ASSIGNMENT 3 - PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Developing as a Professional Educator
Since teaching is a profession and not merely an occupation, teachers should continually be striving to improve their professional skills. It is impossible, however, to develop in a vacuum. We need to be sharing with, and learning from others in our discipline. Professional organizations are designed to foster professional development by improving communication among their members. Journals provide a very valuable channel of communication within the profession, and educators should make use of them to the fullest. This assignment is designed to acquaint you with some of the journals and organizations in your subject area.
(1) Preparation (nothing written required for part 1)
- Review at least three professional organizations related to your subject(s).
- Review at least three professional journals related to your subject(s).
- Attend a professional development workshop, conference related to your discipline, OR take a field trip to a site that would be useful for the teaching of your subject.
(2) Written portion
- Professionalism: Explain what it means to be a professional science/health educator
- Organizations: Describe the professional benefits of involvement in the specific organization(s) you have selected.
- Journals: List the journals that are most valuable to you, describing the most useful features of each.
- Conferences: Summarize the workshop, conference or field trip attended, detailing its value to you as an educator
(3) Submit: Submit your assignment electronically using the 525s webCT drop box