Professional Learning System Review

The Superintendent’s Quality Professional Learning Standards1 (QPLS) support the creation of a coherent system of professional learning policies and activities that leads to improved educator knowledge, skills, and dispositions and, ultimately, increased student learning results. They identify essential elements of quality professional learning, for teachers, administrators, and other staff, that cut across specific content knowledge, pedagogical understanding, and leadership skills.

California has identified a clear outcome for professional learning—to continuously develop educators’ capacity to teach and lead so that all students learn and thrive—and seven interdependent professional learning standards that focus on:

• Data • Content and Pedagogy;

• Equity;

• Design and Structure;

• Collaboration and Shared Accountability;

• Resources; 

• Alignment and Coherence.

The QPLS are intended to help educators, local educational agencies, and the state develop and contextualize professional learning system goals and plans. These standards are not meant to be used to evaluate any educator in any aspect of his or her work. Instead, by providing a common vision for professional learning, everyone connected to increasing educator excellence—teachers; principals; district, county, and state education agency staff; university professors; professional learning and technical assistance providers; and policymakers and other stakeholders—can transform California’s professional learning system into one that ensures that every student benefits from an excellent teacher and principal.