| Author: | Kerry Harris |
| Date of Publication: | 16 September 2020 |
| Revised | August 2023 |
| Next date of review | August 2024 |
Professional review and development is central to raising achievement and improving the effectiveness of teaching and learning. We believe yearly performance reviews offers a systematic approach to training and development, which leads to enhanced job satisfaction and better leadership and management of the teaching process.
We support CPD as an on-going, planned learning and development process, which:
- improves the quality of teaching and learning from the perspective of the people who use our services
- enables staff to expand and fulfil their potential
- contributes to work-based and personal development
- can be applied or assessed against competences and organisational performance
- includes any activity that increases knowledge, experience and understanding and contributes to lifelong learning.
We recognise that the range of CPD activities covers the whole spectrum of learning and can include on-the- job development, formal programmes and qualifications through to informal opportunities and learning through experience.
Our strategy is designed to ensure the following:
- staff maintain and develop skills and knowledge to do their job
- help to change practice for new roles or working in a different environment
- provide personal development plans which promote lifelong learning
- motivate staff to learn and build confidence and self-esteem
- expand and develop new areas of competence, which might be for their existing job or to develop their careers
- develop the skills to reflect on and improve their practice
- provide opportunities for career progression, whether this is sideways, to another level or a different area.
Mandatory Training
All staff are expected to undertake Mandatory Training in the following areas and these are reviewed on an annual basis:
- Safeguarding
- Prevent
- Health and Safety
- GDPR
- Information Security
All Mangers and Operations teams are expected to undertake the additional Mandatory Training:
- Equality in the Workplace
- Mental Health Awareness
All Managers are expected to under the additional Mandatory Training
- Safer recruitment
- Finance
- Recruitment and Selection
Quality of Teaching and Learning
Aims and context
Monitoring the quality of teaching and learning and teacher effectiveness is an integral part of quality assurance systems and supports our continuous improvement. The purpose of our processes is to:
- Monitor and benchmark the quality of teaching, learning and assessment with reference to the Education Inspection Framework related to the learning and skills sector
- Identify and share good practice
- Identify areas for development
Develop and support tutors to improve teaching, learning and assessment practices in order to improve the learning experience for all learners
All funded tutors can expect to have one classroom visit as part of a wider learning walk at least once every academic year. New tutors will receive a support visit within their first half term of teaching and where possible followed by a more formal classroom observation later in the year.
The service employs a ‘right touch’ approach to scheduling observations. Priorities for observation in any one year are:
- New tutors teaching for the first time
- Tutors teaching courses that have experienced higher than normal levels of learner withdrawals, or where other causes for concern have been raised
- Tutors teaching a new subject for the first time.
We are mindful of the need to ensure a supportive climate within teaching and professional review. This then contributes to ensuring that reviews are effective. In order to do this, we endeavour to apply the following principles:
- a professional commitment to building excellence at every stage of a teacher’s career.
- clear purpose for all participants;
- self-evaluation as the starting point with on-going personal reflection a key feature;
- integrated with our existing arrangements for quality assurance;
- supports the professional needs of each teacher/tutor;
- balances individual and personal development priorities;
- professional development is coherent and progressive;
- the process is evaluated effectively.
Professional Development Review
Professional reviews offers an opportunity for not only recognising good performance but to encourage tutors to reflect on their practice as part of their CPD record and to share good practice with colleagues.
We are committed to using the iTrent process to record and review development. Where this is not possible, for instance where staff only work for a few hours per week and do not have access to the corporate systems, then appropriate recording systems are used.
CPD Activities
All tutors are required to keep and share with us a CPD Record for the current year, you are expected to record up to 20% of CPD against your teaching hours. Whilst we do not insist on a particular format for recording CPD a suggested format is outlined as Appendix A.
We recognise the value of tutors passing on their knowledge from CPD activities to other colleagues. The feedback form for cascading training is outlined as Appendix B.
We recognise that a range of experiences contribute to teacher development and includes activities that can be undertaken during their normal working week. We therefore encourage all staff to think about how activities they undertake can contribute to their CPD activity.
The list that follows is intended to be illustrative rather than exhaustive:
- activity related to achieving national standards
- recorded self-evaluation and personal reflection
- subject-based activities including involvement with professional bodies and associations;
- attendance at Staff Conferences
- attendance at team meetings;
- membership of committees and external professional networks
- developing service, local authority and national policies;
- visits to and from colleagues in other areas;
- co-operative teaching and peer observation;
- lesson observation and analysis;
- secondments;
- professional reading and research;
- mentoring/supporting colleagues;
- curricular planning/development;
- management and leadership development opportunities;
Appendix A: Continuous Professional Development Record
Click here to download the Continuous Professional Development Record template