Educational Research Into Effective CPD

What does effective professional development look like?

Decades of research shows that traditional forms of professional development are ineffective. To make sustainable improvements to teaching and learning, teachers need to engage with all of the proven components of effective adult learning. These include access to theory, feedback and coaching.

Our research-led video platform makes it affordable and scalable to access all the activities shown by research to improve classroom practice.

Featured Research

EEF report evaluating the impact of IRIS Connect

“The overwhelming majority of teachers believed that the intervention was a good use of time and had improved their teaching. There was also strong evidence that the programme changed teachers’ thinking and classroom practice.”

Click here for a summary of the report’s findings.

Read the full report here

Live remote coaching found to be ‘transformative’ for teachers

Research conducted by MirandaNet found that using IRIS Connect’s video technology can enhance teacher practice and help reduce attrition rates.

It found that:

– Deep learning, which is replicable and sustainable over time, can be achieved through providing immediate and contextualised feedback that the teacher can instantly put into practice;

–Using the platform ensures that the deep learning is replicable and sustainable across and between schools;

–Pupils are cooperative and not disruptive when this approach is used;

–The focus on classroom practice in real-time strengthens not just the confidence and capability of early career teachers but of any teacher keen to actively support their performance;

–Innovation may be resisted if not managed by senior managers with sensitivity;

–Sustainability can be of concern if those who set up the programme leave without training others to make use of the investment;

–Further research is recommended to develop and consolidate what has been learnt here about the potential to transform teaching and learning.

Download the research paper

The importance of effective CPD

The Going Beyond CPD whitepaper moves discussion away from the importance of effective CPD for individual teachers (building human capital) to the importance of collaboration (building social capital).

Using IRIS Connect to develop communities of practice

This paper summarises the initial findings of the impact of using IRIS Connect for developing communities of practice. Research undertaken by Professor Christina Preston, of the University of Bedfordshire and the MirandaNet Fellowship.

Key findings include:

– 99% of teachers reported an increase in conversations between teachers about teaching in their school;

– 96% felt they were willing to take more risks;

– 94% said their teaching had improved;

– 88% felt there had been a positive impact on collaboration;

– 88% said their confidence had risen.

Video observation and coaching

Read the overview of a current project being conducted by the EEF, Whole Education and IRIS Connect. The project is piloting a professional learning programme with a group of schools using IRIS Connect, which could then be shared with a wider set of schools and tested as part of a randomised controlled trial.

Guidance for using video observations

Download this free classroom observation toolkit from Harvard University’s Center for Education Policy Research. You’ll find practical guidance for educators on how to use video observations to accelerate teacher development.

Enquire about our packages

Click arrows on the right to view full screen