Supporting the professional development of ‘hybrid’ teacher educators in the Further Education sector

Teacher educators are crucial for the quality of the teaching workforce and therefore to the outcomes of learners. However, teachers frequently become teacher educators with little or no professional development to support them in these roles. In this paper we report on a professional development programme which aimed to address this gap in provision for practitioners operating in the dual role of teacher and teacher educator in the Further Education and Skills sector in England. Using evaluative data from interviews and questionnaires, we found that the programme was successful in supporting a diverse group of participants to reflect on and develop their practice. It increased participants’ confidence in their roles as teacher educators, by supporting learning about the practice of teacher education. Participants valued a sense of belonging to a community of learning. Reflecting participants’ dual roles as teachers and teacher educators, they applied learning to their practice in multiple ways with colleagues, beginning teachers and with students. Our findings contribute to understanding the ways in which practitioners in ‘hybrid’ roles as teacher and teacher educators can be supported, and offer a model through which this can be provided, across all phases of education

Building capacity for professional development: the development of teachers as facilitators in Ghana

In low and middle income countries, cascade models of teacher professional development are often used as routes to educational reform. In these models, external agents deliver professional development which is then disseminated by in-country facilitators. However, little is known about how to support facilitators of professional development, particularly in low and middle income countries. In this study, we report on a model of capacity building for professional development in Ghana. In the context of a large-scale programme of science teacher professional development, a group of Ghanaian teachers gradually assumed responsibility for professional development facilitation, working alongside experienced facilitators from the UK. Using interviews focussed on a storyline technique, we explore the experiences of the Ghanaian teachers as they reflected on their roles. We found the teachers’ epistemological beliefs about teaching were coherent with those of the programme and suggest that this may be an important factor in the success of cascade models of professional development. The teachers gained self-confidence and improved their knowledge and skills of teaching and of professional development facilitation. We propose that this is useful learning for all facilitators and that the model described here is one which is potentially useful for capacity building in other contexts

Developing the developers : supporting and researching the learning of professional development facilitators

Research on teacher professional development is extensive but there are fewer studies about the practitioners who facilitate professional development. Here we report on a pilot programme for professional development facilitators rooted in a cycle of action research. Informed by a categorisation of professional knowledge and skills of facilitators, in the ‘developing the developers’ programme, professional development facilitators enquired collaboratively into their practice using video observation and peer review and engaged with theories of professional learning. The impact of the programme was evaluated using a framework based on Clarke and Hollingsworth’s (2002) interconnected model of teacher professional growth. The programme was effective in allowing participants to gain insights into their practice to develop it further and to identify participants’ learning needs. The latter related to improving facilitation skills and knowledge and improving knowledge about professional development. The interconnected model was found to be applicable to professional development facilitators with some adaptations. Its use enabled understanding of the impacts of the programme and the learning processes involved. Although limited in scale, our study offers a model for professional development that is potentially useful in other contexts. Further, the theoretical frameworks developed may support the design and evaluation of similar programmes

A professional challenge for science educators

Continuing professional development (CPD) is key to improvement in pupil and teacher outcomes, yet teachers in England are not yet entitled to participate in it. Wellcome’s CPD programme aims to ensure that all teachers have access to high quality, predominantly subject-focused CPD annually, all of which is aligned to their own professional development needs. As part of this programme, Wellcome has funded a pilot study to understand how schools would implement a CPD entitlement for teachers alongside work to design, develop and test a system to quality assure CPD provision

A weakly correlated Fermi liquid state with a small Fermi surface in lightly doped Sr3_3Ir2_2O7_7

We characterize the electron doping evolution of (Sr$_{1-x}$La$_x$)$_3$Ir$_2$O$_7$ by means of angle-resolved photoemission. Concomitant with the metal insulator transition around $x\approx0.05$ we find the emergence of coherent quasiparticle states forming a closed small Fermi surface of volume $3x/2$, where $x$ is the independently measured La concentration. The quasiparticle weight $Z$ remains large along the entire Fermi surface, consistent with the moderate renormalization of the low-energy dispersion. This indicates a conventional, weakly correlated Fermi liquid state with a momentum independent residue $Z\approx0.5$ in lightly doped Sr$_3$Ir$_2$O$_7&.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure

Anisotropic exchange and spin-wave damping in pure and electron-doped Sr2_2IrO4_4

The collective magnetic excitations in the spin-orbit Mott insulator (Sr$_{1-x}$La$_x$)$_2$IrO$_4$ ($x=0,\,0.01,\,0.04,\, 0.1$) were investigated by means of resonant inelastic x-ray scattering. We report significant magnon energy gaps at both the crystallographic and antiferromagnetic zone centers at all doping levels, along with a remarkably pronounced momentum-dependent lifetime broadening. The spin-wave gap is accounted for by a significant anisotropy in the interactions between $J_\text{eff}=1/2$ isospins, thus marking the departure of Sr$_2$IrO$_4$ from the essentially isotropic Heisenberg model appropriate for the superconducting cuprates.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figure

Connecting research and teacher education : quality enhancement for ITE Partnerships

As part of the Welsh education reform programme, the relationship between research and teacher education has been identified as an important component for improving Welsh education and meeting the aspirations of the new Welsh Curriculum. The new ITE accreditation criteria (Welsh Government, 2017) seek to contribute to meeting the challenge to move towards matching internationally excellent practice in research-rich teacher education in a form appropriate to Welsh contexts. Quality enhancement is a change process in which ongoing evaluation is embedded and used to inform development. It is informed by both theory based (Weiss, 1997; Rogers, 2008) and realistic evaluation methodologies (Pawson & Tilley, 1997) adapted for improvement planning. The quality enhancement tool presented here is designed to support ITE partnerships to meet the ITE accreditation criteria and engage in ongoing quality enhancement. It will support providers and potential providers to set aims and goals, articulate change mechanisms and identify resources needed and actions to take, use both external and institutional evidence to review the current situation, plan the monitoring of progress. The intended users of the tool are those responsible for planning and leading ITE programmes in ITE partnerships. The tool will be used most effectively through a process of dialogue and collaboration with all stakeholders within institutions and with school and other external partners. This collaboration with schools is essential in relation to areas where responsibility is shared for the quality of ITE

Real Voices, Real Questions, Real Engagement: VCU Speaker Series

You come here for something more than schooling. You come here for deep education and deep education is about learning how to die so that you learn how to live because when you examine certain assumptions that you have, certain presuppositions that you’re holding on to, when you let them go, that’s a form of death. And there’s no growth, there’s no development, there’s no maturation without learning how to die and giving up certain dogma, giving up certain doctrine. - Cornel West, Ph.D., VCU Siegel Center, Fall 2015 VCU is a large, public, urban research university situated in the middle of a capital city. Its faculty, staff, student body, alumni, and the surrounding community are remarkably diverse as are the academic offerings. It is, and should be viewed as, the intellectual and cultural engine of the region. Our project proposes the creation of a large-scale, high-profile speaker series designed to highlight emerging trends and provide students, faculty, staff, alumni and the Richmond community with a forum for conversation. The speaker series will cover topics that are critically engaging, have national relevance, and introduce ideas that propel the next generation of leaders. In addition to a large speaking engagement, the speaker series will also incorporate other activities to cultivate interactions and build relationships such as classroom lectures, book signings, and a dinner through the development office. The speaker series will host at least one speaker annually, with the addition of a second speaker as the event builds momentum. At least one of the lectures will occur at the beginning of the traditional academic semester, allowing for the greatest opportunity for participation across VCU and Richmond. Internal support from VCU students, faculty, staff, and colleges will ensure that the project is connected to the mission, vision, goals, and pursuits of VCU. A speaker series committee will help sustain and coordinate efforts across the university and community. Committee members will include stakeholders that require buy-in and cooperation for activities that complement the speaker series (e.g., other lectures, panel discussions, classroom activities). A survey will be used to gain insights into topics and speakers of interest. The committee will review the survey responses in order to make informed decisions during the planning process. The ongoing presence of hosting influential speakers will allow VCU to emerge into the national spotlight as thought-leaders. This speaker series will serve many purposes. First, the series will serve to inspire VCU students, faculty, staff, and the Richmond. Through frank and open conversations attendees will be exposed to new concepts and ideas. Second, the series will unite the diverse groups that make up VCU and the Richmond community. The lecture series will expose attendees to new ideas and open doors for possible opportunities for collaboration through classroom and community engagement activities related to the topics discussed. Third, the series will serve as a cultural conduit, solidly connecting the VCU and Richmond communities around engaging ideas of importance. Opening a new market-place of ideas will ensure that the students of VCU interact with new information in exciting and transformative ways