Professional Learning

  • The Professional Learning department coordinates efforts of staff at the district and school level as well as with external partners to design, implement, support and monitor high-quality professional learning.

      Introduction

      • Director of Professional Learning

        The Director of Professional Learning establishes and coordinates system wide professional learning.  This includes collaborating with staff at the district and school level, as well as external partners to design and implement high-quality professional learning while ensuring compliance with standards of professional learning, as well as Board policies. 

        Professional Learning Manager

        The Professional Learning Manager assists with the district-wide responsibility for coordinating professional learning and provides district level support for magnet programs aligned to the district strategic plan. The Professional Learning Manager collaborates with District leadership, schools, and coaches to support professional learning that accelerate learning outcomes for Black and Latinx students.

        Content Facilitators

        Content Facilitators provide coaching and support in designated content area(s) and/or program(s). The team of educators collaborates with instructional coaches across the district for the purpose of improving student outcomes. Content facilitators support is available in the areas of Literacy, Mathematics, Social Studies and Multilingualism.

        • Content Facilitator Professional Learning Supports
        • Resources - Articles, videos, links to answer Frequently Asked Questions.  
        • Consultation - An in depth response to a specific question. The Building Coach must be in the conversation.
        • Prepared Sessions - Each Content Facilitator is preparing a session on the fundamentals of their content area. These sessions can be requested for buildings or teams.
        • Coaching Cycle - Content Facilitators will lead a coaching cycle with an Academic Instructional Coach or a coach and team that includes a specific goal, new learning, observations, feedback and reflections.

        Joint Professional Learning Committee

        The Joint Professional Learning Committee includes representatives from the Evanston Teacher Assistant Association (ETAA) and District Educator Council (DEC). These volunteer members have committed to Make contributions from the varied perspectives they bring to the committee, collaborate in developing proposed professional learning design elements, and review feedback on professional learning sessions to determine viability and impact.

        Joint Professional Learning Committee Classified

        The Joint Professional Learning Committee Classified includes representatives from District 65 Educational Secretarial and Clerical Association (DESC) and other district roles. District goals, department needs and input from these colleagues, inform decisions for professional learning plans for all staff in the district.

        Professional Learning Logic Model

        Theory of Change
        Acknowledge the current state (including disaggregated data), describe the initiative and supporting research that is expected to lead to outcomes and impact

        Why is this professional learning opportunity needed?

        Professional Learning Logic Model
        Inputs (Resources) What resources does this professional learning opportunity use? Activities (Strategies) What will be done with the resources? Outputs (Deliverables) What changes can we expect from conducting this professional learning opportunity? Outcomes (SHORT Term) Who will the professional learning opportunity reach? Results/Impact (System Changes) How will we measure the benefits of this professional learning opportunity?
        • Financial
        • Materials
        • Technology
        • PEOPLE
          • Planning
          • Supervising
          • Supporting Participating
        • Physical Space, Time

        Plan, Prepare, and Assess Implement, Monitor, and Improve

        Sustain and Scale-Up

        Whom do we expect to be affected and how?

        When do we expect to see effects?

        Are our outcomes realistic given resource or budget constraints?

        Are our outcomes clearly defined?

        Size and scope of the activity

        #educators participating
        #hours of instruction

        Outcomes can include:

        • Student-level effects
        • Teacher-level effects
        • School-level effects
        • District-level effects
        • Efficiencies of cost, time or other resources

        The direct results or benefits for individuals, families, groups, communities, organizations or systems

        Short term outcomes can be observed almost directly after the activities are completed

        Medium term outcomes can be observed in a few months or a year of the activity

        Long term impacts ultimate consequence of the activity

        Measurements

        Assessments / Interviews
        Observations Surveys/ Processes

        Principal Outcomes:
        Increased staff capacity Increase in student outcomes Increase school climate measures

        Teacher Outcomes:
        Improved teacher practices Increased job satisfaction Increased teacher retention

        Student Outcomes:
        Increased student experience Increased academic outcomes

         

      Professional Learning Paths

      • Professional learning Tiers

        Evanston-Skokie School District strives to provide professional learning for all staff as we learn to be a more just educational system. We offer a variety of high-quality opportunities and experiences to meet the demands of our staff in ways that best fit their learning styles. See the links below for our professional learning resources and options:

        Our  professional learning model continues to include:

        • DISTRICT Time is used by district leadership to support district wide initiatives and professional learning needs.
        • SCHOOL/ROLE Time is used by the local building leadership team to plan or select professional learning for building staff.
        • EDUCATOR CHOICE Time is used by individuals to build their capacity to meet student needs through self-selected learning experiences.

        D65 Coaching Model

        The District 65 coaching model includes Academic Instructional Coaches supporting educators at the building level across all content areas. Content Facilitators, with experience in specific disciplines, provide content or program specific support,  related to the district priorities. Together, the Academic Instructional Coaches and the Content Facilitators are positioned to provide job-embedded professional learning support and follow-up that leads to powerful practice and better outcomes for previously underserved students.

        You Can't Have a Coaching Culture Without a Structure by Elena Aguilar

      Professional Learning Calendar

      Professional Learning Tools