Making Master Teachers by Designing a Customized Professional Development Day for Your School
People love to customize things. Whether it’s selecting the best options for a new car or building the perfect burrito, we have become accustomed, as the old Burger King commercials promised, to “Have It Your Way.” Why shouldn’t teachers have the same choice in professional development? Like IEW’s Demonstration and Coaching Day and Observation and Coaching Day, the Review and Refinement Day is designed to help schools build and sustain significant progress as they implement Structure and Style® methodology in their school or school district. It is truly a one-of-a-kind seminar because the school designs the day!
How does it work?
The Review and Refinement Day is intended for teachers who have at least six months of experience teaching Structure and Style methodology and who are ready to fine-tune their skills. One of our Educational Consultants works with you to identify and clarify your school’s specific concerns and areas of need. The IEW Implementation Coach will design a customized seminar that meets your school’s goals for teacher instruction and student progress. On the scheduled date, the implementation coach visits your school to present the selected seminar topics, answer questions, and guide participants in a hands-on practicum.
What are the objectives of a Review and Refinement Day?
This workshop is designed to address the specific needs of a school as teachers implement Structure and Style, deepen teachers’ understanding of our methodology, and equip teachers to diagnose their students’ writing issues/problems and prescribe appropriate interventions.
Possible Seminar Topics
- Reviewing the structural models
- Adjusting the level of challenge in any lesson to meet the needs of students with varying abilities
- Incorporating writing into all subject areas
- Focusing on English language learners, special education, and delayed development
- Reinforcing the stylistic techniques with different source texts
- Reviewing decorations and the advanced stylistic techniques
- Teaching citation in stages through small, consecutive assignments
- Teacher-generated topics
You can view the course description on our website for more options and a sample schedule.
What are the benefits of the Review and Refinement Day?
- IEW Implementation Coaches are authorized by Andrew Pudewa to teach the Structure and Style method and are accredited as Master IEW Instructors. Each has experience in teaching the Structure and Style process in the classroom and presenting the TWSS seminar to schools across the country.
- This seminar offers training that is not available on DVD or by streaming.
- The training is interactive with time throughout the seminar for questions, discussion, and clarification. This results in a more active and engaging experience for teachers and administrators as well as a close working relationship between the Implementation Coach and the school.
- Customized training promotes and reinforces your teachers’ fidelity to the Structure and Style method. Your Implementation Coach will explicitly model the concepts you have chosen for the seminar and will meet your teachers at their point of need.
- A Review and Refinement Day can be scheduled every year. The seminar evolves as your teachers’ and students’ skills progress and their needs change in years one, two, and three.
- Providing a Review and Refinement Day demonstrates to your teachers that outstanding writing instruction is important. Ongoing, effective professional development benefits your teachers and, ultimately, your students.
What are the challenges to consider?
- Live professional development may be too expensive for small schools or those with a limited budget for training. However, private schools, charter schools, and small school districts may obtain funding through their local school district or county office of education. Grants for professional development might also be available in your area. The trainer’s travel expense is not included in the seminar price.
- A Review and Refinement Day requires advanced planning and consultation with your Educational Consultant and the Implementation Coach to determine which topics should be presented. In some cases, you may know exactly what you want to have covered. If not, you can share your teachers’ questions about the method, the materials, or their concerns about student progress with your Educational Consultant, who will work closely with you to design a day that best meets your needs.
As an administrator, when you choose a Review and Refinement Day for your school, your Educational Consultant and the Implementation Coach are your partners in supporting your teachers as they teach Structure and Style effectively and confidently in their classrooms. No matter where each teacher is along the pathway to becoming a skilled writing teacher, you are making a powerful investment in shepherding them along the way.
Please contact your IEW Educational Consultant for more information about Review and Refinement Days and how to schedule one for your school or school district.
Explore other blogs in the Teacher Training Method Options series.
Video Training through Individual Streaming
Video Training as a Group
Virtual Teaching Writing: Structure and Style Workshop
Live On-Site Professional Development
Live On-Site Professional Development: Demonstration and Coaching Day
Live On-Site Professional Development: Observation and Coaching Day
by Jean Nichols
Originally posted September 26, 2022
