Recapping TLDC: Preparing for a Smooth Transition with McKenzie Day

This is a series of posts recapping and reacting to sessions from the recent January 2023 Training, Learning, and Development Community (TLDC) event to support teachers transitioning to L&D. The full event recordings can be found at the TLDC website.

Summary: McKenzie gave a very practical and useful presentation on her personal transition from the classroom with tips that teachers could use for their own. She walked through a mindset change, including accepting that you are leaving and what that entails, whether you tell people or not at your school. She then talked about making opportunities at your school, such as training other teachers by leading a professional development on a curriculum tool being the equivalent of “Train the Trainer” because they were going to go back and deliver learning in their classrooms based on your training. Finally, she talked about some efficient ways to upskill with tools teachers may already have by identifying the overlap.

This quote is fantastic, and I absolutely agree with it! Most of the things on my resume from teaching are there because I put myself out there for opportunities. (Sometimes someone did ask me, out of a need, but usually because I had put myself out there before.) You may have already done things like she is suggesting, and you can use them.

Another tip: As you work forward, anything extra you do and any energy you put towards upskilling anything in teaching should be towards where you want to go. Draw boundaries, but still seek opportunities that will help you get to where you want! Put your energy towards making opportunities for yourself to grow in the skills you want to show for the career you want.

It was so wonderful that McKenzie made this presentation something that is extremely practical, with steps you can use while still in the classroom. While she admits, as I would too even though my transition was a bit after hers, the market was very different when she transitioned, telling her story really highlights her points! She mentions not getting anywhere until she sat down, reframed her experience, upskilled intentionally, and applies with a more cohesive resume and portfolio, with better understanding. Her teacher resume didn’t work. Once she took some time to reflect and learn, her instructional designer one did and she got the opportunities to show her wealth of knowledge and skill. That’s what most transitioning teachers are looking for too!

McKenzie makes this one easy for me because she gives you the homework to go find that opportunity right in the workshop. I think that’s great, actionable homework. So, let’s take out our notebooks and start to plan for just that!

I created an organizer to help you think about designing a new opportunity with the most effective mindset:

(I highly suggest drawing this yourself and even restructuring it — this could even just be written down, no reason it needs to be an organizer per se. However, here is the PDF, mostly for the alt-text to make it accessible since it wouldn’t all fit in a web image as neatly as some of the others: Make Your Opportunities.)

So, first let’s start with just taking time over the next week or so to jot down everything you’ve already done that you think might fit this sort of framework. Then plan for a very intentional experience or brainstorm ones you might plan for, where you can potentially solve a problem.

See more in this Loom about what I mean:

About this Activity (Watch Video on Loom) (Loom Transcript)

Be creative if you need to. It could be a live training but maybe you can’t do that without permission and you don’t think you’ll get it? Well, it could be a job aid people really need. I made a job aid in 2020 that got shared with over 1000 teachers in and out of my district to help them figure out apps that worked for different subject level areas and activities. (Why was it useful? It was at the point of need when that content didn’t exist yet and so many teachers needed it! Would compiling the same thing today be valuable? Definitely not! There are many better ones out there now, frankly.) But you don’t need an unexpected pandemic shutdown to stand up and solve a problem—there are always a million needs in schools.

Does your school need to improve its testing training? New or different state tests this year? New teachers who have never given them before? It could be as basic as asking your school administration if they need help training teachers on that! Does your department head need help leading a microlesson during the next meeting? Do ESE teachers need resources in your subject area? Sometimes you can’t get permission for what you want, but you can probably find something that doesn’t even require administrative permission if that’s an issue. Though if your school is anything like mine were, there are usually needs and administrators are often happy to have the help leading PD!

This is extremely valuable homework, mostly given by McKenzie: Do something to show your skills. What you do can be used in a resume, maybe a portfolio, definitely an interview. And I suggest as you do it, think in that problem/solution framework.

About the Speaker: Check out McKenzie Day on LinkedIn or at her portfolio website.