In today’s ever changing world, teachers need to update their knowledge and expertise on a regular basis, however, research shows that the current in-service teacher professional development programs are not very effective for teachers in helping them to boost their knowledge and expertise. How can we improve the effectiveness of in-service teacher professional development programs?
Mutually agreed peer-observation and teacher collaboration are effective tools for professional development.
Through training courses and keeping abreast of everything modern as possible
Hi Hossein - You are right that the most popular forms of professional learning are often the least effective. Either a day out of school being talked at (albeit sometimes by engaging and authoritative presenters) or a comparable 'one off' in- school events with guest contributors.
Professional learning should effect change (and enhanced teaching and learning) if it is doing its job. Therefore it should:
- be a process, rather than a one-off;
- incorporate some space for teachers to effect change to their unit and lesson planning and/or pedagogical approaches employed (responding to the advice/guidance that they have engaged with);
- include opportunities to reflect upon the effectiveness of any changes instituted with peers (and listen to others' experiences;
- it can be good if there is an accreditation opportunity for PL undertaken (albeit optional)
- And there should be an effectiveness review in terms of whether the PL represented value for money and did indeed make a difference.
Binu is right that sometimes less flashy forms of PL such as peer review and peer learning can make a bigger difference than attending an all singing and dancing one-off conference. Sometimes the answers to improved practice lie within or close at hand rather than being imported from the outside.......
1. Including communication skills development/ enhancement
2. Upskilling in required IT packages
3. Highlighting (with examples) the role of creativity and innovation in teaching
4. Help develop and balance the theoretical and practical (field/ lab work) teachings methodologies.
What an important question!
As Peter says above teacher learning is a process rather than a one-off event - useful in-service teacher support takes time.
In-service teachers are (often) experienced adults.
In-service teacher support needs to demonstrate that it recognises the value of their experience
their experiences will not be identical , they need opportunities to express and share these.
one way of trying to acknowledge their experience might be to provide as many support cycles as is feasible that
1. Uses their classroom experiences of success and / or their problems , as the starting point for discussing the topic of the training
2. Adapts 'training inputs' according to the ideas/issues emerging from such discussions
3. Gives time for teachers to reconsider their previous experiences in the light of inputs and discussions
4. Gives time to plan for how they would now deal with the topic of the training in their classrooms
5. Gives time for them to go back to their classrooms and tryout (slightly) different ways of dealing with the topic of the training
6. Provides the opportunity to meet up again and discuss their experiences of 'trying out' (which could be the beginning of a new cycle ( see 1 above)
In-service training rarely happens over time and rarely takes teachers prior experience -in-context (of the training topic) into account
Perhaps this is one important reason why it has so little effect. .
The teaching learning situation is everchanging and teachers need to change with this to keep relevant in maximizing the teaching learning experience. Covid 19 has shown the need to infuse technology in teaching and teachers who did not previously had to conform realized the advantages brought about by the use of technology in teaching. Therefore, training programmes for teachers must be current and relevant to the time.
1. Involve teachers in planning programs.
2. Emphasize pedagogical content knowledge in designing program content.
3. Use adult-oriented models of active learning as the pedagogical design for in-service programs.
4. Include all teachers in learning opportunities and base most of the in-service program at the school or school-cluster level.
5. Link teacher in-service to a more holistic school improvement approach involving community members in planning for and monitoring of school quality.
By personalisation of the training and development to meet the real needs of individual teachers. Just as we aim to do for students
I think that passion is key. It is not enough to love teaching to succeed, teaching should love you as well. Teaching to gain money is a desaster. On the other hand, if a teacher considers himself as a "teacher", he is dead academically speaking. He should rather consider himself a "co-learner" for learning is an endless lifelong entreprise.
make some mandatory, some elective and some part of promotion. it will be effective with rewards achievements
In-service teachers may be provided expertise in skills of teaching-learning, managing, and handling all activities of schools thoroughly through positive means.
Hello Again - I want to pull out two points from Martin's excellent contribution.
He is right that too much Professional Learning relies upon a scripted pre-prepared package that does not take sufficient account of different audiences and levels of expertise and experience.
And he is right to underline the benefits of PL as a cycle/process and not a one-off event. If the same group of presenters/consultants/PL leaders are involved with the same group of teachers/participants over three-four sessions then they are (or should be) able to tailor the focus of sessions to where participants are 'at'.
https://jorluiseptor.github.io/EQUIP1/fp/teacher_pro_dev_digest.html
When we say "effective teacher training or development" it implies that we have very clear objectives or targets in mind. The targets maybe in the area of subject matter competence, pedagogy, or functional and personal competencies. It is important that the program is needs-based or based on data. It should be an offshoot of a competency-based performance appraisal program.
in service training for teachers should be a package of theories substantially enforced with practice. Aspiring teachers should have ample exposure to actual teaching experience in the classroom, should deal with learners' behavior in the classroom under an umbrella of a qualified mentor. This mentor- mentee relationship will then become an avenue for an open communication for technical assistance in terms of lesson planning, lesson delivery and in the teaching-learning process as a whole.
Hi, Learning is something imperative needs to considered and being timeous. The world of learning needs someone who is passionate about innovative new things. Teachers need to be updated due to the fact of 21century changes. today technology is more advance, they must also be able to collaborate freely.
The culture of lifelong learning and continuing education must be integrated in educational organizations. It should be a part of routine work as a teacher. The education should include insight about how to improve learning by all and inspire the teacher to learn more. Once new strategies are implemented and teachers see the positive impact, this may also be inspiring.
To make in-service teacher professional development programs more effective, provide some training that teacher's needed, such us pedagogy and beside that teachers prepare and apply lesson planning and some Cooperative Learning models in learning process, teachers use suitable teaching and learning media as student's needed and situation, give students infective quiz and student feed back it with correctly. teacher give rewards to the students whose get high point and actively in learning process.
For effective professional development of in-service teachers we may provide following :
1. Various methods and skills of teaching
2. 4Cs and active teaching learning techniques
3. Digital updated technologies
4. Creating learning environment and classroom management
5. Establishing rapport with learners
6. Motivation and models of teaching-learning
7. Make them understand the theories of learning
8. Strategies of evaluation and assessments
9. Connect them with source of learning and the learners
10. The art of living, influencing, transmitting consciousness and kindling the learners and others.....
In my view, the missing link in TE programmes is the absence of teachers' moral, ethical and philosophical stance of teaching. If we ask them, what does teaching mean to you, the answers appear fragmented and unclear. They know that they are teachers but they are not clear what does teaching mean, and what are their responsibilities as teachers. Generally teachers in our context see their role as delivers rather than teachers and/or learners. Another dilemma, for me, is that the teacher education programmes are design in isolation of teachers' needs - mainly grounded in theoretical assumptions of supporting teachers to become reflective practitioners, researchers, theorists etc. the focus on helping to become teachers needs to be explicitly highlighted in TE curriculum design.
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