Common use of Professional Development Categories and Their Uses Clause in Contracts

Professional Development Categories and Their Uses. Several types of Professional Development options are available to Rockport School District Professional Staff. The options are: 1. Graduate Credits Credits earned from course work providing learning opportunities for an educators’ professional growth, offered through an accredited college or university, or through organizations and programs that grant university/college credits. Transcripts from said college/university/organization/program will be required to prove that the credits have been earned. a. Under certain circumstances, undergraduate credits, approved in advance by the building principal, and acquired after June 30, 1996, may be applied to horizontal movement beyond the Master’s Degree Column. 2. In-Service Credits In-Service Credits must be earned outside of school hours. They must be pre-approved by a building principal in advance of the ability to begin earning them. An In-Service proposal must be written (using the provided In-Service Credit Proposal Form) and reviewed and approved by a building principal. Teachers are able to earn in-service credits in increments of twenty-two (22) hours. Each group of twenty-two (22) hours will be equivalent to one (1) credit (22 hours = 1 credit, 44 hours = 2 credits, 66 hours = 3 credits, etc.). Upon completion of any In-Service Credit Proposal, the teacher must then complete an In-Service Credit Final Report (using the provided In-Service Credit Proposal Form). This will be submitted to the approving building principal for their signature. The signed In-Service Credit Final Report will be the evidence required to prove that the credits were earned. 3. Professional Development Points (PDPs) – Credit Hour PDPs Outside of School Hours Points awarded for participation in workshops, seminars, or courses, as well as for attendance at conferences that are offered by MA DESE, any school district, an educational collaborative, or a provider that is registered with ESE outside of normal contractual hours. Each PDP is equivalent to one (1) hour of professional development work. a. For re-certification purposes a series of short-term activities in a given topic must equal ten (10) hours and include an assessment of learning with the participant meeting the criteria for mastery. For re-certification purposes, conferences must span over at least two (2) days and/or offer a series of workshops/sessions that will cover at least ten (10) hours in a given topic.