3.2 Taking professional standards into practice
Description
This is a continuing cross-sectoral activity designed to support new scheme teachers and their supervisors in NSW schools to meet the Institute of Teachers Professional Teaching Standards. Teachers engaging in this activity will systematically study their practice in a way that facilitates dialogue among colleagues about their beliefs, knowledge and skills. They will collaboratively engage in active experimentation, trialling new ideas for classroom practice, including close examination of student work and student learning, and observation of classroom practice.
The activity will be managed by the Australian Government Quality Teacher Programme cross-sectoral team who will take responsibility for the activity meeting the professional needs of teachers who participate.
Associate Professor Robyn Ewing, Acting Dean, University of Sydney, is the Teacher Education Council's representative on the cross-sectoral advisory group. Schools may identify academic partners from a range of NSW higher education institutions to support their project work.
Contacts
| Rod McLeod email: rod.n.mcleod@det.nsw.edu.au Ph 9244 5158 Fax 9244 5849 Sector: DET, CEC, AIS |
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Outcomes
Through participation in an AGQTP project, teachers will have applied professional standards to make judgements about the success of their practice and areas for future development.
Through participation in an AGQTP project, teachers will, strengthened the currency and depth of their pedagogical knowledge and skills.
Access
Targeted schools/teachers from NSW Department of Education and Training, NSW Catholic Education Commission and Association of Independent Schools New South Wales.
Design
The activity design takes account of the variety of needs and experiences of new scheme teachers and the diverse contexts in which they teach. Participating teachers will be required to collect documentary evidence to support their pathway to accreditation. The professional learning strategy involves new scheme teachers and their supervisors engaging in:
- workplace learning that is based on a cycle of continuous improvement model
- workplace mentoring and coaching aligned to meeting the NSW Institute of Teachers Professional Teaching Standards
- using communications technology to connect new teachers and their mentors with teachers in all parts of the state.
The model of professional development will include the following strategies:
- school-based collegial model designed as a strategy to engage teachers who participate in workplace or school network teams
- web-based resources accessed through a dedicated project site
- online forums where teachers can meet in virtual spaces to engage in systematically planned activities exploring a range of key issues, challenges and problem solving strategies that investigate practices required to meet the Professional Competence standards
- sharing conference/s designed to showcase teacher professional learning strategies, extending the professional dialogue about accreditation to the NSW Professional Teaching Standards and celebrating the professional status of new teachers.
Implementation
The implementation of the activity will be supported by the following personnel: cross-sectoral project officers, sector consultants, academic partners, online mentors.
Delivery
Workplace learning, online learning, mentoring, action learning project, workshops/course, conference, resource development
Timeline
By June 2008:
- add to online facility for sharing resources from 2007 project schools
- conduct advisory group meetings of key stakeholders to inform the development and implementation of the activity
- identify from up to 30 schools, teachers to participate in the school-based professional learning teams
- support online capacity to host forums and as a repository for resources
- conduct regional cross-sectoral orientation workshops for project schools
- submit progress report in June.
- collect artefact's from schools demonstrating collegial processes
- conduct sharing network opportunities including sharing conference/s
- submit annual report in November.
Sectors
