According to teachers, the answer is "more than 8 hours a year." The research agrees. A recent report released by the National Center for Education Statistics, The Condition of Education 2005, found that teachers who invest more than 8 hours each year in professional development activities benefit the most. Interactions with students, classroom management, and ability to address curriculum standards all improve when teachers spend concerted time on their professional development. But for most teachers, professional development opportunities in specific content areas come in formats that fall far short of even 1 hour per month.
"Teachers themselves recognize that they need to put in the time,"
says Paula Szulc Dominguez, Ed.D., Director of Research and Evaluation for
Hezel Associates. "But the professional development options at their
disposal do not reflect the kind of on-going, collaborative engagement that
is known to improve instruction. Despite reams of research that document
the clear advantages of other formats, half-day workshops still reign supreme
simply because they fit into the schedule."