LAE : Calculating the CLU Value

State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education policy states that educators may earn one CLU for each clock hour of active engagement in high quality professional development. CLU providers (e.g., state department of education, local education agencies, universities, private providers) will include specific details (e.g., content description, length of time, provider qualifications) for all professional development activities.

How is Face-to-Face Professional Development measured in CLUs (clock hours)?

Typical face-to-face professional development experiences (e.g., workshops, courses, institutes, conferences) are scheduled for a particular length of time during which all participants are actively engaged in the learning activities. Each actual clock hour of learning activities equals one CLU.

When calculating clock hours and CLUs for face-to-face professional development activities, one does not include non-instructional/learning time. For example, for a day-long workshop one does not include the lunch break; for a professional conference, one would only include those hours spent in actual sessions, excluding lunch/dinner breaks or social events. A typical 3-hour university course would be counted as 45 CLUs. The clock hours and CLUs should represent time actually spent engaged in the learning experience.

How is Online Professional Development measured in CLUs (clock hours)?

Unlike face-to-face professional development activities that have traditionally been delineated with beginning time and ending time, the emerging world of online professional development does not fit a clock-hour or seat time analysis. The relative newness of online professional development and the asynchronous nature of online learning make the clock hour measurement more challenging. However, an analysis of the structure, length, and content of an online learning experience can be converted to a “clock-hour” or CLU equivalency.

The chart below provides general guidance that providers, participants, schools, and districts should use in determining the CLUs for online professional development.

How are Specialized and Program-Specific Professional Development Experiences measured in CLUs (clock hours)?

There are many opportunities for educators to have high quality professional development experience and to earn CLUs that extend beyond traditional courses, seminars, institutes, workshops, or conferences. More and more comprehensive school and district improvement programs (e.g., LINCS, SCHOOLTech, LaTAAP) require participating educators to engage in meaningful professional growth activities. Additionally, a broadened view of what constitutes high quality professional development has expanded the role of a teacher as an educational leader and has resulted in teachers experiencing professional growth in a number of ways (e.g., mentoring other teachers, serving on curriculum mapping and curriculum development teams, achieving National Board Certification, completing action research).

Calculating the CLUs for these types of professional development experiences requires careful deliberation and documentation. An educator may earn 1.0 CLU for each hour he/she is actively engaged in high quality, structured professional development activities as identified above. The activities are structured in that there are clear goals and objectives and identifiable outcomes.

For example, to earn CLUs for time devoted to faculty study groups, the group must follow a structured process, one characterized by regularly scheduled meetings, agendas, notes/logs, and/or action plans. To earn CLUs on task forces and committees, 1.0 CLU is awarded for each clock hour spent in group deliberation.

If schools participate in school-improvement professional development programs (e.g. ,LINCS, Reading First, SCHOOLTech), participating educators may earn CLUs for engaging in formal study groups and/or attending on-going content-specific trainings. In such situations, the district may total the number of CLUs awarded for each individual activity, or may identify an annual CLU amount to be awarded for the full year participation.

The list below identifies some of the specialized and program-specific professional development opportunities provided by the Louisiana Department of Education and can serve as a guide to how CLUs are awarded for similar opportunities.

Calculating the CLU Value of Professional Development Activities

How is Face-to-Face Professional Development measured in CLUs (clock hours)?

How is Online Professional Development measured in CLUs (clock hours)?