#347 What Has Ruined Teacher PD? (Pam Ochoa pt.2)

Teach Me, Teacher

Hello everyone! Being in the teacher podcast space for over 8 years has shown me a lot about the state of education and how it has changed. Mainly, professional development is dying.

If you missed part 1 of this talk, find it here.

Conferences are filled with sessions that appeal to ideology instead of quality pedagogy. District PD’s are all about how to log in to the latest tool and assign work to kids. Books are expensive and not worth reading when state laws restrict what resources teachers can use.

So, what’s the deal? Why is teaching PD in such a state of despair?

To think and talk through this (and maybe have some hope at the end of the tunnel), I brought on Pam Ochoa, my co-host on the Craft & Draft podcast. Pam is an Abydos Learning International Diamond level trainer and has trained teachers in the teaching of writing and reading for 26 years. She provides professional development for those who want to become more student centered in their instructional approach. She was an Instructional Coach where she worked with Jacob Chastain and collaborated on the Craft and Draft Notebook system.

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