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Maryland spends up to $1 billion on teacher professional development every year, but there is little to no data showing that teachers improve in classrooms from such programs, according to a recent report.
Public school teachers in Maryland must renew their teaching license every five years, which involves three years of annual satisfactory evaluations and a certain number of hours of state-approved professional development opportunities and courses at colleges and universities.
But the effectiveness of teacher recertification requirements is ambiguous, according to Abell Foundation’s “Reconsidering Teacher Recertification in Maryland” report. And because of how many public dollars are invested in teacher licensure and professional development, it is important to ensure that these efforts are meaningful, Mark Procopio,