The Collegial Learning Group Advantage
Professional development is vital to the continued success of North Dakota’s educators. The National Staff Development Council advocates that successful teachers have a deep understanding of the subjects they teach, use appropriate instructional methods, and apply various classroom assessment strategies.
The collegial learning group model continues to be the foundational strategy for professional learning. The NDCLP project provides a mechanism through which small groups of educators from around the state learn and share within their local schools and through state-wide activities.
Incentives for Participation
The NDCLP provides the structure to engage educators in reflection and growth, keep content and instructive knowledge current, and improve culturally responsive child-centered instructional practices that result in increased student learning. Additional incentives include:
The NDCLP will provide up to $500 to facilitate group
activities, payable to the group’s school district upon completion
of all requirements. These activities may include travel expenses for professional
development opportunities, substitute teacher costs to enable classroom
observations, facilitator stipends, purchase book study materials, reimburse
participant credit fee, or any other activity that facilitates group discussion
and learning experience.
NDCLP will again offer graduate credit for participation in the program.
This continuing education credit will be available through North Dakota
State University at a cost of $50/credit.
Group Requirements
The emphasis of this program is to provide groups with the training and tools necessary to create a Collegial Learning Group at the building level. As a group, you will meet to discuss individual and group student learning strategies, the results of state and local student achievement scores, and interventions necessary to assist student learning. All NDCLP participants are required to submit a unit plan, which would implement strategies developed in your group meetings. To facilitate sharing and dissemination of these unit plans, you are required to submit your unit plan to the North Dakota Curriculum Initiative’s Lesson Bank.
In addition, you are given the option of registering for two graduate credits. For these credits, you are expected to implement the unit plan, submit evidence of the implementation, reflect on the implementation, and have the building administrator observe the implementation.
Major Program Changes
- The NDCLP’s focus is on forming and sustaining a Collegial Learning Group. As a result, topic(s) of study are left up to the individual groups.
- Study topics must be curriculum and instruction based designed to enhance student learning in the classroom.
- All project participants are required to attend a minimum of 10 hours of face-to-face time AND complete a unit plan, designed to implement ideas from the study group.
- The graduate credit option is for two (2) credits, which includes the implementation of the unit plan in the classroom, along with reflection and observation.
- Groups are offered a $500 stipend to facilitate all group activities, payable to the group’s school district upon completion of the program.
Contact Us:
Rebecca Savelkoul
Project Coordinator
806 N. Washington
Bismarck, ND 58501
(701) 323-4025
nd.clp@sendit.nodak.edu
