Online Professional Development

Online Professional Development for Teachers and Other Staff

The Baltimore County Public Schools Protocols for Online Professional Development Courses outlines the implementation of online professional development. Online professional development courses in the Baltimore County Public Schools are available in two formats:

Online Courses: Courses in which 80% or more of the instruction is web-based and delivered via the Internet. These courses are generally for inservice or graduate credit and can be created locally, in other school systems in Maryland, through a college or university, or purchased from a vendor of online professional development courses. The courses are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week and teachers usually take these courses because of the flexibility they offer. Online courses are generally available in all content areas and courses in pedagogy and technology integration are among the types of courses that are also available.
Hybrid Courses: Courses which are primarily taught as traditional courses, however, an online component has been added to reduce the number of face-to-face classes or to provide additional resources in an online format are referred to as "hybrid courses." An online component may be added to encourage online collaboration or group work that can be done over a period of time without requiring that class members meet in person. Resources that provide examples of "Best Practices" may be available online or participants may place examples of their work online and ask for peer reviews of that work.

Links for Online Professional Development Opportunities

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