professional development today

PDT 18.2 Editorial: Talk, enquire and learn

Graham Handscomb puts learning centre stage and reflects on the implications for the contribution made by professional development.

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Teacher talk and open learning spaces

Jane Jones writes about Teacher Talk – teachers talking about teaching and learning; lesson sharing; creating dialogic spaces; and engaging in meaningful conversation. She shows how Teacher Talk lies at the heart of powerful professional development.

Feuerstein’s Legacy - the relevance of Feuerstein to practitioners today

Judy Silver provides a comprehensive guide to the historical origins of Feuerstein’s work, and explains his key ideas and programmes. She shows how his thinking is grounded in a deep understanding of humanity and is still of profound relevance to the modern educational world and to contemporary society.

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Leading Learning in a World of ‘Whitewater’

Jane Reed believes we are living in unprecedented turbulent times and doubts whether we are equipping current and forthcoming generations of children to meet the big challenges sufficiently. She describes a project which sought to restore the primary focus on learning, provides a set of core practices, and explores the professional development implications.

Growing a culture of inclusion: understandings from the research

Schools operate within a cauldron of continuous change. Alison Ekins describes a two year research project which indicates that if teachers are to cope successfully with all the changing demands made of them they needed to be supported through professional development opportunities and also through a deep understanding of professional identity.

Achieving evidence-informed school improvement: a check list for school leaders

Chris Brown provides guidance on how leaders can embody research engagement in their own practice and in the way they empower others.

essential reading

Cooperative Learning

Practical and easy to use, this classic has been acclaimed as the single most comprehensive book on cooperative learning.

A World of Difference

This book analyses the issuessurrounding the world of differencewe see in schools today.

A Solution Focused Approach to Anger Management with Children: A group work manual for practitioners

Based on solution-focused brief therapy, this manual presents a range of exercises which can be photocopied for use with groups or individuals.

Applying Emotional Intelligence: A Practitioner’s Guide

The explosion of research on Emotional Intelligence (EI) in the last decade has provided increasing evidence that EI can be measured reliably and can be useful in predicting important outcomes, such as managerial effectiveness and relationship quality.

Classroom Management That Works

Based on over 100 case studies of classroom management in America

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Pedagogy of Confidence – applying Feuerstein’s Theory to dispel the colour achievement gap myth

Yvette Jackson confronts the low expectations of students of colour which she sees as endemic in the United States. She shows how Feuerstein’s Thinking can inspire high intellectual performances and transform learning.

Learning how to learn

Anne-Theresa Lawrie describes how Feuerstein’s programmes have been explored by schools in the Scottish Borders and in particular examines the teacher training dimension.

Dynamic assessment!

How do we identify gifted children and what factors contribute to our understanding of giftedness Maria Dolores Calero explains through her review of developments of Feuerstein Theory.

Making a difference in education: what the evidence says.

Chris Brown explores a book of valuable narratives about what makes a difference in education and the often shaky evidence underpinning this. Whilst offering no quick fixes, he applauds the book’s invitation for readers to focus, engage in context and to learn.