The Institute for Learning (IfL), the independent professional body for teachers and trainers throughout the further education and skills sector, and the Learning and Skills Improvement Service (LSIS), the sector body that supports the development of excellent and sustainable FE provision, have combined to publish a guide to effective continuing professional development (CPD) for teachers, trainers and leaders.

Jean Kelly, director of professional development at IfL, said: "This report about brilliant teaching in FE and skills is based on research that IfL undertook in early 2010 as part of a project supported by the LSIS Flexibility and Innovation Fund. Reflecting the views of more than 5,000 IfL members, and of other experts and researchers, it distils their collective wisdom about teaching and learning and effective CPD in a guide that is intended to be practical and accessible.

Features of effective CPD include the use of external expertise to complement in-house staff development and the inclusion of peer support – colleagues supporting one another.

"The findings of this research project confirm the importance of IfL's model of dual professionalism, which recognises the need for teachers and trainers in FE and skills to maintain and improve their subject or vocational expertise at the same time as developing their pedagogical practice and staying attuned to changing policy and local contexts.

"The many common themes that emerged from this research can be translated into useful and practical CPD advice for teachers and trainers, and for organisations. IfL intends to build on this guide by developing and publishing a series of guides to good CPD based on the stages of a teacher’s or trainer’s career journey and their subject specialism; offering practical CPD support services, locally and nationally, to organisations and individual teachers and trainers; and continuing to work with other partner organisations to gather the latest research and disseminate the findings across the FE and skills sector."

David Collins, chief executive of LSIS, added: "Teachers and trainers are crucial to the further education and skills sector. This guide to effective CPD will help teachers and trainers review and develop their own approaches, and will encourage leaders to support their staff."

 Errol Anderson