Level One: Participants' Reactions

           “Good evaluations don’t have to be complicated. They simply require thoughtful planning, the ability to ask good questions, and a basic understanding of how to find valid answers. What’s more, they can provide meaningful information that you can use to make thoughtful, responsible decisions about professional development processes and effects. (Guskey, 2002, p. 46)

In the article is mentions in depth all of the training that teachers went to from 2008-present. It then shared the feedback that they got from the staff.  Guskey (2002) says, “Information on participants’ reactions is generally gathered through questionnaires handed out at the end of a session, or activity (p.46).” It is implied that the teachers where able to give their feedback and that the feedback was evaluated.

            When the district was developing their professional development plan for 2012-2013, they planned to use it to monitor each step of their plan by receiving feedback from the teachers.  This includes using them to evaluating through feedback forms where a teacher is on the gradient of learning the presented material, additional data on the training, opinions on job imbedded professional development, and teacher surveys to give input and ideas. The article cites that this information can come in different forms including: online, verbally, face-to-face, written feedback, phone, and mail ( Bridgeton, 2012, p. 36).

           Guskey goes in depth about how important it is to take into account the teachers reaction to the professional development.  By evaluating the teacher’s feedback forms every step of the way, the teachers will be able to give feedback and be a part of the process. This feedback can be a driving force behind change in the professional development to fine tune what the district need to do and where the district needs to go next in their professional development plans.

The article went in depth about the needs assessment for professional development. Teachers were to mark the 10 topics they would be interested in professional development, and there was a comment section where teachers could put other topics they were interested in studying further.  The district will then use this information to help form their decisions on professional development for the year.

           The article lists some of the positive aspects of the previous training and also concerns. Their positive feedback included how the district differentiated, how the training covered Core Curriculum and changed that needed to be made in the curriculum.  They also mentioned how collaboration had increased through professional development.  Some of the concerns were substitutes, providing professional development for new teachers, planning time, positions being cut, reductions in the school. This would indicate the type of feedback they are asking on their  workshop feedback forms.

"Guskey mentions in his article that when gathering participant feedback, you even want to ask about the conditions of the environment like room temperature and was the coffee good.  I have been in workshops were the room was so cold and poorly lit that it was distracting from the the task at hand." Heather Shaner