Page 12 - The Architecture of Professional Development

The design themes described above are complemented by research on exemplary professional
development prac ces in schools. Over the past decade various professional associa ons, teacher net‐
works, scholars, and government agencies have developed lists of the characteris cs of high‐quality
professional development. See, for example, Standards for Staff Development, 1994; Teachers Take
Charge for Their Learning: Transforming Professional Development for Student Success, 1996;
Designing Professional Development for Teachers of Science and Mathema cs, 1998; and Professional
Development: Learning from the Best, 1999. The la er is based on a set of criteria that The United
States Department of Educa on developed for The Na onal Awards Program for Model Professional
Development. Based on these works, there are at least ten iden fiable characteris cs of high‐quality,
effec ve professional development. Combined with the emerging design themes, these characteris cs
embody the essen al components of professional development architecture and serve as helpful
guides for planning, implemen ng, and judging the quality of professional development prac ces in
schools.

The list of essen al characteris cs is
not as a prescrip ve fix for
professional development in schools.
Rather, the list provides a framework,
one anchored in school‐based
research and exemplary prac ces that
informs educators as they design,
deliver, and evaluate professional
learning and its outcomes.

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