This week I attended by first real Pro D experience. I say “real” because I went to a Pro D session during Term 1, but I couldn’t appreciate it in the context of actually teaching. This Pro D session had me go to Cambie Secondary in Richmond for something called Ed Camp. There were three sessions throughout the day: the first was a district-wide Science department meeting, then the second two I was free to choose from quite a large list. I went to one session on inquiry based learning and the second I spent with the other McNair science teachers working on the new curriculum. There were no facilitators at any of the sessions. The teachers were supposed to work with each other to discuss and enhance their understanding of the topic at hand. I wasn’t so sure of the format to start with, but in the end it worked out!
It was an interesting experience because I found it to be very similar to my UBC course work in that it is only as useful as I make it to be. It’s very easy to coast through the sessions as a passive listener and not really get anything out of it. It takes a lot more effort, but being an active participant and contributing to the discussion by asking questions and offering experience is much more fulfilling. I went through the first science session without saying much of anything, but by the time I went to the afternoon sessions I felt more comfortable and was able to participate more. I remember a lot more from those sessions and I took away some really great ideas for how to teach science using inquiry. Overall, the day was a great learning experience both about how Pro D days run and how to be an effective teacher!
I’m glad that you enjoyed the day. Listening to teachers over the years, I noted that often the Pro-D that they enjoyed the most was when it was for teachers by teachers and when, at its core revolved around teacher talking with other teachers about common issues or about what most makes for effective teaching, learning and assessment. Often we go for the fancy presentation with the so called expert that last for a relatively short period of time, gets people immediately excited but this momentum quickly fades away. Pro-D like the one you attended on Friday has the potential for affecting change because it is easier to sustain and continue the discussion.