Research Video: Modest Supports for Sustaining Professional Development Outcomes over the Long Term

Principal Investigators:   Cathy Ringstaff, WestEd Judith H. Sandholtz, University of California, Irvine

Given the time and resources invested in professional development, it is important to find ways to extend positive outcomes over the long term.  Similar to regular tune-ups for automobiles, the investment needed to sustain teacher outcomes may be minor in comparison to initial costs, but pay important dividends in terms of long-term function. This longitudinal project, funded by the National Science Foundation, investigated whether an intervention of modest follow-up support influenced the sustainability of outcomes for elementary teachers who had previously participated in three-year professional development programs designed to improve science education.  

The modest support included: a) 2-day face-to-face refresher sessions scheduled in the summers; b) after school face-to-face meetings held twice a year with teachers grouped by geographic proximity; c) synchronous webinars and virtual collaboration sessions facilitated by science experts or professional development leaders and focused on topics requested by teachers; d) electronic support including an electronic newsletter sent via email, an online repository of materials, a closed Facebook group page, and a dedicated email address to ask questions; and e) $150 per teacher each year to purchase needed materials and supplies.

Our results reinforce the value of providing follow-up support to teachers after professional development in order to sustain instructional changes, and suggest that even nominal follow-up support can stop a downward trend in instructional outcomes and teacher self-efficacy related to teaching science during the years after professional development programs end.  As early as one year into the intervention of follow-up support, we started to see improvements in outcomes.  

Our research found that follow-up support reversed declines in teachers’ sense of preparedness to teach science, self-efficacy, instructional time, use of selected instructional strategies, and implementation of inquiry-based student activities in science.  

Given the limited resources typically available for professional development, administrators may want to be strategic in determining how to use them.  For example, rather than using funds exclusively for initial professional development programs, administrators might consider reserving funds for teachers who have recently completed professional development and would benefit from minimal follow-up support in order to maintain instructional changes.  Offering a menu of options for follow-up support could address differing teaching assignments, school contexts, and personal circumstances.

Former graduate student researchers who worked on the project at UCI included:  Doron Zinger, Jenell Kreshnan, Juan Gaytan, & Edward Chen.  

This material is based on work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. DRL1620979.  Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.