Key factors:
The PD drawback we all know too properly: A flustered girl bursts into the room, late and disoriented. She’s carrying a scarf and a laptop computer she doesn’t know the best way to use. She refers to herself as a literacy professional named Linda, however inside minutes she’s asking lecturers to “dance for literacy,” assigning “elbow companions,” and insisting the district already has workbooks nobody’s ever seen (awalmartparkinglott, 2025). It’s chaotic. It’s exaggerated. And it’s painfully acquainted.
This viral satire, initially posted on Instagram and TikTok, resonates with educators not as a result of it’s absurd however as a result of it mirrors the worst {of professional} growth. Many lecturers have skilled PD periods which might be disorganized, disconnected from observe, or delivered by outsiders who misunderstand the native context.
Regardless of a long time of analysis on what makes skilled growth efficient–together with a give attention to content material, energetic studying, and sustained help (Darling-Hammond et al., 2017; Joseph, 2024)–too many periods stay generic, compliance-driven, or disconnected from day-to-day instructing realities. Educational teaching is highly effective however expensive (Kraft et al., 2018), and whereas collaborative studying communities present promise, they’re troublesome to keep up over time.
Typically, the problem isn’t the standard of the concepts however the techniques wanted to hold them ahead. Leaders battle to design related experiences that maintain momentum, and lecturers return to lecture rooms with out clear helps for software or follow-through. For all of the money and time invested in PD, the implementation hole stays large.
Synthetic intelligence isn’t a alternative for considerate design or expert facilitation, however it could possibly strengthen how we plan, ship, and maintain skilled studying. From customizing agendas and differentiating supplies to scaling teaching and mapping long-term development, AI provides concrete methods to make PD extra responsive and efficient (Sahota, 2024; Adams & Middleton, 2024; Tan et al., 2025).
Probably the most promising functions don’t try one-size-fits-all fixes, however as a substitute deal with persistent challenges piece by piece, enabling educators to guide smarter and extra strategically.
Lowering clerical load of PD planning
Earlier than any PD session begins, there’s a quiet mountain of invisible work: drafting the outline, goals, and agenda; constructing slide decks; designing handouts; creating flyers; aligning supplies to requirements; and managing time, house, and roles. For a lot of faculty leaders, this clerical load consumes hours, leaving little room for designing wealthy studying experiences.
AI-powered platforms can generate foundational supplies in minutes. A easy immediate can produce a standards-aligned agenda, remodel textual content right into a slide deck, or create a branded flyer. Instruments like Gamma and Canva streamline visible design, whereas bots such because the PD Workshop Planner or CK-12’s PD Session Designer tailor agendas to grade ranges or educational targets.
By shifting these repetitive duties to automation, leaders free extra time for content material design, strategic alignment, and participant engagement. AI doesn’t simply save time–it restores it, enabling leaders to give attention to considerate, human-centered skilled studying.
Scaling teaching and sustained observe
Educational teaching is impactful however costly and time-intensive, limiting entry for a lot of lecturers. Too typically, PD is delivered with out significant follow-up, and sustained affect is never evident.
AI might help prolong the attain of teaching by aligning helps with district enchancment plans, instructor and scholar knowledge, or employees self-assessments. Subscription-based instruments like Edthena’s AI Coach present asynchronous, video-based suggestions, permitting lecturers to add lesson recordings and obtain focused strategies over time (Edthena, 2025). Venture Café (Adams & Middleton, 2024) makes use of generative AI to research classroom movies and provide well timed, data-driven suggestions on educational practices.
AI-driven simulations, digital lecture rooms, and annotated scholar work samples (Annenberg Institute, 2024) provide scalable alternatives for lecturers to observe classroom administration, refine suggestions methods, and calibrate rubrics. Customized AI-powered chatbots can facilitate digital PLCs, connecting educators to co-plan and share concepts.
A current examine launched Novobo, an AI “mentee” that lecturers practice collectively utilizing gestures and voice; by instructing the AI, lecturers externalized and mirrored on tacit abilities, strengthening peer collaboration (Jiang et al., 2025). These improvements don’t change coaches however guarantee steady development the place conventional techniques fall quick.
Supporting long-term skilled development
{Most professional} growth is episodic, missing continuity, and failing to align with lecturers’ evolving targets. Sahota (2024) likens AI to a GPS for skilled development, guiding educators to set long-term targets, establish talent gaps, and entry studying alternatives aligned with aspirations.
AI-powered PD techniques can generate individualized studying maps and suggest programs tailor-made to particular roles or licensure pathways (O’Connell & Baule, 2025). Machine studying algorithms can analyze a instructor’s pursuits, prior coursework, and broader labor market traits to develop adaptive skilled studying plans (Annenberg Institute, 2024).
But objective setting isn’t sufficient; as Tan et al. (2025) notice, many initiatives fail as a result of weak implementation. AI can shut this hole by providing ongoing insights, customized suggestions, and formative knowledge that maintain development properly past the preliminary workshop.
Making digital PD extra versatile and inclusive
Digital PD typically mirrors conventional codecs, forcing all contributors into the identical dwell periods no matter schedule, studying type, or language entry.
Generative AI instruments enable leaders to transform dwell periods into asynchronous modules that lecturers can revisit anytime. Platforms like Otter.ai can transcribe conferences, generate summaries, and tag key takeaways, enabling absent contributors to catch up and multilingual employees to entry translated transcripts.
AI can adapt supplies for various studying ranges, provide language translations, and customise pacing to suit particular person schedules, guaranteeing PD is rigorous but accessible.
Enhancing suggestions and analysis
Skilled growth is simply too typically evaluated primarily based on attendance or satisfaction surveys, with little consideration to implementation or scholar outcomes. Many well-intentioned initiatives fail as a result of inadequate follow-through and weak help (Carney & Pizzuto, 2024).
Guskey’s (2000) 5 ranges of analysis, from preliminary response to scholar affect, stay a strong framework. AI enhances this method by automating assessments, producing surveys, and analyzing responses to floor themes and gaps. In PLCs, AI can help educators with merchandise evaluation and scholar work overview, providing insights that information educational changes and construct evidence-informed PD techniques.
Getting began: Sensible strikes for college leaders
College leaders can combine AI by beginning small: use PD Workshop Planner, Gamma, or Canva to streamline agenda design; make periods extra inclusive with Otter.ai; pilot AI teaching instruments to increase suggestions between periods; and apply Guskey’s framework with AI evaluation to strengthen implementation.
These actions shift focus from clerical work to educational affect.
Moral use, fairness, and privateness concerns
Whereas AI provides promise, dangers have to be addressed. Monetary and infrastructure disparities can widen the digital divide, leaving under-resourced faculties unable to entry these instruments (Middle on Reinventing Public Training, 2024).
Points of information privateness and moral use are essential: who owns efficiency knowledge, how it’s saved, and the way it’s used for decision-making have to be clear. Language translation and AI-generated suggestions require warning, as cultural nuance {and professional} judgment can’t be replicated by algorithms.
Over-reliance on automation dangers diminishing instructor company and relational facets of development. Accountable AI integration calls for transparency, equitable entry, and safeguards that shield educators and communities.
Conclusion: Smarter PD is inside attain
Academics deserve skilled studying that respects their time, builds on their experience, and results in lasting educational enchancment. By addressing design and implementation challenges which have plagued PD for many years, AI gives a pathway to raised, not simply completely different, skilled studying.
Leaders needn’t overhaul techniques in a single day; piloting small, strategic AI functions can sign a shift towards valuing time, relevance, and actual implementation. Smarter, extra human-centered PD is inside attain if we construct it deliberately and ethically.
References
Adams, D., & Middleton, A. (2024, Might 7). AI instrument reveals lecturers what they do within the classroom—and the best way to do it higher. The 74. https://www.the74million.org/article/opinion-ai-tool-shows-teachers-what-they-do-in-the-classroom-and-how-to-do-it-better
Annenberg Institute. (2024). AI in skilled studying: Navigating alternatives and challenges for educators. Brown College. https://annenberg.brown.edu/websites/default/recordsdata/AIpercent20inpercent20Professionalpercent20Learning.pdf
awalmartparkinglott. (2025, August 5). The PD presenter that makes 4x your wage [Video]. Instagram. https://www.instagram.com/reel/DMGrbUsPbnO/
Carney, S., & Pizzuto, D. (2024). Implement with IMPACT: A framework for making your PD stick. Studying Ahead Publishing.
Middle on Reinventing Public Training. (2024, June 12). AI is coming to U.S. lecture rooms, however who will profit? https://crpe.org/ai-is-coming-to-u-s-classrooms-but-who-will-benefit/
Darling-Hammond, L., Hyler, M. E., & Gardner, M. (2017). Efficient instructor skilled growth. Studying Coverage Institute. https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/websites/default/recordsdata/product-files/Effective_Teacher_Professional_Development_REPORT.pdf
Edthena. (2025). AI Coach for lecturers. https://www.edthena.com/ai-coach-for-teachers/
Guskey, T. R. (2000). Evaluating skilled growth. Corwin Press.
Jiang, J., Huang, Ok., Martinez-Maldonado, R., Zeng, H., Gong, D., & An, P. (2025, Might 29). Novobo: Supporting lecturers’ peer studying of educational gestures by instructing a mentee AI-agent collectively [Preprint]. arXiv. https://arxiv.org/abs/2505.17557
Joseph, B. (2024, October). It takes a village to design the most effective skilled growth. Training Week. https://www.edweek.org/management/opinion-it-takes-a-village-to-design-the-best-professional-development/2024/10
Kraft, M. A., Blazar, D., & Hogan, D. (2018). The impact of instructor teaching on instruction and achievement: A meta-analysis of the causal proof. Evaluate of Instructional Analysis, 88(4), 547–588. https://doi.org/10.3102/0034654318759268
O’Connell, J., & Baule, S. (2025, January 17). Harnessing generative AI to revolutionize educator development. eSchool Information. https://www.eschoolnews.com/digital-learning/2025/01/17/generative-ai-teacher-professional-development/
Sahota, N. (2024, July 25). AI energizes your profession path & charts your skilled development plan. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/websites/neilsahota/2024/07/25/ai-energizes-your-career-path–charts-your-professional-growth-plan/
Tan, X., Cheng, G., & Ling, M. H. (2025). Synthetic intelligence in instructing and instructor skilled growth: A scientific overview. Computer systems and Training: Synthetic Intelligence, 8, 100355. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.caeai.2024.100355
