Phases of Professional Development Pre-service and In-service with Difference for Teachers

Back to: Learning and Teaching Unit 5

Professional development for teachers refers to the learning opportunities of teachers that aid them in improving their teaching methods, acknowledge their strengths and weaknesses, and work on improving them so that they can become better professionally.

There are two phases of professional development for teachers which include the pre-service phase and the in-service phase. The pre-service phase of professional development occurs before the individuals get employed and become professional while the in-service phase occurs after the individual gets employed and becomes a professional teacher.

Pre-service Phase of Professional Development

The pre-service phase of professional development includes the following:

Base Knowledge

In this phase, individuals gain basic knowledge about teaching and the principles that guide the profession.

Theoretical Knowledge

Individuals gain more theoretical knowledge in this phase than practical knowledge as opposed to the in-service phase.

Technical Skills

In this phase, potential teachers learn how to use various technical skills such as computers, creating spreadsheets, presentations, and the like.

Psychology

In this phase, potential teachers have to touch on psychology to understand the cognitive functioning of children.

Lesson Plan

In the pre-service, potential teachers also train on how to create lesson plans so that they can be fully prepared for the topic they have to teach.

In-service Phase of Professional Development

The in-service phase of professional development includes the following:

Interpersonal Skills

Interpersonal skills to communicate effectively not only with learners but with other teachers and staff are necessary. Training in improving one’s interpersonal skills is therefore necessary and this can be achieved through in-service professional development.

Professional Certification

These days, it is mandatory for teachers to hold a professional certification of teacher training so that they can be eligible to practice the profession and be more aware of the things they need to consider when teaching. Professional development, hence, allows teachers to obtain professional certifications.

Leadership Skills

Having leadership skills is extremely necessary for teachers because they must be able to have a command over the class. Professional development enhances the leadership skills of teachers.

Class Management Skills

Professional development enables them to manage the classroom more efficiently through training and activities that train them to manage a huge group of people.

Communication Skills

Teachers must communicate frequently to teach their subject effectively but it is equally important to interact with students and ensure they are understanding what is being taught. For this, a teacher should have good communication skills and professional development can improve their communication skills.

Teaching is a profession that yields other professions and therefore, it is extremely necessary for teachers to be good at their profession and go through professional development.