One CPD idea that works: Spring 2008

The issue being addressed.

How to….

The Impact

support colleagues while developing and promoting opportunities for CPD

• Creation of a staff development committee in school to share and pool skills, strengths, resources and good practice.

• Creative dialogue between staff

share good practice within the school

• Engage staff in delivering in-house support and training for colleagues.
• Areas chosen resulted from a staff questionnaire asking about their needs.
• Sessions take place twice per term.
• Programme is developing with more staff getting involved.

• Collaboration across departments.
• More sharing of ideas and greater discussion about teaching and learning.

develop a culture of professional learning

• Implement and co-ordinate a programme of professional learning workshops, which are run once a week throughout the year.
• Topics are linked to the school improvement plan, school self evaluation and needs identified by performance management (PM) reviews, and run mainly by our own staff.

• Cost effective.
• Meaningful, positive feedback so far.
• CPD opportunities for those leading workshops as well as those attending.

develop CPD further without going on a course

• Devise a programme of early closures to deliver CPD strategy.
• Meetings held twice a term which then feed back to curriculum areas in early closure session.
• Groups working on a specific area of the SDP.

• Tweaked this year to focus on Assessment for Learning

ensure all staff have development opportunities

• Effective use of twilight development evenings for all staff. This ensures all staff have eight training opportunities a year chosen by them to meet their PM and development targets.
• Whole INSET days are broken down into twilight sessions to provide the hours needed.

• All staff are involved – promotes discussion around teaching and learning and college priorities

avoid staff working within ‘bricked up’ classrooms

• Whole school meetings given over to the issues (e.g. AfL, questioning; starters, plenaries etc) with staff running 20 minute workshops of techniques/approaches. Teaching staff worked through three in an hour.

• Greater openness and professional dialogue – ‘glass walled classrooms’ emerging!!

create effective support for new heads of department

• Approach experienced Heads of department and set up a ‘buddy’ system for any concerns for new role/responsibilities.
• Requested help from Leading from the Middle graduates on effective documentation to create a ‘mentor’ pack.

• Informed feedback suggested reduced stress from new initiatives for new HoDs, who appreciated the 1:1 time support.

succession plan

• Develop teams to address on-going needs – the passion of the one ‘infecting’ and motivating others to raise standards.

• Standards raised, greater ethos of support; consistency of approach and no major ‘gap’ when promotion occurs and people leave post.

get around financial and time constraints

• Organise events as part of CPD plan and invite colleagues from other special schools, mainstream or LA support services/therapies to attend for a small cost

• Financial burden for laying on CPD lessened
• Helps local networking
• Creates links for further CPD opportunities and development.

LA perspective:

How to……

develop the role of the CPD ‘Co-ordinator’

• We brought together an experienced group which deconstructed the role, then began to build it up again to the demands of the 21st century with ‘blue sky visioning’

• It has raised the profile of the role at SMT level and widens the vision of CPD within schools.

Develop CPD leadership

• Co-ordinate a network of CPD leaders in the LA to share effective practice and keep them up to date with CPD developments.

• Some of the members have now devised a cross-school menu of CPD opportunities and to share resources