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This paper is a companion to 'Initial teacher outcomes: standards for graduating teachers'. Its purpose is to describe and exemplify the design of practice-based experiences that will promote the outcomes identified in the first paper. The paper exemplifies five learning principles underpinning the design of initial teacher experiences that support the development of adaptive expertise. A model for an initial teacher education curriculum organised around core practices is presented and some considerations for teacher education expertise discussed. The paper concludes with a discussion of the implications for initial teacher education.

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New Zealand’s literacy strategy seeks to translate into reality the broad policy goals of equipping all New Zealanders with the knowledge, skills and values to be successful citizens of the twenty-first century. The central policy concern is reflected in international surveys showing that although the country’s student achievement is above the international average in literacy, the achievement profiles show very high variability, stratified along ethnic lines. Concerns about those not achieving as well as others form much of the focus of literacy policies in many western education jurisdictions and in New Zealand’s policy-in-use as expressed in the literacy strategy. Two differentially effective professional development initiatives are analysed in this paper using a sense-making theoretical framework. These initiatives formed a major component of the literacy strategy and were aimed at raising the literacy achievement of students in both deep and surface features of reading and writing. The relevance of the framework was highlighted by the analysis of the mediation processes that occurred between the policy formulation with its accompanying implementation messages and the existing norms and belief systems of practitioners as they reconstructed the messages in the two initiatives. The first initiative focused on developing instructional leadership and evidence-informed practices but the messages were re-interpreted in ways that missed these central tenets. The second had a greater focus on teacher knowledge and practice accompanied by evidence-informed decision-making, with outcomes for teachers and students forming the contractual foundation. The central messages were conveyed through multiple system layers to teachers, with concomitant improvement in achievement, particularly for the lowest 20% of students. Material artefacts and the activities of visiting facilitators both played key roles in spanning system boundaries. The paper concludes with a brief analysis of the relationship between policy-makers, practitioners and researchers that contributed to progress towards meeting the policy goals.

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This report is part of the OECD teachers' professional learning (TPL) study, which examines the policy environments that support teachers' professional growth by exploring common strengths and challenges in participating jurisdictions. TPL is defined in a broad sense including all formal and informal activities aimed at helping teachers to update, develop and broaden their skills, knowledge and expertise. In particular, the TPL study looks at how schools and school systems: shape teachers' motivation to engage in continuing professional learning (CPL); ensure that teachers have access to CPL; provide different CPL opportunities; select and develop CPL content; and ensure the quality of CPL. The TPL study aims to facilitate peer learning, enrich national debates through international exchange and support the development of effective teacher learning systems at both the system and school levels.

This targeted diagnostic study of Wales' system for teachers' CPL draws on findings from interviews with Welsh stakeholders and schools as well as document review. The study team identified strengths and weaknesses of the CPL system in Wales, as well as opportunities and threats going forward.

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This report sets out to investigate particular aspects of the Literacy Professional Development Project, which began working with its first cohort of schools in 2004, and to provide ongoing feedback. A fundamental assumption of this project and the accompanying research is that quality teaching has a significant influence on a range of student outcomes. The question is asked: What are the key processes that promote professional learning in ways that impact positively on student outcomes? This report focuses on the research component of the project from February 2003 to December 2005. In the introductory chapter, an overview of the literature that guided the research is provided together with the overarching research questions concluding with an overview of the methodology employed in the research. In each subsequent chapter, specific studies are reported with relevant literature discussed in greater depth with the methods associated with the study described in greater detail. Show less