The latest from dougbelshaw.com/blog
- Wednesday Wisdom #11: Exaggerated expectations
- Technology in History teaching: disseminating good practice in Turkey
- #uppingyourgame v0.4 now available!
- Things I Learned This Week – #11
- A brief history of infographics.
- You’re doing it wrong.
- Seven types of ambiguity and new literacies
- Wednesday Wisdom #10: Application and ability
- HOWTO: Create iTunes audiobooks from MP3s
- #uppingyourgame: an audio preview
-
Death to the INSET!
86 CommentsLet us consider the position of the lowly INSET. Loved by senior managers, scorned by teachers, a cash cow for consultants, they have become a staple of school life for teachers – usually something to be endured. Today I ask the question, just what is the point in the average INSET? ^o)
Before we look at the problems of INSETs, lets have a quick look at what teacher professional development and learning should be like. Ideally, teachers should be offered the kind of quality learning experiences that we aim to offer students: interactive, engaging, relevant and personalized. Knowing that individuals learn differently and that, especially with adults, each brings his/her own experiences to bear on a learning input, teacher development should take into account the multitude of factors that lead to educational change. Hoban in Teacher Learning for Educational Change
G.F. Hoban, Teacher Learning for Educational Change (OUP, 2002), p.37 sees educational change as a complex system, providing the following useful diagram:
I won’t go through each of the points which Hoban makes, but suffice to say that most of these factors are not taken into consideration during the average INSET. The time of day (teachers tired after a busy day), the presentation of learning resources (lecture format, with at best a token bit of group work) and the one-size-fits-all approach are not conducive to teacher learning and development.
Instead, let’s have a look at a good model for teacher development – Huberman’s Open Collective Cycle:
taken from G.F. Hoban, Teacher Learning for Educational Change (OUP, 2002), p.74 
Huberman’s model takes as read that teachers view their profession as an art rather than a craft. That is to say, that teaching is something that can never be perfected nor rolled out in the same manner year-after-year. Instead, teaching is an art, something subjective rather than objective that involves the emotions, reflection and ‘fuzzy’ judgements:
Once teachers develop an awareness of the complexity of teaching, they are more likely to become engaged in long-term projects that explore the problematic nature of their work, and it is the confirming or disconfirming of personal beliefs within a collaborative environment that provides insights for personal theory building.
Ibid. The cyclical framework that Huberman has developed for teacher learning demonstrates an understanding of the nature of change; that there will be conflict, inertia, experimentation, and that, above all, change within institutions – educational or otherwise – is a collaborative effort specific to that institution.
The average INSET, then, is not only very often a waste of money, time, and resouces, but is actually dangerous. By providing panaceas which have little real impact on the institution, it promotes a culture where policies and changes are put in place in theory, but not in practice. This can lead to a situation where every change is looked upon cynically and sceptically by experienced teachers, with teachers new to profession soon learning to pay lip-service to senior managers’ diktats from above. Instead, the teaching styles and approaches which have served reasonably well thus far are continued. And at the end of the day, of what do these teaching styles and approaches consist? The occasional brilliant, interactive lesson (perhaps when being observed) followed by tasks which ‘keep them busy’. For if teachers do not learn and have proper developmental training, they will continue to teach in ways not fundamentally different from when they were on teaching practice, and perpetuate a style of teaching and learning similar to that which they experienced when at school themselves. :(
Further reading: teachinghacks.com
Published on February 4, 2006 · Filed under: Uncategorized;
86 Responses to “Death to the INSET!”
-
Mike Tribe said on February 6th, 2006 at 6:23 am
Doug, I have had more INSET than you’ve had hot dinners, and while I agree that most of it is pretty poor, I can’t really agree that the more “touchy-feely” presentations which have had tired and jaded teachers sitting around in circles or communicating with each other in sign language have been any more successful…
Quite often, the problem is that the people doing the presentations either haven’t taught children in years and would undoubtedly benefit from exposure to “real” students. They’re standing in front of an audience of teachers who don’t want to be there, and they’re saying things that we’ve either heard before and worked to implement in our classrooms, or have tried and discarded. I’m old enough to remember, for instance, the Whole Language movement. We were treated to 8-hours on INSET from a nice lady professor from some American university who told us how silly we were ever to have thought we could teach children anything useful by “sounding out” words. All the research proved “conclusively” that phonics were a total waste of time. Just give the children enough books and they’d absorb them naturally.
Some of her audience even believed her… The bosses refused to sanction the purchase of any phonics-based materials. Vocabulary drills were banned. The predictable decline in test scores were dismissed — the tests were wrong…
It must have lasted all of three or four years. Then we got a new head. All change! Phonics are back as part of a balanced approach to the teaching of reading — the sort of approach most of us had been using all along…
The other type of INSET presentation I’ve been treated to has been of the “this has worked for me” type. Some of these have been outstanding. Others have been equally useless. The teacher concerned IS a classroom specialist, HAS taught “real” children. Unfortunately, he knows what he’s been doing so well, he’s unable to put himself in the position of we poor idiots who haven’t a clue what he’s talking about. An anecdote: I still remember when I was 12 and was first exposed to algebra. I was sitting at the kitchen table staring in total incomprehension at a page of problems. Dad came home from work. I asked for help. He took a quick look at the page and said, “It’s simple. Just use calculus!” This is true of a lot of the technology training we get. Some of my colleagues are even less tech-savvy than I am. I had to show one of them where the on-off switch was. This means we won’t understand you unless to speak to us in words of one technological syllable. Reprehensible, I know, but that’s the way it is…
Another frustration is the sort of INSET which tells you all about how to use resources you just don’t have access to… I really do wish all of my students had a laptop in their backpacks. I could then do all sorts of wonderful things — if I knew how. But what’s the point of giving me INSET which assumes one-computer-per-child in class when we’re lucky if we can get into the lab once a week???
Finally, there are the young, enthusiastic teachers who have all the charisma needed to communicate their enthusiasm to ANYONE, from dyed-in-the-wool reactionary teachers to a class of “language-challenged” 6-year-olds. As you listen to all his ideas — which he’s actually implemented successfully in the classroom — you begin to wonder how he manages to fit it all in. Doesn’t have have to fill in reports? When does he find the time to do the book orders, the desk-inventory, etc? In fact, when does he find the time to EAT? I rather place you in the last category, Doug. MA research. Three websites (unless there are more I don’t know about). Church. SHTF TV Calendar. Where does all the time come from? I don’t get through a tenth of what you do, but I get to school at around 6:00 a.m. and leave again at around 7:00 p.m…. There simply aren’t any more hours in the day!
-
I think we arguing from the same point of view Mike, if I’ve understood you properly. What I’m taking issue with is exactly the one-off INSET about either something irrelevant or impossible-to-implement. Instead, what I think does work is more of a coaching model which takes place over a longer period of time with a fewer number of teachers. The lessons learned through the sessions are then ‘diffused’ or ‘cascaded out’ throughout the institution. The benefit of this approach is peer learning and the slower timescale which allows for the all-important feedback loops to take effect (and the different stages of Huberman’s Open Collective Cycle, if you accept his model…)
-
As someone who taught for 23 years and now does give the occasional INSET (on Web 2.0 and Digital Video to ITT for BECTA once in a blue moon) I’d say the school culture needs to change before anything else to enable more imaginative INSET. Inset should be a monthly activity between staff but unless you have the money and the professional clout to accredit and thereby attach monetary reward for this then you are not going to get buy in. People are just too tired…and why are they tired because the resources to do the job and the imaginative infrastructure to make it easier are just not there at the moment – and this really is a management issue. Put the tools, time and imagination there for people and they will begin to adapt their practice – otherwise it just won’t happen. Personally I always found what other teachers told me at INSET outside of my institution more useful. INSET used to be delivered at teachers’ centres in the UK over 20 years ago and it was a different proposition then. You could draw back and get scope rather than just be hived off into your own institution. With respect a lot of teachers need to have their scope widened and I think blogs and Web 2.0 technologies might help to redress the balance here in some respects. But unless you make it part of people’s quality of life it will be grudging always.
-
I think your point about the physical location and timing of INSETs is a good one, Leon. Whilst I can understand why they’re held en masse in schools for financial reasons, in terms of effectiveness it would be far better if, as you said, INSETs took place at some kind of regional teacher centres. If there was a proper, proven mechanism for disseminating good practice within schools then INSETs could be delivered to, say, 10% of the staff in the school and then cascaded out to the rest of the staff. (y)
-
We are moving to a new INSET model in my borough, which is encouraging inter school collaboration by opening up a series of INSETS to all staff who teach. The drawback is that this year they are going to be twilight sessions but that does mean we break up for the summer holidays earlier, so it is worth it. In fact I led my first INSET yesterday for 70 teachers on Thinking Skills, which was, fortunately, very well received. i think the key is pace, variety of tasks, good handouts and above all enthusiastic delivery. Just like a good lesson in fact.
-
Yes, Dan, and I’m sure your INSETs are wonderful and your audience leave with good intentions
-
Leon’s post and Doug’s reply are quite close to the NCSL model – treat teachers as professionals by inviting them to a nice location (not sitting on reception-class size chairs) and then learning from their professional expertise to inform them of developments in theory, resources and/or other people’s practice.
It is interesting that despite the change in belief from learners being empty vessels waiting to be filled up to active constructors of their own knowledge, when we talk about INSET we still refer to ‘delivering training’ rather than building professional knowledge and capabilities.
So – in an ideal world with loads of resources – what is the model for CPD that you would like to see take place?
-
Dan,
Thanks for sustaining the conversation. I’d like to see experts working alongside teachers on a long-term basis. Teachers would need some type of professional development time and not be expected to do it out of a love for the job!
For example, if a new KS3 model is to be developed and they want teacher input, do more than simply mention it at a meeting or by asking ‘interested colleagues’ to join a working group on it. Instead, plough some real time and money into initiatives and changes.
There’s a lot of tokenism in education… :(
-
Social Bookmarking Tips Guide is unique website promotion and products marketing book written to increase AdSense and affiliate income, boost product sales, and make your sites as profitable as never before. Being completely different, Social Bookmarking Tips Guide will help you discovering new website promotion and product marketing tactics that really work today.
-
icophcg said on February 4th, 2010 at 2:28 am
MHo7nu hdhmzkdxluto, [url=http://dngeendiuxps.com/]dngeendiuxps[/url], [link=http://jgtnulacfgyg.com/]jgtnulacfgyg[/link], http://qfdtddmfbjli.com/
-
niwgqk said on February 5th, 2010 at 3:53 am
3HBtvu ayreggkelfyp, [url=http://cedqzxyrcyrd.com/]cedqzxyrcyrd[/url], [link=http://kvdycuwrmzwj.com/]kvdycuwrmzwj[/link], http://dbudleatmyvh.com/
-
play benefiting engaged rebif confusing plugin sequent stockholmtel diameter principals punishable
ambisoltersos makalavertonicos
Leave a Reply
