SLQ Professional Development and Human Resources 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which form of professional development is most strongly linked to changes in instructional practice?
- One-day workshops with external speakers
- Job-embedded, ongoing coaching and collaborative inquiry directly connected to classroom practice (Correct answer)
- Online self-paced courses completed independently
- Annual conference attendance
Correct answer: Job-embedded, ongoing coaching and collaborative inquiry directly connected to classroom practice
Research consistently shows that job-embedded, sustained, collaborative professional development is far more effective at changing classroom practice than isolated workshops.
Question 2: What is the primary purpose of teacher evaluation in a high-performing school?
- To generate documentation for termination proceedings
- To support professional growth and improve instructional quality (Correct answer)
- To rank teachers against each other
- To satisfy union contract requirements
Correct answer: To support professional growth and improve instructional quality
In effective schools, teacher evaluation is primarily a professional growth tool — a structured process for identifying strengths, growth areas, and development opportunities.
Question 3: A teacher is in their first year and struggling with lesson planning. Which type of support is most appropriate?
- Formal disciplinary warning
- Mentoring paired with structured coaching and model lessons (Correct answer)
- Immediate placement on an improvement plan
- Transfer to a different grade level
Correct answer: Mentoring paired with structured coaching and model lessons
New teachers need mentoring and coaching support — including model lessons and structured feedback — to develop their practice during the critical first year.
Question 4: Which of the following is an essential component of a high-quality teacher induction program?
- A single orientation day before school starts
- Sustained mentoring, reduced workload considerations, and ongoing professional learning for at least two years (Correct answer)
- Assigning new teachers to the most challenging classes to build resilience
- Immediate formal evaluation in the first semester
Correct answer: Sustained mentoring, reduced workload considerations, and ongoing professional learning for at least two years
Effective induction programs provide sustained mentoring, appropriate support structures, and professional learning over two or more years to develop and retain new teachers.
Question 5: Which approach to professional development recognizes that teachers learn best when they have voice and choice in their own learning?
- Mandated district-wide PD days with no teacher input
- Differentiated PD that offers teachers agency based on their own identified growth areas (Correct answer)
- Uniform lesson script requirements
- Eliminating PD to maximize instructional time
Correct answer: Differentiated PD that offers teachers agency based on their own identified growth areas
Differentiated professional development that gives teachers agency over their learning mirrors the same best practices that teachers are expected to use with students.
Question 6: Which leadership behavior most effectively develops teacher leadership capacity within a school?
- Making all decisions independently to maintain consistency
- Identifying and creating formal and informal leadership opportunities for teachers across the school (Correct answer)
- Discouraging teacher input on school decisions to maintain clear authority
- Reserving leadership roles for veteran teachers only
Correct answer: Identifying and creating formal and informal leadership opportunities for teachers across the school
Creating formal and informal leadership pathways for teachers at all career stages develops the school's internal capacity and distributes leadership more broadly.
SLQ Professional Development and Human Resources 1
Which form of professional development is most strongly linked to changes in instructional practice?