CONTINUING PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT: THE LIFEBLOOD OF THE TEACHING PROFESSION 

THE PHILOSOPHICAL BASIS OF CPD

"Growth is an evidence of life." This implies that anything that is alive grows or anything that grows is alive. So a teacher who is alive grows physically, psychologically, mentally, socially, emotionally, spiritually. If he/she doesn't grow, it means he/she is no longer alive. 

“Man/woman is an unfinished project”. For a professional teacher, he/she is always in the process of becoming better and better as a person and at a professional teacher. No person, no professional can claim he she has already "arrived" at a state of perfection. Neither Perfecta" nor "Perfecto" who is perfect by name is not perfect. This means that no professional has arrived at a perfect State. This implies that every professional is expected to continue developing.

THE HISTORICAL AND LEGAL BASES OF CONTINUING PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT IN THE PHILIPPINES

Even before the enactment of this CPD Act of 2016, CPD was already alluded to in the 1987 Philippine Constitution. No less than the fundamental law of the land, Section 5, Paragraph 4, states: "The State shall enhance the right of teachers to professional advancement.

Other laws also cited continuing professional development, as follows:

1. Batas Pambansa 232, the Education Act of 1982, Chapter 3. Duties and Obligations, Section 16, (4) states as one of teacher's obligations to assume the responsibility to maintain and sustain his professional growth and advancement.

2. RA 9155, An Act Instituting a Framework of Governance for Basic Education, Establishing Authority and Accountability, renaming the Department of Education, Culture and Sports as the Department of Education, and for other purposes, was enacted on August 11, 2001. 

In addition to his/her powers under existing laws, the Secretary of Education shall have authority, accountability and responsibility among other things for .. (6) Enhancing the employment status, professional competence, welfare and working conditions of all personnel of the Department;…. Section 7, E states, to wit, " ...Consistent with the national educational policies, plans and standards, the school heads shall have authority, accountability and responsibility for .. encouraging staff development, " (Underscoring mine)

3. RA 7836, the Teachers' Professionalization Act, also provided for mandatory Continuing Professional Education (CPE), now referred to as Continuing Professional Development (CPD), to wit:

To encourage continuing professional growth and development and to provide additional basis for merit promotion, in addition to their performance rating, teachers may take an oral and written examination at least once in five (S) years as basis for merit promotion. In taking this examination, no fee shall be required (Sec. 19. Periodic Merit Examination of Teachers).

  Unfortunately, due to lack of funding, the merit examination has not been implemented up to writing time.

The same RA. 7836 states: Unjustified or willful failure to attend seminars, workshops, conferences and the like or the continuing education program prescribed by the Board and the Commission (Sec. 23, h. Revocation of the Certificate of Registration, Suspension from the Practice of the Teaching Profession, and Cancellation of Temporary or Special Permit).

4. The Board for Professional Teachers (BPT) also passed Resolution No. 435, s. 177 to adopt the Code of Ethics for Professional Teachers pursuant to the provisions of paragraph (e) Article 11 of RA. 7836, otherwise known as The Philippine Teachers' Professionalization Act of 1994. This Code of Ethics states:

Every teacher shall participate in the Continuing Professional Education (CPE) program of the Professional a Regulation Commission, and shall pursue such other studies as will improve his efficiency, enhance the prestige of his profession, and strengthen his competence, virtues, and productivity in order to be nationally and internationally competitive. (Section 3, Article IV)

5. Executive Order # 266, Institutionalization of the Continuing - Professional Education (CPE) Programs of the Various Professional Regulatory Boards (PRBs) Under the Supervision of the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC). This was signed and issued by the Office of then President Fidel V. Ramos on July 25, 1995, to wit:

THIS EXECUTIVE ORDER WAS PREMISED ON THE FOLLOWING:

WHEREAS, the various professions play a crucial role in nation-building;

WHEREAS, it is imperative to impose upon registered professionals the completion of the Continuing

Professional Education (CPE) programs adopted by the concerned Board as a pre-requisite for the renewal of their licenses;

WHEREAS, the professionals who undertake the CPE programs are enabled not only to upgrade or improve their technical knowledge and skills but also to Keep them abreast with modern trends and technology in their respective professions, thereby assuring the rendition of highly qualitative professional services that will be globally competitive under the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) and the same time securing the safety and protection of the public;

WHEREAS, the confidence and patronage of the public in a professional depend upon his competence and the quality of service rendered resulting from his acquisition of updated technical knowledge and skill;

6. RA 10912, Continuing Professional Development Act of 2016 - With the enactment of this law, CPD for all the forty three (43) professions regulated by PRC including the teaching profession has become mandatory. 

THE SALIENT PROVISIONS OF RA10912, THE CONTINUING PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT ACT OF 2016

A lot of questions have been raised about RA. 10912, otherwise known as the Continuing Professional Development Act of 2016. Many a teacher resists CPD. It is claimed to be extra expense, extra effort and extra time when in fact it is every professional' s obligation. CD is the only way professionals can sharpen their competitive edge in an international world that has become global village. The need for CPD is heightened by ASEAN integration and internationalization which are now real. To be in, a professional must meet international standards. The way to go is CPD.

THE PURPOSES OF CPD FOR PROFESSIONALS ARE STATED IN RA 10912, ARTICLE 1 DECLARATION OF POLICY

    It is hereby declared the policy of the State to promote and upgrade the practice of professions in the country, Towards this end, the State shall institute measures that will continuously improve the competence of the professionals in accordance with the international standards of practice, thereby, ensuring their contribution in uplifting the general welfare, economic growth and development of the nation (Underscoring mine). The State policy on promoting and upgrading the practice of professions in the country and the institution of measures to "continuously improve the competence of the professionals in accordance with international standards" and gives Filipino professionals a competitive edge in the ASEAN region and in the

world. 

Number of CPD Units Required

   Article Ill, Section 10 of the same CPD Act states: "The CPD is ...made as a mandatory requirement in the renewal of the Professional Identification Card (PICs) of all registered and licensed professionals… How many credit units are required for the renewal of PICs? For the professional teachers' group, based on Professional Regulatory Board for Professional Teachers Resolution No. 11, series of 2017, the following credit units are required.

Ways By Which Professional Teachers Can Earn Credit Units

As shown in the figure below CPD credit units can be earned in 4 ways.

1. Professional track - This includes trainings provided by CPD providers accredited by PRC. You can earn credit units as a participant to a training approved by the CPD Council. You earn more credit units if you serve as a resource speaker, trainer or demonstration teacher, You also earn credit units as panelist /reactor, facilitator/moderator. You earn much more if you are assigned by the CPD Council to monitor the conduct of an approved CPD program.

2. Academic track - This refers to the completion of a Master's degree, completion of candidacy to the doctorate program, completion of the doctorate program, completion of a post- doctoral diploma, and being a recipient of a professorial chair grant, and/or fellowship grant. Take note that ONLY COMPLETION of the Master's degree is given full credit units of 45. Earning MA units is not given any credit unit but completion of candidacy for the Doctorate degree already entitles one to 45 credit units. The master's and doctorate degrees must have been earned five (5) years before renewal of professional license.

3. Self-directed track - This includes trainings offered by non- accredited CPD providers. It refers to "learning activities such as online training, local/international seminars /non-degree courses, institution/company sponsored training programs and the like which did not undergo CPD accreditation but may be applied for and awarded CPD units by the respective CPD Councils.

In addition, self-directed track includes serving as accreditor (e.g. ISO, ISA, PACUCOA, PAASCU, AACUP, etc.) It also includes study tours and socio-civic activities using the profession.

4. Productive Scholarship - This means that the professional teacher has developed program/training module, curriculum guide or any other resource material. Or the professional teacher has written an article in a professional magazine or a technical /research paper and even better if that technical paper is published in a refereed/peer -reviewed professional journal. Best if the professional teacher writes a book or a monograph or comes up with an invention or creative work, the latter entitles him/her to 45 credit units. Even professional and / or lifetime achievement awards from the division level to regional, national and international level make the professional teacher earn credit units.

Continuing Professional Development Plan

A proof that a professional teacher has made CPD his/her way of life is his/her formulation of a CPD plan which he/she religiously follows whether monitored or not monitored by his/her superior/s because he/she monitors himself/herself. Developing a personal CPD Plan helps teacher leaders develop purposively. It is not enough to have a good intention to do CPD. it is best that good intention should be made concrete in a simple and doable plan. Every professional who has sincere intent to grow professionally must have an annual personal CPD plan.

Professional teachers formulating their respective annual CPD Plans and faithfully observing them lead to the building of a CPD culture among professional teachers. With that CPD culture, the negative attitude towards mandatory CPD hopefully will fade away. We hope to reach a point where professional teachers will oblige themselves to go through CPD not because it is mandatory but because this is something they owe to themselves as professionals and to the public they serve. This is professionalism.

Templates for a CPD Plan

Below are two templates for a CPD Plan. The first one is the template used in the public schools. The second is another template used by others. Comparing the two templates make one conclude that they are basically the same. The different terms used actually refer to the same. Take note of the sample questions. They ask basically the same things.

Joining Professional Learning Community/ Communities of Practice

• CPD is made possible and alive through professional learning communities (PLCs) These PLCs are powerful collaborations in which teachers work together to analyze and improve their classroom practice in a systematic process,

• The Department of Education institutionalized the School Learning Action Cells (SLACs) as a mechanism for CPD.

• In an interview with beginning teachers and administrators on conditions that help them improve their own practice, the answer boils down to this "working in a school with an integrated professional culture.

LEARNING FROM THE CPD PRACTICES OF HIGH PERFORMING COUNTRIES

1. CPD in Singapore

   Singapore is the first country in the world to adopt the PIC framework nationwide. (Dimmock & Tan, 2013; Hairon & Dimmock, 2011) It has institutionalized PLC in its schools. Professional development is very much alive. In 2010 the Ministry of Education (MOE) mandated all schools to be a "learning organization". This "learning organization" concept of schools supports the building of a strong mentorship culture where a collaborative and community-oriented form of professional development thrives. Every teacher is entitled to 100 hour per year of optional training which everyone makes use of. Schools are encouraged to provide at least one hour of curricular time per week for teachers to actively engage in school-based Professional Development (PD) initiatives. These PLCs are led by school leaders who provide teachers with structures and resources to engage in a variety of inquiry-based PD practices.

           For PD, Singapore has 1) Teacher-Researcher Networks, 2) Lesson study and other forms of "Learing Circles"

In the Teacher-Researcher Networks, faculty researchers rom NIB, senior specialists from MOL, and teacher researcher including those with higher formal training in research (who are Palled "research activists") serve as mentors to teachers to conduct action research. The overall goal of these learning communities is to provide teachers with resources to engage in action research (Hairon,2006), which is usually a form of classroom-based investigation where teachers discuss and reflect upon pedagogical problems and find their own solutions to improve teaching and learning. 

The teacher-researcher network follow these steps:

a. Identification and definition of a problem;

b. Planning for improvement;

c. Implementation of teaching/learning activities;

d. Observation of results (data collection)

e. Reflection on the outcomes.

At the completion of the research, participants write a group reflective journal to summarize the procedures, findings, conclusions, and implications of the study. These action research journals are shared with other groups of teachers interested in similar classroom problems. Opportunity like a forum, symposium and publications are given to teachers to share their research findings.

Another effective strategy for PD in Singapore is the lesson study (Lewis, Perry, & Hurd, 2004) adopted from Japan. The overall goal of lesson study is to foster collaborative inquiry and data-driven pedagogical reflection among teachers.

How is this done? This consists of four cyclical phases (Tan, 2014):

1. Study phase - Teachers analyze the curriculum to be taught and formulate long-term teaching and learning goals;

2. Planning phase - Teachers select lessons for research, predict student thinking and difficulties, and plan the implementation of specific lessons for data collection;

3. Analysis phase - Teachers observe and discuss the classroom evidence collected (e.g., videos, student written work);

4. Reflection phase - Teachers discuss student learning and identify new areas for further inquiry.

Much of the professional development of Singaporean teachers ccurs within school settings through the Learning Circles or Learning Teams. With the widely - accepted concept of "schools as laming organizations" and with teachers' welcoming attitude to PD, there are a number of work embedded opportunities for PD. Topics for PD range from curriculum innovation, student-centric teaching practices, new uses of ICT; collaborative lesson planning, to project-based learning.

2. CPD in Finland 

   Teachers in Finland meet one afternoon each week to jointly to share materials. plan and develop curriculum. They are encouraged to work together.

3. CD in Japan

    Lesson Study Approach to Professional Development Japan is well known for lesson study. How does Japan do lesson study as a strategy for professional development. Below is a detailed description of how Japan implements a lesson study:

Every teacher periodically prepares a best possible lesson that demonstrates strategies to achieve a specific goal (e.g. students becoming active problem-solvers or students learning more fromeach other) in collaboration with other colleagues. A group of teachers observe while the lesson is taught and usually record the lesson in a number of ways, including videotapes, audiotapes, and narrative and/or checklist observations that focus on areas of interest to the instructing teacher (e.g., how many student volunteered their own ideas). Afterwards, the group of teachers, and sometimes outside educators, discuss the lesson's strengths and weakness, ask questions, and make suggestions to improve the lesson. In some cases the revised lesson is given by another teacher only a few days later and observed and discussed again.

Teachers themselves decide the theme and frequency of research lessons. Large study groups often break up into subgroups of 4-6

teachers. The subgroups plan their own lessons but work toward the same goal and teachers from all subgroups share and comment on

lessons and try to attend the lesson and follow-up discussion. For a typical lesson study, the 10-15 hours of group meetings are spread over three to four weeks. While schools let out between 2:40 and 3:45 p.m., teachers' work days don't end until 5 p.m., which provides additional time for collegial work and planning. Most lesson study meetings occur during the hours after school lets out. The research lessons allow teachers to refine individual lessons, consult with other teachers and get colleagues' observations about their classroom practice, reflect on their own practice, learn new content and approaches, and build a culture that emphasizes continuous improvement and collaboration.

Some teachers also give public research lessons, which expedites the spread of best practices across schools, allows principals, district personnel, and policymakers to see how teachers are grappling with new subject matter and goals, and gives recognition to excellent teachers.

4. CPD in New Zealand

In New Zealand, the Ministry of Education gives funds for 20 percent release time for new teachers and 10 percent release time for second-year teachers Ministry of Education to observe other teachers, attend professional development activities, courses and work on curriculum. Mentor teachers deliberately spend time to observe and confer with beginning teachers.

CHARACTERISTICS OF EFFECTIVE CPD

Based on the professional development practices and experiences of high performing countries, we can say that a CPD that works is 

1) continuous; 

2) collaborative; 

3) focused on a specific teacher need;

4) job-embedded; 

5) given enough time and 

6) funded. The one-shot workshops that teachers bemoan don't work.

• CD must be continuous thus the word Continuing Professional Development. A professional does not stop developing or else he/she ruts. Stagnant water becomes putrid.

• CPD must also be collaborative, thus the need to be part of a PLC, a professional learning community. It was Helen Keller who said "Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much."

• CPD must be focused on a specific teacher need. It responds to a need and so is highly relevant to the teacher. A CPD that is prescribed by higher officials does not necessarily respond to teachers' need.

• If CD is job-embedded, it becomes even more relevant. The teacher has not to be removed from the workplace for CPD so there he/she does. is no work disruption. What the teacher is trained on is exactly what.

• Quality CPD demands adequate time. What is 10 to 20 hours removed from contact time with learners? Quality time spent for learners. CD ultimately redounds to improved teaching for the benefit of CPD with support funds is definitely better than one without.

One cannot give what one does not have. A teacher who embraces Continuing Professional Development will have more to give to his/her students and to all others whom he/she serves. The CPD Act of 2016 requires every professional teacher to go through CPD. CPD units are a requirement for the renewal of professional licenses.

Let us learn from the CPD practices of countries which are known for their sterling school performance. Finland and New Zealand have institutionalized CPD and so set time for CPD within the teachers' teaching schedule. In New Zealand. teachers observe other teachers, attend professional development activities, courses and work on curriculum, mentor teachers deliberately and spend time to observe and confer with beginning teachers.

Japan is well-known for its lesson study where a teacher demonstrates a lesson as he/she is observed by his/her colleagues. The demonstration lesson is open to critiquing by fellow teachers for professional development.

Singapore has its lesson study, too, in addition to Teacher- Researcher Networks, Lesson Study and other forms of "Learning Circles."

Based on the professional development practices and experiences of high-performing countries, we can say that a CPD that works is 1) continuous; 2) collaborative; 3) focused on a specific teacher need; 4) job-embedded; 5) given enough time and 6) funded. The one-shot workshops that teachers bemoan don't work.