{"id":23446,"date":"2019-12-02T08:57:04","date_gmt":"2019-12-02T13:57:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/?p=23446"},"modified":"2025-02-03T12:07:37","modified_gmt":"2025-02-03T17:07:37","slug":"the-importance-of-professional-development","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/the-importance-of-professional-development\/","title":{"rendered":"The Importance of Professional Development"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"professional<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

As a younger teacher, I had a strong interest in professional development. Anything I could get my hands on to read, watch, or listen to was never enough. I would dig into different curriculum’s and books by any teacher who was at the top of my profession and go to as many professional development conferences as possible. I wanted to learn it all NOW, but it took a considerable amount of time and energy to learn a lot of the information. I look back amazed at everything I was able to do. Now, I sit here in a position to help others develop through many avenues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When I think about it all, pursuing professional development was key to allowing me to help others develop. There was no straight path. It was hard, and I wanted to quit many times. But I fought through the tough times, learned from them, and moved forward step by step. As the famous proverb goes, \u201cA journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.\u201d I am glad I took those steps and you should too, which is why I am writing this. Consider this a letter of encouragement about why you need to develop professionally and never stop!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First, let\u2019s define professional development. It\u2019s not just those series of meetings you attend before the school year starts. No, that\u2019s not development. That\u2019s a part of your job. Professional development, as I see it, is any act, small or large, where you add teaching tools to your toolbelt. Here are some examples:<\/p>\n\n\n\n