Teacher Professional Development (CPD/MCPD)
What this domain covers
Continuing Professional Development (CPD), sometimes framed as Mandatory or Managed CPD (MCPD), is the structured process by which teachers maintain and extend their competence throughout their careers. Candidates must understand why CPD is required, how it is planned and recorded, how it links to appraisal and registration renewal, and what counts as legitimate professional learning.
Concepts to master
- CPD as a professional obligation and a renewal condition, not an optional extra.
- The CPD cycle: identify need (self-assessment, appraisal, school priorities), plan, undertake, reflect, record, and evaluate impact on learning.
- Types of CPD: formal (courses, qualifications), collaborative (peer observation, coaching, professional learning communities), and informal/self-directed (reading, action research).
- Reflective practice as the mechanism converting activity into improved teaching.
- Impact on learner outcomes as the ultimate measure of effective CPD.
- Recording and evidence required for renewal, and the role of mentors or CPD coordinators.
Traps in questions
A frequent distractor equates CPD with attendance at workshops or with accumulating hours; the stronger answer links development to identified need and evaluated impact. Another trap treats CPD as purely individual when school and system priorities also shape it. Questions may test who is responsible: the teacher owns their development, but employers and the regulator must provide support and verification.
Worked example / rule of thumb
A teacher attends many courses but cannot show any change in practice. Rule of thumb: CPD is judged by impact, not by hours logged; valid CPD includes reflection and evidence of changed practice or improved learner outcomes.
Key points
- CPD is a condition of continuing registration
- The cycle runs from needs analysis to evaluated impact
- Formal, collaborative and self-directed learning all count
- Reflection converts activity into improvement
- Teachers own their development; employers and regulators support it
- Impact on learners, not hours, is the measure