Creating a Learning culture for all

As the current times show us, our ability to respond and adapt are essential in ensuring that we navigate difficult situations and challenges - and our ability to continue to learn into adulthood, I believe, is a crucial part of ensuring that we can thrive even in these situations. Our Professional Learning programme at St Julian’s is designed to embed Learning and Growth into the heart of everything that we do as educators, both in and out of the classroom - and we don’t feel that is just for our students! In today’s podcast, you will hear from Sarah Dore, our newly appointed Director of Professional Learning at St Julian’s. Over the last couple of years, we have embedded peer-led Professional Learning into our afterschool meeting programme - transforming INSET (In-Service Training) days traditionally placed at the start and the end of the year into a programme of ‘twilights’ spaced regularly throughout the year to have a bigger impact on continuous Professional Learning. This is because we know that learning should not happen just as a one-off, or just on one or 2 days of the year. 

Learning also shouldn’t be just for our students. In these peer-led ‘Teaching Learning Courses (TLCs) peers facilitate the learning of others in areas linked to the school’s strategic plan, and the participants own professional development needs. The impact of peer-led professional development is well documented - particularly when it builds a plan-do-review cycle that the TLCs are based around. For instance, this afternoon I have used one of the strategies that I learnt from one of our Technology Integration Coaches (listen to our previous podcast with Michael Brooke to learn more), Ana Marques, in my Year 11 support session.

Our students enjoy hearing that we are learning too and are always really keen to give us their feedback when we ask ‘I’m trying something new, what do you think? How can I improve it? I have learned immensely from my peers, but also from trying things out in my own classroom and most importantly, asking my students for feedback. It is this culture, one of growth and vulnerability, that we are trying to integrate here at St Julian’s. I truly believe that this is the bedrock of ensuring that learning is the best that it can be - that’s why this also forms such a large part of our Strategic Plan that was launched last year (more to come in future podcasts about our progress with this). For next year we want to aim to embed this Professional Learning time into our school day. When this is done, I believe we will be well on our way to ensuring that Professional Learning (learning for all) is embedded into everything that we do and indeed our future will be brighter as we learn together.

Dr Nicola A Mason
Head of School

Image: Charlie Mackesy

Please note this article was developed prior to the Portuguese government's decision to suspend remote learning.