Closing the Knowledge Gap on Effective Professional Development.

Abstract

There is very little valid and scientifically defensible evidence on the relationship between professional development and improvements in student learning. To close the gap between research and beliefs about effective professional development, educators must be honest about what trustworthy research on professional development has actually revealed; begin demanding better evidence from consultants who claim their ideas, strategies, and practices are research-based; get serious about evaluating all forms of professional development; press researchers to study professional development more rigorously; and be honest about the real world of schools and the powerful influence of context.