Professional Development

Teacher Tap

The Teacher Tap is a free, professional development resource that helps educators address common technology integration questions by providing practical, online resources and activities. 4 areas that are particularly helpful are technology rich learning, internet resources, libraries, literature, and information literacy, and technology tools. Teachers will gain free access to ideas and techniques they can use in their classroom, such as, literature circles, literature-based Web Quests, electronic portfolios and critical and creative thinking.

U.S. Department of Education Teacher Workshops

This page contains a list of professional development workshops provided by the Department of Education. Information is provided on how to secure a presentation at your school. Though it may be difficult for an individual to secure a workshop the Department of Education has provided the PowerPoint and handouts for each presentation for free use by educators. The list of professional development workshops is extensive and social studies educators will find that many will support teaching in their classrooms.

The National Staff Development Council

The National Staff Development Council (NSDC) is the largest non-profit professional association committed to ensuring success for all students through staff development and school improvement. The Council views high quality staff development programs as essential to creating schools in which all students and staff members are learners who continually improve their performance. Using this link educator's can explore a staff development library that provides information and research about various teaching methods and professional development initiatives that are being practiced by American educators. If your school is looking for a professional development model to suite your needs, this is an excellent resource to begin your search.

School Improvement Network: Classroom Instruction that Works:

The School Improvement Network increases student learning by improving teacher quality through professional development resources and services that are practical, researched-based, and proven to increase student achievement. This program can either manage your entire school improvement program or can supplement your current efforts with their award winning video, online and CD-ROM- based professional development. The organization has been in business for over 15 years, and has visited over 3,000 classrooms throughout North America. These programs were created with the help of well-known educational researchers and developers such as Robert Marzono and Carol Santa. View the above website for additional information about the school improvement network and the programs they offer.

Making History Matter: A Case Study of the Holocaust

The teaching of history demands of educators a high level of sensitivity and a keen awareness of the complexity of the subject matter. The teaching strategies in this on-line presentation are appropriate to effective teaching in general and are particularly relevant in the context of Holocaust education. You will learn 13 different effective teaching strategies and receive lessons that illustrate effective ways to teach history keeping the 13 guidelines in mind. Each lesson models a different pedagogical approach through use of documents, class discussion and differentiated instruction. You will also receive a wealth of Holocaust materials, including books, posters, pamphlets and artifact images from the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum.