ÐÇ¿ÕÓéÀÖ¹ÙÍø Professional Development Practices

At a glance

The ultimate goal of ÐÇ¿ÕÓéÀÖ¹ÙÍø's six Professional Development Practices is to effectively implement skills and strategies that enhance knowledge and transfer of learning.

Training overview

The ÐÇ¿ÕÓéÀÖ¹ÙÍø Professional Development (PD) Practices, based on research and best practices, provide the best conditions for implementation.

  • The six ÐÇ¿ÕÓéÀÖ¹ÙÍø Professional Development Practices are Sustain, Design, Promote, Deliver, Follow-Up, and Evaluate.
  • They encompass the delivery of PD in group (trainings, presentations, meetings) and one‐to‐one settings (general technical assistance, coaching/mentoring).

Resource‎

Professional Development 101: The Basics

The six Professional Development Practices were developed by ÐÇ¿ÕÓéÀÖ¹ÙÍø's Healthy Schools in partnership with RMC Health.

How to implement PD practices

Sustain a professional development infrastructure

  • Identify a person to lead PD efforts.
  • Set up procedures and policies that promote timely, research-based, and responsive PD.
  • Secure financial and human resources to support PD and collaboration.
  • Develop and implement a PD plan using the PD-related components in the cooperative agreement work plan.
  • Ensure continual learning among program staff.
  • Develop a process for recruiting, developing, and assessing qualified PD providers (may be in-house). Ensure that PD providers are skilled to:
    • Apply the fundamentals of effective training design and delivery.
    • Be familiar with the specified content.
    • Apply adult learning principles.
    • Use a variety of strategies to meet needs of diverse learners.
    • Create a safe learning environment for constituents.
    • Manage conflict and controversy.
  • Provide ongoing technical support for PD providers.

Design professional development offerings

Group setting

For each training or presentation offered:

  • Identify the target audience.
  • Conduct a pre-assessment, and review available data to guide creation of SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, time-bound) objectives.
  • Develop a comprehensive training design (agenda).
  • Select an action plan template and develop an action plan.
  • Develop an evaluation plan.
  • Create a plan for follow-up support.
  • Develop, design, and organize materials.
  • Manage, or hire someone to manage, logistics (registration, site selection, transportation, AV/technology).

One-to-one technical assistance (TA)

Develop a TA protocol that includes:

  • Response time.
  • Site data review (when available).
  • Topics to be covered.
  • Follow-up support.
  • Materials to be sent.
  • Data entry process.

Promote professional development services

Determine the PD services that will match target audience needs.

  • Develop a comprehensive promotional plan by:
    • Developing SMART objectives that describe the desired promotional results.
    • Developing and pretesting messages and materials that will resonate with target audiences.
    • Creating a promotional timeline.
    • Identifying measures of success.
    • Recruiting partners who can support and help achieve promotional objectives.
  • Implement the promotional plan.
  • Collect evaluation data.
  • Record data in a data management system.
  • Monitor and adjust the promotional plan, materials, and messages as appropriate.

Deliver professional development

Provide an environment conducive to learning.

  • Use qualified providers.
  • Follow the training design and technical assistance protocol.
  • Collect participant data.
  • Provide and manage materials.
  • Manage AV and technology when needed.
  • Collect evaluation data.
  • Record data in a data management system.

Support follow-up

Group setting

  • Before each event, plan for follow-up support.
  • Choose follow-up support strategies.
  • Share follow-up support expectations before and during the event.
  • Schedule follow-up support, if applicable.
  • Conduct follow-up support at appropriate intervals.
  • Collect participant data.
  • Collect evaluation data.
  • Record data in a data management system.

One-to-one technical assistance (TA)

  • Plan for follow-up support, if needed, during the early phases of technical assistance.
  • Choose a follow-up strategy.
  • Schedule follow-up support.
  • Conduct follow-up support.
  • Record data in a data management system.

Evaluate professional development processes

  • Create a plan to measure the SMART objectives in the cooperative agreement work plan.
  • Identify or develop instruments to collect evaluation data from multiple sources.
  • Assess needs of the target audience.
  • Collect process data.
  • Collect outcome data.
  • Keep evaluation data in an organized data management system.
  • Identify or develop a data entry protocol.
  • Use evaluation data to:
    • Revise PD plans.
    • Refine training designs.
    • Refine TA.
    • Inform the design of follow-up support.
    • Report indicators of success.
    • Inform decision makers and stakeholders.

Resources

Sustain—How to Build a Training Cadre

Design—Professional Development 101 and 201

Promote—A Guide to Promoting Professional Development

Deliver—Professional Development 201 and Understanding the Training of Trainers Model

Follow Up—Professional Development Follow-Up Support Toolkit

Evaluate—Guide to Evaluating Professional Development

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Content Source:
Division of Adolescent and School Health; National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (NCCDPHP)
  • Developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's School Health Branch, in partnership with RMC Health.