The value of arts CPD for teachers and arts professionals

We are all about personal growth at Arts Award. After all, this is what is embedded into every level of Arts Award, and metacognition skills development has frequently been cited as a strength of Arts Award’s framework. While we support young people to develop their skills and interests, who’s to say that the adults supporting them can’t also grow and develop in the same way?

Many people have taken stock over the past year, and some have used this time to upskill or retrain. While Arts Award adviser training has an immediate application (it allows you to deliver Arts Award at the right level for the young people you work with) there are many far-reaching benefits to attending an Arts Award training course.

As The CPD Certification Service explains:

‘an individual must see Continuing Professional Development as a way to remain competitive with his or her peers, and as an opportunity to differentiate themselves at moments where this may be required, such as in job interviews or in tenders for new work and business acquisition. As more people become professionally qualified with similar qualifications, CPD becomes more important as a means of separating yourself from the pack.’

For freelance arts practitioners, or those working with or for arts organisations, having something like Arts Award adviser status under your belt helps to demonstrate your commitment to quality arts provision for children and young people, and shows your understanding of the pedagogical importance of well-structured engagement opportunities. For teachers this is another way to demonstrate your knowledge and understanding of your subject, will help your school on its Artsmark journey and provides evidence for Ofsted of the schools’ commitment to subject-focussed CPD.

Aside from being able to deliver Arts Award once trained, the training experience itself gives you the opportunity to network with other like-minded professionals, and connect with arts education practice from a range of settings. Positive feedback we often receive after training is how interesting attendees found talking to the other members of the course, and how this has given them ideas for how to develop their own programmes or practice.

While training and CPD generally can sometimes feel difficult to fit into a busy schedule, we believe that our adviser training, and other free training and webinar opportunities, are valuable for all arts professionals and arts teachers to engage with. Training is now online, running throughout the year and with a range of group options available – you can train while in your PJs if you wish!

There are so many other CPD opportunities for teachers and practitioners. Make sure you take a look at our upcoming networking events and webinars as a starting point. If you are based in England ensure you are connected to your Local Cultural Education Partnership for potential opportunities. This helpful article from FutureLearn also highlights CPD opportunities and expectations, especially if you are a new teacher.

If you have any questions about Arts Award training drop us a line on training.team@trinitycollege.co.uk