As part of the Redesign Professional Development (PD) Community of Practice, which includes 22 school systems across the country, Pittsburgh Public Schools is working to build greater alignment and coherence into its professional learning efforts. That means creating a district-wide professional learning system that helps the schools grow…

A six-stage evaluation model is described for gathering data concerning the relative cost-effectiveness of alternative professional development activities which share common objectives. The model specifies the type of cost effectiveness data to gather and the analysis procedures to use in comparing the relative costs and effectiveness of the…

The Detroit Center for Professional Growth and Development, a state-funded teacher center, has prepared a computerized data bank to study patterns of relationships among selected staff development and school characteristics. A description of what the staff development data bank contains and how it obtains information is given. (JN)

A case study approach is taken to the development and operation of an inservice training program designed to help teachers work more effectively with children who have learning problems. The program's strengths and weaknesses are discussed, and possible modifications to the program are suggested. (JN)

Traditional needs assessments strategies are inadequate today. Today's needs assessment involves determining problems, priorities, opportunities, and learning needs before making decisions about professional development. Four questions to guide discussions on needs assessment include whether it was planned collaboratively, whether multiple sources…

Ways to monitor staff development programs include: (1) counting the number of participants; (2) obtaining participant reactions to programs; and (3) tracking participants by needs, objectives, and inservice topics. A needs assessment model of staff development focuses on information utilization, program impact, and evaluation approaches. (JN)

A model of staff development is presented which applies inservice education methods to the special conditions of rural Alaska. An individualized, field-based training program is cooperatively planned with those receiving the training. Ultimately, each trainee constructs an implementation plan. A follow-up assesses whether the program objectives…

Goals for the development of building level staff development in the Greenwich, Connecticut evaluation model include: (1) evaluating information sharing; (2) evaluating staff interests and concerns; (3) evaluating the acquisition of new skills, techniques, and strategies; and (4) evaluating the sense of community and commitment among staff in the…

Described is a six-step school improvement process that evolved during attempts to assess needs, plan improvements, implement changes, and evaluate success at a Michigan school district's elementary schools with disadvantaged pupils. The process involves parents and school staff identifying needs and setting priorities for staff development. (PP)

A workshop designed to assist local staff developers with the evaluation of their staff development programs is described. The intent of the workshop is to provide specific technical assistance for implementing a planned and consistent evaluation process. The workshop's goal is to allow a nonspecialist in evaluation to gather data necessary for…

Three staff development evaluation techniques are presented as alternatives to satisfaction questionnaires. The techniques--stages of concern, levels of use, and component assessment-- underscore the ideas that: (1) New teaching skills will be used in the classroom; (2) Finding out about classroom practices requires individual interaction with…