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A teacher and staff developer recently turned assistant principal, Rachel Amstutz is looking for professional development ideas that use the scarce available time effectively and purposefully. "Picking up this book I was hopeful that I would find fun and enjoyable activities that would engage staff and communicate concepts in a meaningful way." Jan Burgess, she says, met all of her expectations.

Full Text:

A Smart Start for Professional Development: From Sticky Notes to Dragon Boats
By Jan Burgess
2008 (96 pp/softcover)
National Middle School Association
ISBN: 978-1-56090-217-1
$12 ($9.60 for members)

Reviewed by Rachel Amstutz
Assistant Principal, NBCT
Anne Arundel County, Maryland

How can one not be drawn to a book about professional development that offers “off-kilter activities” ?! In some ways I was drawn to the book just to see what exactly these off-kilter activities were and also determine how feasible using them with my staff would be.

As an Assistant Principal and former staff development trainer, I know the importance of using every minute of allocated professional development time effectively and purposefully because there simply is not a lot of time set aside for professional development. Picking up this book I was hopeful that I would find fun and enjoyable activities that would engage staff and communicate concepts in a meaningful way.

Anxious to find activities that went beyond teambuilding, I was seeking a sincere purpose in each activity. Further, I expected that the activities would be middle-school appropriate because, as a former middle school teacher, I know the culture middle school staff is unique. I was concerned that the ideas would be neat, but not possible to implement due to time and money constraints. By the end of the book, my expectations were met and my concerns were addressed.

Actually, I was impressed as soon as I read the Table of Contents and the Foreword. It was immediately evident that the author, Jan Burgess, truly knows middle schools and professional development! From the beginning, Burgess emphasized her formula for success: “It takes the power of relationship with an achievement orientation to move a school forward.” I was excited to see that she strongly believes that “the framework for teaching is also an excellent model for leaders” because I sincerely believe that as leaders we must model the strategies we expect to see teachers use with students. Further, Burgess understands that sometimes we have to make teachers step outside of their comfort areas to develop a new awareness or understanding.

Structurally, the book is divided into 13 chapters focused on distinct professional development strands such as Building Context with Opening School Activities, Nurturing Team Leaders, and The Date Filter. Each chapter begins with a description of the topic, shares one or more activities that support the topic, and concludes with reflection questions and/or debriefing activities. The descriptions of the activities --teams of teachers paddling down a river or teachers creating fish rubbings from real fish -- paint vivid visual images in the reader’s mind. (You’ll have to read the book to find out why these teachers were doing these activities!!) It is evident that these creative ideas will create lasting memories for staff of both the experience and the concept.

Burgess addressed my concerns immediately. In the Introduction, she mentions that time and money are definitely challenges all principals face. She stresses using every minute of professional development time wisely. If you can say it in a memo, do so. This way you will have more time to truly develop your staff professionally. She offers suggestions for finding funding and emphasizes the notion that ‘if there’s will, there’s a way.’

The book is a quick read. It’s the type of book that you read and file the ideas away in your mind for a later time. You may not implement every idea, and you may find that you need to tweak the ideas you do implement to meet the needs of your staff. However, Burgess plants the seeds of many wonderful activities that you can borrow from when you plan your professional development experiences. Importantly, after reading the book you are inspired to ensure that all of the professional development experiences you provide for your staff are meaningful, engaging and memory-making!
 

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