Continuing Teacher Education with ASCD
All teachers need to belong to ASCD (Association of Supervision and Curriculum Development). It is a community of educators who work together to improve education with administrators and teachers. While ASCD is mostly thought of as guides for people in educational leadership roles and administration, it is also very much geared toward improving classroom teachers. ASCD’s mission statement is “ASCD empowers educators to achieve excellence in learning, teaching, and leading so that every child is healthy, safe, engaged, supported, and challenged.”
I have learned more over the past 5-6 years since I have joined ASCD than I ever have from any training my district has sent me to. Side note, my district has sent me to some good trainings mixed in with some horrible trainings. My ASCD membership is around $90 per year, and what I get in return is quite simply a bargain. I get five free books mailed to me each year which I read and then share with my team. I also get nine magazines that focus on different educationally relevant topics. I share pertinent articles with my colleagues from time to time. The magazine’s monthly focus almost always is timely information that veteran and new teachers alike can benefit from.
Some of the best books that have transformed my teaching practices have come from my ASCD membership. Deeper Learning helped me to develop better and more thoughtful note taking strategies. Focus helped me to simplify my teaching to only best practices based on research. Discipline with Dignity helped me to improve my classroom management skills especially with students that can be difficult to reach.
ASCD has made me a better teacher, and I highly recommend that all teachers get a subscription ASAP.