Professional self-development of a teacher: global trends

Abstract

The author analyzed the present state of the problem of professional development of pedagogical workers, the world tendencies and normality of the investigated phenomenon are revealed. The investigation proves that modern education systems seek to provide teachers with opportunities for professional self-development to maintain a high standard of teaching and to retain a high-quality teacher workforce. A comparative analysis of the survey results of over 70,000 educators from 23 participating countries regarding their professional development has been carried out. The study proves that effective professional development of a teacher is on-going process, includes training, practice and feedback, and demands adequate time and support of the head of the educational institution. It has been established that the intensity, duration and forms of professional self-development as an active specific activity of the teacher depend on his/her personality. It is proved that the location of the institution of education, the form of ownership does not affect the course of this process. The study recognises that professional self-development of a teacher can be provided in many ways, ranging from the formal to the informal; in the form of courses, workshops or formal qualification programmes, collaboration between educational institutions or teachers across the country.