Teaching Profession Project

There are four strands to the Teaching Profession Project (TPP).

The first strand involves roundtable discussions with academics, teachers and other educationalists on the theme of “Professional Learning”. The discussions focus on enabling teachers to be informed about educational research, to reflect on their practice and to gain knowledge about the needs of learners.

The second strand produces podcasts under the heading “Education Exchange”, which focus on exploring issues related to becoming a teacher. The podcasts are developed through the sharing of insights, practical advice as well as assisting practitioners to thrive in the classroom.

The third strand comprises interviews with individuals under the heading “Learning from Leaders: Voices of Experience”. The interviews focus on leadership in schools that has had a significant impact upon the development of staff, pupils’ learning, organisational management and classroom teaching.

The fourth strand involves guest lectures under the heading “Experts in Education”. It has a focus on experts in the field of teacher education with specialised understanding in learning and teaching through study, practice, research and publications.

The main output of the TPP takes the form of video and audio files, which can be viewed and listened to by clicking on the various links below. Commenting on the significance of the TPP, the College’s Dean for Development, Dr Gabrielle Nig Uidhir, noted the following:

“St Mary’s has a long tradition of serving the educational community and delivering high quality teacher education. In that spirit of service, the Teaching Profession Project creates opportunities for teachers and other educators to share knowledge and experience about current issues of importance to the profession. The project acknowledges the importance of the role of the teacher in children’s lives and opens channels for exploring key issues that impact upon professional lives. This project builds upon a well-established record for investing in relationships. It provides a space for sharing professional understandings, often based on practical experience and informed by research. This in turn generates opportunities to extend professional learning.”