TDC wanted to take their successful online, on-demand instruction method and apply it to a professional development support service for teachers. Funded by a grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, TDC developed and evaluated a new, live PD model that enabled classroom teachers to get just-in-time help with content, pedagogy, and classroom dynamics issues from a network of Online Teaching Coaches. First launched as a pilot program, MyLivePD gave teachers the support they needed to immediately and effectively enhance their classroom teaching practices and impact student achievement.

The challenge was to build a brand that expressed MyLivePD as everything that traditional PD was not—personal, timely and relevant. It was a collaborative environment, where instructional coaches worked closely with teachers on developing new approaches to engaging students, building lesson plans and managing their curriculum. Teachers had the power to collaborate with a coach on their own schedule, and on the personal issues that affected their classrooms specifically.

MyLivePD had an immediate impact on student learning. Teachers who used MyLivePD told us it was extremely relevant to their daily teaching—90% of teachers used what they learned in a MyLivePD session in their programs within a week.