How Do You Know If Professional Development Worked?

You know professional development worked when you can identify what participants learned, how they used it, and what changed as a result. Professional development evaluation should include participants’ experience, demonstrated learning, organizational support, application, and outcomes for the people their work serves.

That takes more than a survey at the end of a workshop.

In The PD Book, my coauthor Lori Cohen describes a colleague who regularly finished workshops feeling certain they had gone well. When she asked how he knew what had changed for participants, his answer came down to a feeling.

I understand the appeal of that feeling. When people leave energized and grateful, it’s rewarding. Their experience matters, and their enthusiasm can tell us something useful. But if the purpose of the workshop was to help people do something differently, we need evidence of that change, too.

Begin Professional Development Evaluation With a Specific Outcome

Before deciding what to measure, finish this sentence: “As a result of this learning, participants will be able to ________.”

“Understand feedback” leaves you with a lot to interpret. “Give feedback that names an observable behavior and its impact” gives you something to look for.

A school might want teachers to use checks for understanding to adjust instruction. A nonprofit might want supervisors to give more precise feedback to their staff. In either setting, the evaluation should follow the intended change.

If the outcome involves a skill, include a way for participants to demonstrate it. If it involves examining a belief, invite them to explain how their thinking has shifted and what that might mean for their work. Decide what evidence would be useful while you’re designing the learning.

For the design principles behind that decision, read How Do Adult Learning Principles Influence Workshop Design?

Use Five Measures of Professional Development Impact

In The PD Book, I describe five measures of impact influenced by Thomas R. Guskey’s work on evaluating professional development. Together, they help us look from the immediate experience to changes that emerge over time.

1. Participants’ Experience

Ask whether the experience was relevant, whether participants felt respected, and whether they had opportunities to engage in the learning. Leave room for them to describe what helped and what got in the way.

“What part of this workshop most supported your learning?” gives you more useful information than a rating alone. So does “What would have made this experience more useful?”

For virtual sessions, ask about the conditions for participation, too. Our Virtual PD Tech Toolkit includes questions about what helped participants feel connected and able to learn, and what made it harder to stay engaged or participate fully. Those responses can reveal barriers you couldn’t see through the screen. Use them alongside evidence of learning and application when assessing impact.

Read the responses for patterns, and pay attention to experiences that differ from the majority. A strong average can hide a barrier that affected a smaller group.

2. Participants’ Learning

Ask what participants now know or can do. A statement like “I feel more confident” is useful, but pair it with a demonstration when the outcome calls for one.

In a workshop on feedback, participants could draft the opening of a conversation before instruction and revise it afterward. Compare the drafts against the criteria you taught. Can they name a specific behavior? Explain its impact? Invite the other person’s perspective?

Those drafts give you evidence you can use to decide whether the group needs another example, more feedback, or more time to try again.

3. Organizational Support and Change

Find out what happens when people return to work. Do they have time to use the learning? Do leaders support the new approach? Are existing expectations or policies getting in the way?

A supervisor may learn how to give thoughtful feedback and then return to an organization where every conversation is rushed and asking questions is discouraged. That context affects what becomes possible.

If application is low, investigate the conditions around it before deciding people failed to learn.

4. Application of New Knowledge or Skills

Ask participants what they tried and invite a concrete example. An artifact of practice is something from their work that helps you see how they used the learning, such as a revised agenda, a lesson plan, or a reflection on a conversation.

You might ask: “Where did you use the approach? What did you do? What happened? What would you change next time?”

Choose a follow-up date that gives people a realistic opportunity to apply the skill. Protect privacy when collecting examples, and be clear about how the information will be used.

5. Outcomes for the People the Work Serves

Ultimately, professional learning should improve someone’s experience beyond the workshop. In schools, that might include student learning, participation, or belonging. In a nonprofit, it might include a better experience for staff or the community being served.

Choose evidence that fits the purpose. If the goal was more equitable classroom discussion, look at whose voices are being heard and how students experience participation.

Be careful about attribution. A change in student outcomes or team culture can have several causes. Describe what the evidence suggests, including what you still don’t know.

Make Evaluation Manageable and Use What You Learn

You don’t need to collect everything after every workshop. Start with a few measures you will actually use:

• Before the session, gather a starting example of the skill or thinking you hope will change.
• During the session, observe practice and offer feedback against clear criteria.
• At the end, collect a demonstration of learning and feedback on the experience.
• After participants have had a chance to apply the learning, ask what happened and what support they need.

Then let the evidence shape your next decision. If people can explain the skill but struggle to use it, design another opportunity to practice. If they can demonstrate it in the workshop but cannot use it at work, explore the organizational barriers.

For a group learning together over time, What Makes a Professional Learning Community Effective? explores how to build application and reflection into the learning process.

Key Takeaway

Professional development evaluation helps you understand the distance between what you hoped would change and what actually changed. Gather evidence of learning and application alongside feedback on the experience, and use it to determine what participants need next.

Questions I Hear Most Often

Are Positive Workshop Ratings Enough to Show Impact?

No. Positive ratings tell you something about participants’ experience. To assess impact, also examine what they learned, whether they used it, and what changed in their work.

When Should You Evaluate Professional Development?

Begin before the workshop by identifying the intended outcome and useful starting evidence. Check learning during and at the end of the session, then follow up after participants have had a realistic opportunity to apply it.

What If You Are an External Facilitator?

Agree with the organizer in advance about who will gather follow-up evidence and how it will inform future support. If you only have access to immediate feedback and demonstrations of learning, report those findings clearly without claiming longer-term impact.

Keep Learning

Want to go deeper? The PD Book: 7 Habits That Transform Professional Development explores how to create the conditions adults need to learn, including intentional design, psychological safety, meaningful participation, practice, feedback, and reflection.

Continue Reading

• How Do Adult Learning Principles Influence Workshop Design?
• What Makes a Professional Learning Community Effective?
• What Makes Effective Facilitator Training?
• How Do You Make Meetings More Engaging?

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