Contemporary trends in professional development of teachers: importance of recognising the context

Ali Nawab, Kerry Bissaker, Al Karim Datto

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

3 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Purpose
Whereas the achievement of students has closely been linked with the quality of teachers and there is a bulk of literature supporting the need of teachers' preparation in enhancing their quality, professional development (PD) of teachers has been a central focus of reform initiatives in education across the globe. This paper aims at analysing the existing literature on PD of teachers to reflect on the models and characteristics of effective PD, and to highlight the importance of context in PD of teachers.

Design/methodology/approach
To respond to the aim of the paper, a search in the field of pedagogy in Education Resource Information Centre (ERIC) was undertaken. The search strings used were “models of teachers' professional development”, “characteristics of teachers professional development” and “context in professional development” restricted to time period from 2000 to 2020.

Findings
The major argument this paper presents is that the models and characteristics of PD are relative and there is no uniform model to be implemented across contexts. Instead of debating the models and characteristics of effective PD, academics and practitioners have to be watchful to the context and the real needs of teachers in a particular context.

Originality/value
The paper critiques the generalisation of Western generated PD models to the developing world especially Pakistan which the existing research and literature is silent about.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1176-1190
Number of pages15
JournalInternational Journal of Educational Management
Volume35
Issue number6
Early online date11 Jun 2021
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 21 Oct 2021

Keywords

  • Characteristics of teacher professional development
  • Models of teacher professional development
  • Professional development in educational context

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