Professional re-accreditation: constructing educational policy for career-long teacher professional learning

Abstract

Competence as a measure of ‘fitness to practice’ and its evaluation through mechanisms of personal performance review, has led to the introduction of systems in a number of professions which link appraisal to the maintenance of professional registration (variously referred to as re-validation, re-certification, re-accreditation, etc.). This shift towards the requirement to actively maintain registration is becoming increasingly common in the teaching profession in many countries too. This paper presents an examination of the enactment of this global policy trend towards teacher re-accreditation at a national level. Here, we analyse the policy discourse and rhetoric around the introduction of professional re-accreditation of teachers in Scotland, where it is referred to as ‘Professional Update’, and track this through to the preparation of those carrying out interviews for re-accreditation in one of the three local authorities involved in piloting the initiative. In doing this we aim to show the ways in which policy serves to construct teacher subjectivities though processes of appraisal and how policy actors positions themselves and are positioned within these policy-making processes.

Keywords:

• appraisal
• career-long professional learning
• coaching
• competence standards
• professional registration
• professional review and development
• professional update
• re-accreditation
• self-evaluation
• teacher subjectivities

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank two anonymous reviewers for their very helpful comments on this paper. This work was supported by Education Scotland.

Notes

1. In 2012 the GTCS was made independent of government: ‘Independence offers formal recognition of the high standing and respect in which teaching and the teaching profession are held in Scotland. It is a positive sign of the trust placed in GTC Scotland to lead the profession, as it seeks to maintain and enhance professional standards’. http://www.gtcs.org.uk/about-gtcs/independence.aspx.

2. http://www.gtcs.org.uk/standards/about-the-standards.aspx.

3. http://www.gtcs.org.uk/web/FILES/professional-development/professional-update-draft-advice-on-prd.pdf.

4. http://www.gtcs.org.uk/web/FILES/video-transcripts/professional-update-video-transcript-1111.pdf.

5. http://www.gtcs.org.uk/web/FILES/professional-development/professional-update-summary-of-progress-0912.pdf.

6. http://www.gtcs.org.uk/professional-development/professional-update.aspx.

7. http://www.gtcs.org.uk/web/FILES/the-council/professional-update-consultation-responses-0412.pdf.

8. http://www.gtcs.org.uk/web/FILES/professional-development/professional-update-draft-advice-on-coaching-and-mentoring.pdf.