Professional Learning for staff

As adults working with our students, we also see ourselves as learners. Both teaching and support staff role model learning behaviours, promoting a passion for education and demonstrating the importance of learning throughout life.

Effective professional learning has a significant impact on pupil achievement (TDT, 2015) and leading professional development is the school leadership activity that has the largest impact on pupil outcomes (CUREE, 2009).

 We value professional development experiences and recognise the impact that meaningful PD can have on student outcomes.

There are two key aims to evaluating PD:

1. A Summative evaluation of whether it has had the desired impact.
2. A formative evaluation of how it can be refined and improved as learning takes place.

Our desire to create a culture of professional learning is already being realised. We have a newly stocked staff CPD library; weekly online breakfast CPD sessions, led by staff and for staff; we have a teaching and learning newsletter; we use external courses and engage in subject learning communities through Meridian Trust.

Privileging Subject Specificity

We also believe in aligning quality assurance processes with professional learning and have developed a review process of Quality Improvement (QI) windows which enable curriculum leaders and their teams to ask the right questions at the right time. We have three QI windows across the year which provide staff with a window of time to pursue a relevant line of enquiry, gather evidence and meet to discuss the learning and outcomes that have emerged.

Every year we have a focus to galvanise the professional development and school improvement work at TFS. Last academic year, we conducted a small-scale action research project looking at effective formative assessment in the classroom. We identified eight methods of feedback and worked hard to create the conditions for students to benefit from these approaches. We learned a great deal from this and plan to roll out this work across the school from September 2024.

In addition, we all benefit from access to Meridian Learning – our Trust-wide offer of ongoing professional learning through synchronous and asynchronous learning. Staff have ringfenced PD sessions across the year but can also access online tools and menus across the year at their own convenience.  Through Meridian Learning, we can connect with other schools, wider research and professional qualifications.

If you are a member of The Chartered College of Teaching, you can access an article that we published about the work we have been doing with persistent challenges here.

Learning at all Career Stages

As well as investing in the learning of more experienced colleagues, we also work with Early Career Teachers and trainees to ensure a smooth and successful route to Qualified Teacher Status (QTS). We work with The Cambridge and Peterborough Partnership and the Nothants Teaching School Hub, hosting placements for trainee teachers and Early Careers Teachers. Having trainees and ECTs working with us helps when it comes to recruitment, but they also bring a great deal of energy and enthusiasm to their placements with us.

If you require any more information about teaching and learning at The Ferrers School, please contact our Assistant Principal, Michelle Garrod. mgarrod@theferrers.org