Taking professional learning to isolated schools: Perceptions of providers and principals, and lessons for effective professional learning

This article describes the implementation and outcomes, as perceived by the professional learning providers and school principals, of a professional learning (PL) model devised in response to recognition that models of PL that are effective in urban settings are not effective in rural and remote areas. Rather than expecting the teachers to travel to an urban venue, the project used a five member team to provide 11 person-days of mathematics PL to a relatively remote cluster of schools over the course of one school week. The model was designed to meet the specific needs of teachers and schools in the cluster and to establish relationships that would form the basis of ongoing contacts. Data demonstrating the effectiveness of the model as well as the difficulties encountered, particularly by the PL providers, are presented and discussed. In addition, the importance of relationships between PL providers and teachers, and the value of grounding PL in a theory of learning are highlighted.