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What is Professional Development? Why is it Important?

By 11th September 2022General

1 Day Liferarian Workshops – 2022

Register NOW for the Liferarian Conference 2022

Workshops for Librarians, Technology Teachers,

Multilanguage Teachers (ESL & Classroom Teachers) & IBO Core Teachers.

Theme: Collaboration – Key to Student Success
Day, Date & Time: Saturday, 3rd December 2022 – 8:30 AM – 5:30 PM IST
Location: American School of Bombay, Bandra Kurla Complex, Mumbai

List of Speakers for the Library and Technology Strand

List of Speakers for the IB Core Strand – TOK, Extended Essay and CAS

List of Speakers for ESL and Language Teachers.

No one is excellent at their jobs or professions; we are all evolving. When you look at a successful librarian or teacher, this is because they have extensively been learning and working continuously towards building their skills or learning for a long time and embodying the principle of lifelong learning.

The professional world is competitive, and job profile needs are changing. Therefore continuous learning and professional development are essential for growth and success in your career goal. Technology and best practices are evolving and, therefore, crucial for both new and experienced librarians or teachers.

Technologies, best practices, and pedagogies are evolving and progressing in every industry, making it crucial for new and experienced professionals to continue developing their skills and honing their knowledge. Librarians have evolved into Information and Media Specialists, Media Specialists, Library Specialists, iCommons Specialists, Information & Technology Specialists, and many other new titles.

Primary School Librarians have evolved from simple read-aloud to interactive read-aloud strategies for deeper comprehension while creating a love for reading. Librarians are now learning, teaching & using technology tools and teaching information and media literacy skills.

In my early days as an assistant librarian, I shadowed two librarians at my school: an elementary school librarian and, later, the secondary school librarian. They both taught me lots of practical approaches to support my job. Shadowing experts or other professionals help you grow, learn practical strategies, and understand the ‘why’ of things around you. Collaboration is the key to learning and growing too.

What is the purpose of professional development?

– It helps you gain, learn and apply new knowledge and skills.
– Provides career growth and builds new mentors.
– It keeps you relevant since skills and expertise are evolving.
– Builds confidence in current practices, thereby increasing the capacity of being hireable.

Some of the opportunities for professional development are:

  • Attending a professional conference.
  • Participating in workshops.
  • Engaging in hands-on workshops.
  • Micro-learning in a particular field like google education.
  • Shadow a colleague or find a coach.
  • Reading a professional book or topic of your interest in learning.

Conferences are great opportunities to learn from experts in your field, network with like-minded professionals, and build your credibility, the art and craft of your profession. The purpose of conferences is to bring together professionals with specific expertise to discuss problems and offer solutions.

Register NOW! And we will see you there!

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