Seek and you'll find

By Margaret Orr, National CPD Team

In the last issue of Teaching Scotland, Margaret Alcorn asked: "Whose CPD is it anyway?" She said we had to be proactive and take ownership of our own CPD, as it relates to our own working environment and our own stage of professional knowledge and development.

At a recent CPD Network event, CPD Managers and other colleagues who have a lead or facilitating role in CPD in authorities or partner agencies had the opportunity to consider the potential of a range of resources and activities (material and human) which, although easily accessible to teachers, may be considered of interest or value only to colleagues who have designated roles in, for example: additional support needs, vulnerable children and young people and behaviour support.

Experts in these fields are essential when considering the needs of children and young people with the most significant profiles. However, in an educational climate which prides itself on inclusion and has high expectations of all teachers to be able to identify and respond appropriately to a range of additional support needs and vulnerable profiles, much of the information, guidance and proposed CPD activity held within these 'specialist' resources is highly relevant to all teachers.

The work undertaken by a school library service illustrated how the challenge of literacy in CfE can be addressed by collaborative working between the school librarian and colleagues in a secondary setting. Colleagues from the independent sector and psychological services shared experiences of partnership working inclusive of all staff and mutually beneficial to both.

The resources which were profiled included:

  • the Dyslexia Toolkit, which is a rich source of information and advice on all aspects of reading development and can be used for personal reference or as a stimulus for staff discussion
  • the range of research findings published by psychological services, which are linked directly to real school experiences and are again a rich source of personal and collegiate CPD
  • the DVD Getting it Right for Every Child, which again is a very flexible resource and covers issues relating to bereavement, loss and related behaviours
  • the Guidance Document from the Allied Health Professionals which gives an insight into the scope for inter-agency working.

All of these avenues of CPD are on our doorstep. The online and DVD resources are available at times which suit individual learning styles and time commitments. They do not require you to be an expert in the field but will enhance your knowledge and understanding and can be a very useful stimulus for collegiate discussion and developing practice. Colleagues from the school library are a knock on the door away and other agencies a phone call! No doubt in every authority there will be a treasure trove of CPD opportunities including those identified here - please share what you are involved in or unearth via GLOW or CPD Find.

ISSUE 36
August 2010