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Leader: Kevin Maye

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Thomas Quirke
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Reading Article Reference

Policy On The Continuum Of Teacher Education

Article Summary (1 A4 page)
The policy on the Continuum of Teacher Education has been developed in line with the
teaching councils role as the regulatory body that sets teaching standards and establishes
best practice at all stages on the continuum of teacher education. The council believed that
there needed to be a fresh outlook on teacher education in Ireland to ensure that tomorrows
teachers are competent to meet the challenges they face and are life-long learners,
continually adapting over the course of their careers to enable them to support their
students learning.

The document is broken up into several different sections, the first section I will explain is
the continuum of teacher education. The continuum of teacher education describes the
formal and informal educational and developmental activities in which teachers engage, as
life-long learners, during their teaching career. It encompasses initial teacher education,
induction, early and continuing professional development and, indeed, late career support,
with each stage merging seamlessly into the next and interconnecting in a dynamic way
with each of the others (The Teaching Council, 2011). This section is broken up into three
headings, Innovation, Integration and Improvement. The Council sees the concept of
innovation as encompassing those processes where by fresh thinking is applied to teacher
education with the aim of renewing and improving it. The theme of integration is threaded
throughout the document and is an important aspect of all teachers continuum education.
The Council recognises that there is much excellent work being done by providers at the
initial teacher education stage. However, it has identified many opportunities for
improvement in key areas. This development is essential to prepare teachers to continually
self-evaluate, collaborate and adapt throughout their careers to reflect the changing realities
of the classrooms in which they will teach.
The second aspect of the document I will explain is the Guiding Principles highlighted by
the council. The Teaching Council’s policy is that teacher education should be based on the
three pillars of innovation, integration and improvement and underpinned by a number of
key principles. The third the aspect of the document is initial teacher education. Initial
Teacher Education (ITE) refers to the foundation stage of learning to be a teacher when
student teachers are engaged in a recognised teacher education programme provided by a
Higher Education Institution. This highlights the policy on initial teacher education. The
Teaching Council’s policy on initial teacher education is generic in nature, insofar as
possible, and applies to concurrent and consecutive programmes for primary and post-
primary teaching, including the further education sector. The initial teacher education stage
of the continuum of teacher education is the foundation of the teacher’s career and must be
built upon through induction, early and continuing professional development using a spiral
approach. Initial teacher education should develop knowledge-of practice, knowledge-for
practice and also student teachers’ capacity and skill for reflecting critically on their own
practice and that of others, referred to in the literature as knowledge-in practice (The
Teaching Council, 2011). This section of the document also highlights the important
information in relation to initial teacher education programs, school placements,
assessment and the duration of initial.
The next section of the document is the Induction section. The purpose of an induction
programme is to offer systematic professional and personal support to the newly qualified
teacher. The support is primarily school-based and is given at school level by an
experienced teacher, usually called a mentor, in collaboration with colleagues and initial
teacher education providers. The council has a policy on induction which highlights the
expectations student teachers should receive when in the induction process. The important
part induction plays in enriching schools themselves is also highlighted. The last section of
the document is on Continuing professional development, this refers to life-long teacher
learning and comprises the full range of educational experiences designed to enrich
teachers’ professional knowledge, understanding and capabilities throughout their careers.
The council here highlight the rights and responsibilities of CPD courses, the key
information from this was that all registered teachers has a right to CPD training and
allocated time to complete the training.
To conclude the teaching council has set out its vision for teacher education under the
banner of a new “three I’s”: innovation, integration and improvement. Guiding principles
have been identified which will facilitate cohesion and coherence in teacher education
across the teaching career. Within each stage of the continuum, these generic principles
have been elaborated into more detailed policy positions, following a process of research,
consultation and deliberation.

Critical Reflection on the Article

The first aspect of this document I will reflect on is the continuum of teacher education.
When reflecting on this, I feel there was some very beneficial information in it for teachers.
I felt it clearly identified the three stage which underpin the continuum. Upon reflection I
believe innovation is an essential part of every teachers career. I feel the concept of
innovation will ensure teachers bring a fresh perspective to their teaching. When
researching the importance of innovation in teaching I found a statement made by
Thompson (2022) “embracing innovation in education promotes critical thinking, a sense
of adventure and openness to adapt that will serve our students in the classroom”. I believe
this is a very interesting statement and I agree strongly with it. I hope to implement
innovation in my future teaching career to benefit my students learning. When reflecting on
integration, I noticed integration is threaded through the entire document. I feel integration
is important to ensure cohesion in teacher education across all phases of a teaching career.
As a student teacher I feel it is extremely beneficial to less experienced teachers when they
receive help and advice from experienced teachers, this is an integral part of a young
teacher becoming a confident teacher. When reflecting on improvement which is the last
aspect of the document, I believe this is a crucial aspect of every successful teacher. I
strongly believe teacher need to be reflective and life-long learners to ensure they
constantly develop and improve their teaching to benefit the learners in their class. Queens
University of Charlotte (2022) quotes “education is a never ending process, It doesn’t stop
after earning a degree and starting a career. Through continuing education career-minded
individuals can constantly improve their skills to become more proficient at their jobs”.
When I qualify as a teacher this is something I will be conscious of and I will be a life-long
learner, constantly developing my skills to benefit my students learning.

When reflecting on Continuing Professional Development aspect of the document, I feel

the CPD rights and responsibilities is a crucial aspect of encouraging teachers to complete
CPD training. The fact CPD training is a right for all registered teachers and each teacher is
allocated time for individual or group CPD to be built into a teachers scheduled non-
teaching time. I feel this is important as it encourages to complete the training and if more
teachers are involved in CPD training it will benefit students learning also. According to
(British Educational Suppliers Association, 2017) CPD training helps teachers stay up to
date with developments in their field, increase their confidence in the classroom and
reinforce existing skills they already had. I believe CPD training ensures teachers remain
confident an highly skilled in their subject area. When reflecting on the accreditation
methods used to reward people completing CPD training I felt the teaching council could
do more to reward CPD. I feel a reward system such a financial reward would be beneficial
to promote CPD training and increase motivation for teachers to complete CPD training. I
also feel the design of CPD training would be more beneficial if it encouraged more
collaborative learning between schools, so professional teachers can share experiences
they’ve had and share ideas they believe work in the classroom.

To conclude I feel this document really benefits teachers as it highlights the importance and
the expectation that professional teachers are to be life-long learners. I felt this document
clearly identifies the steps which teachers, no matter what stage in their teaching career
they are in, how to improve to become a more successful teacher.

List of References
References
British Educational Suppliers Association. (2017, July 3). Retrieved from The Importance
of Continued Professional Development for Teachers:
https://www.besa.org.uk/insights/importance-continued-professional-development-
teachers/
Queens University Of Charlotte. (2022, 11 7). Retrieved from
https://online.queens.edu/resources/article/professional-development-for-educators/
The Teaching Council. (2011). Retrieved from Policy on The Continuum Of Teacher
Education:
https://www.teachingcouncil.ie/en/publications/teacher-education/policy-on-the-
continuum-of-teacher-education.pdf
Thompson, S. (2022, 1 9). Kaltura. Retrieved from https://corp.kaltura.com/blog/what-is-
innovation-in-education/#:~:text=Embracing%20innovation%20in%20education
%20promotes,skills%20to%20continue%20to%20adapt.