Global teachers' Summit focuses on culture change | WPN World People News

In his analysis of the latest studies on education, EI Senior Consultant John Bangs narrowed in on the main topics of this year's summit on the teaching profession: efficacy, leadership, collaboration and innovation.

EI Senior Consultant John Bangs addresses the 5th International Summit on the Teaching Profession in Banff, Alberta Canada

What do we know?

First I want to acknowledge and welcome the OECD’s decision to put teacher self-efficacy at the centre of the narrative on children’s learning. Teacher self- confidence is a vital component of self-efficacy but efficacy is more than that.

To quote Bandura,

The exercise of personal agency is achieved through reflective and regulative thought, the skills at one’s command and other tools of self-influence that affect choice and support selected courses of action.

In other words; it’s knowing that you as a teacher can make a positive difference to children’s learning.

This Summit is blessed with a whole range of new evidence; From the OECD in the form of TALIS and PISA. TALIS and Linda Darling-Hammond’s further analysis of the TALIS data, academic research on the importance of teacher efficacy and leadership.

PISA’s conclusions that the Clint Eastwood model of school leadership is actually harmful to student outcomes,

Michael Fullan’s studies on teachers’ professional capital- I won’t go on. All this recent evidence confirms that teachers are worth listening to.

That there is a strong positive relationship between high levels of student outcomes and teachers’ self-efficacy. Every teacher in this room would be forgiven for saying so what? We know this already.

But there’s an enormous difference between a hunch and real evidence. Real evidence is empowering. It’s just that evidence wasn’t there before in digestible form. We didn’t have it then and now we do.

The power of professional collaboration. The importance of teacher leadership. Teachers’ beliefs about whether society values them. The importance to student achievement of paying teachers properly. And some other evidence I want to refer to.

The relationship of high class sizes to teacher shortages. Linda Darling Hammond’s further analysis of TALIS links high class sizes to teacher shortages. Exhaustion leads to burnout and burnout leads to teachers leaving.

I’d also say that what we know about the importance of one to one tuition and small group tuition must challenge views that high class sizes don’t affect pupil achievement.

And of course the vital importance of support to teachers in securing a positive classroom climate and student behaviour.

So to summarise.

All of these findings factor into teacher efficacy. And we have a triangulation between successful education systems. The value which countries place on qualified teachers. And the collective self-efficacy of the teaching profession.

Source: Education International