Get ready for a visit from Captain Obvious- professional development helps us develop professionally!
It’s not as simple as just sitting through a workshop or going to a meeting or watching the online modules for the annual mandatory training though. Really good professional development makes you think about your teaching in a new way and inspires you to expand your horizons!
Once you start looking, you’ll find a wealth of opportunities out there that cover a wide variety of subjects. There are online options, local options, and most intriguing, to me at least, options that involve travel (and sometimes a stipend as well!)
A few years ago, I applied and was selected for a summer institute from the National Endowment for the Humanities. I had the opportunity to spend a week during the summer here:
Beautiful Cortez, Colorado! As a summer scholar, I had the opportunity to visit the area and, along with other teachers from all over the country, learn about the culture and history of the area surrounding Mesa Verde National Park.
Awesome, right? While we were there, we had the opportunity to explore what, exactly happens in the work that archaeologists do, and to work in teams to design curricular resources to share out with other educators, both on the trip and back home. In addition to all that, we got to try our hands at some lab work ourselves!
I can definitely say that while I have a wide range of interests, I knew next to nothing about archaeology. This trip was a huge eye opened and really broadened my horizons about topics I could present to students in school year that followed the trip. This opportunity also, years later, continues to influence my professional growth, as the photos and information I learned on the trip informed one of the resources in my store- Differentiated Reading Passages- Mesa Verde National Park. Have a look:
One of the best parts of travel as professional development is the opportunity to bring information and learning about a given destination back to the students in the classroom. If you have a love of travel and are looking for a really unforgettable professional development experience, consider applying to one of the NEH programs! There are 48 different options available right now, and applications close on March 1, 2020! Check it out!
What has been the most memorable professional development experience you’ve had? Tell me about it in the comments below!
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