For many school leaders, the importance of effective CPD for teaching staff needs little explaining. As the DfE’s Standard for Teachers’ Professional Development straightforwardly puts it, ‘effective professional development for teachers is a core part of securing effective teaching.’

We know that teachers themselves are also firmly invested in honing and developing their skills. According to an LKMco and Pearson survey, the prospect of making a difference in pupils’ lives motivates 92% of teachers to stay in teaching, so any further opportunities to increase their impact in the classroom are likely to be received with enthusiasm.

Following educators on Twitter will help you to keep up-to-date on the latest advice and research in education, as well as find and share resources, and be part of a passionate, international community of professionals.

If you’re not sure where to get started, here’s 10 educators and #edtech accounts we recommend following right now (list in no particular order):

Guest blog from Hannah Bailey, Drapers Mills Primary Academy, TKAT

In this blog I'll be sharing my experience of becoming a certified video cpd leader and the benefits of this at Drapers Mills Primary Academy.

In my opinion, if you see yourself as a learner, you will be a better teacher. 

I have always been interested in reflecting on my own learning paths in order to improve professionally; IRIS Connect  (a video-based professional learning platform) has helped me to spread this philosophy and build a professional development culture within our school through their IRIS Lead Certified programme.

Guest blog written by Claire Probert, Lancot Challenger Academy

CPD. So often associated with death by PowerPoint, as a room full of tea-drinking teachers subtly write ever expanding to-do lists to be completed later that same day, if not during the training!

I don’t find this acceptable; I firmly believe that we should practice what we preach. For our pupils, we rightly demand that our staff eliminate passive learning, develop active questioning, promote pupil-led learning and all within an engaging, safe and positive climate. At my school, my staff deserve exactly that too and myself and my IRIS Connect Lead, Jenny Fraser, are passionate about offering this to our team.

Developing a CPD culture takes time and effort. It can't be imposed or imported overnight. That being said, there are things that you can do to create an environment where teachers want to learn and develop their instructional practice. 

Get started by reflecting on the following 7 questions...

Guest blog written by Sunny Gunessee, Carshalton Boys Sports College.

Since the introduction of video CPD (IRIS Connect), our school has gone from strength to strength when it comes to the growth of teaching, learning and development of leadership and management. The investment in IRIS Connect in June 2018 caused a tangible shift in the quality of provision we provide, particularly in the area of NQTs, experienced staff, subject leaders and pastoral leaders having more collective efficacy.

So how can a school after only one year have created such a culture?