Teacher Development Hub
Watch & learn: A new type of teacher development hub
The online environment offers exciting opportunities for the next generation of teacher development, through teacher observation, feedback and on-demand training.
Teaching online brings a whole host of new challenges for the already stretched teacher; how do you connect meaningfully with learners whilst keeping appropriate boundaries? How does a teacher’s role interface with the new parent-teacher? But the online medium has also opened exciting new doors for teacher training and development. One of the best ways for teachers to learn is through observation and feedback and unobtrusively sneaking into the back of an online class has never been easier. Online tools enable us to put together training videos fast in response to needs. So what if we brought it all together in a new type of teacher development hub?
How does it work?
Rebecca Osborne - day 2 drawing snippet
Bite-size training: for new and existing teachers, tailored to different needs and contexts, which includes (amongst other stuff) modules which deal with some of the key problems being faced:
Psychology and pedagogy of online learning and teaching
Establishing positive online relationships with learners
Understanding your role (in the classroom, with parents)
How to support parents
How to cope with stress – mindfulness etc
There would be core modules, but teachers could also request training in particular areas which could be produced quickly using online tools so content remains fresh and current.
2. An observation hub:
Teachers can find trainers who observe them teach and get feedback (could be linked to a training course, or ad hoc). This could be part of a premium package
Teachers to observe other teachers from across the world who have similar context
Find “Online Teacher Champions” (those who have really cracked it - to watch them teach or invite them to observe and give feedback)
3. Connect with other teachers:
Find teachers to chat with who have a similar context through a filtered search system
4. Offers qualifications (and courses) in online teaching
What’s the value to the user?
Provides support and training which is specific to online teaching in different contexts
Provides support to teachers whose schools aren’t offering support packages
Provides access to teachers across the globe who have similar circumstances (for example, using the same platform, experiencing similar issues)
How is this different?
It’s focus is purely on online and blended teaching
Observations have long been a key tool to development but problematic to set up in face to face classes. The online environment offers an easy, cheap and non-intrusive way to do this.
Could include cross curricular observation - English teachers can watch maths teachers for example. A real opportunity for cross fertilisation.
What’s needed to make this happen?
A partnership?
Research into where teachers need support; what’s working and what isn’t?
Investment in tech from institutions
Find champions -people to engage in the idea
Need to get managers in institutions to see the benefits of investing in this
Explore if the idea has legs with more research
What are the challenges?
Investment in teacher training is always first to be cut
Change in teachers mindset about being observed (but this would come with more experience of it)
Mindsets of the institutions who don’t see the need for it
Have your say
Are you already working on something similar? Do you want to get involved with this?
Reckon we’ve got it all wrong but know the solution we’re looking for? We’d love to hear from you - drop us a comment below.