The impacts of professional development

QAA Cymru has published a major resource charting The Impact of Staff Professional Development on Teaching Practice and Student Learning and Performance.

Funded by Medr - Wales's Commission for Tertiary Education and Research - this new report comprises a collection of 13 case studies developed by colleagues based in colleges and universities across the nation.

These detailed case studies include: evaluations of the impacts of professional development for hourly-paid staff and postgraduate students; the promotion of action research; support for bilingual and flexible delivery; training in trauma; resilience; the uses of artificial intelligence and feedback literacy strategies; as well as the benefits of collaborative professional development networking across the Welsh sector.

It includes contributions from colleagues based at Aberystwyth University, Coleg Cambria, Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol, Coleg Sir Gâr and Coleg Ceredigion, Grŵp Llandrillo Menai, the University of South Wales, the University of Wales Trinity Saint David and Wrexham University.

'We very much hope that the insights brought together in this report will prove valuable not only for our colleagues in Wales but also across the tertiary sector throughout the UK', says Christine Jones, who led the project for QAA Cymru. 'The evaluation of the impacts of these professional development activities should benefit both students and colleagues - and should help inform those developing strategy and policy in this area. We're very grateful to our colleagues at Medr for their support, and - the participating colleges and universities for sharing - these exciting initiatives.'