CPD partnerships

Sharing good teaching practice

scameron — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 16:55:05 +0100

‘Sharing good practice' is one of those phrases that has slipped into the everyday language of school leadership. We think that most schools, if asked, would say that they share good practice. Would any school say that it does not share practice, or indeed that it shares bad practice?

How to make CPD integral to your whole school

scameron — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 16:48:30 +0100

Is it just rhetoric to say that we create a culture of CPD for our workforce at King Edward VI School? And if it isn’t, just what does it mean? So often we hear people talk about the ethos of a school but it can seem so intangible, so impossible to distil into real examples of practice that can be adapted for use elsewhere.

Collaborative professional enquiry in schools

scameron — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 15:46:31 +0100

In 2002, the Standard for Chartered Teacher was published in Scotland. This represented an opportunity for teachers to demonstrate their expertise outside of the formal promotion structure, with all those who were at the top of the main grade, invited to move towards chartered status by undertaking an accredited programme, mostly within universities.

The impact of partnership on CPD

scameron — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 16:11:11 +0000

‘It has been suggested that morale is low in schools and some colleagues are experiencing a crisis of confidence. Perhaps professional development and partnership has a particular role to play here to the benefit of all stakeholders and to maintain a real and lasting impact across the whole curriculum.’ (Keating, 2001)

Blue sky thinking

admin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 12:21:42 +0100

Practical tips

Blue sky thinking
It is a truly horrendous management cliché, but 'blue sky thinking', the type of brainstorming which acknowledges no limits in ideals and no preconceptions, can actually help to determine what might nudge professional development further towards the standards you are aspiring to.

Partnerships for postgraduate professional development (PPD)

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:50 +0100

Many schools, clusters of schools and local authorities are entering into partnership with their local universities and each other in order to maximise the impact of their CPD. A large part of the work of these partnerships is centred on postgraduate professional development (PPD). The sets of awards available to teachers are postgraduate certificates, postgraduate diplomas, full Master’s and doctorates.

International links for leadership and learning

admin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:49 +0100

When the mayor of Landskrona in Sweden asked British officials for examples of highly effective London schools, he was directed by the DfES to Brampton Manor School in Newham.

Brampton Manor is a comprehensive with about 1,600 students. Like many inner-London schools Brampton Manor is ethnically diverse, with students from a wide-range of cultural and linguistic backgrounds (53 languages spoken and students from over 70 countries) learning successfully together.

Behaviour for Learning: supporting new teachers

admin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:42 +0100

Managing classroom behaviour is top of the list of many new teachers’ concerns. Findings from the most recent report from the GTC’s six-year research project, Becoming a Teacher, show that, for many newly qualified teachers, while pupils provide the ultimate reward in teaching, their poor behaviour was often the cause of the major low points.

Using teacher research to improve behaviour

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:29 +0100

Does this sound familiar? ‘In my first year of teaching there was one student whose behaviour I just could not manage. I struggled. I spent late nights rewriting lesson plans, looking for a different approach to teaching. I became discouraged, relieved when the end of the day arrived.’

What about this? ‘In the classroom, I feel that I am losing confidence in myself as a teacher. The pupils just keep chattering and won’t listen. Increasingly I feel isolated, not sure what to do. Whatever tactics I try seem not to work.’

Exploratory research in schools

ewtemp — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:21 +0100

In front of me sits a hologrammed parchment, bold proof of my new doctoral status. How did I come to undertake a research degree and why should my research be of interest to readers of this CPD update? I’ll try to explain. I’ll first describe how my research evolved, from questions rising directly from my practice, to the development of methods appropriate for exploratory research in school.

Networking for whole-school improvement: a case study

ewtemp — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:20 +0100

In 2003, Blackburn with Darwen’s secondary schools decided to apply to become one of the National College for School Leadership’s (NCSL) Networked Learning Communities (NLCs). John Westwell, Des Callaghan, Joanne Emberton and Jenny England describe the background to that decision.

Opportunities and principles

Developing PPD in partnership

admin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:16 +0100

The training partnership

The DfES five-year strategy for children and learners places particular emphasis on a new professionalism for teachers. An element of this emerging concept is that the modern teacher will be continually and routinely involved in professional development. The importance which the UK government now attaches to teacher professional development is matched by substantial funding for professional development courses linked to postgraduate awards.

A flexible approach to postgraduate study

admin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:15 +0100

Working in partnership

2013 and the age of entitlement

admin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:10 +0100

By 2013, every young person will have an entitlement to choose any one of the 14 new diplomas. To anyone unfamiliar with 14-19 these are new qualifications that will combine practical skill development with theoretical and technical understanding and knowledge. They will offer all young people different ways of learning and a route into higher education and employment.

Collaborative leadership and professional development in Buckinghamshire

admin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:08 +0100

Innovative developments in Buckinghamshire schools have raised considerable academic, political and professional interest. Prompted by this interest, Buckinghamshire County Council commissioned Canterbury Christ Church University to conduct a case study of the LA’s linked initiatives in 2006. The aim of the study was to identify the good practice and process and the lessons to be learned from four initiatives in the county that are based on collaborative approaches to leadership, learning and professional development.

Cohesion and collaboration in London

admin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:06 +0100

Crucially, I see the strategic leadership of CPD as relevant in each school, in clusters of schools, in each local authority and across a larger region, including all the partner organisations. Across London, this is what we are working towards and some of the successes and difficulties tackled in our work may be of help to other regions and organisations.

The London dimension

Towards a new professionalism in the further education sector

admin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:06 +0100

The post-compulsory education and training (PCET) sector is rightly celebrated for its richness in diversity. Teachers, trainers and tutors working in further education (FE) colleges, work-based learning (WBL) providers and organisations supporting community learning and development (CLD) come from a variety of backgrounds, often entering teaching through non-traditional routes.

Support childminder scheme comes to Milton Keynes

admin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:19:58 +0100

Why was the scheme developed?

Research by Sure Start showed that many potential childminders do not complete the registration process because of the lack of individual support. Considerable evidence shows that regular peer support is effective.

Should teachers of citizenship be certified?

admin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:19:56 +0100

The training gap

Studying management online

admin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:19:53 +0100

The Centre for Early Years Management and Leadership at Liverpool Hope University has provided online learning opportunities for practitioners since launching an e-learning BA Nursery Management degree in 2002. This development was in recognition of the need to offer an approach that is flexible and that meets the needs of practitioners, who, because of the very nature of their work, find it difficult to take time off to attend classes and for whom travel to institutions might be difficult.

INSET to deliver the global dimension – Manchester DEP

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:19:52 +0100

It was a cold December day. Nearly Christmas. Term had ended and all that was left for this school after a difficult term was their annual INSET, and much more importantly, the annual staff Christmas party.

A hotel on Manchester's ring road was the venue - no one would need to drive home. Hangovers could be slept off as the next day's training session had been cancelled.

Cross-curricular global awareness – NEAD

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:19:48 +0100

Over two years, the 16 secondary schools in the Developing Citizenship project came up with some wonderful ideas on how to introduce greater global awareness to all of their pupils.

ASE award for science teachers

admin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:19:38 +0100

The status of chartered science teacher (CSciTeach) is a designation in line with awards such as chartered accountant or chartered surveyor. Such awards are made under powers granted by the Privy Council.

As the ASE website explains, ‘CSciTeach recognises the unique and demanding combination of skills, knowledge, understanding and expertise that are required by individuals involved in practising and advancing science teaching and learning’.

Forming professional friendships

admin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:19:36 +0100

Are we the only leadership team who have had enough of critical friends? Governors, school improvement partners, LEA advisers, Ofsted inspectors – all are exhorted to take on the mantle of ‘critical friendship’. The problem is that in real life such beings do not actually exist. What do we do with friends who constantly assess us against a range of performance indicators? Those who suggest how we might improve our taste in clothes, our choice of football team or the TV programmes that we watch? Well, the answer is simple: we make them ex-friends.

Masters level accreditation to accompany LftM: the multiplier effect

admin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:19:34 +0100

The assignment arose from discussion and agreement between the National College for School Leadership (NCSL) and the Universities’ Council for the Education of Teachers (UCET). This month we go on to publish a version of the later agreement between the NCSL and UCET to facilitate a similar conversion from Leading from the Middle (LftM) into Masters level credit. As the leader of CPD you might also wish to know that a similar arrangement exists for the Leadership Programme for Serving Headteachers (LPSH).

Making a difference: the impact of a school-based MA

admin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:19:34 +0100

The school-based MA in Education
In this project we have found that a truly school-based MA programme can be a powerful catalyst for impact through reflexive studying.

Forming CPD partnerships

admin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:19:17 +0100

There is considerable pressure and encouragement now to engage in CPD on the basis of collaboration, networks and partnerships. CPD Update has reported the work being undertaken by the Centre for the Use of Research and Evidence in Education (CUREE) on behalf of the TDA and the Networked Learning Group of the NCSL to look at how CPD can be led in networked contexts. We have also talked about the requirement for HEIs to work collaboratively in their provision of accredited CPD (now known as postgraduate professional development or PPD).