Standard 3

professional staff members and leaders participate in an ongoing system of STEM-specific professional learning.

Paine leaders and teachers participate in ongoing STEM-specific professional learning. District provided PD, scheduled weekly collaboration, professional learning networks, communities, and conferences made available to all teachers and leaders ensure that our teachers have regular and frequent opportunities for growth in STEM disciplines and in the implementation of STEM experiences in their classrooms.

District Provided PD

One way that Paine Elementary School teachers participate in ongoing STEM professional development is through our District's Technology Department. Our technology department provides and takes part in professional development (PD) related to STEM disciplines that result in school-wide improvements in STEM instructional practices. PD is valued by our district, as evidenced by our implementation of our early release schedule. This schedule releases students one hour early on Thursdays to allow for regular, embedded PD for teachers each week. This time is used for several purposes, including district-led STEM-discipline and STEM-specific PD.

One hundred percent of our teachers annually take part in a technology self-assessment provided by the state of Alabama. In addition, every 3 years Paine Elementary takes part in a technology needs assessment to design our State Technology Plan. Data from these two tools, along with Alabama’s implementation of DLCS standards in 2017 and our state’s new STEM-based Science standards, has provided a guide map for STEM-related professional development implementation for our staff.

The State Technology Survey results show us areas where our teachers utilize different tools with students (...), their interest level in project based learning, and areas of technology tool application and integration where they do not feel confident (...). This survey gives us a window into the classroom of how frequently educational technology tools and the engineering design process are being used with students.

Our district has also guided the evolution of our STEM implementation with students, having a weekly technology class for students shift to a weekly STEM class in 2018. This shift created two STEM experts at Paine who led the way in the integration of STEM disciplines and the implementation of the engineering design process. Through leadership and training from our district leaders, we adopted and implemented TCS’s Engineering Design Process in 2021, and began the implementation process of the AL DLCS standards through PD for our Lead Technology Teachers in 2017. Since then you can find TCS’s EDP posted in several locations throughout our campus. As a result of implementation of the EDP, you find that our students can better describe how to tackle problems. Since the district implementation process of the DLCS and EDP began, our STEM teachers, librarian, and GATE teachers have grown into powerful STEM leaders in our building. You can also find STEM professional learning becoming ingrained in our teachers, as they design extracurricular ENRICH classes where they create STEM experiences for our students. These school-wide improvements in STEM instructional practices have been incremental and steady. Over time, a ripple effect has occurred - through collaboration, school-wide programs, PD, and district direction,we have improved the level to which STEM skills and processes have become ingrained in our school.

Teachers are engaged in STREAM Studio professional development during weekly collaboration time.

weekly collaboration

Paine Elementary places a high value on professional learning, as evidenced by teachers' weekly collaboration time. This hour each week provides opportunities for professional development, collaboration, and instructional coaching about STEM content knowledge. This protected time should lead to school-wide improvements in STEM instructional practices. Since the 2009-2010 school year, the PES master schedule has allowed for one protected hour of collaboration time each week. School and district leaders recognize the importance of dedicated time for teacher collaboration and professional learning for STEM content knowledge and best practices. All kindergarten through 5th grade teachers participate in weekly collaboration meetings. Because it has proven so valuable for teachers, this collaboration time has been protected in our school for over a decade.

Weekly collaboration meetings occur every Wednesday. This facilitates professional learning opportunities for educators and leaders that lead to improved efficacy in specific areas of responsibility. Teachers are able to work together to plan engaging and rigorous lessons, while honing in on best practices for teaching. These meetings and collaborations are deeply ingrained and protected throughout the culture and operations of Paine Elementary. This is also the time we gather to look at data, allowing documentation to indicate sustained growth and improvement over time. Through these formal processes, teachers are able to collect, analyze, and use multiple forms of data and evidence to demonstrate progress toward attaining the desired results.

In the Fall of 2022, the school librarian hosted a STREAM Studio professional development session for teachers during their weekly collaboration time. Teachers were introduced to the Engineering Design Process and took on the role of a learner in a STREAM Studio challenge. This time was also used to brainstorm future challenges that can be developed for students in the STREAM Studio. The goal of this session was to educate teachers about the EDP so they could begin incorporating it in their own classrooms, as well as begin designing learning experiences for students to complete in the STREAM Studio. This professional learning experience helped teachers start making connection between their content standards, STEM content knowledge, and the EDP.

Teachers reflect on learning from collaboration meetings and professional development experiences through our professional learning platform, PowerSchool PD. The Alabama State Department of Education requires teachers to participate in surveys about our professional learning experiences. Data from these surveys as well as informal conversations with teachers reveal that these meetings and professional learning experiences are extremely beneficial for teachers. School leaders consider data from the PowerSchool PD survey as they plan future professional learning experiences.

Paine faculty taking part in professional learning through workshops and conferences.

Professional Learning Networks, Communities, and Conferences

Another way that Paine teachers participate in ongoing STEM-specific professional learning is through our participation in professional learning networks, attending workshops, and attending conferences. Participation in these STEM professional growth opportunities results in school-wide growth in STEM practices. Our teachers receive specific STEM growth opportunities in the following ways:

Social Media - Our Paine STEM teachers actively follow national STEM leaders through social media, blogs subscriptions, and websites. Examples of these PLCs and mentor resources include Feel-Good Teaching, Teach Outside the Box, Brittany Washburn, and Carley and Adam.
Conferences - Teacher leaders attend national conferences yearly to plan learn about emerging STEM best practices and to bring that learning back to teachers in our building. We routinely have teachers attend the Alabama Educational Technology Conference (AETC), the International Society for Technology in Education Conference (ISTE), the American Association for School Librarian National Conference (AASL), Alabama School Library Association Conference (ASLA), the National Council of Teachers of Math Conference (NCTM), and STEM Con and bring back that learning to support teachers to plan, revise, and improve STEM learning experiences.
Summer Flex Days - Paine teachers are given 2 paid professional development summer Flex Days each summer to pursue learning of their own choice. In 2021, 45% of Paine Elementary teachers self-selected Summer Flex Day professional development in a STEM related field. Learning in STEMScopes Math, AMSTI Earth, AMSTI Number Sense, AMSTI Animal Studies, district-led STEM PD were among the courses that teachers attended.
Prior to the pandemic, we have sent groups of teachers to the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) regional conferences. Teachers have completed turnaround training for other teachers in our school. In conjunction with our involvement with NCTM, we have had two individuals win the NCTM MET (Mathematics Education Trust) grant for integrating technology and mathematics.

EMT Interactive Blog for all Participating Teachers

Subsequent years a version has been offered to math teachers (K-5) who are interested in developing these skills. Our current math PLC has 12 participating teachers in grade 2-5 and is lead by our math coach. We are using designated collaboration time to work with 1st grade teachers in conjunction with the curriculum guide pilot in that grade.

Our student math data relates to the effectiveness of this professional learning. The learning goes hand-in-hand with instructional practices in the math curriculum guides. Teachers apply their learning in their classrooms. For example, teachers are encouraged to follow math growth mindset norms in the their classrooms, lead students in number talks at least 3 times per week, implement the rich rigorous tasks provide in the math curriculum guides, utilize the enrichment tasks and instructional supports provided, and administer the grade level common assessments from each unit. Our data indicates tremendous growth in the area of math instruction at Paine Elementary, and this is a direct result of the math curriculum guides, teacher professional learning, and collaboration.

In past years, EMT cohort met monthly with elementary math teachers from the district in order to develop math leaders in each school who can carry this forward. The frequency and group has changed since the pandemic. Paine Elementary has re-established the EMT at the school level as a PLC that meets one afternoon per month and 1 full day in the summer. We also continue to work on development during our designated collaboration time each week.

Teachers who have participated in EMT cohort function as math leaders in our schools. Often times, these are the classrooms that are visited when a math teacher needs to observe an instructional practice. We are continuing this development with other teachers through our newly configured Math PLC. All of these teacher continue to use the best practice strategies in their classroom to enhance student learning in math

math teachers collaborating during math plc

District Elementary Math teacher (EMT) institute/professional learning community

Paine Elementary members and leaders engage in frequent STEM-specific professional learning consistently resulting in school-wide improvements in the STEM field. The District EMT (Elementary Math Teacher) Institute was developed in 2017. It was designed to be a year-long professional learning experience for math teachers who want to advance their knowledge of pedagogy, math content knowledge, and effective instructional practices. For the first two years to get the majority of our teachers trained, participants attended 2 days in the summer and one day per month during the school year. The professional learning days throughout the year were followed by regular walkthroughs (administrator and academic coach) and participation in the coaching cycle to enhance instructional practices.

Prior to the pandemic, participants were asked to join NCTM (National Council of Teachers of Mathematics), attend the NCTM Fall Regional Conference. Participants would naturally become school leaders and mentors in the area of math instruction as a result of this training. Once the majority of our math teachers were trained over a two-year period, we proceeded to offer a modified version of this training through a PLC. One of the former participants in the original EMT from Paine Elementary (4th grade math teacher) led this group for interested teachers at Paine Elementary in 2020-2021. Our current math PLC meets one Thursday afternoon per month and it is lead by our math academic coach.

The EMT (Elementary Math Teacher) Institute was created in 2017. Feedback from teachers as well as observational data revealed training was needed in math instructional practices due to the changes in math instruction over the years. The content focus for the year was teacher development in the following areas: Math Growth Mindset, NCTM Math Practice Standards, Learning Targets, Number Talks, Investigative Tasks with Multiple Entry Points, Math Discourse, Productive Struggle, Questioning, Formative Assessment, Fluency, etc.

In the first two years, all math teachers in grades 2-5 (the teachers utilizing the math curriculum guides) were included. The final day consisted of a culminating activity known as Math Studio Day. This is where the group discussed a lesson design thoroughly, observed a teacher implementing the lesson, and debriefed about instructional practices and student learning.