Continuing professional development: what's the starting point for change?

Alison Barrett MBE explores the concept of continuing professional development frameworks and suggests practical ways for policymakers, head teachers, teacher trainers and teachers to improve professional development.

About the webinar

In this webinar recording, Alison presents the concept of continuing professional development frameworks and suggests practical ways for policymakers, head teachers, teacher trainers and teachers to improve professional development.

A strong and rapidly growing global evidence base for what makes effective Continuing Professional Development (CPD) provides us with invaluable guidance as to how we can improve provision and support teachers and teacher educators. But what’s the starting point for change for individuals working within the reality of large scale, under-resourced, highly controlled and linguistically diverse education systems in many developing contexts around the world?

In this session, recorded at the Teaching for Success online conference in October 2016, we consider the potential for individual actors within the education system to be CPD change champions, using the evidence and tools at their disposal to both implement and advocate changes that are practical and achievable considering their immediate constraints. We also explore how frameworks have the potential not to restrict and control teacher development, but to empower them to change.

About the speaker:

Alison Barrett MBE works for the British Council in Singapore as director of English in Education Systems, which aims to improve the quality of English language teaching, learning and assessment worldwide through collaboratively designed capacity building programmes, consultancy services provided by UK experts or providing access to research and expertise through events and publications. Alison previously spent over two decades working as an English teacher, teacher educator, academic manager and programme manager in East and South Asia. Alison has an MA in TESOL from the Institute of Education, University of London and was recently awarded an MBE for services to the teaching and learning of English in India.

Before you watch

Think about these questions:

What do you think are the most important aspects of professional development?
How can we make sure that our professional development has a positive impact on the learners we work with?

Watch the webinar recording below

After you watch activities

Think about Rod Bolitho’s 'earthquake' model mentioned in the talk. What changes in education are happening around you? What can you do in response to these changes?
In the last part of her talk (at 23.00 minutes), Alison outlines some suggestions for practical ideas on how to be a CPD champion in your own professional role. Go back to these and choose some of them to implement in your own professional context.
Take a look at the Teacher Development Framework or the Teacher Educator Framework and think about your strengths and weaknesses in each professional practice. Write an action plan to help you in your own professional development.