Future Challenges in Education

Name: Samina Manzoor

Student ID: BS600387
Course Code: 8656

Assignment No 2
1. Elaborate the scope of Pre-Service Professional
Education and Continuous Professional Development
(CPD) for improving the teaching skills. Highlight of the
current needs of CPD for the development of 21st
century skills in teachers.

What is pre-service education

“Education” is defined as the process of giving or acquiring knowledge
and skills and developing attitudes and values, especially at a school or
university.
“Training” likewise aims at improving the level of a trainee’s competence
in a specific area and may be defined as the process of developing,
changing or strengthening knowledge, skills and attitudes of a target
group.
The expression “in-service training” refers to training of persons already
employed, e.g. health providers working in the public or private sector.
“Pre-service” refers to activities which take place before a person takes
up a job which requires specific training, i.e. before a person ‘enters
service’. Properly speaking, also courses for graduates, in addition to
those for undergraduates, are ‘pre-service courses’ if they provide the
competence needed to perform new ‘services’.
In this website, the expressions “pre-service education” or “pre-service
training” are used to refer to any structured activity aiming at developing
or reinforcing knowledge and skills before a health care professional
enters public health service or private practice.

Change is constant, and in the ever-changing world we live in, it becomes

almost imperative to keep progressing in our professional endeavours.
The best option to keep up with this is to use continuing professional
development (CPD) programmes to stay ahead of the curve. Continuous
learning results in superior growth, so if you want to achieve greater
success in your professional career, CPD is the way forward.

What is continuing professional development?

Continuous professional development refers to the process of training
and developing professional knowledge and skills through independent,
participation-based or interactive learning. This form of learning allows
professionals to improve their capabilities with the help of certified
learning. CPD courses for professionals should reflect their current
expectations as well as future ambitions. As your career develops, the
knowledge and skills you require will also evolve. This is where CPD will
come to your rescue and help you steer your career in the future.

In addition, professionals have to set their short-term and long-term

objectives while implementing a structured learning plan. They may also
be required to record what they are learning and the progress they make
in order to keep track of the skills and knowledge they obtain. CPD
training helps professionals to:
• Stay up to date with the latest trends and learn new skills;
• Improve their performance at work;
• Boost their self-confidence;
• Enhance their professional reputation and future job prospects;
• Obtain concrete proof of their professionalism and commitment.

Types of continuing professional development

Formal CPD: This type of CPD involves active and structured learning that
is usually done outside the organisation for which you work. Formal CPD
usually consists of more than one professional, however in some cases
it could just involve a single professional. Some activities in this form of
structured learning include:
• Offline and online training programmes;
• Learning-focused seminars and conferences;
• Workshops and events;
• Lectures.

Informal CPD: Informal CPD is also known as self-directed learning, in

which the professionals carry out development activities according to
their own choice and without a structured syllabus. This form of learning
usually consists of:

• Studying publications written by industry experts;

• Perusing relevant case studies and articles;
• Listening to industry-specific podcasts and following industry-
specific news;
• Studying and revising for professional exams.
• Importance of continuing professional development
“Education is not the learning of facts, but the training of the mind to
think” – Albert Einstein.

In order to improve their skills and knowledge while working,

professionals usually opt for continuous professional development
programmes. This is because at this level, they have already earned
academic qualifications and are now working in the industry of their
choice. CDP helps business professionals learn in a structured and
practical format that boosts their overall skills and knowledge. It also
helps them ascertain the knowledge and skills they need to obtain within
a short time period, so the improvement can be recognisable.

Benefits of continuous professional development

Continuous professional development programmes provide two-fold
benefits — for the learner and for the employer. Let’s take a look at the
benefits of CPD for the learner:

• Improves intellect, personal skills and confidence;

• Opens doors to excellent future employment opportunities;
• Improves learning ability;
• Promotes independent learning;
• Demonstrates ambition and commitment to professional self-
improvement;
• Relevant practical qualifications that will impress current and
prospective employers.
Now, take a look at the benefits of CPD for the employer:
• Sets a high standard across the company for staff development;
• Improves productivity with the help of motivated and skilled
employees;
• Endorses a learning culture in the organisation;
• Enhances the reputation of the company among prospective
employees and clients;
Increases employee retention;
Allows the company to keep up with the latest trends and changes in the
industry.

Why is 21st-Century Professional Development Important?

Acquiring and utilizing professional development in the 21st century is
essential for three key reasons: we must keep learning relevant, create
teacher leaders, and add knowledge to the current body of research in
education. Educators are life-longer learners who make an impact on the
students and communities they serve. The impact made with students is
a direct outcome of access to engaging, rigorous, and relevant PD.

Absence of access to quality professional development results in a

reduction of the impact teachers are likely to have during students’
instructional time and less equipped educators to effectively serve their
communities. 21st-century PD comes in many different forms and has
many avenues. It is crucial in order to increase competent and practical
educators and increase understanding of personal teaching and
leadership practices.

For teachers, PD allows for instructors to keep up to date on curriculum

standards and the latest teaching strategies. When it comes to school-
wide initiatives, PD increases the skill sets of individuals, and as a result,
increases the overall value of the department and grade-level teams.
Due to the need for continuous professional development, there are
many models and methods of PD including graduate education
programs, professional conferences, online training courses, and school
and district-wide PD cohorts.

Embrace Reflective Practice

Professional development in the 21st century gives educators the tools
and skills to stay modern with the needs of students and allows them to
plan ahead for changing trends in education. In order to realize areas of
strength and areas that need attention for growth, reflective practice is
necessary.
Reflecting on practices for the 21st-century educator involves reflecting
on the best practices in curriculum and instruction. This also involves
reflecting on strategies that are most effective in increasing student and
faculty performance. Taking courses in graduate programs or pursuing
a full degree gives knowledge to the graduate student and allows for
reflective practice in their day-to-day educational roles.
Graduate programs are one of the most common forms of professional
development. This can include taking courses to enhance a teaching
certificate or pursuing a masters or doctoral degree. The skills, research,
and applications of graduate school all influence the curriculum,
instruction, and overall effectiveness of the practitioner. While learning
in their degree programs, the educational leaders are able to learn
reflective practices that help the educator apply what they have learned
at their school or organization.

Rely on and Collaborate with Colleagues

Successful professional development in the 21st century in education
involves collaboration, expansion of knowledge, and increasing
expectations for learning outcomes. Effective professional development
comes from collaboration with other colleagues.

One form of PD that relies on collaboration with colleagues is the

professional conference. This allows for educators to learn best practices
from each other and share lessons and knowledge that is specific to their
field of education.These conferences are often held by education
associations that have specific members, goals, and collaboration
opportunities for the learning consortiums. These professional groups
and conferences can be national or on a statewide basis.

Examples of educational associations that hold national conferences are

the National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP), the
National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP), The
National Education Association (NEA), The National Council of Teachers
of English (NCTE), to name a few. Examples of a localized state
organization are the South Carolina Education Association (SCEA) and
California Teachers Association (CTA). Professional conferences with
colleagues foster a sense of community and allow for networking with
other educational leaders.

Use Coaching and Mentoring for Growth

Instructional coaches are present in many school districts. For
professional development of staff, instructional coaches provide a
resource for curriculum, mentorship, and addressing school culture and
climate. The return on investment with coaching and mentoring teachers
is stability at the school. Along with stability, coaching allows for highly
qualified teachers to collaborate with others and mentor new teachers.
Administrators and teachers alike need effective coaching and
mentoring in order to provide the best opportunities for personal
growth and of their peers. Coaching and mentoring can be on an
individual basis but also can be facilitated in a group setting. An example
of this can be found in PD cohorts and Professional Learning
Communities (PLCs).

Establishing PLCs is another way to create an environment for mentoring

and coaching for growth. Within PLC’s are groups of teachers with
diverse skills that build consensus around growth with student
outcomes. During PLC meetings, members share knowledge, strategize
to improve on goals, and facilitate professional development. This is also
a time when teachers use data to analyze priority areas with students’
learning and also showcase technology resources for growth. As
knowledge is shared, educators can take their best practices back into
the classroom and throughout the school.

Utilize Technology Resources to Build Knowledge

Due to the changing dynamics of instructional delivery, it is important to
have an understanding of technology resources for educators.
Professional development in the 21st century is beneficial in the areas of
technology. Resources such as Grammarly, Schoology, Kahoot, and
Flipgrid are just a few resources that help teachers deliver content and
emphasize collaboration with both teachers and students.

Utilizing technology during PD also has the same effect with the
participants. These same technology resources allow for information to
be shared and knowledge to be built in the specific development areas.
The value of professional development in the 21st century comes from
the investments and outcomes of educators and students, as well as the
communities that are impacted by the betterment of the educational
leaders.
2. Justify the link between teaching standards and the
quality of teaching

Teacher experience
• Several studies have found a positive effect of experience on teacher
effectiveness; specifically, the “learning by doing” effect is most obvious
in the early years of teaching.

Teacher preparation programs and degrees

• Research suggests that the selectivity/prestige of the institution a
teacher attended has a positive effect on student achievement,
particularly at the secondary level. This may partially be a reflection of
the cognitive ability of the teacher.
• Evidence suggests that teachers who have earned advanced degrees
have a positive impact on high school mathematics and science
achievement when the degrees earned were in these subjects.
• Evidence regarding the impact of advanced degrees at the elementary
level is mixed.

Teacher certification
• Research has demonstrated a positive effect of certified teachers on
high school mathematics achievement when the certification is in
mathematics.
• Studies show little clear impact of emergency or alternative-route
certification on student performance in either mathematics or science,
as compared to teachers who acquire standard certification.

Teacher coursework
• Teacher coursework in both the subject area taught and pedagogy
contributes to positive education outcomes.
• Pedagogical coursework seems to contribute to teacher effectiveness
at all grade levels, particularly when coupled with content knowledge.
• The importance of content coursework is most pronounced at the high
school level.
• While the studies on the field experience component of teacher
education are not designed to reveal causal relationships, they suggest
positive effects in terms of opportunity to learn the profession and
reduced anxiety among new teachers.
Teachers’ own test scores
• Tests that assess the literacy levels or verbal abilities of teachers have
been shown to be associated with higher levels of student achievement.
• Studies show the National Teachers Examination and other state-
mandated tests of basic skills and/or teaching abilities are less consistent
predictors of teacher performance.

Given that many dimensions of teacher characteristics matter—

preparation in both pedagogic and subject content, credentials,
experience, and test scores—the findings from the literature imply that
there is no merit in large-scale elimination of all credentialing
requirements. Nor are improvements in teacher quality likely to be
realized through the status quo. Rather, teacher policies need to reflect
the reality that teaching is a complex activity that is influenced by the
many elements of teacher quality. Most of the research does not seek to
capture interactions among the multiple dimensions of teacher quality,
and as a result, there are major gaps in the research that still need to be
explored. Nor does the research fully address evidence about teacher
quality at the elementary and middle school levels, in subjects other than
mathematics, or among different populations of students (such as high
poverty, English language learners, or special education).

In opposition to those who propose to eliminate all requirements for

entering the teaching profession, this analysis supports a judicious use
of the research evidence on teacher characteristics and teacher
effectiveness. The evidence indicates that neither an extreme centralized
bureaucratization nor a complete deregulation of teacher requirements
is a wise approach for improving teacher quality. What holds a great deal
more promise is refining the policies and practices employed to build a
qualified body of teachers in elementary schools, middle schools, and
high schools; for disadvantaged, special needs, and advantaged
students; and for math, science, languages, English, social studies, and
the arts.

Education policy makers and administrators would be well served by

recognizing the complexity of the issue and adopting multiple measures
along many dimensions to support existing teachers and to attract and
hire new, highly qualified teachers. The research suggests that investing
in teachers can make a difference in student achievement. In order to
implement needed policies associated with staffing every classroom—
even the most challenging ones—with high-quality teachers, substantial
and targeted investments must first be made in both teacher quality and
education research.
 3. Analyze teachers' role in teaching children with
learning disabilities. How the concept of inclusive
education can be made successful.
For inclusion to show positive benefits, the learning environment and
instructional models must be carefully established to provide strong learning
opportunities for all students. Special education and general education
teachers must have mutual respect and open minds toward the philosophy of
inclusion, as well as strong administrative support and knowledge of how to
meet the needs of students with disabilities. The involvement of a special
education teacher is crucial to the success of a combined learning environment
in a number of areas:

Curriculum Design

Special education teachers help craft the lessons for inclusive classrooms to
ensure that the needs of students with disabilities are considered. Teachers
may work together to develop a curriculum that is accessible to all students, or
the special education teacher might make modifications to the general
education teacher’s lesson plans. A special education teacher will also create
supplemental learning materials for specific students, including visual,
manipulative, text, and technology resources, and determine when one-on-one
lessons might be needed.

Teachers must examine students’ strengths, weaknesses, interests, and

communication methods when crafting lessons. The students’ IEPs must be
carefully followed to meet achievement goals. As many general education
teachers have limited training in inclusive learning, it is important for the
special education teacher to help the instructor understand why certain
accommodations are needed and how to incorporate them.

Classroom Instruction

Many inclusive classrooms are based on a co-teaching model, where both

teachers are present all day. Others use a push-in model, where special
education teachers provide lessons at certain times during the day. It takes
extensive cooperation between general and special education teachers to
implement a truly inclusive classroom. Special education teachers often sit with
or near students with IEPs to monitor their progress and provide any special
instructions or supplemental learning materials. Students require varying
levels of individual instruction and assistance, based on their unique needs.
Teachers might also pull students out of the classroom for one-on-one lessons
or sensory activities, or arrange for time with counselors, speech therapists,
dyslexia coaches, and other specialized personnel. Special education
instructors may need to make sure that paraprofessionals or therapists are
present in the classroom at certain times to assist the students. To help
maintain a positive climate, they also might assist the general education
teacher in presenting lessons to the entire class, grading papers, enforcing
rules, and other classroom routines. General and special education teachers
might break classes into smaller groups or stations to provide greater
engagement opportunities.

Learning Assessments

Another role of special education teachers in inclusive classrooms is to conduct

regular assessments to determine whether students are achieving academic
goals. Lessons must be periodically evaluated to determine whether they are
sufficiently challenging without overwhelming the students. Students should
gain a feeling of self-confidence and independence in general education
settings but should also feel sufficiently supported. Special education teachers
also organize periodic IEP meetings with each student, their family, and certain
staff members to determine whether adjustments need to be made to the
student’s plan.

Advocating for Students

Special education teachers serve as advocates for students with disabilities and
special needs. This includes ensuring that all school officials and employees
understand the importance of inclusion and how to best implement inclusion
in all campus activities. Advocacy might include requesting inclusion-focused
professional development activities—especially programs that help general
education teachers better understand inclusion best practices—or providing
information to community members about success rates of inclusive teaching.

Communication with parents is also essential for inclusive classroom success.

Families should receive regular updates on a child’s academic, social, and
emotional development through phone calls, emails, and other communication
means. Parents can help students prepare for classroom routines.
Expectations for homework and classroom participation should be established
early on.
Inclusive education is when all students, regardless of any challenges they may
have, are placed in age-appropriate general education classes that are in their
own neighborhood schools to receive high-quality instruction, interventions,
and supports that enable them to meet success in the core curriculum (Bui,
Quirk, Almazan, & Valenti, 2010; Alquraini & Gut, 2012).

The school and classroom operate on the premise that students with
disabilities are as fundamentally competent as students without disabilities.
Therefore, all students can be full participants in their classrooms and in the
local school community. Much of the movement is related to legislation that
students receive their education in the least restrictive environment (LRE). This
means they are with their peers without disabilities to the maximum degree
possible, with general education the placement of first choice for all students
(Alquraini & Gut, 2012).

Successful inclusive education happens primarily through accepting,

understanding, and attending to student differences and diversity, which can
include physical, cognitive, academic, social, and emotional. This is not to say
that students never need to spend time out of regular education classes,
because sometimes they do for a very particular purpose — for instance, for
speech or occupational therapy. But the goal is this should be the exception.

The driving principle is to make all students feel welcomed, appropriately

challenged, and supported in their efforts. It’s also critically important that the
adults are supported, too. This includes the regular education teacher and the
special education teacher, as well as all other staff and faculty who are key
stakeholders — and that also includes parents.
4. How can teachers integrate available technology in
teaching learning process? Explain with examples.
Integrating technology into the classroom, however, can seem
challenging for educators. This is due to the tech resources needed, like
computers, tablets, software/apps, internet access, and more. With a bit
of due diligence, these obstacles can be overcome and tech can be
tethered with the learning experience in amazing innovative ways.

Let’s dive into the five ways teachers are integrating technology into the
classroom, and how all educators can too.

1. Making Use of the Gamify Learning Experience

Gaming has become a huge part of students’ lives. Whether at home or
in the classroom, the gamification of learning is a valuable strategy to
pursue. Why? Students want to engage in learning in new exciting ways,
and the gamify learning experience can do just that.
For example, you can have digital scavenger hunts in the classroom by
challenging students with fact finding questions that they need to
complete online. This is a great way to integrate technology into the
learning experience by making a game of it. Students not only learn how
to research material online, they also stay engaged — it is a win-win!

2. Building Lesson Plans Using Differentiated Instruction and Tech

Tailoring your lesson plans to your students is increasing in popularity.
This type of teaching has been implemented using a differentiated
instruction program that takes into account how students learn, their
abilities, and more. For instance, by grouping students in a class based
on their abilities can improve the effectiveness of the teaching message.

How can you implement this into your class via technology? The upswing
in tailoring lesson plans to diverse learners has caused many companies
to create software and online platforms, like Big Universe, that serve up
large amounts of learning material aimed at filling the differentiated
instruction gap within classrooms.

3. Develop a Class Website

There are a lot of fun ways to integrate technology into the classroom,
but none as exciting for students as developing a class website. Students
are often mystified by the power of the internet, and being online can be
a serious eye-opener for them.

Building a class website is also affordable for educators, since WordPress

delivers free websites and themes you can use to make this tech inspired
classroom activity happen. The aim is to do it as a class in order to
engage everyone, so from start to finish, have everyone involved.

A class website is also valuable for parents and education managers to

see what is going on in class and how each student is developing. It is
another technology inspired learning asset that is a win-win.

4. Create a Classroom Blog

Since you have a class website, why not go one step further and create a
classroom blog. This is an excellent way to inspire students and keep
them engaged in classroom activities. Blogs are also essential in teaching
reading, writing, listening, using tech, and so much more.
Within your free WordPress website, create a blog section and create
interactive activities for each blog. For example, you can start a blog with
a title, topic, and introduction paragraph. Then each student will add a
section while staying on topic and true to the overall blog story.
Once published, your students can read it all, listen to it, and share it with
their parents. It is interactive in the classroom, as well as bringing the
learning experience home.

5. Using Social Media as a Teaching Tool

If you have grown students, chances are they are on social media. This is
good, because you can leverage one of their favorite ways to spend time
for learning. For instance, you can pull a video from YouTube and use it
for Q&A sessions. Or you can use travel images of social media
influencers as a discussion piece in class.
5. Describe the role of gender equality in attaining the
targets of Education for All (EFA).
Gender equality is a global priority for UNESCO and inextricably linked to its
efforts to promote the right to education and support the achievement of
the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The Education 2030 agenda recognizes that gender equality requires an

approach that ‘ensures that girls and boys, women and men not only gain
access to and complete education cycles, but are empowered equally in and
through education’.

UNESCO’s work on education and gender equality is guided by the UNESCO

Strategy for gender equality in and through education (2019-2025) and the
Gender Equality Action Plan (2014-2021, 2019 revision). It focuses on
system-wide transformation to benefit all learners equally, and supports
targeted action for girls’ and women’s empowerment across three areas of
priority: better data, better policies and better practices.

Large gender gaps exist in access, learning achievement and continuation

in education in many settings, most often at the expense of girls, although
in some regions boys are at a disadvantage. Despite progress, more girls
than boys still remain out of school - 16 million girls will never set foot in a
classroom (UNESCO Institute for Statistics) - and women account for two
thirds of the 750 million adults without basic literacy skills.

Poverty, geographical isolation, minority status, disability, early marriage

and pregnancy, gender-based violence, and traditional attitudes about the
status and role of women, are among the many obstacles that stand in the
way of women and girls fully exercising their right to participate in, complete
and benefit from education.

Education for All (EFA)

The Education for All movement is a global commitment to provide quality

basic education for all children, youth and adults. The movement was
launched at the World Conference on Education for All in 1990 by UNESCO,
UNDP, UNFPA, UNICEF and the World Bank. Participants endorsed an
'expanded vision of learning' and pledged to universalize primary education
and massively reduce illiteracy by the end of the decade 2005-2015.

Ten years later, with many countries far from having reached this goal, the
international community met again in Dakar, Senegal, and affirmed their
commitment to achieving Education for All. They identified six key education
goals which aim to meet the learning needs of all children, youth and adults
by 2015:

Goal 1: Expand early childhood care and education

Goal 2: Provide free and compulsory primary education for all

Goal 3: Promote learning and life skills for young people and adults

Goal 4: Increase adult literacy by 50 per cent

Goal 5: Achieve gender parity by 2005, gender equality by 2015

Goal 6: Improve the quality of education

TVET particularly contributes to EFA goals 3 and 6 as they relate to life skills.

As the lead agency, UNESCO has been mandated to coordinate the

international efforts to reach Education for All. Governments, development
agencies, civil society, non-government organizations and the media are but
some of the partners working toward reaching these goals