The Mineola school district is working to educate teachers in some of the same ways that it teaches students.
District officials are launching a new teacher training program this year that gives teachers more flexibility and emphasizes techniques focused on student growth that are already being used in some classrooms, Matthew Gaven, the assistant superintendent for curriculum, instruction, technology and assessment, said last week.
The program, revamped after a recent survey of teachers, will allow teachers to take professional development courses online and allows them more choice in which courses they take during the school year, Gaven said.
“We’ve kind of designed this so that teachers can learn at any time and on their own pace,” Gaven told the Mineola school board at its meeting last Thursday.
The district will offer 24 training sessions divided into five cycles throughout the coming school year, Gaven said.
The first and last cycles will focus on the growth mindset, a method developed by psychologist Carol Dweck that rewards students’ academic progress rather than individual achievements such as grades or test scores.
The inaugural training session in August will feature a keynote speech from Eduardo Briceño, the co-founder and CEO of Mindsetworks, an organization Dweck helped found that works to implement growth mindset methods.
In the other three cycles, teachers will be able to choose from among workshops addressing topics related to different teaching techniques and the use of data in the classroom, Gaven said.
In addition to the in-person sessions, teachers will be able to take “stackable” courses online on the OYOclass platform and earn “micro-credentials” toward continuing education credits, Gaven said.
That allows teachers to learn new techniques or subjects on their own time, Gaven said. All new teachers will use the platform this coming year, and the few teachers who have already started are liking it, he said.
“It seems to be something that’s been positively received so far, and we’re very excited about that,” Gaven said.
Michael Nagler, the district superintendent, said the approach to professional development mirrors the ways Mineola’s teachers are instructing students.
“It’s not factual teaching and learning anymore. It’s conceptual, it’s applied knowledge, and this framework allows that,” Nagler said.
School board members praised the changes, especially Gaven’s effort to further integrate technology into the training process and the many choices offered to teachers.
Christine Napolitano, the school board president, said it’s a contrast to a time a few years ago when school board member complained about teachers not using email enough.
“It’s a little mind-blowing to me to think about how far we’ve come in really a relatively short period of time,” Napolitano said.
