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Up, up and away with ATPE's professional development offerings
By Kate Johanns
On Feb. 1, every ATPE member was invited to participate in an interactive professional development program—the ATPE Book Circle. Participants were to read an education-related book and discuss it weekly on the ATPE Idea Exchange, ATPE’s online forum. Simple enough.
But the 29 educators who completed the ATPE Book Circle’s first selection, The Courage to Teach by Parker J. Palmer, gained much more than nine continuing professional education (CPE) credits. When participants reflected on their readings online, they found themselves embarking on an intellectual and personal odyssey.
“The book has definitely opened my eyes to different issues within teaching and my style of teaching,” wrote participant Stevi Huffaker in her final post about The Courage to Teach. Huffaker teaches middle school math in Tahoka ISD. “I would like to be a learner as well as a risk-taker, have more balance and clarity in my teaching, have more patience as well as deliberation, and also maintain positivity.”
Providing a forum for such reflection is exactly what ATPE hopes to achieve with its professional development offerings, which include the ATPE Book Circle and Idea Exchange, online CPE courses, workshops at state-level events, classroom tools and resources, and online mentoring for novice educators. Professional Development Coordinator Kris Childers’ goal is for ATPE’s professional development resources to be as well-known as the association’s protection benefits and advocacy program.
“I want our professional development to be a strong draw for members and a really useful tool for them,” she says.
Online, on your own time
The idea for a professional development “book club” came from members who attended Leader U 2009. Childers thought such a group was tailor-made for the ATPE Idea Exchange. Not only would the ATPE Book Circle bring more traffic to the forum, but also it would give participants a chance to use technology to access professional development on their own schedules.
“Educators are bombarded with things going on all of the time, so having the ability to participate on your own time is really important,” Childers says.
The Courage to Teach was a title long on Childers’ personal to-read list, so when she noticed a new edition had recently been released for the book’s 10th anniversary, she decided it should be the ATPE Book Circle’s first selection. Parker’s philosophy of teaching provided excellent fodder for discussion.
“Even if I disagreed with some chapters, they allowed me to reflect on my teaching style,” Allen ISD French teacher Francine Dupuis-Ho posted on the Idea Exchange. “I feel more comfortable with who I am, what I do in class and my approach.”
The ATPE Book Circle isn’t ATPE’s first foray into online professional development, but it is the first to connect educators across the state through technology. (ATPE State President Sam Spurlock even participated.)
“I really enjoyed reading the comments from the other teachers,” wrote Haley Wheeler, a sixth-grade social studies teacher from Lampasas ISD. “I have learned just as much from them as I have from reading the book.”
Book Circle participant Sharon Brittain, a high school social studies teacher from Plemons-Stinnett-Phillips CISD, found herself discussing her virtual professional development experience with on-campus colleagues.
“I’ve already promised [my copy of The Courage to Teach] to two other teachers, and I have a feeling it may be very dog-eared by the time I get it back,” Brittain posted. “If it can help inspire others to teach, or if it can renew the faith of others, then it can have chocolate and coffee on it when it comes home to me.”
In classrooms and out
The ATPE Book Circle will begin discussing its next selection June 1; interested members should visit the ATPE Idea Exchange for details.
Another ATPE professional development initiative, the Performance-based Academic Coaching Team (PACT) System, is about to begin its second year. Through the PACT System, ATPE—in an exclusive partnership with the Texas A&M University System—offers members in their first three years of teaching free access to online mentors, chats and more. During the 2009-10 membership year, 110 ATPE members took advantage of this member benefit.
In the realm of classroom resources, ATPE offers a discount on SeaClass LPTM (lesson planning tools from Seawinn Inc.) as well as a program to encourage student reading. Through the ATPE Book of the Month Club, any Texas educator may download fliers, discussion questions and certificates of participation to use in conjunction with grade-level selections from Texas Library Association reading lists. Educators may also volunteer to be “Guest Readers” and create discussion questions with their students for posting at atpe.org.
In addition, Childers plans to expand ATPE’s online CPE course selection and introduce webinars to the association’s professional development lineup. If you have ideas or feedback on ATPE’s professional development resources, please send an e-mail to prof_dev@atpe.org.
ATPE offers free CPE to you and me
In need of continuing professional education (CPE) credits? Spend some time this summer taking the free courses available at www.atpe.org/Resources/ProfessionalDevelopment. The majority are open to any Texas educator.