GCNA-R
Teacher
Professional
Learning Plan
December 2017
3
As we grow and learn, our personal capacities increase and our challenges change. We develop in our
own time. The key to a life of continued growth and development is to be able to recognize the times we
need new knowledge or skills and know how to get them.
Anonymous
.... the content of standards and instructional practice lie in the domain of professional knowledge, broadly
defined as the intersection between instructional practice in classrooms and schools and systematic inquiry
and evaluation of practice.
Elmore, R. F. (2000). Building a new structure for school leadership.
Washington, DC: The Albert Shanker Institute
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Table of Contents
Introduction ...................................................................................................................................................... 5!
Why Develop The Plan? .............................................................................................................................. 5!
Sunrise School Division Vision Framework ................................................. Error! Bookmark not defined.!
Development Team Members ...................................................................................................................... 7!
Plan Overview ................................................................................................................................................. 8!
Basic Beliefs ................................................................................................................................................ 8!
The Three Tracks to Professional Growth ................................................................................................... 9!
The Three Tracks at a Glance ................................................................................................................... 10!
Defining Our Professional Practice ............................................................................................................ 11!
Domain 3: Instruction .................................................................................................................................... 11!
Domain 2: The Learning Environment .......................................................................................................... 11!
Continuous Learning – A Year at a Glance ............................................................................................... 12!
Continuous Learning – A Year at a Glance Timelines ............................................................................... 13!
The Role of the Principal / Assistant Principal ........................................................................................... 15!
Progress through the Tracks ......................................................................................................................... 16!
Track 1 – Beginning Teachers / Teachers New to Sunrise ........................................................................ 17!
Track 1: To Do List .................................................................................................................................... 19!
Track 2 – The Professional Growth Track ................................................................................................. 20!
Questions ...................................................................................................................................................... 21!
Track 2: To Do List .................................................................................................................................... 23!
Track 3 – The Professional Assistance Track ............................................................................................ 24!
The Four Domains of Professional Practice .................................................................................................. 25!
The Four Domains of Professional Practice: Short Form .......................................................................... 26!
Domain 3: Instruction .................................................................................................................................... 26!
Domain 2: The Learning Environment .......................................................................................................... 26!
The Four Domains of Professional Practice: Extended Form .................................................................... 29!
Resources ..................................................................................................................................................... 59!
Domain 3: Instruction .................................................................................................................................... 73!
Domain 2: The Learning Environment .......................................................................................................... 73!
Bibliography ................................................................................................................................................... 75!
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Introduction
Why Develop The Plan?
We are professionals.
Each of us has been educated to a professional teacher, to engage in a truly noble craft. It can be said
however, that our most powerful learning as professionals takes place after we have gained our education
degree. It takes place as we engage with students, our peers, content, and as we continually reflect upon
what works and how we can improve.
Our continued professional learning has never been so important in the face of increasingly diversified
student populations, rising costs and a perceived need to improve driven by increasing competitiveness in
the global economy.. It was within this context that the Board of Trustees of the Sunrise School Division
articulated their Vision Framework to guide our work in Sunrise (see the next page for the framework). If
the lofty vision of Sunrise is to be realized, “Every student who experiences the joy of learning in the Sunrise
School Division will be prepared for the future, with the knowledge, skills and values to achieve their personal
life goals”,
exemplary instructional practice will need to be the norm in all Sunrise learning environments.
It is what teachers think, what teachers believe and what
teachers do at the level of the classroom that ultimately
shapes the kind of learning that young people get.
Hargreaves and Fullan, 1992
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Sunrise School Division Vision Framework
Our Vision – Board Policy -E1
Every student will have the opportunity to experience the joy of learning in the Sunrise
School Division in order to be better prepared for the future, with the knowledge, skills and
values to achieve their own personal life goals
Our Purpose – Sunrise School Division Staff
Nothing less than outstanding learning experiences, one learner at a time.
Our Core Values
Our Vivid Descriptors Of Our Future
Reality
• We exist to instill a passion for learning in
all learners, children and adults alike.
• Learning experiences take place in and
out of the classroom.
• Powerful solutions emerge when people
work together – positive relationships are
everything!
• Everyone: students, parents, and staff,
have personal and social responsibilities.
• The future demands learners who can
think, persist, adapt, team, and dream.
• A total education engages the mind, body,
and spirit.
• Everyone: engaged, respected, and
learning.
! Learners are engaged: inquiring,
advocating, seeking, debating, and teaming
with others.
! All of our teams: schools, Finance,
Transportation, Information &
Communications Technologies (ICT) – all of
them, are engaged in innovative projects
that lead to improved teaching and learning.
! If a practice cannot be linked to improved
teaching and learning, we change the
practice.
! Having Sunrise on your transcript or
resume is a mark of significance.
! Overwhelming percentages of our
graduates are able to live responsible,
joyful lives. They indicate that their Sunrise
experiences have prepared them well.
! Our schools and websites are visited
heavily. Our staff are published and are
presenting as we become renowned for
educational and organizational excellence.
! Members of our team enjoy their work.
They are engaged in powerful projects that
are making a positive difference.
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Development Team Members
From November 2004 and November 2005, the following Sunrise Educational Leadership Team (SELT)
members met, conducted research and developed this plan:
• Marg Janssen Principal, Centennial School
• Janice Leroux Assistant Principal, Powerview School
• Liz Myles Assistant Principal, Beausejour Early Years School
• Linda Sullivan Former Principal, Edward Schreyer School
• Duane Brothers Superintendent, Sunrise School Division
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Plan Overview
Basic Beliefs
This model will provide all Sunrise educators with a flexible plan in which to plan, practise and reflect upon
their growth as professional educators. Framed by solid educational research along with a high degree of
flexibility, all Sunrise educators will work within this model on an annual basis. Beliefs inherent in the
development of this plan include:
1. Students have a right to have teachers who are effective and growing professionally.
2. Teachers as professionals can and should take primary responsibility for their own professional
development.
3. The professional need of teachers cannot be met in just one or two ways; professional development
activities need to be customized to the individual teacher.
4. Teachers are competent professionals who desire help in a collegial way.
5. Continuous positive professional growth is the ultimate aim of supervision.
6. A Professional Learning Plan can provide an opportunity for self-evaluation and a choice in the
method of supervision.
7. Teachers can learn from each other in a supportive and collegial manner.
8. Mutually developed goals are an integral part of personal learning.
9. Teachers, like students, have different learning styles. In the process of professional growth, these
differences shall be recognized and supported.
Traditionally, Supervision and Professional Growth have been viewed as separate and distinct functions. In
Sunrise we see these two domains as integrated for several reasons:
! External accountability systems have not been proven to be effective in improving instructional practice
(Elmore, 2004). We need to clarify expectations; develop shared, high standards; and then ensure that
we are providing strong ongoing supports for individuals to improve their practice.
! The most effective improvements occur when professionals “own” their own personal and professional
growth. We create “win-win” situations (shared high expectations regarding educational practice) and
then have individuals drive their plans to improve their practice.
We also recognize there are times in which more directed, supervisory strategies are needed, specifically
for teachers who are new to the profession and educators who are experiencing difficulty in their practice.
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The Three Tracks to Professional Growth
All Sunrise teachers will fall into one of the following categories on an annual basis.
Track 1: Beginning Teachers / Teachers new to Sunrise
! Teachers in the first two years of their career.
! Experienced teachers in their first year with Sunrise School Division.
! These individuals will receive formal observations and evaluations of their beginning practice.
Track 2: Professional Growth Track.
! Teachers in their third year and beyond in their professional practice.
! These individuals, in consultation with a peer(s) or an administrator
1
, will develop their personal
Professional Learning Planning on an annual basis.
Track 3: Professional Assistance Track
! Teachers at any stage of their career who are experiencing difficulties in performing key aspects
of their practice.
! Individuals will receive structured supports and will be required to work toward specific
improvements. Individuals will only be placed on this track in consultation with STA/MTS. We
would expect very few individuals on this track on an annual basis.
The one common activity that all teachers will participate in on an annual basis is the completion of the
detailed self-assessment according to the four Dimensions of Professional Practice (see Resources).
1
Peers: Fellow teachers; Administrator: Principal or Assistant Principal
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The Three Tracks at a Glance
Components of Professional Practice
Track 2
Professional Growth Track
Who:
! Teachers with three or more
years of experience who are
demonstrating competency with
the Components of Professional
Practice
Purpose:
! To enhance professional growth
! To improve student learning
! To provide feedback on
professional issues
! To focus on school
improvement initiatives
What:
! Informal observations.
! Develop a portfolio
! Reflective practice
! Formal observations and
evaluation of performance as
requested by the teachers
Method:
! Ongoing informal dialogue on
instructional practice
! Teacher teams/individual
teacher develop a Professional
Learning Plan
! Establish indicators of progress
! Dialogue with school
administration
Track 3
Professional Assistance Track
Who:
! Teachers in need of specific
professional guidance in
identified area(s) of the
Components of Professional
Practice
Purpose:
! To provide a more structured
process for a teacher who may
benefit from more support
! To provide due process for
disciplinary action
What:
! Three Phases:
! Awareness
! Assistance
! Discipline
Method:
! Observation and feedback
focused specifically on identified
area(s) of needed improvement
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Defining Our Professional Practice
All true professionals – medical doctors, lawyers, architects and teachers – should have a ‘practice.’ By
practice we mean that the professionals have gained and share a research-based foundation of knowledge
and skill that in turn defines and informs their craft. With respect to teaching, educational professionals
practise and demonstrate those skills and attitudes that predictably and demonstrably accelerate the
learning of students. Current educational research, including the work of Charlotte Danielson, identifies the
components of educational professional practice that we will expect and support all Sunrise educators to
master. They are summarized below.
Domain 1: Planning and Preparation
This domain includes comprehensive
understanding of the content to be taught,
knowledge of the students’ backgrounds and the
design of instruction and assessment practices.
Its components are:
1a. Demonstrating knowledge of content
and pedagogy
1b. Demonstrating knowledge of students
1c. Selecting instructional goals
1d. Demonstrating knowledge of resources
1e. Designing coherent instruction
1f. Assessing student learning
Domain 3: Instruction
This domain is concerned with the teacher’s skill
in engaging students in learning the content, and
includes the wide range of instructional strategies
that enable students to learn. Its components
are:
3a. Communicating clearly and accurately
3b. Using questioning and discussion
techniques
3c. Engaging students in learning
3d. Providing feedback to students
3e. Demonstrating flexibility and
responsiveness
Domain 2: The Learning Environment
This domain addresses the teacher’s skill in
establishing an environment conducive to
learning, including both the physical and
interpersonal aspects of the environment. Its
components are:
2a. Creating an environment of respect and
rapport
2b. Establishing a culture for learning
2c. Managing classroom procedures
2d. Managing student behaviour
2e. Organizing physical space
Domain 4: Professional Responsibilities
This domain addresses a teacher’s additional
professional responsibilities, including self-
assessment and reflection, communication with
parents, participating in ongoing professional
development and contributing to the school and
district environment. Its components are:
4a. Reflecting on teaching
4b. Maintaining accurate records
4c. Communicating with families
4d. Contributing to the school and district
4e. Growing and developing professionally
4f. Showing professionalism
Source: Danielson, C. (1996). Enhancing professional practice: A framework for teaching.
Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.