Flex Day Program

A “flex day” is a staff development day in which staff may choose when to complete personalized professional learning. All Flex activities must align with our priority focal areas:

Social Emotional Learning - SEL has to do with ensuring that each learner has the skills, dispositions, and knowledge to overcome, persist, engage, cope, and grow. Here are some associated topics:

• Engaging the brain/brain science

• Growth mindset

• Student motivation

• Trauma-informed instruction

• Ensuring physical and emotional safety

Equity - The definition used by the PA Department of Education is as follows: “Every student has access to the educational resources and rigor they need at the right moment in their education across race, gender, ethnicity language, disability, sexual orientation, family background, and/or family income.” Some possible topics for learning might include:

• Career readiness

• Culturally responsive teaching, curriculum, materials

• Equity of access to rigorous curriculum

• Social justice

• Diversity

Teaching With Technology (pedagogical approaches using digital tools and techniques) 

Curriculum, Instruction, Assessment (CIA)

Secondary teachers, if you teach a class for which there is not an approved curriculum or an outdated curriculum (prior to 2017), this should be your first priority for your Flex hours. 

What Counts as a “Learning Activity”?

• Face-to-face or virtual workshop, conference, summer institute
• Online course
• Professional Literature/Video Study Group - read these guidelines
• Curriculum development
• Only work done on the official curriculum qualifies as “curriculum work.” 
• Lesson planning, assessment development, identifying resources, and/or adding to Canvas or Google Classroom are not considered Curriculum Writing activities.

Looking for ideas? **Check out our new Summer Flex Catalog**

“Professional development” is defined as professional learning relating to your area of certification which qualifies for Act 48 credit.  (Read this for more details.) In general, professional development:

• has measurable learning objectives,
• actively engages participants in meeting the objective through exposure to evidenced-based research/materials, and
• includes an expectation of implementing the learning in the classroom/on the job in order to improve student outcomes.

*NEW FOR 21/22* Proposal & Reporting Process:

• On May 10, 2021, you will receive notification from Comply that you two new items: 
  • The last flex day occurs the day after the last teacher day which may be adjusted due to snow days or other school closures.
  • 1-17-22 Flex Proposal & 5-31-22 (Last) Flex Proposal
  • Reports available in Comply in June 2021

• For the Report, you do NOT have to upload evidence into Comply.  
• Instead, complete the questionnaire, and then you will be summarizing your learning on an assigned Google Slide. The slides will serve as a repository of the learning of the faculty and will be used as a means to share learning with others. Limit one (1) slide per activity. Use ONLY your assigned slides (links in Comply in report): 

Flex Program Guidelines:

1. Do not begin your Flex activity until you receive approval from your supervisor.
2. All professional learning activities must occur outside of the regular work day. 
3. There will be no additional compensation for additional flex activities/hours.
4. Flex hours cannot be “banked” for a future school year. 
5. If a teacher does not complete the Proposal and Report by the due dates, the professional learning activity on the designated day will be directed by an administrator.

* Last Flex day will occur one day after the last teacher day of the school year. At publication, that date is 5-31-22, but is subject to change.