There are many opportunities for educators to participate in professional development activities throughout the calendar year. There are several forms of national conventions and conferences for educators to acquire new knowledge. There are state level conferences that include a variety of clinics and workshops. There are also clinics and workshops at the school district level for educators. Bauer, Forsythe, and Kenny (2009) found that music teachers preferred national and state level music conventions over any other type of professional development opportunities while district level professional development programs ranked low in preference. In my own reflection, I recall similar feelings regarding my own district level professional development activities. My colleagues and I often responded to the district level workshops in a negative way. Questions were raised such as, "why are we here? Why are we required to learn this content?" I recall other comments such as, "none of this applies to me or my students" and "I already know this stuff." These personal observations led me to the question: Are there better ways for educators to acquire relevant knowledge important to them and their students at the district level?

Research has provided certain insights into professional development. Researchers have suggested that professional development must be teacher centered (Darling- Hammond & McLaughlin, 1995), most teachers want a variety of professional development topics (Bowles, 2003; Bush 2007), most experienced teachers' professional development needs change throughout their careers, and the traditional "one-size-fits-all" model many school districts utilize may not be the most effective way to train educators (Conway, 2008; Hammel, 2007; Tarnowski & Murphy, 2003). Some researchers have suggested that school districts need to rethink the model of the traditional one day professional development activities model and explore other possibilities that may empower educators (Bauer, 2007; Bauer, Reese, & McAllister, 2003; Conway, et. al 2005a).

Professional development can include both formal and informal learning (Hammel, 2007). Formal learning is typically classroom-based and highly structured. Informal learning can be intentional but less structured in nature. Research suggests that some educators place high value on informal learning opportunities (Amour & Yelling, 2007; Garet et al, 2001; Marsick & Watkins, 2001). Other researchers have suggested that longitudinal professional development activities may be a possible solution to the one day workshops model (Conway, et. al 2005a, 2005b). One of the ways informal learning can occur over longer periods of time in professional development is through peer collaboration (Armour & Yeling, 2007; Desimone, 2009). For example, Armour and Yelling (2007) examined the experiences of physical education teachers who participated in peer collaborative activities over a one year period. They found that the teachers enjoyed the professional development activity and placed high value on learning informally from each other. The implications of these studies begs the question: How can school administrators provide better professional development opportunities to music educators at the district level?

I propose we begin to think outside the box. Longitudinal creative peer collaboration may have a positive effect on teaching. Rather than gather all teachers together for formal learning, let teachers decide what is relevant to their development that will impact student growth. Picture a group of elementary music teachers gathering at specific times throughout the school year to share and develop units and lesson plans or collaborate on defining appropriate classroom management procedures for their students. Imagine secondary music directors developing and sharing insights in regards to music literature and pedagogy or collaborate to develop better practice logs or handbooks for their programs. Conway (2008) suggested the topics are endless and would benefit all educators regardless of how far along they are in their career. Trust must exist between district administration and teachers for this to occur. Administrators may require some form of assessment or measurement of learning from the collaborating teachers.

There are various ways that may be effective in providing evidence of knowledge acquired from these collaborative activities. In some situations, creative products such as handbooks, classroom procedures, and curriculum design may be generated from creative peer collaborative activities. These products can provide concrete evidence of knowledge obtained from creative peer collaboration and informal learning. Reflection is another method that could be utilized to provide evidence of learning in this situation. Reflective journals, portfolios, and other reflective methods have been found to aid in linking theory to practice in pre-service teacher education programs (Lindroth, 2014). Reflective methods along with the products that were created during the peer collaborative activities may provide evidence that these creative professional development activities worked to strengthen teacher knowledge that may result in better teaching in the classroom.

The following shared experience I believe illustrates some of these ideas. At the beginning of the school year, I had the opportunity to develop a professional planning session for local school district's instrumental music teachers. I made no preparations for any of the sessions. I decided to let the teachers decide what they needed to learn or what topics they wished to implement in their classrooms. Ten directors and I met and discussed what they felt they needed in their personal professional development. From this meeting two topics became areas of focus: creating a list of appropriate music literature for their ensembles and developing better classroom management skills. For two days, eleven of us collaborated on these topics by sharing personal experiences, finding and sharing resources, and developing personal action plans for each teacher to bring back to their classrooms. The educators found value in the sessions and devised a plan to meet on a regular basis both formally and informally during the school year in order to continue mentoring and supporting each other on their action plans. Since the professional development session in August, teachers have reported success in meeting informally and have even visited classrooms on their own time. It has been two months since we first met and teachers have already reported an increase in knowledge and confidence in the areas we explored in the early professional development sessions. Teachers felt a sense of personal ownership in their training and took charge of their own development by putting their shared experiences into practice. They hoped to continue and repeat this form of professional development in the future.

I encourage educators to consider the various opportunities that may evolve from these types of professional development activities. The needs of the educator must be central to professional development activities. Educators must have a voice at the district level in the formation of professional development topics and have input regarding how to maximize the resources and knowledge found within the education community.

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