Assessing Development Programmes CPD and the Cambridge English Teaching Framework: Guide for Trainers and Academic Management (4 of 4) Cambridge English Teacher © Cambridge University Press and Cambridge English Language Assessment 2015 1 Assessing Development Programmes Overall Evaluation A teacher development programme is an important project for any institution, so trainers and institutions will want to evaluate the benefits of having invested time and resources into this. However, teacher development programmes do not easily lend themselves to ‘summative’ evaluation where the focus is only on the end results. 1. Results Take Time It should be noted that those who will ultimately benefit from such programmes are the learners that the teachers teach but not necessarily the learners that are currently being taught. Gains resulting from teacher development may not be immediate and measurable, so the use of before-and-after learner grades or learner satisfaction surveys are extremely unreliable tools to measure development progress in the short term. 2. Consider Goals, Not Numbers The benefits of teacher development programmes for an institution may be difficult to measure, even in the long term. Institutional evaluation should therefore begin with a consideration of the institutional goals that led to the creation and implementation of the programme. The clearer and more specific these goals are, the easier it will be to agree on the extent to which they have been achieved.1 It is our recommendation that institutions do not evaluate programmes overall in terms of results as expressed by test or exam grades, numbers and statistics. It is more productive to ‘get a sense’ from those involved of whether the programme adopted is positive and valuable. Feedback will allow the programme to be adjusted to further strengthen this positive effect. Feedback – Evaluation Meetings Development programmes should include systems for continuous evaluation by its participants. The frequency of this evaluation will depend on a number of factors, but, as a guide, they should take place roughly after every twelve hours of work. It is not always necessary to have the trainer or members of the academic management team present at all meetings, especially when the teachers involved are at Proficient and Expert stages and within the Professional Development and Values category. Teachers at these levels should be working together in order to carry out such evaluations and provide feedback to the trainer as appropriate, e.g. in the form of a report. In the middle of the programme, it is more advisable for the trainer to be present so that they can assess the progress made so far and make any changes which are suggested in order to ensure the success of the programme. The focus of such a structured evaluation is primarily formative and designed to help develop and improve the programme. It will be important for the trainer to give their own feedback as part of this process, either in A valuable source of ideas for further exploration of these issues can be found in Assessing Language Teachers' Professional Skills and Knowledge, edited by Rosemary Wilson and Monica Poulter, Cambridge Studies in Language Testing 42 (2015) 1 Cambridge English Teacher © Cambridge University Press and Cambridge English Language Assessment 2015 1 CPD and the Cambridge English Teaching Framework: Guide for Trainers Assessing Development Programmes a meeting with teachers or after receiving the teachers’ reports on their collaborative evaluation. An outline evaluation meeting agenda appears at the end of this document. It highlights the key questions that we feel could be helpful when discussing and evaluating the programme. Keeping Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Records It will be beneficial for participants to keep a record of all of their development activities during the development programme. Teachers can use our CPD Record Card template to remind themselves of what they’ve done. If you they also used our Development Plan template, they will be able to copy the rows from one into the other as they complete them. Download the Word version of the CPD Record Card for teachers Download the blank version of our CPD Record Card for teachers At the end of the programme, the CPD Record Card could be included in a CPD portfolio which teachers should be encouraged to keep. You may also wish to have this submitted to you for your own records of teachers’ development. The CPD Record Card can be used generally even outside of a formal development programme. Ideally, your institution would accept submissions of these cards from teachers as proof of their development activities, offering appropriate recognition to teachers that do so – thus increasing motivation. The Next Step The best teachers never stop learning. At the end of a development programme, it’s time to re-evaluate the institution’s and the teachers’ goals and set new ones. It’s also an ideal time to see what you’ve learnt from conducting the programme and to consider how it could be improved in future. Cambridge English Teacher © Cambridge University Press and Cambridge English Language Assessment 2015 2 CPD and the Cambridge English Teaching Framework: Guide for Trainers Assessing Development Programmes Further Guidance Articles for you to read or to recommend to teachers participating in the programme: Are you interested in getting ahead? Advice from new teachers by Lucy Norris Finding balance, then staying interested: The importance of continuous professional development by Tessa Woodward Cambridge Teaching Qualifications: A Guide for New Teachers by Lucy Purkis Cambridge Teaching Qualifications: A Guide for Experienced Teachers by Lucy Purkis Attending a conference by Eric Baber Action Research for Busy Language Teachers by Andy Curtis Webinars for you to watch or to recommend to teachers participating in the programme: Where Do I Go From Here? Strategies for Professional Development by Jack Richards What is Action Research? by Fiona Barker Action Research for Language Teachers by Andy Curtis Cambridge English Teacher © Cambridge University Press and Cambridge English Language Assessment 2015 3 Evaluation Meeting Agenda Date Meeting # 1. Progress What progress do you feel has been made on the goals that were agreed at the start of the programme? Do you feel that the goals are being met? If not, why do you think this is? Is it necessary to modify in any way the agreed development goals? If so, how? 2. Activities Which resources (webinars, readings, etc.) and activities (observations, meetings, etc.) have been most and least useful so far? Is it necessary to find additional resources? o Who will be responsible for finding such resources, if this is necessary? Has anyone discovered (or does anyone know about) other useful resources which it would be useful for other teachers to access? 3. Logistics Have there been any logistical, administrative or time issues during the latest period of the programme which have caused problems? If so, how can these be resolved? 4. Summary How does everyone feel about the development programme over the last X weeks? With the benefit of hindsight, would anyone have done anything differently? How will the experience of the last X weeks affect the way that participants approach the next part of the programme? 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