Professional development for family learning programmes: a rationale and outline curriculum

Abstract

AbstractPractice in working with parents is changing and communicating with parents is increasingly a part of teachers' responsibilities. Besides focusing on supporting their children's learning, many schools now involve parents in education for themselves. Yet despite the expectation that they will work to engage parents in their children's learning, in England and Wales pre‐16 teachers receive little or no support in understanding the different pedagogical practices for working with adults. This article outlines a curriculum for professional development to support family learning programmes and describes approaches that enable both pre‐ and post‐16 teachers to gain transferable skills for working with adult groups. The main focus is on the needs of pre‐16 teachers who have to meet the challenges of working across sectors. The article highlights the need to include in professional development programmes both content and methods that are most likely to result in reflection and changes in practice.