At Inventure Academy, we dedicate over 15 days annually to professional development, addressing the unique needs of our faculty with varied levels of skills, capabilities and motivation levels. Using insights from class observations, 360-degree feedback, and faculty focus group discussions, we identify key areas for growth which inform the themes and subsequent interventions tailored for the team. In keeping up with our motto of design with empathy, we use design thinking tools and Backward Design framework to craft bespoke, differentiated, just-in-time PD sessions. A critical component of our Professional Development approach is the Subject-Specific Professional Development program.

As a school with over 200 teachers, this helps us raise the overall skill and capability levels of all teachers by providing targeted coaching to Subject Leads in effectively leading their teams. This is done by a combination of individual and small cohort or whole group sessions that are co-created with the PD and Curriculum Team with inputs from Subject Leads. By using this kind of differentiated approach, the program combines whole-group and personalized PD through a continuous improvement cycle (PDCA).

Over and above this, we have recently launched a Subject Lead Enrichment Program where subject leads across departments work closely with coaches who help them with building leadership skills in curriculum design, subject-specific pedagogy as well as team building and development.

The presentation will focus on the following :

• Stakeholder mapping to develop a holistic understanding of teachers’ skills, capabilities and motivation levels
• Backward design model to design the sessions and interventions
• Logic Model to identify success metrics and intended outcomes

Resources:
Wiggins, Grant, and Jay McTighe. The understanding by design guide to creating high-quality units. ASCD, 2011.
Knowlton, Lisa Wyatt, and Cynthia C. Phillips. The logic model guidebook: Better strategies for great results. Sage, 2012.