CPD Series Part 1 - Impact of Teacher Professional Development

As a teacher you know that teaching isn’t just a job, it’s about caring, nurturing and imparting your knowledge and skills onto children in the hope of making their lives better and more successful in the future. In order to ensure you are providing the best possible learning for your pupils and to work towards your wider professional goals it’s important that you have a continuous professional development (CPD) plan in place.  

Why professional development is important  

Teaching is an ever-changing discipline which requires regular development to ensure you not only remain competent in your role but also to allow you to continue to grow and enjoy teaching for many years. Many teachers report that by engaging in continuing development their confidence is increased and motivation is improved leading to a much more stimulating teaching experience and workplace satisfaction. With Teacher Trapp reporting that 93% of teachers believe that CPD makes them better teachers overall, it’s clear to see the impact CPD can have.  

A Professional Development Plan allows you to follow a practical framework to ensure you can keep up to date with industry developments, refine your skills, learn new ones and deepen your knowledge to improve the learning experience of your students.  

Want to know more about how to build a professional development plan? Visit 

Impact of professional development for teachers 

As we highlighted above CPD allows you to stay up to date with practices and standards as well as keeping you refreshed on your subject area and required skills. However, CPD can also be hugely beneficial for your future career plans. By having a focused CPD plan you can map out what your career goals are and then take a relevant training course to ensure you are in the best placed position to achieve them. For example, if you have aspirations of moving into the senior leadership team, a NPQSL qualification would be required.  

If you don’t currently know what career path you wish to take, then focus on training that interests you this could open up new opportunities you hadn’t considered.  

How does professional development impact student learning?  

As a teacher, student learning outcomes are your top priority, by taking part in professional development you can actively improve classroom learning. Evidence shows that a development plan that is specifically designed for a particular subject matter has been found to be significant in boosting student learning. As no two pupils learn in the same way, by participating in relevant subject specific CPD you can learn ways to best support all the pupils in your classroom. This lessens the risk of any pupils falling behind.  

A 2021 study published in the Journal of School Psychology found that teachers who engaged in CPD were also better able to support their students emotionally as well as academically which led to notable improvements in academic outcomes through a more holistic approach to teaching and learning.  

In ONVU Learning’s CPD Whitepaper Emma Wilks, Vice Principal of Nishkam School agreed that by putting teachers at the heart of their own CPD it becomes more relevant for the students.  

“Giving staff a more central role in their CPD keeps it relevant to their pupils.”  

All the evidence shows that CPD really does play a vital role in improving your student’s learning experience and boosting academic outcomes.   

As you can see CPD really does benefit the whole classroom from teacher delivery and enjoyment to improved pupil learning outcomes. Speak to your school and see how you can take the next steps in your teaching career.  

Interested in learning more about the power of CPD? Then read our Whitepaper and hear just how much our partner schools value CPD and the power it can have to improve our schools.