Professional Development Interview

Professional development is a key component to be a successful and effective teacher and

to meet students’ needs. For this interview, I chose to interview Jeremy Aldrich, who is the

director of teaching and learning for Harrisonburg Public City Schools. I thought that Mr.

Aldrich would be an ideal person to speak with because of his extensive experience and

leadership roles within the city schools. 

One of the biggest struggles that new ESL teachers face is classroom management. Mr.

Aldrich stated that new teachers often struggle with managing behaviors in small groups or a

whole class. Many teachers struggle with establishing control in the classroom and building

positive relationships. I also asked Mr. Aldrich what advice he had for classroom management

when there is a significant language barrier, he believes that routines are a must. When students

know what they are supposed to do at the beginning and end of class, and what the routines are

for certain types of activities, they are more likely to do it. His advice was to start with a few

routines that are consistently repeated before introducing or changing the academic routine. 

  One of my biggest concerns about being an ESL teacher is not being recognized or

valued the same as my future colleagues who teach content area classes. Oftentimes, ESL

teachers are considered as assistants to content teachers. Mr. Aldrich stated that in order to be

represented and have a say in lesson plans, co-teaching is a must. When collaborating with

content teachers, the ESL teacher should be involved in planning the lesson and bringing a

language acquisition perspective to the plans. Co-teaching methods, scaffolding, and

differentiating instruction for language learners should be considered when content and ESL

teachers are collaborating. Mr. Aldrich said that many content teachers have not had training in
co-teaching and that to properly carry out a lesson and collaborate, so everyone’s skills need to

be taken into consideration. 

Many first-year teachers end up being extremely overwhelmed after their first year which

often leads to resignation. I asked Mr. Aldrich what the best type of professional development is

for an overwhelmed first-year teacher.  He stressed that focusing on one area where you as a

teacher need to grow personally or an area recommended by a supervisor is the best place to

start. Since it is impossible to go from novice teacher to expert overnight, focusing on one area

and then observing other teachers with those skills in mind, is a great way to improve your

teaching abilities. There are many new ideas and methods from experienced teachers that you

can use and make your own. Joining a professional organization and building a network of

teachers in your field is a great support network to help with questions and struggles. 

Mr. Aldrich’s responses to my questions provided me with some very beneficial advice

for my career as an ESL teacher. Finding and engaging in professional development during my

career as a teacher will be extremely important and helpful, especially throughout my first year. 

By regularly participating in professional development it will help me properly collaborate with

content teachers, monitor my personal growth as a teacher, and look for ways to improve my

skills in various areas.