The Edvocate

Top Menu

Main Menu

  • Start Here
    • Our Brands
    • Governance
      • Lynch Educational Consulting
      • Dr. Lynch’s Personal Website
      • Careers
    • Write For Us
    • Books
    • The Tech Edvocate Product Guide
    • Contact Us
    • The Edvocate Podcast
    • Edupedia
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
  • PreK-12
    • Assessment
    • Assistive Technology
    • Child Development
    • Classroom Management
    • Early Childhood
    • EdTech & Innovation
    • Education Leadership
    • Equity
    • First Year Teachers
    • Gifted and Talented Education
    • Parental Involvement
    • Policy & Reform
    • Special Education
    • Teachers
  • Higher Ed
    • Best Colleges and Universities
    • Best College and University Programs
    • Diversity
    • HBCU’s
    • Higher Education
    • Higher Education EdTech
    • International Education
  • Advertise
  • The Tech Edvocate Awards
    • The Awards Process
    • Finalists and Winners of The 2022 Tech Edvocate Awards
      • Finalists and Winners of The 2021 Tech Edvocate Awards
      • Finalists and Winners of The 2020 Tech Edvocate Awards
      • Finalists and Winners of The 2019 Tech Edvocate Awards
      • Finalists and Winners of The 2018 Tech Edvocate Awards
      • Finalists and Winners of The 2017 Tech Edvocate Awards
    • Award Seals
  • Apps
    • GPA Calculator for College
    • GPA Calculator for High School
    • Cumulative GPA Calculator
    • Grade Calculator
    • Weighted Grade Calculator
    • Final Grade Calculator
  • The Tech Edvocate
  • Pedagogue
  • P-20 Ed Careers

logo

The Edvocate

  • Start Here
    • Our Brands
    • Governance
      • Lynch Educational Consulting
      • Dr. Lynch’s Personal Website
        • My Speaking Page
      • Careers
    • Write For Us
    • Books
    • The Tech Edvocate Product Guide
    • Contact Us
    • The Edvocate Podcast
    • Edupedia
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
  • PreK-12
    • Assessment
    • Assistive Technology
    • Child Development
    • Classroom Management
    • Early Childhood
    • EdTech & Innovation
    • Education Leadership
    • Equity
    • First Year Teachers
    • Gifted and Talented Education
    • Parental Involvement
    • Policy & Reform
    • Special Education
    • Teachers
  • Higher Ed
    • Best Colleges and Universities
    • Best College and University Programs
    • Diversity
    • HBCU’s
    • Higher Education
    • Higher Education EdTech
    • International Education
  • Advertise
  • The Tech Edvocate Awards
    • The Awards Process
    • Finalists and Winners of The 2022 Tech Edvocate Awards
      • Finalists and Winners of The 2021 Tech Edvocate Awards
      • Finalists and Winners of The 2020 Tech Edvocate Awards
      • Finalists and Winners of The 2019 Tech Edvocate Awards
      • Finalists and Winners of The 2018 Tech Edvocate Awards
      • Finalists and Winners of The 2017 Tech Edvocate Awards
    • Award Seals
  • Apps
    • GPA Calculator for College
    • GPA Calculator for High School
    • Cumulative GPA Calculator
    • Grade Calculator
    • Weighted Grade Calculator
    • Final Grade Calculator
  • The Tech Edvocate
  • Pedagogue
  • P-20 Ed Careers
  • Checklist For Organizing Your 1st Grade Classroom

  • 16 Fairy Tale Books for Kids

  • The Graduation Books for Students of All Ages

  • 10 Books for Teaching Kids About Germs

  • 15 Presidential Books for the Classroom

  • What Is Interactive Writing?

  • 10 Joke Books for Kids

  • Time to Rethink Family Tree Assignments

  • 21 Thrilling Superhero Books for Kids

  • The Checklist For Setting Up Your 4th Grade Classroom

Teachers
Home›Teachers›Here’s Why Online PD Won’t Work if It’s Not Job-Embedded

Here’s Why Online PD Won’t Work if It’s Not Job-Embedded

By Matthew Lynch
July 14, 2016
12141
0
Spread the love

A former New York City PD director and blended learning specialist weighs in on online learning for teachers.

A guest post by Michael Weinraub

When I was teaching education courses to beginning New York City teachers in the early 2000s, our department had a problem that every institution of higher education would love to have: an explosion in enrollment. From a student body of hundreds of graduate students, our enrollment boomed to thousands in the span of a few years, due primarily to “alternative” pathways to teaching like Teach For America and the New York City Teaching Fellows. Our faculty needed to act quickly to accommodate this overwhelming influx of students, and we looked to blended learning to satisfy our need to scale. When I say “blended learning” I’m referring to the strategic combination of online and in-person learning into a cohesive whole. (There’s a much richer description at the Blended Learning Universe, a hub of useful resources curated by the Christensen Institute.)

Our approach was to utilize a version of the rotation model, working in-person with one group of students each week while the others engaged in structured activities online. Structuring the learning this way, I was able to work directly with 100 students over the course of the semester rather than just 30. Voila, a victory for expediency and efficiency!

But did we celebrate a victory for deep engagement and real learning? That’s the question I’ve been grappling with for the last dozen years that I’ve been actively involved in the digital learning space, first as a designer and instructor, then as a professional development director in the New York City Department of Education, and now as a blended learning specialist at Public Consulting Group. Digital teaching and learning, whether fully online or blended, is just as varied as traditional learning modalities when it comes to effectiveness. Success or failure is truly in the details.

So what actually contributes to meaningful and effective digital learning for teachers?  Above all, it should be job-embedded. It goes without saying that professional learning should be relevant to learners and directly related to the skills and understandings they will need to improve at their jobs. But the type of job-embedding I’m talking about concerns empowering teachers to engage in meaningful learning activities that they have selected as a part of their professional responsibilities. While there are exceptions to the rule, most teachers have limited choice over how and when they learn. Training that is deemed essential takes place in person through workshops, meetings, or coaching while elective, online activities are offered separately, usually to be pursued on “your own time.”

In-person professional development is seen to fall within a teacher’s primary responsibilities–for which they are paid (not an insignificant detail)–and is fully embedded within the social and pedagogical realities of teaching and learning. Online learning, on the other hand, usually takes place outside the school community. As such, the experience is virtually disembodied (the very opposite of embedded), not because it happens remotely, in a digital space, but because the work is situated apart from the relationships that matter most: teacher to student, teacher to teacher, and teacher to administrator.

The implicit message here is that real learning happens in real life, and elective learning takes place online. Digital learning for teachers will only work, and can only be evaluated successfully, when digital elements like courses, modules, professional learning communities, and social networks are brought to the table as valid parts of a professional learning system and not merely add-ons. What exacerbates the problem is that online learning is not only commonly offered outside of the school-based community of teacher participants, it is often situated outside of any community of learners, in the form of self-paced courses. Now, I am not opposed to self-paced learning per se–some of my best friends are autodidacts–but I believe strongly that opportunities to socialize knowledge are essential for students and teachers to be able to apply what they have learned.

So what is to be done?

I believe that the move toward personalized and competency-based learning directed powerfully toward students will grow exponentially for teachers as well in the coming years. One manifestation of this should be expanded opportunities for teachers to select the modality of learning they prefer: in-person, online, or blended. This can only happen if the online and blended learning activities made available to them match their needs. Schools and districts can take a decisive leap in this direction by identifying core professional development experiences that are now offered only in person and transforming (or translating) them to robust online and blended versions.

While some might criticize this as unimaginative or worse, as sustaining the status quo, I can only think of how Octavio Paz described translation, insisting that “every translation, up to a certain point, is an invention and as such it constitutes a unique text.” His description only begins to capture, I think, what is possible when teachers, instructional designers, and multimedia specialists come together to create these new “texts.” What’s fascinating is that these new texts, the online and blended learning activities that emerge from the strategic collaboration of designers and pedagogues, are often more engaging and performance-based than the originals on which they were based. There is something about the shift in modality, from in-person to online, that compels the designer to create alignment among objectives, materials, and activities that is not always evident in in-person PD. In this way, the translation is very often superior to that which has been translated.

But none of this is easy. Effective teaching is art and performance at least as much as it is science and technique, and the same thing applies to designing online learning. The design, development, and delivery of these new online and blended “texts” will require a commitment of time and resources, and the time to allocate them is now.

Michael Weinraub is a former bilingual teacher, literacy consultant, and professor of Education at Pace University in New York City. He is now a blended learning specialist at PCG Education.

TagsedchatEdtechEducationelearningk12ntchatSTEMteachered
Previous Article

The shocking truth about competency based education

Next Article

Educators: What You Need to Know About ...

Matthew Lynch

Related articles More from author

  • Uncategorized

    Odysseyware creates Texas-specific test prep courses

    February 2, 2016
    By Chris Piehler
  • Matthew LynchTeachers

    If You Want to Be a Teacher, You Have to Know This (Part I)

    November 7, 2015
    By Matthew Lynch
  • Early Childhood & K-12 EdTechTrending Topics

    Is Artificial Intelligence the Future of Education?

    August 30, 2017
    By Matthew Lynch
  • Digital & Mobile TechnologyEarly Childhood & K-12 EdTechHigher Education EdTech

    Artificial Intelligence: Are Computers Taking Over for Teachers?

    September 23, 2017
    By Matthew Lynch
  • Black Boys in CrisisEquityTrending Topics

    Black Boys in Crisis: “Black People Can’t Be Doctors”

    June 6, 2017
    By Matthew Lynch
  • Digital & Mobile TechnologyEarly Childhood & K-12 EdTechTrending Topics

    Why learn spelling or math if there’s an app for that?

    June 8, 2017
    By Matthew Lynch

Leave a reply Cancel reply

  • Artificial IntelligenceSchool Finance

    Cutting Campus Costs by Integrating AI Tools Into the Classrooms

  • Artificial Intelligence

    26 Ways That Artificial Intelligence (AI) is Transforming Education for the Better

  • Artificial IntelligenceOnline Learning & eLearning

    AI is the Future of ELearning

Search

Registration and Login

  • Register
  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org

Newsletter

Signup for The Edvocate Newsletter and have the latest in P-20 education news and opinion delivered to your email address!

Subscribe to The Edvocate Podcast

Apple PodcastsGoogle PodcastsAndroidby EmailRSS
  • Recent

  • Popular

  • Comments

  • Checklist For Organizing Your 1st Grade Classroom

    By Matthew Lynch
    August 9, 2022
  • 16 Fairy Tale Books for Kids

    By Matthew Lynch
    August 9, 2022
  • The Graduation Books for Students of All Ages

    By Matthew Lynch
    August 9, 2022
  • 10 Books for Teaching Kids About Germs

    By Matthew Lynch
    August 9, 2022
  • 15 Presidential Books for the Classroom

    By Matthew Lynch
    August 9, 2022
  • 18 Reasons the U.S. Education System is Failing

    By Matthew Lynch
    April 3, 2017
  • The Top 5 Unexpected Benefits of Early Childhood Education

    By Matthew Lynch
    February 29, 2016
  • 7 Benefits of STEM Education

    By Matthew Lynch
    January 12, 2019
  • What is Culturally Responsive Pedagogy?

    By Matthew Lynch
    April 21, 2016
  • pass or fail

    Black Boys in Crisis: Why Aren’t They Reading?

    By Matthew Lynch
    January 16, 2017
  • Cognitive Learning: A Primer - The Tech Edvocate
    on
    August 6, 2022

    Cognitive Development: What You Need to Know

    […] you are aware ...
  • Benedict university - Top 10 Reasons To Consider - Wahbalami.COM
    on
    August 2, 2022

    Benedict College Admissions: Everything You Want to and Need to Know

    […] Find out what ...
  • 2 Août 1859 – Décès d’Horace Mann, père de l'éducation américaine - Nima REJA
    on
    August 2, 2022

    Pass or Fail: Horace Mann – An American Public School Pioneer

    […] https://www.theedadvocate.org/horace-mann-an-education-pioneer/ […]
  • “unleashing (of) the potential of continuous teaching and learning (improvement) in language education” – Learn With ...
    on
    July 31, 2022

    The Real Purpose of Assessments in Education

    […] Lynch, M. (2022, ...
  • What is the Biggest Problem in Education Today? - Rodney Coe Education
    on
    July 30, 2022

    18 Reasons the U.S. Education System is Failing

    […] The Edvocate lists ...

Ask an Expert

  • Ask An Expert

    How Dumbed Down Education Is Creating a National Security Crisis

    Spread the loveFor the past few decades, our country’s educational system has seen both struggle and tremendous change. With the various ailments plaguing our educational system, education reforms have attempted ...
  • Ask An Expert

    21 Inspirational Quotes That Nelson Mandela Made About Education

    Spread the loveWe all have our heroes. Those human beings that seem larger than life and almost achieve Godlike status. One of my heroes is the late-great Nelson Mandela, who ...
  • Ask An ExpertAssistive TechnologyCareer ReadinessChild Development TechClassroom ManagementDigital & Mobile TechnologyDigital LeadershipDisabilitiesDiversityEarly ChildhoodEarly Childhood & K-12 EdTechEdTech & InnovationEducation LeadershipElementary EducationElementary SchoolEquityFirst Year TeachersFreshHigh SchoolK-12Middle SchoolModern ParentingParent & Family TechParental InvolvementParentingPersonalized LearningPodcastPolicy & ReformPreK-12Special EducationSTEMTeacher EducationTeachers

    The Edvocate Podcast, Episode 7: How Digital Age Teachers Can Win Over Parents

    Spread the loveEducation is a collaborative process, as it takes many stakeholders working in unison to help students succeed academically. One of the most integral parts of this collaborative team ...
  • Ask An ExpertAssessmentAssistive TechnologyBlack Boys in CrisisChild Development TechClassroom ManagementDigital & Mobile TechnologyDigital LeadershipDisabilitiesEarly ChildhoodEarly Childhood & K-12 EdTechEdTech & InnovationEdTech Policy & ReformEducation LeadershipElementary EducationElementary SchoolEquityFeaturedFirst Year TeachersFreshGamificationGifted and Talented EducationHBCU'sHigh SchoolHigher EducationK-12Online Learning & eLearningOpEducationPersonalized LearningPodcastPolicy & ReformRetention & Social Promotion SeriesSpecial EducationSTEMTeacher EducationTeachersTesting

    The Edvocate Podcast, Episode 6: 8 Ways That Digital Age Teachers Avoid Burning Out

    Spread the loveBeing a teacher is a tough job. So much so, many new teachers end up leaving the field within their first three years. To ensure that the next ...
  • Ask An ExpertAssessmentAssistive TechnologyBlack Boys in CrisisBullyingChild DevelopmentChild Development TechClassroom ManagementCurrent Ed NewsDigital LeadershipEarly ChildhoodEarly Childhood & K-12 EdTechEdTech & InnovationEdTech Policy & ReformEdTech Startups & BusinessesEducation LeadershipEquityFeaturedFirst Year TeachersFreshGamificationGifted and Talented EducationHBCU'sHigh SchoolHigher EducationHigher Education EdTechK-12Matthew LynchModern ParentingOnline Learning & eLearningOpEducationPersonalized LearningPodcastPolicy & ReformRetention & Social Promotion SeriesSpecial EducationSTEMTeacher EducationTeachersTestingYear-Round Schooling

    The Edvocate Podcast, Episode 5: The Archetype of a Great Teacher

    Spread the loveOne of the questions that I am frequently asked is, what does a good teacher look like? I respond by mentioning my 10th-grade Biology teacher, Mrs. Minor, and ...

International Education

  • Education FoundationsInternational Education

    4 Reasons You Should Study Geography

    Spread the loveUsually, people are under the wrong impression that geography does not offer many job opportunities, and there are no jobs for a geographer. They think that studying geography ...
  • International Education

    How International Baccalaureate (IB) Programs Work

    Spread the loveThe International Baccalaureate Program is a very intensive pre-college program in which when students get involved, they get college credit. Unlike most other learning initiatives, this program deeply ...
  • International Education

    Globalization: Everything You Need to Know

    Spread the loveGlobalization is the growing interconnectedness of countries around the world. It involves increasing communication and various forms of interaction between people of different nations, ethnicities and cultures. There ...
  • AssessmentEducation LeadershipHigher EducationInternational EducationProfessional DevelopmentTeachers

    So You Want to Attend Graduate School: The 411 on Grad School Admissions Tests

    Spread the loveApplying for admission to professional and graduate schools is no less competitive than college/undergraduate admissions. If you’re planning to pursue a degree in business, law, medicine, or graduate ...
  • Higher EducationInternational Education

    What Extracurricular Activities Impress Colleges the Most?

    Spread the loveWhen you apply to schools that offer holistic admissions or apply to a college using the Common Application, you will have to describe your participation in extracurricular activities. ...

Early Childhood Education

  • Early Childhood

    Gross Motor Skills: Everything You Need to Know

    Spread the loveIt’s a term used to describe those skills needed to regulate coordination and movement of the large muscles of the upper and lower limbs, as well as the ...
  • Early Childhood

    10 CARD GAMES EVERY KID SHOULD KNOW

    Spread the loveA regular 52-card deck is a lovely thing. There are many activities for youngsters and families to enjoy in one portable set of cards. Yet youngsters get trapped ...
  • Early Childhood

    NATIVE AMERICAN PICTURE BOOKS FOR CHILDREN

    Spread the loveIf you frequent my book lists, you are aware of my strong belief in the ability of children’s literature to affect social change. 1) By exposing kids to ...
  • Early Childhood

    CHILDREN’S BOOKS THAT ADDRESS LONELINESS

    Spread the loveWe all experience loneliness occasionally, but loneliness and isolation may occasionally overwhelm youngsters. By telling stories of other people who have experienced comparable feelings, adults may aid youngsters ...
  • Early Childhood

    PICTURE BOOKS ABOUT THE MOON FOR IMAGINATIVE CHILDREN

    Spread the loveDo your children share my fascination with the moon? These children’s books about the moon should be added to your reading list if this is the case. Stat. ...

Gifted and Talented Education

  • Gifted and Talented Education

    Twice-Exceptional: What Does it Mean?

    Spread the loveTo be twice-exceptional is to be exceptionally gifted in some academic aspects while being below average compared to peers in other aspects. As a matter of fact, such ...
  • Gifted and Talented Education

    A Guide to Talent Search Programs

    Spread the loveThe Talent Search Initiative has as its aim; the identification of high-performing students by organizing specific tests. Different avenues are then provided for these students to channel their ...
  • Gifted and Talented EducationK-12

    Homogeneous Grouping: What You Need to Know

    Spread the loveThis term refers to the grouping of students by mental capability, aptitude, or hobbies. For instance, gifted students are placed in one group, and students with special needs ...
  • Gifted and Talented Education

    Cluster Grouping: What You Need to Know

    Spread the loveThis term describes a manner of classifying gifted students to place them in properly segmented classrooms. For example, about five to seven extremely bright pupils with comparable skill ...
  • Gifted and Talented EducationHigher Education

    Merit Scholarships: Everything Your Need to Know

    Spread the loveThese are monetary gifts awarded by institutions to superbly gifted students, who have set themselves apart by their exceptional performance in schoolwork, regardless of whether they require the ...

Black Boys in Crisis Series

  • Black Boys in Crisis

    The Importance of Mentoring Young African-American Males

    Spread the loveTeachers need to realize that at home, in their neighborhoods, and in school, many students face difficulties that can interfere with learning. Compared to their middle-class counterparts, it ...
  • Black Boys in CrisisDiversityEquity

    7 Ways That Black Students are Discriminated Against in U.S K-12 Schools

    Spread the loveAfrican Africans have a long history of being mistreated in the United States, starting with slavery. It should come as no surprise that their children face the same ...
  • Ask An ExpertAssessmentAssistive TechnologyBlack Boys in CrisisChild Development TechClassroom ManagementDigital & Mobile TechnologyDigital LeadershipDisabilitiesEarly ChildhoodEarly Childhood & K-12 EdTechEdTech & InnovationEdTech Policy & ReformEducation LeadershipElementary EducationElementary SchoolEquityFeaturedFirst Year TeachersFreshGamificationGifted and Talented EducationHBCU'sHigh SchoolHigher EducationK-12Online Learning & eLearningOpEducationPersonalized LearningPodcastPolicy & ReformRetention & Social Promotion SeriesSpecial EducationSTEMTeacher EducationTeachersTesting

    The Edvocate Podcast, Episode 6: 8 Ways That Digital Age Teachers Avoid Burning Out

    Spread the loveBeing a teacher is a tough job. So much so, many new teachers end up leaving the field within their first three years. To ensure that the next ...
  • Ask An ExpertAssessmentAssistive TechnologyBlack Boys in CrisisBullyingChild DevelopmentChild Development TechClassroom ManagementCurrent Ed NewsDigital LeadershipEarly ChildhoodEarly Childhood & K-12 EdTechEdTech & InnovationEdTech Policy & ReformEdTech Startups & BusinessesEducation LeadershipEquityFeaturedFirst Year TeachersFreshGamificationGifted and Talented EducationHBCU'sHigh SchoolHigher EducationHigher Education EdTechK-12Matthew LynchModern ParentingOnline Learning & eLearningOpEducationPersonalized LearningPodcastPolicy & ReformRetention & Social Promotion SeriesSpecial EducationSTEMTeacher EducationTeachersTestingYear-Round Schooling

    The Edvocate Podcast, Episode 5: The Archetype of a Great Teacher

    Spread the loveOne of the questions that I am frequently asked is, what does a good teacher look like? I respond by mentioning my 10th-grade Biology teacher, Mrs. Minor, and ...
  • Ask An ExpertAssistive TechnologyBlack Boys in CrisisBullyingChild DevelopmentChild Development TechClassroom ManagementDisabilitiesDiversityEarly ChildhoodEarly Childhood & K-12 EdTechEdTech & InnovationEdTech Policy & ReformEducation LeadershipElementary EducationElementary SchoolEquityFeaturedFirst Year TeachersFreshGifted and Talented EducationHigh SchoolHigher EducationHigher Education EdTechK-12Middle SchoolModern ParentingOnline Learning & eLearningParent & Family TechParentingPersonalized LearningPodcastPolicy & ReformSecondary EducationSTEMTeacher EducationTeachersTesting

    The Edvocate Podcast, Episode 4: How to Create a Culturally Responsive Classroom

    Spread the loveBuilding a culturally responsive classroom is hard. To help you along your journey, here is your guide to exploring and respecting the cultural backgrounds of your students while ...

RSS Matthew on Education Week

  • Au Revoir from Education Futures November 20, 2018 Matthew Lynch
  • 6 Steps to Data-Driven Literacy Instruction October 17, 2018 Matthew Lynch
  • Four Keys to a Modern IT Approach in K-12 Schools October 2, 2018 Matthew Lynch
  • What's the Difference Between Burnout and Demoralization, and What Can Teachers Do About It? September 27, 2018 Matthew Lynch
  • Revisiting Using Edtech for Bullying and Suicide Prevention September 10, 2018 Matthew Lynch

About Us

The Edvocate was created in 2014 to argue for shifts in education policy and organization in order to enhance the quality of education and the opportunities for learning afforded to P-20 students in America. What we envisage may not be the most straightforward or the most conventional ideas. We call for a relatively radical and certainly quite comprehensive reorganization of America’s P-20 system.

That reorganization, though, and the underlying effort, will have much to do with reviving the American education system, and reviving a national love of learning.  The Edvocate plans to be one of key architects of this revival, as it continues to advocate for education reform, equity, and innovation.

Newsletter

Signup for The Edvocate Newsletter and have the latest in P-20 education news and opinion delivered to your email address!

Contact

The Edvocate
5322 Markel Road, Suite 104
Richmond, VA 23230
(601) 630-5238
[email protected]

Follow us

Copyright (c) 2022 Matthew Lynch. All rights reserved.