I am still thinking about what encourages engagement in CPD and wanted to thank @JaneDavis13 for a mention of threshold concepts on Twitter. I'd be grateful for any comments on the following.
If, as Meyer and Land (2003) suggest, there are particular ‘threshold concepts’ that enable students to make a leap in their understanding, then I posit that there may be similar moments within a teacher’s professional development. Such moments are likely to be transformative, irreversible, integrative, bounded and troublesome (ibid: 4,5). Extending these ideas to engagement with CPD:
• Transformative – passing across this threshold may involve a ‘significant shift in perception’ and this may ‘involve a performative element’(op cit). In terms of CPD, perhaps we need to try something out, or at least hear first hand recommendations, before we believe it might be likely to help.
• Irreversible – is this what makes it difficult for those teachers who do constantly reflect upon their practice and its development to understand why others do not appreciate this?
• Integrative – in my view, the aspect of making connections between different contexts is one of the key components in successfully assimilating CPD experiences.
• Bounded – I think that in secondary schools and higher education, this may be more of an issue than in the primary phase. We may hear teachers say things like, ‘that would not work in my curriculum area’.
• Troublesome – again, the idea that new knowledge may come from a context which has hitherto not been experienced may go some way to explaining reluctance to engage.
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