Hit and Run CPD (Inset!)

Today’s episode is about 'hit and run' CPD, which Femi and Matt approach with an attitude of constructive criticism and attempting to offer a vision of positive alternatives.  

'Hit and run' CPD is really just any so called ‘training’ which is a singular, stand-alone event, with no follow up.  All too often these sessions will involve all staff in the hall, with no attempt to evaluate prior knowledge, and no differentiation for the widely varying contexts and levels of expertise.

The duo discuss what is meant by the term; what the problems are with singular standalone training sessions; what would constitute valid goals for the inset presentation and what does it look like when it’s being done well.

They talk about the importance of follow-up to any training , get into the challenges for heads and SLTs around narrowing priorities enough to give them the time through the year to achieve and sustain real change and the importance of approaching inset and training strategically and with long and medium term plans.

They also discuss cultivating a developmental culture vs a judgemental one, and how the behaviour of leaders is crucial to shape that; The challenges of utilising expertise within school; The proper way to reflect on training sessions and the importance of reflecting and evaluating the impact of training and inset; How energising it can be to be involved in the long term project of improvement – especially with a skilled facilitator and a clear path forward; and The economics of professional development and false economy of the hit and run CPD, amongst other things.

This episode should be of interest to teachers of all subjects, and as always we'd love to hear your thoughts - @BeyondGoodPod on X.