding resources and discussion to support your science teaching. Search for resources and discussions and voice your experience.