Professional Development in Education: A Comprehensive Review

The assignment focuses on exploring current trends in professional development, particularly learning and virtual learning environments. It tasks students to analyze feedback received from senior managers for improving personal and professional development plans. Students are encouraged to utilize references from books and journals such as 'Professional and Personal Undergraduates’ Development' by Agafonova et al., 'The Future of Faculty Development' by Austin & Sorcinelli, and more. The assignment also includes an online resource, '5 Benefits of Professional Development', to provide additional insights.

MANAGE
PERSONAL AND
PROF DEV

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
1.1 Comparing sources of information on professional development trends and their validity 1
1.2 The trends and developments that influences the need for professional development ........2
1.3 The current and future personal and professional development ..........................................3
2.1 The benefit of personal and professional development ........................................................3
2.2 The basis on which type of development actions are selected .............................................4
2.3 The current and future skills, ,knowledge ............................................................................4
2.4 A personal and professional development plan ...................................................................4
2.5 Within the agreed budget and timescale executing the plan ................................................6
2.6 Advantages of development opportunities............................................................................7
3.1 SMART objectives ...............................................................................................................7
3.2 Obtaining feedback from valid sources ...............................................................................8
3.3 Review progress towards the personal and professional objectives ....................................8
3.4 In the light of feedback amending the personal and professional development plan...........8
CONCLUSION ...............................................................................................................................9
REFERENCES .............................................................................................................................10

INTRODUCTION
Professional development involves developing oneself in the role to entirely understand
the job that is done and how one can improve. It involves enhancing the necessary skills to carry
out the role as effectively as possible and is something that will continue throughout the
working life (Nicholls, 2014.). IT training, Health and Safety, Accountancy or budgeting, Legal
knowledge or expertise are some examples of professional development. When one think of
personal development, think about what skills one need to accomplish the results required, both
in the role and for life in general. It is about improving the talents and potential, both in and out
of the workplace. Leadership training, Management training, Time management, Handling
difficult situations and conflict management and Communication development skills are some of
the example of personal development.
In this report sources of information on professional development trends and their
validity will be compared and a personal and professional development plan will also be
created in this report
1.1 Comparing sources of information on professional development trends and their validity
Professional development consists of education, observation and mentoring that can help
to enhance the employees in a workplace. It might include training sessions or graduate classes,
spending time with a mentor to observe how others handle conflict or challenges, or mentoring
someone else who might be new to the field.
Professional development for employees
As an employee, much of the professional development will focus on setting personal
professional goals and putting the training provided by the company to good use. Learning more
about the company’s goals and objectives may also be a part of the professional development,
particularly if one intend to remain with the same company and work the way up the ranks.
Professional development for managers
Like employees, managers must also set personal professional goals and work towards
them, but in addition to this, they must also promote the development of employees and look for
ways to improve their team’s skills (Thompson,Amatea and Thompson, 2014).
See if the company is willing to support the professional development
Some companies provide opportunities for professional development as a way of
improving employee retention, and taking advantage of these programs can help you continue to
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grow professionally while saving time and money. Human resources professionals should help
match employees with mentors, and provide the mentors with the training and resources to make
meaningful contributions on behalf of their proteges.
Find a mentor or shadow a colleague
Keep in mind that one don’t need to follow a formal mentoring program, as simply
having an experienced colleague one can go to with the ideas or questions, and who is willing to
give the honest feedback, can be hugely beneficial to the career development (Tseng and Kuo,
2014.).
Attend conferences and workshops
Attending conferences or hands-on workshops will give one a chance learn about the
latest developments in the field and keep the skills and knowledge up to date.
1.2 The trends and developments that influences the need for professional development
The top five learning and development trends that will dominate. Develop the training
strategies around these trends in order to get maximum return on the investment.
Mobile Learning
The number of smartphone users worldwide has crossed 2 billion. The employees spend
significant time on their smartphones. They use mobile devices to do a majority of the daily tasks
including learning new concepts. Use Live Stream micro-videos to catch users’ attention. Rise in
Mobile devices is a global phenomenon. Thus, one can use this strategy to engage more
employees from developed as well as emerging economies (Kunter and Hachfeld, 2013. ).
Social Learning
Social learning is not new. It has been there for quite some time. However, the changes in
the structure of workforce have necessitated the need for social learning as an integral part of
learning and development strategies.
Adaptive Learning
In adaptive learning, the instructions are delivered based on individuals’ preferences and
inputs. The training methods can be optimized by teaching only those concepts which are not
known to a user. Also, the users can learn at their own pace.
Virtual Reality
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Virtual reality is about to change the training and development landscape across
organizations. With VR, the learners can have an immersive experience. The concepts of
augmented reality can be used to create a real environment for teaching complex concepts.
1.3 The current and future personal and professional development
Being the team leader of the company Morrison it is my duty to solve all the disputes
that is being taking place in the company. The various skills and competencies are needed to be
the team leader of the company. The leadership, communication, decision-making , conflict
management and other skills are being required for this position. The best way to find out my
existing competency levels and the areas where I need to improve is skill audit. A good team
leader need to have good communication skills and they must be able to solve all the disputes
that is being taking place in the organization.
2.1 The benefit of personal and professional development
Employee Satisfaction
 Demonstrates a commitment to employees and to their individual development leading to
reduced employee turnover as employee see personal growth opportunities with
company.
 Fosters a culture that encourages, supports, and invests in the development of their
employees enhancing the company image and increasing morale among employees.
Supervisor/manager Collaboration and Feedback
 allows supervisors/managers to develop a better understanding of their employee’s
professional goals, strengths, and developmental needs consequently maximizing
employee potential.
 Provides opportunities for supervisors/managers to develop his/her coaching skills.
Organization Goals and Productivity
 Increases productivity due to upgraded employee skills.
 Employees become more versatile and are better equipped to deal with the changing
demands of the workplace and business environment (Moss, Gibson and Dollarhide,
2014).
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2.2 The basis on which type of development actions are selected
Development actions are the specific action steps that an employee will take, in support
of a development goal, to achieve the desired behavior change.
Self-Development
Reading selected books that relate to a development goal to increase knowledge, gain a
new perspective, or enable one to learn the basics of an unfamiliar field.Observing others who
have considerable expertise in a skill or area in which one needs to grow and develop can be
extremely valuable.
Feedback and Coaching
Actively seeking feedback is highly developmental, and can be very valuable if one is
truly open to listening and committed to taking action to improve. Trusted peers or colleagues
can observe performance or behavior and provide feedback - we just need to ask!
Skill Practice
Another type of development action is practising the new behaviors associated with a
development need in a safe environment.
Developmental Assignments
For some development goals, an individual will need the opportunity for a special
assignment, or the opportunity to take charge of a project that requires the use of new behaviors.
Special assignments or projects should be challenging, designed to force an individual out of
their comfort zone and stretch skills .
2.3 The current and future skills, ,knowledge
I need to improve in decision-making process as I am not being able to make quick
decisions. My strength is that I am being able to develop a positive attitude and I also learn
things easily. My strength is that I have good presentation skills and also have able to complete
the work that is being allotted to the team on time. This show that I also have a good presentation
skills. My weakness is that I do have enough technology knowledge and also I am not able to
manage conflicts and the decision-making skill is also poor. Some of the threats are that
competition in the filed, limited vacancies etc (Huffma and Moller, 2014.). Some of the
opportunities are training and development and better career opportunities as a team leader.
2.4 A personal and professional development plan
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Personal and Professional Development
Skills Activities that will be undertaken Target date Skills
Leadership skills  Specialized training
 Online-course
 Listing actively
 do work in team
 take succession with senior
1st March 2018 Leadership skills
Conflict management  Case study analysis
 Group discussions
30th March 2018 Conflict management
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Decision-making  Case study analysis,
 brainstorming
 online course
 training
 seminars
 workshops
 Develop new programmer
 brainstorming
 cash study solve
12th April 2018 Monitoring and reviewing
Interpersonal skills  Training and seminars 30th May 2018 Monitoring and feedback
2.5 Within the agreed budget and timescale executing the plan
The time that is being set up in order to overcome this above plan is about 9-10 months
and the budget that is being set up in order to achieve this PPD plan is about ¢£14 pounds. Till
1st March 2018 the leadership training will be given .In this the special training and the online
course will be given (Busse, Aboneh and Tefera, 2014.). However till the time 30th march 2018
the conflict management training will be given and the group discussions will be held in order to
make the skills strong Till may 2018 the interpersonal skills will be completed .In order to
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improve the interpersonal skills the training and seminars will be arranged by the company for
the team leader.
2.6 Advantages of development opportunities
Increase Retention
In an era where more and more employers are cutting costs for opportunities like training,
the organization can stand out from the rest by offering and promoting some professional
development options (5 BENEFITS OF PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT, 2017. ).
Build confidence and credibility
No one likes to feel like they are missing important skills in their job. Providing
professional development training opportunities allows the staff to build confidence in the work
they do. It also helps them to build credibility as they continue to gain new skill sets and
certificates (Boud and Brew, 2013. ).
Make succession planning easier
Professional development programs are great tools for training future leaders at the
organization. Rather than hiring outside the business, promoting from within is a great way to
show the staff that they can have a long career with the organization.
Reenergize the staff
Professional development can help break up the monotony of everyday work and
reenergize the staff’s creativity. Providing periodic professional development can also help the
staff gain new skills and perspectives, which can translate into how they approach their jobs.
Improved efficiency
Not only does professional development offer new skill sets, but it also allows the staff
opportunities to learn from others in the training. As other professionals share their experiences,
the staff can pick up new ideas and perspectives (Bayar, 2014.).
3.1 SMART objectives
SMART objective
Specific Through training and by attending seminars I
will work on my decision-making skills in the
next 6 months .
Measurable From the next week I will be attending the
seminars and training sessions and through
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feedback that will be given each week I will be
able to achieve the goals
Attainable The training, case study , seminars will be
attended for the 6 months
Realistic Through skill I will be able to take effective
decision in the company .
Time Withing 6 months I will able to make my
decision-making better and efficient.
3.2 Obtaining feedback from valid sources
From the employees that are working in the organization thee feedback need to be taken
in order to determine thee efficiency of the development plan. the feedback from my senior
staff was received based on the development plans .Through I come to learn about the areas
where I still need to improve (Austin and Sorcinelli, 2013.). On my decision-making skills I
need to work on and also the right decisions need to be made .A negative decisions or wrong
decision can have a negative impact on workplace. So, I need to work on skills. On my conflict
resoling skills also I got a feedback I need to work on this also. With this skills the proper
understanding and trust within members of team can be build
3.3 Review progress towards the personal and professional objectives
By attending seminars, group meetings, training, brainstorming activities all the skills
that is leadership, conflict management, decision-making skills etc can be improved. The
decision-making skills and the conflict resolution skills need to be updated on the basis of the
feedback that is being received (Agafonova, Bryukhova and Kaigorodov, 2015). The updation
need to be done in order to make the plan more effective.
3.4 In the light of feedback amending the personal and professional development plan
Skills Activities that will be
undertaken
Target date Measurement
Decision-making skills Group
discussions,conference
10th June 2018 Meetings,feedback
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s and seminars
Conflict resolution
skills
By reducing
disruptions,brainstorm
ing
15th July 2018 Feedback
CONCLUSION
Thus summing up the above report it can be concluded that professional development
involves developing oneself in the role to entirely understand the job that is done and how one
can improve. Mobile Learning,virtual learning are some the current trends in the professional
development. Through feedback that is being received from the senior manager the
improvement in personal and professional development plan can be made .
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REFERENCES
Books and journals
Agafonova, S., Bryukhova, N. and Kaigorodov, B., 2015. Professional and personal
undergraduates’ development in the educational process from the perspective of competency-
based approach. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences. 214. pp.479-486.
Austin, A.E. and Sorcinelli, M.D., 2013. The future of faculty development: Where are we
going?. New Directions for Teaching and Learning. 2013(133). pp.85-97.
Bayar, A., 2014. The Components of Effective Professional Development Activities in Terms of
Teachers' Perspective. Online Submission. 6(2). pp.319-327.
Boud, D. and Brew, A., 2013. Reconceptualising academic work as professional practice:
Implications for academic development. International Journal for Academic
Development. 18(3). pp.208-221.
Busse, H., Aboneh, E.A. and Tefera, G., 2014. Learning from developing countries in
strengthening health systems: an evaluation of personal and professional impact among
global health volunteers at Addis Ababa University’s Tikur Anbessa Specialized Hospital
(Ethiopia). Globalization and health. 10(1). p.64.
Huffman, J.B. and Moller, G.A.Y.L.E., 2014. Professional learning communities: Leadership,
purposeful decision making, and job-embedded staff development. Journal of School
Leadership. 11(5). pp.448-463.
Kunter, M. and Hachfeld, A., 2013. Professional competence of teachers: Effects on instructional
quality and student development. Journal of Educational Psychology. 105(3). p.805.
Moss, J.M., Gibson, D.M. and Dollarhide, C.T., 2014. Professional identity development: A
grounded theory of transformational tasks of counselors. Journal of Counseling & Development.
92(1). pp.3-12.
Nicholls, G., 2014. Professional development in higher education: New dimensions and
directions. Routledge.
Thompson, I., Amatea, E. and Thompson, E., 2014. Personal and contextual predictors of mental
health counselors' compassion fatigue and burnout. Journal of Mental Health
Counseling. 36(1). pp.58-77.
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Tseng, F.C. and Kuo, F.Y., 2014. A study of social participation and knowledge sharing in the
teachers' online professional community of practice. Computers & Education. 72. pp.37-
47.
Online
5 BENEFITS OF PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT. 2017. [Online] Available through:
<https://www.kaplanfinancial.com/resources/pdc/5-benefits-of-professional-
development/>
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