Beyond Workshops: The Incredible Power of Ongoing Professional Learning

You know that feeling when you walk out of an amazing professional development session, mind buzzing with new ideas? You’ve received well-designed resources, thoughtful strategies, and maybe even some implementation tips. You’re ready to transform your teaching practice starting tomorrow.

Fast forward three weeks. Those files sit unopened on your computer, and those brilliant strategies feel like distant memories. Sound familiar?

If you’re nodding along, you’re not alone. It’s not a lack of effort, commitment, or know-how holding you back. The truth is, lasting change takes more than just inspiration. Lasting change requires ongoing support, practical follow-up, and a community that keeps you motivated. 

Imagine if those resources and strategies were not just a one-time spark, but part of a continuous journey that empowers you every step of the way. That’s the difference between good intentions and fundamental change.

Why One-Shot Workshops Aren’t Cutting It Anymore

Picture a scenario that plays out in schools everywhere: Lauren, a third grade teacher, spends her professional development day learning about instructional strategies for phonological and phonemic awareness. 

The presenter is engaging, the activities are doable, and Lauren leaves energized about trying everything she learned.

The next week arrives with its usual demands. Lauren has parent-teacher conferences, three IEP meetings to prepare for, a schoolwide assembly, a math assessment to review, and a student teacher who needs guidance. 

Those evidence-based instructional strategies? They feel aspirational when there’s already so much to do.

By Friday, Lauren realizes she hasn’t integrated a single new strategy from the professional development session. The digital resources remain untouched, and she feels guilty about not making the most of another learning opportunity.

Sound familiar? Research backs up what teachers already know. Traditional one-shot professional development fails to create lasting change in teaching practice about 90% of the time. Without ongoing support, collaborative problem-solving, or time to practice new skills, even the most well-intentioned training becomes just another item to check off the list.

Meanwhile, teachers are facing growing challenges that require time and attention:

• Class sizes keep growing while support staff shrinks

• Students are arriving with learning gaps that stretch across multiple grade levels

• Mental health needs are urgent

• Curriculum changes happen with little notice

When professional development fails to connect with these daily realities, it feels out of touch with what teachers actually need.

Professional Development That Evolves With You

Professional growth isn’t about collecting certificates or attending more workshops. It’s about creating a learning system that elevates the profession while providing continuous support.

Think about how you learned to teach in the first place. You didn’t just read about classroom management and then become an expert. You may have tried various strategies, reflected on what worked, adjusted your approach, and gradually built your skills throughout months and years. If you were fortunate, you did this with the support and camaraderie of your fellow teachers. 

The key principles that make professional learning work include:

• Time to process and practice: Adult learners need time to process new information, experiment with it in their classrooms, reflect on the results, and adjust their approach. 

• Learning with colleagues: Teachers working alone face an uphill battle when implementing new practices. When you learn alongside colleagues who understand your specific challenges, you create support networks that extend learning far beyond any formal training period.

• Practical classroom connection: Professional development must connect to Monday morning reality, or it simply won’t work. You need concrete strategies you can implement immediately, along with guidance about adapting these approaches for your specific students and classroom context.

• Access to current research: Education research moves quickly. New findings about reading instruction, classroom management, and student engagement appear regularly. Continued professional learning enables you to access and apply the latest evidence-based practices, rather than relying on outdated strategies.

• Personalized pathways: Your professional learning needs to change as you grow. A first-year teacher needs different support than someone with 15 years of experience. Elementary literacy specialists require different resources than middle school science teachers.

Changes That Last: The Impact of Sustained Professional Growth

Teachers who experience continuous professional learning see changes that extend far beyond their classrooms. These changes occur gradually but have a lasting impact that extends to every aspect of their teaching careers.

Students Notice the Difference First

The most immediate and visible impact of sustained professional learning shows up in student engagement and achievement. When you have ongoing opportunities to refine your instructional practices, something shifts in your classroom dynamic. Students become more engaged during lessons, academic outcomes improve consistently, and the overall learning environment becomes more positive and productive. You become more confident and so do your students.

Think about it this way: When you learn a new reading strategy in a workshop, you might try it once or twice before moving on to other priorities. However, when you have ongoing support to implement, adjust, and refine that strategy for several weeks, you discover how to tailor it to your specific students. 

You learn which students require additional scaffolding, how to adapt the approach for different learning styles, and when to utilize the strategy for maximum impact.

Teachers consistently report that having expert guidance and peer support to implement evidence-based strategies creates classrooms where students not only learn better but also thrive. The difference isn’t just in test scores but in student confidence, participation, and genuine excitement about learning.

Professional Growth Fights Burnout Before It Starts

One significant benefit of continuous professional development is its ability to uplift and inspire teachers. When you feel like you’re continuously learning and genuinely improving, you stay more connected to your profession and rediscover what drew you to teaching in the first place.

The contrast is striking. Teachers who feel stuck in routines report higher levels of frustration and exhaustion. They often describe feeling like they’re going through the motions, using the same strategies year after year with diminishing enthusiasm. 

But teachers engaged in ongoing professional growth report a completely different experience. They have higher job satisfaction, renewed energy for their work, and often become mentor teachers and instructional leaders in their schools.

This renewed energy comes from having fresh perspectives about familiar challenges. When you’re learning new approaches to classroom management, discovering innovative ways to support readers who struggle, or exploring creative methods for parent communication, your daily work feels dynamic rather than repetitive. 

You approach each school year with curiosity about what you’ll discover and improve rather than resignation about facing the same challenges again.

Lasting Professional Relationships Form Naturally

The relationships that develop through sustained professional learning become some of the most valuable connections of your teaching career. Unlike networking events or brief conference encounters, these relationships form through shared learning experiences, collaborative problem-solving, and mutual support.

These colleagues understand your specific challenges because they face similar situations in their classrooms. When you’re struggling to help a student who isn’t making connections to phonemic awareness instruction, these are the people who can offer practical suggestions because they’ve worked through similar roadblocks. 

Over time, these professional relationships extend far beyond formal learning sessions. They become your go-to sounding board for new ideas and your cheerleaders during difficult periods. 

Many teachers describe these connections as some of the most sustaining aspects of their careers, providing encouragement and practical support that helps them grow continuously rather than feeling isolated in their classrooms.

From Surviving to Thriving in the Classroom

The most transformative aspect of continued professional learning is how it builds genuine confidence in your teaching abilities. This isn’t false confidence but the deep assurance that comes from having a robust toolkit of strategies and the community support to implement them effectively.

Continuous learning expands both your knowledge base and your instructional tools. Instead of relying on a handful of familiar approaches, you develop flexibility and adaptability. When a lesson isn’t working, you have multiple alternatives to try. When you encounter a student with unique learning needs, you have strategies specifically designed for those situations. When your administration introduces new curriculum requirements, you feel prepared rather than overwhelmed.

This confidence shows up in practical ways throughout your teaching day. You feel more capable of adapting to unexpected classroom situations, and more equipped to advocate for your students’ needs. You approach parent-teacher conferences with confidence in your instructional decisions and feel comfortable explaining the research-based reasoning behind your teaching methods.

The community aspect significantly amplifies this confidence. Knowing you have colleagues who understand your challenges and celebrate your successes creates a safety net that encourages risk-taking and innovation. 

You’re more likely to try new strategies because you know you have support if adjustments are needed. This combination of expanded skills and community backing creates the conditions where both you and your students flourish.

More Than Training: The LETRS Connect Experience

If you’ve completed Lexia® LETRS® Professional Learning, you have already built a strong foundation in the science of reading. Here’s the thing about that foundation: Completing LETRS isn’t the finish line. It’s the catapult for continuous professional growth.

Lexia® LETRS® Connect™ brings together the most impactful elements of sustained professional learning, offering lasting benefits. Rather than one-time training, it’s a learning experience that supports continuous growth, reflection, and mastery.

Here’s what makes LETRS Connect different:

• Expert-led learning sessions: Learn from leading science of reading experts to deepen the understanding of reading research, phoneme awareness, phonics, morphology, spelling, fluency, comprehension, and writing. These sessions equip educators to provide smarter support for all learners. Resources to further learning, such as journal reflection opportunities, Check for Understanding assessments, and application-based activities. 

• Continued access to your LETRS foundation: Educators can revisit their previously completed LETRS course content and resources. This reinforces their foundational knowledge, ensuring they retain and build upon their learning. Ongoing access helps maintain a high level of instructional quality and consistency. 

• Enhanced Resource Library: The Resource Library expands beyond your original LETRS materials. Modeling videos show you strategies in action with real students. Downloadable content, graphic organizers, planning tools, and classroom activities give you concrete ways to implement what you’re learning.

• Live community connections: Live-online events connect you directly with researchers, practitioners, and subject matter experts. Educators can ask questions about your specific classroom challenges and gain valuable insights. Share what’s working in your teaching. Learn from other LETRS graduates who have faced similar situations.

• Flexible learning that fits your schedule:The digital platform works around demanding schedules. Connect when it works best for you. Experience professional learning that adapts to the realities of teaching, not the other way around.

Your Professional Growth Matters More Than Ever

Professional development should energize you, connect you with colleagues who understand your challenges, and provide practical support for the complex work you do every day.

If you’ve completed LETRS, you’ve already invested significant time and energy into building your foundation in the science of reading. LETRS Connect is an opportunity to build on that purposeful foundation. And if you’re beginning your journey with LETRS, you can be confident that this learning will continue to receive ongoing support.   

Your students benefit when you have access to evidence-based continued professional learning. Your colleagues benefit when you can share practical strategies that you’ve successfully implemented, and you benefit when professional development is a source of renewal and growth.

Teaching is a profession where the learning truly never ends. Shouldn’t your professional development reflect that reality?

Ready to take the next step in your LETRS journey? 

LETRS Connect, our innovative solution for continuous professional learning, launched in July 2025. Discover how this comprehensive, sustained professional learning experience provides ongoing support, practical resources, and collaborative communities explicitly designed for LETRS graduates.