Seven Principles
for
Professional Growth
#1: Put Learners at the Centre
Educators must be relentlessly curious about what’s going on
for students in the system. Student learning is the driving
force, but students aren’t the only learners. In an innovative
learning environment, everyone is a learner, including
teachers, support staff, formal leaders, parents and others.
for students in the system. Student learning is the driving
force, but students aren’t the only learners. In an innovative
learning environment, everyone is a learner, including
teachers, support staff, formal leaders, parents and others.
- Educators are the central players in the professional growth environment, and therefore activities centre on their cognition and growth.
- Professional growth activities allow educators to construct their learning through engagement and active exploration.
- This calls for a mix of pedagogies, which include guided and action approaches, as well as co-operative, inquiry-based, and service learning.
- The environment aims to develop self-regulated learners who:
- develop meta-cognitive skills
- monitor, evaluate and optimise the acquisition and use of knowledge
- regulate their emotions and motivations during the learning process
- manage study time well
- set higher specific and personal goals, and monitor them.