Professional learning in education: Policy and practice in Wales since devolution
Kelly Smith from the Education team, alongside colleagues from the University of South Wales and Consultancy recently published a paper reviewing professional learning in Wales.
The article examines the evolution of professional learning in Wales over the 25 years since devolution, focusing on the policies and practices that have shaped this landscape. It highlights the complexity of Wales’ professional learning system, which has been influenced by extensive reforms and evolving needs. The analysis excludes initial teacher education (ITE) to focus on the professional learning of current educators.
Key Points:
Reforms and Interventions:
- Significant reforms, such as the Curriculum for Wales (2022) and ALN reform (2021), have had far-reaching implications for professional learning.
- Direct interventions include initiatives like the New Deal (2015), the National Approach to Professional Learning (NAPL) (2018), and various accredited leadership programs.
Conceptual Frameworks:
Professional learning is categorised into three emphases:
- Political: Externally directed to achieve system-wide goals.
- Professional: Internally driven by educators to enhance practice.
- Pragmatic: Ad-hoc and locally driven, often constrained by resources.
A continuum is noted between transmissive approaches (focused on compliance) and transformative approaches (promoting innovation and growth).
Tensions and Challenges:
- Balancing the political need for system coherence with the professional desire for agency.
- Avoiding an over-reliance on pragmatic approaches, which could undermine equity and effectiveness.
- Addressing external pressures, such as performance in PISA assessments, which can drive harder political interventions.
Transformative Potential:
- The COVID-19 pandemic underscored the importance of transformative professional learning to adapt to unprecedented challenges.
- Transformative approaches are seen as more effective for long-term growth but are harder to implement than transmissive methods.
Professional Learning in Wales Post-Devolution
The Offer of the New Deal
In 2015, the Welsh Government introduced the New Deal for Education Professionals to reset professional learning in response to earlier reforms. It emphasised practitioners' ownership of professional development, offering structured access to world-class learning opportunities through the Professional Learning Passport (PLP) and regional school improvement consortia. While aspirational, challenges in resourcing and focus have limited its full realisation. Subsequent frameworks, such as the National Approach to Professional Learning (NAPL, 2018) and the National Professional Learning Entitlement (NPLE, 2022), reinforced these ideals, seeking to enhance agency and individual professional journeys.
Challenges of the New Curriculum
The Curriculum for Wales (CfW) introduced localised curriculum planning alongside national coherence, mirroring tensions in professional learning between political and professional goals. While subsidiarity principles were welcomed, a lack of clarity left educators feeling unprepared, prompting calls for coordinated and sustainable professional learning programs.
Developing Learning Organisations
Adopting the Schools as Learning Organisations (SLO) model, endorsed by the OECD, emphasised local, professional-led organisational development. While potentially transformative, infrastructure and expertise gaps have hampered progress, and siloed professional learning persists.
Master’s-Level Learning and Leadership Development
Two Welsh Government-funded Master’s programs—the short-lived Master’s in Education Practice (MEP) and the ongoing MA Education (Wales)—aimed to upskill the teaching workforce, though the latter awaits full evaluation. Leadership professional learning has evolved with initiatives like the National Academy for Educational Leadership (NAEL), which endorses programs and supports leaders. However, the system’s complexity often hinders coherence and reach.
Teacher Enquiry and Research-Based Learning
The Welsh Government promotes teacher enquiry through initiatives like the National Professional Enquiry Project (NPEP) and Embedding Research and Enquiry in Schools (EREiS). These aim to foster a culture of critical reflection and research-informed practice but face challenges in scaling and long-term sustainability
Future Directions
The crowded professional learning landscape, described as "white noise" by practitioners, has led to efforts to streamline and enhance quality, such as the Welsh Government’s 2023 professional learning endorsement process and the rationalisation of resources on its Hwb platform. As the system evolves, the goal remains a coherent, transformative professional learning offer driven by practitioners. However, achieving consensus on priorities and reducing systemic clutter remain significant challenges.
These insights suggest that future research could explore the effectiveness of these tailored approaches and their impact on educational outcomes, as well as the need for clearer frameworks to facilitate professional learning
