The Education and Training Foundation (ETF)’s self-assessment tool – which helps teachers and trainers assess their values, knowledge, and skills against the sector’s Professional Standards for Teachers and Trainers – has now been used over 10,000 times since the tool’s launch in June 2022.
The self-assessment tool supports teachers on their professional development journeys, helping to identify which aspects of their practice they may need to develop to work towards the twenty aspirational Professional Standards. The Standards, updated in 2022, continue to be used across the Further Education (FE) and skills sector to support effective teaching practice, with some organisations having formally embedded them into annual appraisal and observation processes.
Just under half of the self-assessments completed to date were by members of the Society for Education and Training (SET), including more than 2,000 individuals completing their Professional Formation enroute to achieving Qualified Teacher Learning and Skills (QTLS) status, and a further 152 people who completed a self-assessment as part of their Advanced Teacher Status (ATS) portfolio.
In addition to the self-assessment tool, further resources are available to support effective use of the Professional Standards to enable professional development. Teaching staff can access ETF’s CPD mapping tool, which maps professional development opportunities and resources onto each of the Professional Standards. Activity cards have also been produced by ETF and used by organisations to facilitate discussion around the Professional Standards. Last year, a series of audio interviews were released, explaining each Professional Standard in greater detail to aid understanding and application. Those interviews complement ETF’s guide to using the Professional Standards.
As well as the Professional Standards for Teachers and Trainers, the Professional Standards for Leaders, developed in 2021, have been widely used. More than 1,800 leaders across the FE and skills sector have so far reflected on these Standards using ETF’s Professional Development Platform. The Standards for Leaders cater to aspiring leaders, middle leaders, senior leaders, and CEOs/Principals. They set out the professional expectations of leadership roles, and support leaders to identify opportunities for further relevant training.
Paul Tully, Associate Director Membership and Business Growth at ETF, commented: “It is fantastic to see so many practitioners making use of the updated Professional Standards, and the tools that accompany them, to track their progress and support their professional development. The tools available – from the self-assessment tool and CPD mapping tool to audio interviews and a written guide – enable teaching staff to gain a deeper understanding of the Professional Standards and link them directly to training and resources that will support them on their professional development journeys.
“We are delighted to see the benefits that both sets of Professional Standards and their accompanying tools are bringing to practitioners and to leaders, and we look forward to seeing more and more individuals and their organisations benefitting from their use going forwards.”