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Small Virginia District

Increases TeacherEnthusiasm for PD 

PETERSBURG CITY PUBLIC SCHOOLS, VIRGINIA

Case StudySchool Improvement Network

DISTRICT PROFILE

Petersburg City Public Schools (PCPS) is located in

Petersburg, Virginia, along the eastern seaboard just 23

miles south of the state capital, Richmond. It is a small

district with a student population of 4,630 in seven

schools.

FOCUS

PCPS, like many districts, has experienced difculties.

• PCPS did not make Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) 

for the 2009-2010 school year and had four Title I

schools.

• PCPS did not meet full Standards of Learning (SOL)accreditation.

• PCPS had the highest dropout rate in central Virginia,

with 19.2 percent of the Class of 2010 not making it

to graduation. However, that number marked a sharp

drop from 2008 when 31.1 percent of potential

graduates dropped out.

SOLUTION

PCPS Staff Development Coordinator, Gail Wade, was

anxious to assist struggling teachers and thereby benetstudents. She wanted a cost effective single source that

would provide many avenues of professional devel-

opment (PD) for all educators. School Improvement

Network, the producers of PD 360, contacted her with

an invitation to learn more in an area User Group and to

sample a free trial to see it for herself. She quickly real -

ized it was a perfect answer for the district’s PD.

ABOUT PD 360

PD 360 is an on-demand library of professional teacher

development resources that leverages technology to

make professional learning more effective, convenient,

and sustainable. With over 200 hours of research-based

video content, plus tools for follow-up, tracking, reec -

tion, and group training, PD 360 is the most comprehen

sive solution to your professional teacher development

needs.

More than 600,000 educators across North America

already use PD 360 to access individualized support on

the most relevant topics, like differentiation, minority

student achievement, English language learners, class-room instruction that works, leadership, assessment,

and many more. PD 360’s content is divided into hun-

dreds of indexed and searchable segments that make

it easy for teachers, administrators, aspiring leaders,

coaches, mentors, paraprofessionals, and professional

learning communities to nd the answers they need.

New content is continually added to keep you up-to-date

See a demonstration at www.pd360.com.

DRIVING USAGE AND IMPLEMENTATION

Ms. Wade has created an ideal paradigm by leading an

excellent PD 360 implementation and the usage num-

bers of PCPS educators reect it.

> First Year Implementation

• PD 360 CHAMPIONS user group was formed to

assist with implementation and to oversee usage at

each school site. They were the rst in the district to

be trained.

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• PD 360 CHAMPIONS met on a monthly basis

throughout the year to discuss implementation and

usage of PD 360 at the school level, network with

each other for support and new ideas, learn about

new features, create reports, and receive additional

training and support.

• One person was identied from each school to

serve as the PD 360 Point of Contact (POC) for the

school. The PD 360 POC is responsible for guiding

the implementation at the school level.

• Teachers and staff were assigned to watch videos

that aligned with a school initiative. Follow-up and

discussions on the assignments were done in grade

level or team meetings and/or faculty meetings.

 > Focus Objectives

• Division level administrators set focus objectives

for the PCPS division based on instructional needs

and district initiatives.

• Principals set focus objectives that are aligned

with the district’s objectives, as well as their school

improvement plan that focuses on individual school

needs.

>Struggling Teachers 

Every teacher has a yearly evaluation with their princi-

pal when they decide together which modules will be

worked on in the coming year. This information be-

comes a part of the teacher’s evaluation process.

>Group Training 

Principals are excited to have collaborative viewing read-

ily available. They use PD 360 videos to show in small

group, large group, and faculty meetings to illustrateinstructional strategies and learning.

>Second Year Implementation

Additional PD 360 training for administrators and PD 360

Champions includes plans to:

• Provide updates and additional training on existing

features in PD 360.

• Provide updates and additional training on setting

focus objectives and the reporting features.

• Provide instructions and information about how to 

use and access new and additional features(Learning Communities, Groups, and collaborative

viewing) and content in PD 360.

• Support increased and expanded use of PD 360.

 >Second Year Goals

All school staffs will be trained on the new features in PD

360 and learn more about the Learning Community and

Groups features.

• School administrators will set new focus objectives

for this school year and they will begin to use the

Learning Community and Groups features.

• The Learning Community and Groups features will 

be used at the district level.

• PD 360 Champions will meet on a monthly basis 

and continue to monitor and support successful

implementation in schools.

BENEFITS

 > First Year District Usage Summary

• 413 registered users

• 38,522 minutes viewed

• 2,660 programs viewed

• 7,026 learning segments viewed

• 8,637 reection questions answered

• 5,350 follow-up questions answered

 > Educator Enthusiasm

PCPS teachers have been very happy with PD 360.

They were given an end-of-year survey concerning their

experiences.

• Of those who responded to the survey 90%

indicated that they spent 25-40 minutes per week

accessing professional development using PD 360.

• Asked when they use PD 360

• About half responded that they used it mostlyat home

• About half responded that they used it mostly

at work

• The top three advantages cited in PD 360 usage 

• Ease of use 

• Accessibility 

• Use of real classroom examples/variety

of instructional strategies

 > Cost Effective

PD 360 has been very cost-effective for PCPS. The

expenditure is much less than traditional PD and can bepurchased with a variety of funding sources available to

districts and schools, including Title I, II, III, IV, V, VII, state

funds, foundation funds, federal and state grant monies,

math funds, reading funds, technology funds, etc.

> Customizable

PD 360 can be customized to align with state, district,

and school requirements and initiatives in the coming

year. As teachers and administrators use these aligned

segments, they can actually see what the standards

and best practices look like when implemented in real

classrooms.

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“PD 360 is a positive tool for principals. They feel

empowered because they now have the tools they

need to lead teacher focus and they are able to be PD

directors themselves.”

Gail Wade

Staff Development Coordinator

Petersburg City Public Schools, VA

> Individual Needs/Differentiated LearningProfessional development should meet the diversity of

teacher needs and not be a one-time, one-size-ts-all

event, but rather an evolving process of reection and

growth that is sustained in communities of practice, and

focused on job-embedded responsibilities. As questions

and situations arise in classrooms, teachers can easily

nd answers in PD 360 to improve teaching and give

support when needed instead of waiting for workshops.

> Individual Accountability

With PD 360, teachers are responsible for their own

professional growth and administrators can ensure

that it happens consistently with PD 360’s integratedtracking, reporting, and follow-up. This strengthens

teacher commitment that translates into positive

changes in the classroom.

 >Real Classroom Examples

PCPS teachers like being able to see real classroom

examples that show how to implement the strategies

they are taught. The wide varieties from across the

country are essential as teachers can actually see how

to implement best practices in their own classroom

management.

 > Interactive Communities

PD 360 Learning Communities allow PCPS teachersto communicate and collaborate with other teachers.

Through it, they can present each other with

implementation ideas, participate in discussion forums,

upload lesson plans, and share Web links to helpful

resources. Educators can share best practices, learn

from one another, and eliminate classroom isolation

regardless of location. Learning Communities can be

created as public or private domains.

 >Real Experts

Over 120 respected education experts are available at

each teacher’s ngertips whenever they need them.

PCPS no longer has the frustration of not sendingeveryone to conferences because of the high costs

associated with them. Now, educators do not have to

wait to attend workshops and conferences; yet can learn

from the best authorities.

The district has had great experiences with PD 360 in

its rst year and it has become a vital part of the PCPS

professional development program. Ms. Wade and the

Staff Development department praise it as an integral

ingredient in their accomplishments such as:

• Four schools are now accredited, one is accredited 

with warning.

• Peabody Middle School is accredited for the

rst time.

• The decline in the dropout rate from 31.1 to 19.2

percent is enormous and crucial for the success of

PCPS students.

PCPS is moving forward and learning more about the

possibilities of PD 360 and how to delve deeper into its

usage. Moreover, as the district reaches its potential,

the students will be the victors.

“I am a true advocate for PD 360 -- and so are my

Champions. It has denitely provided more quality PD

than our district could afford if purchased separately.

We are completely passionate because we see the great

potential of PD 360 and highly recommend it.”

Gail Wade

Staff Development Coordinator

Petersburg City Public Schools, VA

ABOUT SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT NETWORK

The School Improvement Network is the leading pro-

vider of teacher education and teacher training, spe-

cializing in on-demand, research-based professional

development anytime, anywhere. As the home of The

Video Journal of Education, PD 360, and the Leader-

ship and Learning Framework, School Improvement

Network’s education training resources focus on the

most relevant topics, such as classroom management.

The resources also feature top experts such as Michael

Fullan and Douglas Reeves, and show how to put theory

into practice. With its focus on long-term improvement,

sustainability, and greater internal capacity, the School

Improvement Network helps its clients close achieve-ment gaps, meet high standards and increase student

learning for both elementary education and secondary

education.

To learn more about School Improvement Network’s

dynamic resources, visit www.schoolimprovement.com.

CONCLUSION

To read more case studies, scan this QRcode with a smartphone or visit www.schoolimprovement.com/casestudies