Page 10 - The Architecture of Professional Development

Design Themes in the New Architecture

For Professional Development

Designs themes are an architect’s signature on a building. For example, Taliesin, Fallingwater, and
Wingspread express Frank Lloyd Wright’s view on the rela onships among the natural environment,
daily living, and the crea on of habitable spaces. Horizontality, the repe on of geometric shapes,
and an organic feel in Wright’s dis nc ve prairie architecture are the strokes of his signature. In a sim‐
ilar fashion, recognizable design themes in a new architecture for professional development
express important rela onships among teachers’ learning, prac ce, and educa onal reform. These
themes draw on familiar, some mes ordinary materials, yet ones used in different and crea ve ways.
The emerging architecture for teacher professional development in schools is anchored in six design

themes.

When combined, these design themes reflect new understandings of professional learning and work
within the current context of educa onal reform. Research and exemplary prac ces in schools suggest
that effec ve professional development is more than the sum of individual workshops and training
sessions. In the new architecture for professional development, teacher and principal learning that
builds individual and collec ve professional capacity to support student learning is embedded in the
school’s structure, culture, and work. Professional exper se requires career‐long learning and oppor‐
tuni es for improvement and refinement of prac ce. The integra on of professional learning and work

also expands the venues for professional development. Learning that engages teachers crea ve and
reflec ve capaci es in ways that improve their prac ce may include professional development
opportuni es “in work” (reflec on in and on prac ce), “at work” (work place learning), “outside of
work” (off‐site learning), “beyond work” (lived experiences beyond school and professional work.
Because teachers and principals are at different stages in their growth and development, their
opportuni es for on‐going learning need to be as rich and varied as the professional learners
themselves. For instance, novice teachers o en need sustained opportuni es to prac ce, receive
feedback on, and experiment with classroom management strategies, instruc onal techniques, and
emerging teaching styles. Within the same school, expert teachers, ones who have mastered these
aspects of their work, also need me to reflect on and improve their professional prac ce.
Professional learning for master teachers acknowledges their exper se and experience while providing

new opportuni es to grow in such ac vi es as collabora ve inquiry, curriculum design work within
and beyond the school, and mentoring new teachers.

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