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Professional Development That Teachers Ask For

Move from events to coached cycles tied to the live curriculum.

Challenge

One off INSET days failed to change classroom routines or improve learning quickly.

Result

Short coached cycles using next week’s materials produced visible change within a fortnight.

Outcome

Calmer starts, clearer modelling and more consistent curriculum conversations across departments.

Innovation

Tight rehearsal, supportive walkthroughs, brief artefact reviews and an explicit operating system for staff.

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Brief overview

Inset days are visible but impact is often modest. We made change visible by rehearsing one technique at a time on live materials, implementing with coaching, and reviewing impact with pupil work. Teachers felt the difference fast and asked for the next cycle.

Mechanisms that move practice

Departments met for structured co planning using the actual resources pupils would meet. Walkthroughs focused on the first five minutes or the handover. Notes were specific and kind with one prompt for tomorrow.

Human moments that matter

An early career teacher rehearsed the opening of a lesson twice with a mentor and delivered it calmly the next day. A parent received a plain explanation of how reading was being taught and what to do at home.

Keeping workload net zero

Every addition displaced something. We published a short operating system that named the routines we would rehearse and the tasks we would retire. Calendars reflected the choice.

Evidence and alignment

The approach aligns with EEF guidance on effective PD and implementation and with DfE workload principles. Evidence came from artefacts and simple signals close to learning.

Impact

Starts became calmer, explanations clearer and re teaching fell. Staff described the process as fair because decision rights were visible and consistent.

Lessons for leaders and investors

  • Do fewer things well.
  • Coach with live materials.
  • Review artefacts not spreadsheets.
  • Protect rehearsal time and retire low value tasks.

Full Article

Inset days are good for alignment and for setting tone. They rarely change what happens on Tuesday morning. The lever is rehearsal that sits close to the live curriculum. We designed a cycle that colleagues could feel. Pick one technique. Rehearse it using next week’s materials. Implement with brief supportive coaching. Review simple artefacts. Tweak. Repeat. Because the loop is short, the feedback is immediate and goodwill rises.

Co planning centered on the materials pupils would meet. For an explanation in science, teams prepared a model answer that named the step where errors usually occur. For a reading lesson, they wrote three prompts that would check understanding and language. For mathematics, they chose a representation and a worked example that would carry into independent practice. The discipline was to plan the first ten minutes fully, not the whole hour superficially.

Walkthroughs were humane and precise. Leaders visited for five minutes with a prompt sheet that watched only the target move. They looked for a calm start, a clear model or a tight handover. Notes were short and kind. One thing to keep. One thing to try. The next visit came soon so colleagues felt supported rather than judged. Because the focus was narrow, improvement arrived quickly.

Review meetings sampled artefacts of learning, not dashboards. Teachers brought two book photos and a retrieval snapshot. The question was simple. What can pupils do now that they could not do two weeks ago. Differences were visible when the technique had been rehearsed and used. Leaders closed with one tweak and protected time to enact it.

The operating system mattered. We wrote a one page guide that named the few routines the school would rehearse and the tasks it would retire. The list included the door script, the retrieval start, the modelling format and the handover. It also included a line on workload. For every new request, one task would be removed. Calendars changed to pr...

What this means for school leaders and investors

Back rehearsal and brief coaching. Expect learning reports with artefacts. Publish decision rights and protect early years rehearsal time. Retire initiatives that do not earn their keep.

Full narrative expansion

The cycle is portable. It works in primary, secondary and sixth form because it is about behaviour. It survives staff change because artefacts and routines travel. It respects workload by staying short and visible.

What changed in practice

Co planning on live materials; five minute supportive walkthroughs; artefact reviews; a one page operating system; one in one out for tasks.

Human moments that built culture

A nervous colleague invited a five minute watch. A parent received a plain note. A middle leader landed a briefing crisply. The weather changed because behaviour changed.

Results we saw

  • Calmer starts and clearer modelling.
  • More concrete curriculum conversations.
  • Reduced re teaching and steadier progress.

How we kept workload net‑zero

One in, one out. Exemplar banks and short coaching replaced bulky paperwork. Calendars protected rehearsal at foundations and transitions.

Evidence and UK alignment

EEF guidance on effective professional development and implementation and the DfE workload toolkit support this approach. Evidence is drawn from classroom artefacts and short, repeatable signals.

Lessons for leaders and investors

  • Do fewer things well.
  • Coach with live materials.
  • Review artefacts not spreadsheets.
  • Protect rehearsal time.

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