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Teacher Professional Development around the World : The Gap between Evidence and Practice

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  • Popova,Anna
  • Evans,David
  • Breeding,Mary E.
  • Arancibia,Violeta

Abstract

Teachers, like all professionals, require ongoing professional development opportunities to improve their skills. This paper provides evidence on effective professional development characteristics and how at-scale programs incorporate those characteristics. The authors propose a standard set of 70 indicators?the In-Service Teacher Training Survey Instrument?for reporting on professional development programs as a prerequisite for understanding the characteristics of those programs that improve student learning. The authors apply the instrument to rigorously evaluated professional development programs in low- and middle-income countries. Across 33 programs, those programs that link participation to career incentives, have a specific subject focus, incorporate lesson enactment in the training, and include initial face-to-face training tend to show higher student learning gains. In qualitative interviews, program implementers also report follow-up visits as among the most effective characteristics of their professional development programs. The authors then apply the instruments to a sample of 139 government-funded, at-scale professional development programs across 14 countries. This analysis uncovers a sharp gap between the characteristics of teacher professional development programs that evidence suggests are effective and the global realities of most teacher professional development programs.

Suggested Citation

  • Popova,Anna & Evans,David & Breeding,Mary E. & Arancibia,Violeta, 2018. "Teacher Professional Development around the World : The Gap between Evidence and Practice," Policy Research Working Paper Series 8572, The World Bank.
  • Handle: RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:8572
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    4. Blimpo, Moussa P. & Pugatch, Todd, 2021. "Entrepreneurship education and teacher training in Rwanda," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 149(C).
    5. Blimpo, Moussa P. & Pugatch, Todd, 2023. "Unintended Consequences of Youth Entrepreneurship Programs: Experimental Evidence from Rwanda," GLO Discussion Paper Series 1332, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    6. María Lombardi, 2019. "Is the Remedy Worse Than the Disease? The Impact of Teacher Remediation on Teacher and Student Performance in Chile," School of Government Working Papers wp_gob_2019_4, Universidad Torcuato Di Tella.
    7. Bellue, Suzanne & Bouguen, Adrien & Gurgand, Marc & Munier, Valerie & Tricot, André, 2023. "When Effective Teacher Training Falls Short in the Classroom: Evidence from an Experiment in Primary Schools," IZA Discussion Papers 16398, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    8. Cilliers, Jacobus & Fleisch, Brahm & Kotze, Janeli & Mohohlwane, Nompumelelo & Taylor, Stephen & Thulare, Tsegofatso, 2022. "Can virtual replace in-person coaching? Experimental evidence on teacher professional development and student learning," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 155(C).
    9. Lombardi, María, 2019. "Is the remedy worse than the disease? The impact of teacher remediation on teacher and student performance in Chile," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 73(C).
    10. de Hoyos, Rafael, 2020. "Equal opportunities to enhance growth," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 127(C).
    11. Schaffner, Julie & Glewwe, Paul & Sharma, Uttam, 2021. "Why Programs Fail: Lessons for Improving Public Service Quality from a Mixed-Methods Evaluation of an Unsuccessful Teacher Training Program in Nepal," Staff Papers 316663, University of Minnesota, Department of Applied Economics.
    12. Masehlabaka Mokati & Lehlohonolo Kurata, 2023. "Exploring the Impact of Grade 11 Boot Camp Implementation: A Teacher-Centric Perspective in a Secondary School at Mahobong, Lesotho," International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS), vol. 7(12), pages 1568-1579, December.
    13. Johnston, Jamie & Ksoll, Christopher, 2022. "Effectiveness of interactive satellite-transmitted instruction: Experimental evidence from Ghanaian primary schools," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 91(C).
    14. B. Haßler, 2022. "Reaching SDG4 By 2030: characteristics of interventions that can accelerate progress in the lowest-income countries," DECISION: Official Journal of the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta, Springer;Indian Institute of Management Calcutta, vol. 49(2), pages 189-194, June.
    15. Romero, Mauricio & Bedoya, Juan & Yanez-Pagans, Monica & Silveyra, Marcela & de Hoyos, Rafael, 2022. "Direct vs indirect management training: Experimental evidence from schools in Mexico," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 154(C).
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    17. Ricardo Estrada & María Lombardi, 2020. "Skills and Selection into Teaching: Evidence from Latin America," Department of Economics Working Papers wp_gob_2020_10, Universidad Torcuato Di Tella.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • I20 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - General
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • O10 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - General

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