Teacher Professional Learning

4. Ambition Three: Facilitate quality, meaningful ongoing learning that enables the profession to grow and face future challenges

Abstract

This chapter presents the third of the four ambitions that orientate this report. It focusses on the opportunities for ongoing professional learning for teachers, encompassing the type of provision of relevant learning opportunities, features of their delivery to maximise impact, and the incentives for teachers to engage with these opportunities. In discussing these, the chapter presents key design considerations from research literature, insights on implementation, and examples from systems around the world.

The work of teachers is remarkably complex. Teaching is highly relational, with teachers making decisions contingent on both real-time, ‘live’ information, as well as the historic experiences of the class and wider long-term learning goals. Moreover, teachers are not only processing and responding to the signals and needs of one student, but multiple students.

Accordingly, professional learning opportunities for teachers are not only necessary but essential. There is a need for teachers to continue to craft their existing practices. At the same time, they also need to respond to changes in research as well as changes in what knowledge, skills, values and attitudes societies demand education systems to develop.

Key highlights

This ambition focusses on the goals of ensuring learning opportunities respond to needs at the individual, school and system levels; delivering impactful learning experiences for teachers; and fostering a culture of effective self-regulated engagement. Some of the considerations it draws particular attention to include how:

• In determining the content focusses of professional learning opportunities, these need to balance the needs of individual teachers with that of the school and wider system.

• While research remains ongoing, a shift has occurred in the delivery of professional learning in recent years to more structured communities of learning that are grounded in particular contextual issues.

• Coaching and mentoring have shown particular promise to positively impact teachers.

• There has been increased interest and attention on the potential of observation of practice and accompanying feedback discussions to support professional learning.

• In general, delivery of quality professional learning is challenging and a distinct skill and knowledge-base, which demands both further research and concerted capacity-building.

• Mechanisms for quality control are important in professional learning provision. A characteristic of strong systems is the use of a combination of approaches to this end.

• Time constraints and limited financial support may present barriers when it comes to accessing professional learning, and accordingly need addressing.

Lever 7: Provision of relevant learning opportunities

Formal professional learning opportunities are important structured occasions for teachers to engage in understanding and reflecting on new approaches and practices (Cordingley et al., 2015[1]). They serve as a key means of supporting teachers to improve in their work and develop as professionals. In particular, their formal nature can be a means of responding to emerging trends in a systematic way (e.g. using digital tools or teaching social-emotional learning) or addressing specific gaps in terms of teachers’ competencies (e.g. fostering students’ metacognitive thinking).

Establish who are the providers

One design consideration of quality provision is the infrastructure of formal learning opportunities in terms of who provides such opportunities and how they occur.

• Clearly establishing who is providing the professional learning is important in a whole-system approach.

• Similarly, it is also important that the formal channels for procuring and participating in professional learning are clear.

Broadly speaking, this may range from a highly centralised approach to a more decentralised one.

• It may be that systems directly develop and provide formal learning opportunities through an internal formal body.

• Alternatively, it may be slightly less centralised with the provision outsourced to a set of selected providers, with the latter applying to fulfil certain provision needs.

• There may, in contrast, be a highly decentralised model that sees essentially a ‘market’ of professional learning opportunities, where providers are free to propose and provide opportunities. Schools or teachers may directly choose the appropriate provider that meets their needs.

Related to this is the question of funding. In a more decentralised model, schools or teachers may have funding to directly pay for particular opportunities. In more centralised funding, system-level actors may oversee the funding of opportunities.

Align provision with needs and competency frameworks

A second key consideration is that of the content of what is being provided. Professional learning opportunities are, in essence, about learning on something. Defining this ‘something’ needs to balance multiple vantage points:

• At one level there are the needs of the individual teacher. Teachers’ competencies can be highly variable, and they have different areas of practice for potential improvement. Teachers may also have different competencies that they want to develop as part of their intrinsic motivations.

• There are also the needs of the school. This takes into account the collective strengths and weaknesses of the teachers in the school. By considering data such as student performance on external assessment, as well as other sources of information such as student surveys, school leaders may identify particular areas of need for the school to prioritise (e.g. student literacy, student well-being).

• A third level is the needs of a broader system. This may also respond to particular patterns in assessment data, while also attending to emerging needs as mentioned in terms of more long-term objectives for an education system.

In determining the content focusses of professional learning opportunities, these three factors are in dialogue with each other. Different emphases can be placed on the three levels.

• There may be a reliance on teacher-driven alignment. This could take the form of teachers choosing directly what to engage with; essentially, a broad ‘market’ of provision is provided and, based on teacher engagement, this is adjusted in line with demand. Alternatively means of surveying teachers for their particular needs with which provision is adapted.

• The needs of school and system leaders may be sought out to inform the provision too. Provision is also important for the strategic growth of teachers collectively. There may be needs in a school that school leaders feel are a pressing priority. Alternatively, system leaders might have to respond to new, emerging needs and they may therefore establish a more universal provision.

This alignment is also closely connected to the nature of incentives (see Lever 9 below).

Box 4.1. International examples of managing the provision of quality learning opportunities

Singapore

Throughout their career, teachers have access to a wide range of professional learning opportunities. This includes through seminars, courses and qualifications. These are centrally coordinated by the National Institute of Education or the Academy of Singapore Teachers.

Teachers may engage in as much as 100 hours of professional learning a year. These learning opportunities are largely free of charge or, where required, paid for by a teacher’s school. For instance, a bespoke ‘Management and Leadership Studies Programme’ offers 17 weeks of funded training (alongside participants’ salary) for department, grade or subject group heads. This includes a residential aspect with international visits too.

Learning opportunities often play a role in teachers’ targets for advancing to the next level of their career track or improving their practice to make them eligible for a performance-related bonus.

Japan

In 2019 Japan launched a new era (“Reiwa”) of education focussed on redefining schooling as providing individually optimised and collaborative learning that draws out the potential of all children. To this end, Japan seeks to further improve the quality of school-based collaboration and professional learning – despite it already being a system with well-engrained traditions of collaboration through peer lesson observation and feedback, notably through the “lesson study” format (see Annex B).

This is founded on a set of national indicators for improving teacher quality across five areas (e.g. classroom instruction, supporting children who require special consideration and support) and supported by a new digital ‘Platform for Teachers and Staff Development’. The latter aims to support efficiency and effectiveness:

• Teachers are required to record all professional learning activities in the platform.

• There are specific tests to check knowledge and skill acquisition in professional learning activities, as well as reflective tools to support contextual translation.

• Teachers and school leaders can select from a catalogue of development opportunities those that best fit their own and their school’s needs.

• A library of video on-demand teacher development programmes developed by universities, boards of education and public-interest corporations, among others.

• Tools for school-based collaboration (e.g. sharing content) and lesson study.

Notably, the platform will also enable teachers to evaluate the quality of their professional learning and its impact on their practice. Through its centralised nature, this can give policymakers a view of needs across the system as well as the effectiveness of the current provision and delivery.

Notes: Singapore shared insights in the organised peer-learning event of 13-14 May 2025 in Kyiv, Ukraine for the Ukrainian Ministry of Education and Science that have informed this box.

Source: (OECD, 2019[2]), Working and Learning Together: Rethinking Human Resource Policies for Schools, https://doi.org/10.1787/b7aaf050-en; (OECD, 2024[3]), Education Policy Outlook 2024: Reshaping Teaching into a Thriving Profession from ABCs to AI, https://doi.org/10.1787/dd5140e4-en; (Boeskens, Nusche and Yurita, 2020[4]), Policies to support teachers’ continuing professional learning: A conceptual framework and mapping of OECD data, https://doi.org/10.1787/247b7c4d-en

Lever 8: Delivery of quality learning opportunities

There is no shortage of research on the types of delivery that may be most effective for professional learning opportunities. Despite this, concerns remain around the exact features that constitute high-quality professional learning, with it proving deceptively difficult to identify features that consistently produce improved instruction and student outcomes (Kennedy, 2019[5]; Kennedy, 2016[6]; Sims and Fletcher-Wood, 2020[7]). Indeed, the latest data from the OECD’s Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS) suggests that impactful professional learning is a challenge; while nearly all teachers participate in continuous professional learning, just 55% of teachers report that the professional learning activities they participated in during the 12 months preceding the survey had a positive impact on their teaching, on average across OECD education systems (OECD, 2025[8]).

Rather than there being a simple definitive set of ‘ingredients’ for effective professional learning, it seems more appropriate to view these as design considerations or mechanisms that interact with the objectives and context of professional learning (Boeskens, Nusche and Yurita, 2020[4]). These design considerations may help produce more effective professional learning when appropriately attended to:

• Keeping learning tied to teachers’ localised needs and particular contexts.

• At the same time, making use of quality external input to introduce fresh perspectives and challenge existing orthodoxies.

• Designing activities that facilitate their active engagement as learners and iterative knowledge-builders.

• Ensuring that the duration and intensity is appropriate for the type of the learning goal.

In particular, these considerations point to a need to move away from thinking about formal professional learning opportunities in terms of passive, standardised one-off seminar-style courses, and to consider more active and context-based learning that can better engage with the realities and complexities of schools.

Support structured communities of learning

One manifestation of the shift away from more seminar-style ‘training’ courses has been increased focus on how formal learning opportunities can be formulated more as structured collaborative communities that draw upon the aforementioned design principles. More concretely, typical manifestations include:

• Going beyond simply the imparting of theory and treating teachers as active participants with expertise to share. Space for discussion and actually ‘doing’ or developing specific outputs. Even if a whole-school approach is adopted on a mandatory topic, teachers work in smaller collaborative groups.

• Clear opportunities to relate learning to the particular contextual needs, be it a school need or individual problem of practice.

• Making use of external expertise (e.g. learning specialists, social workers) and concrete inputs such as vignettes, case studies or videos (see below for more) that can tie learning to the classroom.

• Revisiting learning in an iterative way over a set period of time.

Such communities may be particularly relevant when considering approaches to build teacher capacity around specific focusses at scale, say across a whole school or region. These may take both an in-person format but also, with appropriate tools, occur in the digital space too (Minea-Pic, 2020[9]). There may also be overlap with how a wider culture of inquiry is fostered within a school, or across schools more widely (see Chapter 5).

Utilise coaching and mentoring

Considering the range and complexity of skills that teachers need, practical and regular coaching or mentoring has particular promise. It has the capacity to promote iterative thinking and refinement through its blend of a focus on reflecting on specific issues, sustained duration, and external input.

• Research has found that assigning individualised, structured instructional coaching to teachers, either with designated positions (Blazar and Kraft, 2015[10]; Kraft and Blazar, 2016[11]) or matching effective teachers with less effective ones (Papay et al., 2016[12]) has shown promise in improving instruction and students’ learning.

• That said, large-scale coaching programmes present particular challenges. A meta-analysis of 62 studies found that the benefits of coaching were substantially reduced in larger coaching programmes serving over 100 teachers at time (Kraft, Blazar and Hogan, 2018[13]).

• One particular challenge appears the identification of the quality external input needed in the form of high-quality coaches. This suggests that the design of structures around schools to provide external input need to carefully attend to their scale and size to ensure their effectiveness.

Enable peer observation and feedback

Much of teachers’ work is often in isolation and rarely seen. This is despite the fact that the quality of teaching is the most impactful factor that can be influenced at the school level for shaping student learning outcomes (OECD, 2020[14]). Yet classrooms are primarily closed spaces that are rarely accessible. For instance, TALIS 2024 (2025[8]) found that 9% of lower-secondary teachers observe other teachers’ classes and provide feedback at least once a month, on average.

• There has been increased interest and attention on the potential of observation of practice and accompanying feedback discussions to support professional learning (Stoll et al., 2006[15]; Kersting et al., 2012[16]; Fischer and Neumann, 2012[17]).

• On the one hand, observation of practice and feedback can provide valuable information for the teacher being observed on the teaching process with which to refine it.

• At the same time, observation is also a way of potentially building new knowledge; it may be that in observing a colleague that a teacher ‘learns’ something new, or that the observation serves as a common, tangible resource for further discussion (Gamoran Sherin and van Es, 2008[18]).

Of note is the particular potential of video observation.

• Video has the potential to make observation more accessible through its digital nature, as well as providing potentially relevant external input through the showcasing of high-quality videos.

• A range of studies on so-called ‘video clubs’ have found teachers can improve their ability to discern and interpret factors that are conducive to student learning in the classroom (Gaudin and Chaliès, 2015[19]).

• Observation may be particularly relevant in contexts of change where there are new expectations of teachers and their practice. For instance, in Shanghai (China), observation is an important arm of supporting the teaching of new topics by teachers (see Box 4.2).

Implement quality assurance

Because teacher professional learning opportunities are shaped by the context and learning goals at hand, there is a need for quality assurance. The design principles outlined above are helpful guidelines, but they do not guarantee effectiveness alone. Indeed, the relevant quality external input, or the duration and intensity of professional learning, are shaped by the problem of practice being considered.

Mechanisms for quality assurance are thus important for not only promoting high standards, but also for supporting formative learning on delivery methods.

• Understanding the effectiveness of certain approaches may help these to be further refined, or scaled in other settings.

• Understanding the effectiveness of certain opportunities is especially significant for individual teachers or schools that have agency over choosing particular providers if they are to make informed and empowered choices.

Nevertheless, in general monitoring the quality of professional learning at a system-level and its respective effectiveness is challenging. Defining the mechanisms through which evaluation takes place requires careful consideration of the information they yield as well as their feasibility.

• An instinctive choice is that of student outcomes in terms of standardised tests (Darling-Hammond, Hyler and Gardner, 2017[20]), though these may be too narrow to capture the full range of desirable effects – including those on teachers (e.g. self-efficacy) – or offer only a delayed perspective on effectiveness.

• Teacher evaluation of professional learning opportunities may be one low-cost and straightforward solution to monitoring effectiveness. This could also be coupled with self-reported data on impact in teachers’ practice. Notably, evaluation may be susceptible to certain biases, such as teachers’ motivation for such learning opportunities.

• Alternatively, self- or peer-audits conducted by providers themselves may be a reasonably efficient means of gauging an indication of the quality of professional learning. Again, this may be shaped by the incentives of providers in the system (e.g. market forces, teacher choice).

• External evaluations may be a more cost- and resource-intensive approach. Approaches that examine the causal effect of specific provisions can be insightful but are also particularly expensive and demanding. Moreover, more long-term effects on teachers’ practice and student outcomes may be missed.

• Another form of external evaluation may come in the form of auditing by independent actors, for instance appointed overseeing authorities or inspectorates. These may, for instance, periodically audit a certain sample of professional learning activities (see Ireland below).

Accordingly, a characteristic of strong systems is the use of a combination of approaches for gauging the quality of professional learning.

• This can avoid the one-dimensional perspective that only one approach may yield, as well as the risk of an undue focus on one single aspect creating a distorted picture of the quality.

• More varied information can yield a more robust understanding of quality, and greater trust in it too, which may actually create a more efficient, quality delivery of professional learning.

• For instance, in Ireland, the central professional support provider (“Oide”) makes regular use of teacher evaluation as well as reviewing themselves the quality of samples of in-person and online professional learning courses too. A third perspective comes from the central inspectorate in Ireland, who evaluates the design and facilitation of a sample of online and in-person professional learning courses each year (see Box 4.2).

Finally, strong channels of communication and feedback loops between relevant stakeholders seem particularly important for monitoring the quality of learning opportunities. It is important that the quality assurance feeds back into the question of provision; there may need to be a re-evaluation of certain providers if delivery of quality learning is to be assured.

Box 4.2. International examples of delivering quality learning opportunities

Finland

Online learning is widely available to Finnish teachers for them to engage with. The alignment with teachers’ needs is led by teachers, who have agency in their engagement with this.

The high potential of tutoring is also drawn upon. Between 2016 and 2020, earmarked government funding supported the development of regional networks of ‘Tutor Teachers’. The initiative aimed to address contemporary and future challenges in education by supporting teachers through peer mentoring and training. For instance, benefits were particularly noted in relation to teachers’ use of digital tools in their practice – one of the goals of the initiative – while tutors themselves also benefited from the opportunity and helped mobilise good practice more widely (Pennanen et al., 2021[21])

The availability of funding and the allocation of time in teachers’ schedules for their engagement was particularly key. Indeed, by 2020, many providers had taken steps to ensure that the tutor teachers could continue following the end of allocated funding (Pennanen et al., 2021[21]).

In Finland, there are also tentative means of tracking the contributions of professional learning to teaching and student learning. The data system “Koski” has been exploring real-time tracking of student progress, and how this could be analysed alongside that of the professional learning engaged in by teachers. This could allow for an evaluation of the contributions of learning opportunities (Mikkonen, n.d.[22]). Such information may be relevant for quality insurance.

Ireland

In 2023, Oide (an Irish word meaning “teacher” or “tutor”) was introduced to consolidate professional support services for teachers and school leaders. Its overarching purpose is to support the professional learning of teachers and school leaders. This is primarily achieved through 21 full-time and 9 part-time ‘Education Support Centres’. Each Centre is managed by an annually elected voluntary Management Committee and serves the local education community. Some 60 million EUR is provided in annual funding by the Irish Department of Education, including covering:

• the cost of over 360 seconded teachers providing continuing professional learning (CPL),

• and funding for substitute teacher cover in schools that can enable participation in professional learning.

A range of professional learning opportunities are available. Notably, there is a concerted effort from Oide to promote the formation of communities of practice. There are also efforts around building capacity in data and research-inform school planning.

Significantly, there are several mechanisms in place to support monitoring of the quality of professional learning. This helps to build a rounded picture of the quality of provision and its relevance to schools:

• Oide make regular use of teacher evaluation. All summer courses include a teacher evaluation. Oide also regularly reviews the quality of in-person training courses at the primary and post-primary levels, as well as a sample of online courses.

• The Irish Department of Education Inspectorate evaluates the design and facilitation of a sample of online and in-person professional learning courses each year. The Inspectorate also helps during the scoping, design and review of new professional learning programmes, providing valuable insights on particular needs that have been observed in the field.

• The Educational Research Centre published in 2023 a framework intended to support the evaluation of different forms of formal professional learning, either by providers or external evaluators.

• The Teaching Council plays an important role in shaping professional learning opportunities. In addition to its role in licensing teachers and accrediting initial teacher education (ITE) programmes, the Council is responsible for advising the Minister for Education on teachers’ CPL, promoting engagement in CPL, conducting research and raising awareness of the benefits of teachers’ professional learning.

Shanghai (China)

Professional learning is a central feature of the education system in Shanghai (China). Participation in comprehensive and regular professional learning activities is expected of teachers.

In particular, there is a long history of observation within and among schools. This includes senior teachers being observed by more junior colleagues, and vice-versa to support mentoring conversations. In particular, demonstration lessons are not uncommon, where a teacher delivers an example lesson for a large number of colleagues to observe and comment upon. In general, a culture of ‘open classroom doors’ pervades the system.

Close collaboration between practitioners is also intentionally structured into teachers’ time. ‘Teaching-study groups’ are a subject-based structure for collaboration between teachers. Timetabled time in teachers’ daily schedules allow the group to meet, discuss and refine specific lessons. Indeed, the average teacher in Shanghai (China) teaches for only 10-12 hours per week (Schleicher, 2016[23]), with ample time for learning and structured collaboration. Teaching-study groups produce a general lesson scheme that teachers then follow with their classes, developing more detailed lesson plans based on this scheme.

Incidentally, teachers’ career progression depends on being able to demonstrate their ability to work collaboratively, reiterating the importance of this skill in the system.

Notes: Finland and Ireland shared insights in the organised peer-learning event of 13-14 May 2025 in Kyiv, Ukraine for the Ukrainian Ministry of Education and Science that have informed this box.

Source: (OECD, 2024[3]), Education Policy Outlook 2024: Reshaping Teaching into a Thriving Profession from ABCs to AI, https://doi.org/10.1787/dd5140e4-en; (Schleicher, 2011[24]), Building a High-Quality Teaching Profession: Lessons from around the World, https://doi.org/10.1787/9789264113046-en; (Schleicher, 2016[23]), Teaching Excellence through Professional Learning and Policy Reform: Lessons from around the World, https://doi.org/10.1787/9789264252059-en; (OECD, 2024[25]), OECD Review of Resourcing Schools to Address Educational Disadvantage in Ireland, https://doi.org/10.1787/3433784c-en; (OECD, 2012[26]), Lessons from PISA for Japan, https://doi.org/10.1787/9789264118539-en

Lever 9: Incentives to engage in professional learning

What incentivises teachers to engage in professional learning is dynamically shaped by a multiplicity of forces in a system. The career structure, both horizontally and vertically, is particularly foundational, as well as the accompanying evaluation mechanisms and how they operationalise teachers’ professional learning opportunities. The quality of learning opportunities is similarly essential; when teachers see professional learning as benefiting them and supporting their work, the incentives to participate increase too.

Incentives may thus arise and diminish in relation to other ambitions and levers. There are though some particular design considerations around incentives that stand out for system leaders.

Balance mandatory and voluntary choices

A key tension is the balance between mandatory and voluntary choices. Systems may be guided by a primary focus on one of these, or a blend of both.

Voluntary choices may be particularly incentivising for teachers.

• This gives them agency and ownership, which is important for both their sense of professional identity and well-being. Indeed, the OECD’s Teaching Compass notes the importance of teachers feeling a degree of ownership as a professional (OECD, 2025[27]).

• Teachers may be able to pursue learning opportunities based on their passions and interests and thus more actively engage with these opportunities.

• Similarly, many teachers join the profession out of a deep sense of purpose, and this intrinsic motivation means can drive their efforts to constantly improve.

At the same time, teachers may not be perfect judges of their professional learning needs.

• Teachers – like anyone – can be susceptible to unconscious biases and this may leave ‘blind spots’ in relation to their needs.

• Learning can also be challenging and, at times, uncomfortable, and some teachers may prefer to focus on consolidating their existing strengths rather than addressing their struggles, particularly if they have limited time or bandwidth to engage in professional learning.

In this respect, the more mandatory assignment of participation may be relevant, be it by school or system leaders. Their oversight across bodies of teachers may, as mentioned, help support collective efficacy, with more mandatory approaches being potentially important for strategic development of the teaching profession.

The voluntary and mandatory choices may also be nested within each other.

• There may be mandatory areas of growth that are prioritised (e.g. use of digital tools), based on school or system needs.

• Yet, within this, teachers can voluntarily choose a particular provider or more granular content focus.

• Processes of ongoing formative evaluation between school leaders and teachers may also facilitate harmonising both school and teacher professional development plans, with a blend of school objectives and teacher objectives being pursued.

Facilitate the means of participation

Time constraints and limited financial support may present barriers when it comes to accessing professional learning. According to TALIS 2024, lack of time due to other commitments or responsibilities (63%) is the factor that teachers are most likely to report as a barrier to their participation in professional learning, followed by conflicts with the work schedule (60%) and the cost of learning activities (46%) (OECD, 2025[8]).

The distribution of teaching time is particularly significant here.

• In a review of 24 school systems with available data, only five saw teachers spend more than 50% of their total statutory working time teaching (OECD, 2019[2]). Alongside the expected responsibilities of teachers, this may be time that can be used to facilitate professional learning.

• To support professional learning, it may be that school closures are enacted (e.g. French Community of Belgium). Alternative models may see teachers have a certain entitlement of annual hours to use for professional learning at their own discretion. This may depend on the aforementioned degree of teacher choice.

• There are signs that there are associated challenges with some approaches, such as covering absent teachers (Nusche et al., 2015[28]).

Recognise and track participation

A focus on professional learning in evaluation mechanisms may, as mentioned, create perverse incentives, meaning that the actual growth such learning opportunities are designed to facilitate is not appropriately monitored or incentivised. In general, mechanisms to monitor teachers’ engagement in professional learning are not widespread (OECD, 2019[2]).

That said, systems may find value in recognising and tracking professional learning participation.

• Portfolios that track participation can support teachers’ self-regulation of their learning. It may provide a means of revisiting previous learning, or identifying potential gaps not yet addressed. Moreover, it should not be overlooked that the ability to survey one’s growth over time may be important for some teachers’ sense of self-efficacy and motivation.

• It can be helpful for supporting actors, such as school leaders or assigned mentors, to be able to understand what teachers have and have not engaged with. In fluid systems where teachers move jobs between schools, understanding the history of professional learning may facilitate more efficiency for school leaders in continuing to offer more sustained support.

• Furthermore, where there is a high amount of teacher choice in choosing participation, means of tracking participation across the profession over time may enable policymakers to identify levels of demand and adjust provision accordingly.

Certain systems, such as Wales (United Kingdom) have made use of centralised digital ‘passport’ systems that track participation across a teacher’s career. For instance, Welsh teachers, school leaders and teaching assistants have access to a digital ‘Professional Learning Passport’. This allows them to self-assess their needs, record their participation in different learning opportunities, and self-evaluate effectiveness (OECD, 2024[3]).

The use of digital tools has been particularly significant when it comes to recognising and tracking learning. Digitalisation has enabled the emergence of new forms of skill certification, such as the aforementioned micro-credentials (see Chapter 3, Lever 5).

Box 4.3. International examples of incentives to engage in professional learning

United States

Digital Promise, an independent organisation authorised by the United States Congress as the National Centre for Research in Advanced Information and Digital Technologies, has developed an eco-system of more than 400 micro-credentials for educator skills. These micro-credentials are on skills that are supported by research evidence, for instance teachers’ ability to engage students in deeper learning such as concept mapping or constructively critiquing arguments from their peers.

The delivery of micro-credentials is outsourced with micro-credentials provided by more than 50 organisations (e.g. higher education institutions, non-profit organisations, school districts). Digital Promise also collaborates with schools and districts on the design of bespoke broader learning structures based on micro-credentials (Minea-Pic, 2020[9]).

In terms of wider policies in the United States, 29 states have micro-credential policies through legislation of their Department of Education (Digital Promise, n.d.). In 2017, eight states enabled teachers to rely on micro-credentials for fulfilling their continuing education requirements (DeMonte, 2017[29]). There has been experimentation in some states too regarding licensure (e.g. Tennessee, Louisiana) and teachers completing new training in areas experiencing teacher shortages (e.g. Virginia with regard to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics).

Spain

The National Institute of Educational Technologies and Teacher Training (INTEF), part of the Ministry of Education and Vocational Training, provides a range of online training.

This includes online tutored courses which encompass around 60-70 hours of training, last two months and rely on expert tutors and co-ordinators who guide participants in the course. The catalogue of courses is updated yearly, and teachers who complete a course receive a certification for the training hours undertaken (INTEF, n.d.[30]).

A range of massive open online course (MOOCs) and Nano-MOOCs (NOOCs) are also available. Training hours are not certified, but digital micro-credentials are issued to recognise learning upon completion and stored in an “INTEF Badges” backpack. Moreover, more sustained learning can be recognised too with the issuing of open digital meta-credentials when teachers collect several micro-credentials (INTEF, n.d.[30]).

Source: (Minea-Pic, 2020[9]), Innovating teachers’ professional learning through digital technologies, https://doi.org/10.1787/3329fae9-en; (Campbell, Lieberman and Yaskina, 2013[31]), Teacher Learning & Leadership Programme, https://www.otffeo.on.ca/en/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2013/09/tllp_full_report-.pdf (accessed 20 February 2025)

Key implementation considerations

In surveying international examples and best practice, the following implementation considerations appear particularly relevant when enacting processes of change:

• Coherence with ITE: The competencies that teachers enter the classroom with are shaped by how they are prepared for the classroom. This accordingly shapes the agenda for the professional learning opportunities too. Sizeable proportions of teachers report feeling unprepared for the classroom’s realities (OECD, 2025_[8]; OECD, 2019_[12], p. 129). While the complexity of teaching means that it takes years to master – and indeed even then ongoing refinement – such that perfect preparation cannot exist, the better prepared teachers are the more their ongoing professional learning opportunities can focus on particularly challenging, relational practices (OECD, 2025[32]). In particular, teachers often enter the profession having experienced minimal classroom-based learning opportunities. This may have ramifications for the type of professional learning opportunities they need, but also means they may be less habituated to particular forms of learning – notably those more collaborative and inquiry-orientated forms (OECD, 2019[33]). In considering the coherence with ITE it is thus also an important consideration of how ITE connects to ongoing professional learning as a formal teacher, such as the transition mechanisms like induction that can support this. Systems such as Estonia, the French Community of Belgium and the Netherlands have sought to give particular focus to more practical learning experiences in schools (OECD, 2019[2]).

• Nurturing the skills that delivering high-quality professional learning demands: Facilitating effective professional learning or providing impactful mentoring is difficult. It draws upon distinct skills that are not necessarily automatic, nor simply an extension of being an effective teacher (Coles, 2019[34]). Bespoke capacity-building efforts for these skills may be necessary to help support their effectiveness. For instance, in Estonia, there is support for mentors working with beginning teachers to develop their mentoring skills through bespoke seminars (OECD, 2019[2]).

• Understanding the distinction between teacher professional learning and that for school leaders: School leaders have distinct needs due to the role they play in creating a supportive school environment and facilitating teachers’ growth. For instance, they play a particularly important role in fostering teacher collaboration, but large-scale surveys have suggested that school leaders’ competencies to support collaboration may be an area of need (OECD, 2019[35]). Crafting a high-quality professional learning system for teachers may not meet the needs of school leaders and should not be considered a direct substitute. Specific capacity-building efforts for leaders require careful consideration too. For instance, in the Slovak Republique principals are required to complete a course in specific management competencies (“functional training”), while in the French Community of Belgium have 180 hours of training, coaching provision, and a three-year mandatory entry phase (OECD, 2019[2]). The aforementioned ‘Management and Leadership Studies Programme’ in Singapore is a further example (see Box 4.1).

• Remaining sensitive to market forces: Market forces can help self-regulate the demand for certain learning opportunities from individual teachers and the provision from different independent actors. This can support efficient matching of needs and provision, while also potentially driving up standards if there is a degree of competition among providers. These market forces may also act in unforeseen ways that need sensitive monitoring. For instance, external quality control can still be valuable to help differentiate between higher-quality providers, and to allow schools and teachers to look beyond just very well marketed providers. Similarly, monitoring of provision may avoid distortion towards particular ‘trends’ and allow wider strategic goals to be retained.

• Attending to equality of access to learning opportunities: The challenge of market forces is a reminder of the importance of attention to how accessible different learning opportunities are to different schools and teachers. For instance, market forces may see on-site provision concentrated around urban areas where there is higher demand, meaning some regions are left behind. Alternatively, it may be that specific infrastructure is needed to facilitate certain learning opportunities and that this needs to be targeted to certain schools. Ambition 4 (see Chapter 5), where digital tools are particularly prevalent, is also a reminder of this. The same may be true of specific capacity-building needs, such as in the most disadvantaged settings; in Ireland, for instance, disadvantaged schools receive additional teaching and leadership resources and priority access to training aimed at supporting students with the highest levels of needs. It is thus a pertinent consideration during implementation of how there will be an equality of opportunity to engage with quality learning opportunities.

• Troubleshooting potential challenges through pilot programmes: Pilot programmes may be valuable for identifying the types of common barriers that exist and allow for adjustments of initiatives before wider deployment. They may also help to gradually build buy-in by providing tangible evidence of the impact of changes and develop a cohort of ‘early adopters’ whose expertise can be relied on. For instance, in the context of micro-credentials, evidence from the United States and states that have adopted this approach suggests that starting with pilot programmes can be valuable for successful implementation (DeMonte, 2017[29]).

• Gather an external perspective: Independent evaluations can be a means of confidently understanding what is working well and what are ongoing challenges. For instance, in a commitment to the constant improvement of its offer, an evaluation report of the system of professional development was commissioned by the Chilean Ministry of Education. This identified certain accomplishments of the system (e.g. promoting the social valorisation of the teaching profession, promoting the improvement of professional performance), as well as some of the ongoing challenges that required further consideration (e.g. a school leadership career, the processes of induction and mentorship – despite their high levels of appreciation – needing further coverage).

Box 4.4. Key reflection questions for system leaders

To facilitate quality, meaningful ongoing learning that enables the profession to grow and face future challenges, system leaders may consider the following:

Provision of relevant learning opportunities

• How can the responsibility for the provision of professional learning opportunities be best addressed for high-quality learning?

• What could be the criteria and mechanisms for promoting high-quality offers of professional learning?

• What might be the right balance of agency and choice with more mandatory learning opportunities?

• How can the provision be designed with evolving needs of teachers, schools and the wider system?

Delivery of quality learning opportunities

• What resources support structured communities of learning? (e.g. time, physical resources, capacity-building)

• How are data and research provided to support structured communities of learning?

• How is a culture of learning embodied in the system and across schools?

• What opportunities exist for quality coaching and mentoring in the system?

• What enablers in terms of resources (e.g. time) and capacity-building support effective coaching and mentoring?

Incentives to engage in professional learning

• How can potential barriers to teachers’ participation in professional learning be addressed? (e.g. cost, time)

• What could be the approach to recognising and tracking professional learning participation?

• How could recognising and tracking support sustained reflection on professional learning?

• What measures can be used to gather teachers’ and school leaders’ views on professional learning opportunities and drive further improvement?

• How can the overall quality across the provision and delivery of professional learning be monitored and used?

Implementation considerations

• How can professional learning build on the foundations of initial teacher education coherently?

• How could the capacity of professional learning providers to deliver high-quality learning be further enhanced?

• How may the potential effects of market forces on provision of professional learning be best understood and responded to?

• What could be the role of pilot programmes in supporting potential change?

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