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In the Philippines, the Department of Education uses the Plan-Do-Study-Act cycle to scale-up, and embed, a teacher professional development programme for Kindergarten to Grade 3 teachers on early language, literacy and numeracy: ELLN Digital – which combines

• guided independent study using offline courseware,
• classroom practice, and
• face-to-face collaborative learning in school-based Learning Action Cells.

ELLN Digital was tested with over 4-thousand teachers across the Philippines. Since 2019, it is being scaled to reach over 250-thousand teachers, in 38-thousand schools.

The programme is practice-based: teachers study and then apply their learning in classroom lessons. The digital course materials are offline, so lack of internet access is not a barrier to participation. Self-study modules remove the cost of face-to-face trainings.

The two-week Plan-Do-Study-Act cycle aims for rapid learning and improvement, starting with the PLAN for schools to follow the ELLN Digital programme.

Teachers DO the offline modules, and they quickly apply what they learn in their own classroom lessons. Next, teachers STUDY: they reflect on their learning and teaching in the Learning Action Cells, led by a facilitator. Teachers then ACT: they analyze problems, and take steps to improve their language, literacy and numeracy lessons. As teachers PLAN their next lessons, and DO classroom activities, the PDSA cycle continues.

At the same time, facilitators and school heads also Plan-Do-Study and Act. Every two weeks, they observe and support teachers in the classroom. They take steps to improve the professional learning experience, by identifying and prioritizing quickly actionable problems.

For instance, teachers might lack computer time to finish learning the self-study modules, or a facilitator might not be prepared to meet with teachers. Teachers might have challenges applying their learning with children in the classroom. Solutions are assessed over the next two-week Plan-Do-Study-Act cycle.

ELLN Digital is an example of adaptive TPD@Scale. Teachers access high quality training in self-study, digital offline formats. They immediately apply their learning in the classroom, then continue to learn collaboratively in Learning Action Cells. They reflect and analyse challenges, with other teachers and with a facilitator. Facilitators and school heads use teachers’ feedback to improve the course, as it is being studied and applied in the classroom. As the course gets better, so does teachers’ professional development.

In this way, teachers, facilitators and school heads are all continuously and rapidly adapting to improve the TPD course, how it is managed by the school, and teachers’ experience of the course.

Meanwhile, the Department for Education conducts its own Plan-Do-Study-Act cycle. They PLAN and DO the roll-out and implementation of ELLN Digital. They STUDY and ACT on data and feedback from teachers, school heads and facilitators, in order to improve central assistance to local schools.

When all stakeholders are involved in the Plan-Do-Study-Act cycle, the ongoing adaptations at all levels, from the classroom to the Department of Education, generate evidence for further, system-wide learning and change.

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As you can see in the Compendium examples, successful TPD@Scale programmes are an integral element of official education policy: they are designed and delivered through a ministry of education, or shift to being wholly owned by the ministry, or are driven primarily by the ministry from the start.

Successful TPD@Scale design is also holistic and facilitates interaction between teachers and educators from all levels, so that educators who are outside schools and classrooms are aware of the conditions of teachers.

Make notes in your Personal Blog: Think about your TPD context in terms of sustainability. Is it owned or driven by the ministry of education? Does it involve all ‘actors’ in the education system? Is TPD continually evaluated and improved?

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