Best+Practices+in+Professional+Development+Award

 P21 Professional Development Award …  == The following article appeared in the DPI Connect Ed online newsletter from Aug.1, 2011.

Peer Coaching Program Honored
Wisconsin won a national award for a project to help teachers coach their colleagues on effective teaching methods and use of technology in the classroom. The [|Partnership for 21st Century Skills] honored Wisconsin’s Leadership Coaching Professional Development Program with a P21 Best Practice Award at the group's annual summit. The program trains teacher "coaches" to help colleagues by The coaching is built around research-supported factors for raising student achievement, focusing on:
 * providing training or resources,
 * co-planning learning activities,
 * modeling effective teaching,
 * observing colleagues, and
 * reflecting on this observation.
 * improving lesson design
 * integrating digital classroom tools and resources
 * developing collaboration and communication skills around the lesson improvement process
 * || || [[image:http://dpi.state.wi.us/dpi-connected/jpg/110801_p21award_small.jpg caption="Mary Lou Ley, Tony Evers, and Donna Steffan with a hand-sized award" link="http://dpi.state.wi.us/dpi-connected/jpg/110801_p21award.jpg"]] ||
 * Mary Lou Ley, Tony Evers, and Donna Steffan with a hand-sized award ||

Independent consultant Mary Lou Ley, State Superintendent Tony Evers, and DPI Education Consultant Donna Steffan. Steffan and Ley partnered to build this peer mentoring program. || The collaboration between coaches and peers is structured to provide optimal feedback to teachers without making them feel a need to explain reasons for current work or student work samples. Since June 2009, more than 25 Wisconsin districts have trained teacher leaders in peer coaching as part of their [|Enhancing Education through Technology] grant projects.