CPD Week

How to evaluate the impact of CPD

scameron — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 12:00:32 +0000

Experience: that most brutal of teachers. But you learn, my God do you learn.
CS Lewis

Impact evaluation – starting points

Great CPD is an all-important element of a successful career in education, but access to learning opportunities shouldn’t be left to chance. With effective impact evaluation of CPD, you can help to encourage more of what is shown to work so that time and energy isn’t wasted on trivial pursuits.

Personalised learning for all staff in schools

scameron — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 11:24:38 +0000

Learning without thought is labour lost; thought without learning is perilous.
Confucius

Ensuring support staff are included in CPD

scameron — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 10:37:41 +0000

Limited resources balanced against numerous needs may mean that difficult decisions have to be made around spending for professional learning. But that shouldn’t affect the degree to which access to new learning is deemed to be fair across all types of staff in your school.

‘When I was a young coach I used to say, 'treat everybody alike'. That’s bull. Treat everybody fairly.’
Bear Bryant

Is your school committed to lifelong learning?

scameron — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 16:43:46 +0000

Change is the end result of all real learning.
Leo Buscaglia

There’s a state of mind – an attitude – that is essential if schools are to maximise the professional learning that can happen on a day-to-day basis. But is it right to assume that this attitude is automatically in place or should we work to nurture it? This week we explore all this and more…

Does your school’s professional learning help to enhance its SEN provision?

scameron — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 12:27:32 +0000

Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out.
Robert Collier

With Happy Days’ Henry Winkler fronting a new DCSF campaign focused on improving attitudes towards children with SEN, now is a great time to explore the ways in which all professional learning in your school feeds into enhanced SEN provision. This week’s CPD Update helps you to do just that…

Ensure the CPD in your school equips teachers to meet the decade ahead

scameron — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 16:55:54 +0000

Creativity is a type of learning process where the teacher and the learner are located in the same individual.
Arthur Koestler

A new term, a new year and a new decade! What will the next 10 years have in store for the young people we teach? If we can’t answer that question with any certainty, how can we plan appropriate professional learning? This and more gets our focus this week.

Reviewing what professional skills have been learned this term

scameron — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 10:39:26 +0000

Get over the idea that only children should spend their time in study. Be a student so long as you still have something to learn, and this will mean all your life.
Henry L Doherty

Time to pause and reflect is essential for our effectiveness, and the end of the Autumn term is a great time to take that all-important step back. This week, we explore how to make the most of this exercise in looking for learning so that the new term kicks off with purpose.

Freeing up time for professional learning

scameron — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 09:52:47 +0000

Time is like money; the less we have of it to spare, the further we make it go.
Josh Billings

Poverty of time is such a common complaint of teachers and other school staff that it has become synonymous with working in education. But is that a healthy attitude to expose children and young people to, and does it really need to be that way?

Sustainable CPD: 5th Annual CPD Update Conference

scameron — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 10:06:06 +0000

The aim of life is self-development. To realise one’s nature perfectly – that is what each of us is here for.
Oscar Wilde

Hot ideas for sustainable CPD
The conference heard from a wide range of speakers on all the top issues of the moment in the world of professional learning in schools today. Here is a selection of wisdom which was shared on the day to inspire you over the months to come…

Putting community cohesion at the heart of CPD

scameron — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 09:26:35 +0000

The first duty of a human being is to assume the right functional relationship to society – more briefly, to find your real job, and to do it.
Charlotte Perkins Gilman

Community cohesion is big news. It’s talked about endlessly in corridors of power, actively pursued in local authorities and actually happening in schools across the country. Ofsted is particularly interested in the ways in which we interpret and promote it, too. Such is its importance that it really has to have a high priority in our plans for professional learning.

Keeping a professional learning journal

scameron — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 09:58:42 +0100

By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest.
Confucius

One of the most effective ways of boosting the professional learning that staff undertake in your school is through encouraging the use of professional learning journals. Far from being simple descriptive documents, these journals about reflection, change and development can do more for self-esteem and self-worth than just about any other development tool.

Induction of NQTs

scameron — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 09:42:20 +0100

Once we believe in ourselves we can risk curiosity, wonder, spontaneous delight or any experience that reveals the human spirit.
E E Cummings

The induction of newly qualified teachers remains one of the most important tasks a school can undertake regarding the professional learning of its staff.

A new look for Ofsted inspection

scameron — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 15:11:37 +0100

There is nothing in a caterpillar that tells you it’s going to be a butterfly.
Buckminster Fuller

What will the National College's remit changes mean for CPD in schools?

scameron — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 14:53:46 +0100

Any human anywhere will blossom in a hundred unexpected talents and capacities simply by being given the opportunity to do so.
Doris Lessing

The National College for Leadership of Schools and Children’s Services has a new remit, not to mention a new name. Formerly called the National College for School Leadership, the institution’s name has been changed to reflect an extension of its work to include directors of children’s services (although it will still be known as the ‘National College’).

Placing wellbeing at the heart of CPD

scameron — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 12:20:29 +0100

On the day when
the weight deadens
on your shoulders
and you stumble,
may the clay dance
to balance you.
From Beannacht by John O’Donohue

Spotlight on the CPD coordinator’s role

scameron — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 15:57:08 +0100

Between stimulus and response is the freedom to choose.
Viktor Frankl

Whether you have taken on the role of CPD coordinator for the first time this term or are an old hand at the job, it’s well worth taking a moment to reflect on what you are hoping to achieve, what you consider to be the key focus of the role and how you can be the kind of facilitator who will lead learning in all the right directions. This issue helps you through those reflections and offers ideas for enriching your role and improving outcomes.

Introducing the new teachers' code of conduct and practice

scameron — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 10:45:23 +0100

Ring the bells that still can ring
Forget your perfect offering
There is a crack in everything
That's how the light gets in.
Leonard Cohen, Anthem

Introducing the MTL

scameron — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 14:59:10 +0100

You learn something every day if you pay attention.
Ray LeBlond

As the Masters in Teaching and Learning (MTL) gets introduced for new teachers in the North West and to new teachers appointed to National Challenge schools (and other schools in challenging circumstances) in the rest of the country in the academic year 2009-10, we asked Neill Harris, MTL lead for the North West and TDA regional adviser, to tell us more.

CPD Week: Why was the MTL developed?

Reviewing the year at school

scameron — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 09:50:58 +0100

Sharing knowledge is not about giving people something or getting something from them. That is only valid for information sharing. Sharing knowledge occurs when people are genuinely interested in helping one another develop new capacities for action; it is about creating learning processes.
Peter Senge

At this point in the school year it pays to take a moment to reflect on how things have gone and on the changes you want to make ahead of September. This issue we offer some suggestions to support that process and a useful model to use in your review of the year.

CPD for governors

scameron — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 16:15:22 +0100

Learning is like rowing upstream: not to advance is to drop back.
Chinese proverb

Your school’s governors may well be missing out on drives to improve effectiveness through professional and personal learning, and this can only stifle the progress you can make as an institution.

Professional learning for support staff

scameron — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 12:48:09 +0100

Fairness is not an attitude. It’s a professional skill that must be developed and exercised.
Brit Hume

In some schools the race for a slice of the professional learning pie sees key sectors of the workforce missing out, with significant consequences. Typically on the bottom of the pile are part-time workers and support staff. This e-bulletin we take a look at the reasons for ensuring that all members of staff receive professional learning opportunities and at ways of making this happen.

CPD support for teacher's wellbeing and self-worth

scameron — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 11:52:02 +0100

Self-worth comes from one thing – thinking that you are worthy.
Wayne Dyer

Is it possible to nurture the wellbeing of others if we don’t nurture it in ourselves? Is it possible to separate the professional and the personal when it comes to learning on the job? To what extent does the development of self-worth feature in the professional learning plans of your school? These questions all provide food for thought in this edition of CPD Week.

Community cohesion in schools

scameron — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 11:09:22 +0100

If only for a half hour a day, a child should do something serviceable to the community.
George Bernard Shaw

The duty to promote community cohesion has been with us for a couple of years now. It’s a critical part of school life, but how much does it feature in your school’s plans for professional learning? .

Learning to listen to student voice: part 2

scameron — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 10:01:20 +0100

It was impossible to get a conversation going; everybody was talking too much.
Yogi Berra

Learning to listen to student voice: part 1

scameron — Thu, 28 May 2009 10:37:24 +0100

By three methods we may learn wisdom: first, by reflection, which is noblest; second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest.
Confucius

Professional learning for personalisation agenda

scameron — Wed, 13 May 2009 09:55:01 +0100

Effective teaching may be the hardest job there is.
William Glasser

'Visions and Principles for Induction': a CPD perspective

scameron — Thu, 07 May 2009 10:32:49 +0100

Vision without action is a dream. Action without vision is simply passing the time. Action with vision is making a positive difference.
Joel Barker

Refresh your school's CPD: top tips

scameron — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 10:08:17 +0100

Know how to listen and you will profit even from those who talk badly.
Plutarch

We are now in to the final push towards the end of the academic year, and it’s time to focus your efforts within CPD. However successful professional and personal learning have been in your school so far, there is always room to push it a little further; extracting a little more learning and applying it a little more coherently. With this in mind, we offer eight top tips for even more successful professional learning.

Accessible professional development for teachers

scameron — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 11:26:49 +0100

The growth and development of people is the highest calling of leadership.
Harvey S Firestone

Open access to educational resources is an overarching goal across Europe and beyond. Where a spirit of collaboration and openness doesn’t thrive, teaching and learning is necessarily stifled. This principle works equally well when it comes to professional learning in schools. The more open we are about sharing and accessibility, the better the service we provide for children and young people — it’s a commitment that just has to be made.

Helping teachers cope with stress

scameron — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 09:51:41 +0100

The mark of a successful man is one that has spent an entire day on the bank of a river without feeling guilty about it.
Anonymous

Cost-saving approach to CPD

scameron — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 15:12:27 +0000

He who cannot change the very fabric of his thought will never be able to change reality.
Anwar Sadat

We can’t escape reference to the economic downturn in the media at the moment. It’s too early to tell whether this will have an impact on schools, but it’s best to be prepared. This issue, we look at sustainable approaches to professional learning that could help your school improve the quality of its provision while focusing on value for money.

CPD in the classroom - the Teachers Learning Academy (TLA)

scameron — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 11:05:39 +0000

That is what learning is. You suddenly understand something you’ve understood all your life, but in a new way.
Doris Lessing

Sara Morgan, Head of Professional Learning at the GTCE gives us the lowdown on the TLA.

Professional support for staff who move schools

scameron — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 14:57:43 +0000

Being ready isn’t enough; you have to be prepared for a promotion or any other significant change.
Pat Riley

Applying yourself

While it could be good, in a way, for schools to grow their own talent and nurture it through the years, with little wastage along the way, the fact is that movement of staff between schools is very positive for the profession as a whole. It is a way to kick-start progress across the profession, push fresh boundaries and re-invigorate staff.

Evaluating staff development: maximising its use

scameron — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 14:01:28 +0000

The purpose of learning is growth, and our minds, unlike our bodies, can continue growing as long as we live.
Mortimer Adler

Evaluating professional learning is a crucial stage of the development process but it’s not at all straightforward. We frequently stumble at the first hurdle when what we could be seeking is real depth of understanding about the impact of professional development on teaching and learning. This week we take a close look at evaluation and ways of maximising its use.

Evaluating staff development: starting points

scameron — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 09:47:25 +0000

I know of no more encouraging fact than the unquestioning ability of man to evaluate his life by a conscious endeavour.
Henry David Thoreau

Starting to think about evaluating professional learning
As we know from classroom practice, creating the space in which learning can happen is only a part of the story. In order to maximise its potential, there’s a need to evaluate learning to enable us to determine the effectiveness and efficiency of the routes taken to achieve it.

Examining the links between professional development and behaviour: part 2

scameron — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 09:58:58 +0000

If people are only good because they fear punishment, and hope for reward, then we are a sorry lot indeed.
Albert Einstein

Examining the links between professional development and behaviour: part 1

jlee — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 11:21:31 +0000

Children are more influenced by the sermons you act than by the sermons you preach.
David McKay

With Sir Alan Steer’s interim review on pupil behaviour fresh on our desks, there’s much for schools to digest – particularly with regard to professional learning and behaviour. With this in mind, the next few issues of CPD Week will explore ways in which schools might build on the points raised in the review when designing development for school staff.

Professional learning for behaviour

Equal CPD opportunities for teaching assistants

scameron — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 11:35:26 +0000

If a man walks in the woods for love of them half of each day, he is in danger of being regarded as a loafer; but if he spends his whole day as a speculator, shearing off those woods and making earth bald before her time, he is esteemed an industrious and enterprising citizen. As if a town had no interest in its forests but to cut them down!
Henry David Thoreau

Your ideal learning culture: following it through

scameron — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 11:24:33 +0000

Do not be too timid and squeamish about your actions. All life is an experiment.
Ralph Waldo Emerson

It is increasingly important to pay attention to the kinds of cultures we create during the course of our daily work. With that in mind, we look at how to develop a learning culture in our schools for the purpose of professional learning

Your ideal learning culture: turning blue sky dreams into reality

jlee — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 10:59:33 +0000

I start with the premise that the function of leadership is to produce more leaders, not more followers.
Ralph Nader

CPD: Functional Skills in action

scameron — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 15:53:57 +0000

All of the top achievers I know are life-long learners... looking for new skills, insights, and ideas. If they're not learning, they're not growing... not moving toward excellence.
Denis Waitley

Your CPD aims for 2009

scameron — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 11:29:54 +0000

Though no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending.
Carl Bard

What will 2009 bring for CPD in our schools? It’s over to you…

We spoke to Dr Sean Thornton, Headteacher of Wadebridge School in Cornwall; Glynis Evans, Deputy Assistant Principal of All Saints College, Newcastle upon Tyne; and Elizabeth Wood, Headteacher of Oliver Tomkins Cof E Junior School, Wiltshire to find out what their main targets are for CPD in the year ahead. This is what they had to say.

Motivating individuals to share CPD practice

scameron — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 16:57:40 +0000

People say that motivation doesn’t last. Well, neither does bathing – that’s why we recommend it daily.
Zig Ziglar

Motivating yourself and others
As levels of expectation and responsibility continue to rise in the world of teaching, it is essential for staff to feel that they have the opportunity to develop, at the very least, to meet the new demands being made of them. If they don’t sense that level of support, the only outcome is de-motivation.

Motivation: the key to staff excellence

scameron — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 14:39:21 +0000

Enthusiasm is excitement with inspiration, motivation and a pinch of creativity.
Bo Bennett

Becoming a motivated school
Many motivational theories have been developed over time, a large proportion of which are generic. There has also been a huge amount of writing and discussion about the motivation of pupils, and how we can best raise achievement and attainment. But how might schools motivate staff to engage fully in personal and professional development?

Teaching teachers: facilitating CPD sessions part 2

scameron — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 13:33:56 +0000

The ‘lighter’ side of life deserves to be taken seriously when considering the facilitation of human success and development.
Matthew Gervais

Facilitating new learning for school staff is certainly a challenging task! As anyone with experience of working with young people will know, bringing out the best in people has delayed results. The full benefit of what we learn today is rarely experienced immediately, but the skilled facilitator will always keep this in mind.

Teaching teachers: facilitating CPD sessions part 1

scameron — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 11:38:51 +0000

In teaching others we teach ourselves.
Proverb

Teaching teachers: The positive approach
There will be occasions when you are in the position of delivering or facilitating development sessions for colleagues, whether to convey some school-specific information or to explore potential change in the way your school and its staff operate. Not surprisingly, these sessions can challenge even the most competent of classroom teachers!

Embedding SEAL for positive effect

scameron — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 12:21:14 +0000

There can be no knowledge without emotion. We may be aware of a truth, yet until we have felt its force, it is not ours. To the cognition of the brain must be added the experience of the soul.
Arnold Bennett

Harness the positive power of SEAL for CPD!

scameron — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 11:12:34 +0000

When dealing with people, remember you are not dealing with creatures of logic, but creatures of emotion.
Dale Carnegie

Every so often there’s an initiative in education that really seems relevant to the vast majority of the profession. At the moment, that initiative has to be SEAL: the Social and Emotional Aspects of Learning. This isn’t new in any way; teachers have always been aware of the role that emotions play in the classroom. But having a reason to focus on this dimension of teaching in an overt way is undoubtedly positive.

Masters in teaching and learning (MTL): what you need to know

scameron — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 12:13:53 +0000

There is little difference in people, but that little difference makes a big difference. That little difference is attitude. The big difference is whether it is positive or negative.
W Clement Stone

CPD coordinators' role in professional development portfolios: part 2

scameron — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 10:22:46 +0100

All progress occurs because people dare to be different.
Harry Millner

Getting staff enthusiastic about portfolios
It can be hugely beneficial for a school to get all staff on board when it comes to developing their portfolios. Prioritising this issue will not only help individuals focus on their own learning, but it will benefit the school in turn through their staff’s enhanced professionalism. Here are some strategies for achieving this which may work in your setting: