NCTE 2024

Research suggests that the most effective professional development (PD) incorporates active learning, opportunities for feedback, and reflection; it is sustained over time and job-embedded Communities of Practice (CoPs) encompass all of these elements and give teachers agency in determining their PD agenda. The presenter shares her experiences with providing English teaching professionals globally with concrete ways to establish, participate in, and sustain growth through teacher-led CoPs. She shares outcomes from 3 different initiatives, one with practicing Adult ESL teachers in the US, one with teachers in Vietnam, and one with MA TESOL candidates at her university. She shows the benefits that CoPs have for fostering and sustaining teacher professional growth.