Connected professionalism

Professionalism is now at the heart of the further education and training sector, and this increasingly means building networks and engaging in reflective practice, says Katerina

Kolyva

Iam delighted to join the Education and Training Foundation (ETF) as its new CEO at such a pivotal time for the sector. Ten years on from the deregulation of further education qualifications in England, and just a few months from the publication of our newly updated Professional Standards, this seems a good moment for me to share some thoughts on the identity of professionalism, a topic close to my heart.

Just 40 years ago, professionalism was seen by many as a promotion of self-interest in terms of status and a protective occupational environment seeking to safeguard boundaries.

We have moved on. Although professionalism still depends on individuals’ capabilities and behaviours, it is also better connected to the wider system to which professionals belong.

Professionalism is now recognised as constantly evolving to meet system needs. Professionals do not exist just as individuals but are connected to networks and impacted by the wider environment in which they work. They are co-creators of their professional standards and take ownership and responsibility for their ongoing development and learning.

That is why it is so heartening to see how the ETF’s Professional Standards have been so warmly welcomed by practitioners and have stimulated engagement and discussion on what this means for the sector.

The connected professionals of today recognise and reflect on their own competences and behaviours, and continue to develop and evolve over time. They are open to change and recognise the evolution of the sector around them. They zoom out rather than being zoomed out.

They look to the wider context in which they work and seek to understand their own social impact and influence rather than being focused solely on their day-to-day teaching and training. They connect with and respond to their changing environment and are part of networks for their own development and learning.

The current global context in teaching and training offers opportunities for our sector to zoom out in three key areas: metaverse, sustainability and inclusion. As we progress from blended learning to artificial intelligence and augmented reality, there are exciting opportunities for teachers, trainers and leaders to embed new teaching methods and concepts, and to look elsewhere in other sectors to see how these are already forming part of everyday practice.

Sustainability in its wider sense, beyond climate crisis and including environmental, economic and social dimensions, prompts us to reflect on the wider professional culture of a sustainable teaching and training workforce and to consider an economically viable model for the sector and our environmental impact. Inclusion calls for open spaces and open minds where equitable interaction and development can thrive. Embedding inclusive practice opens up opportunities for the whole sector, offering access to networks and supporting progression for all.

Looking to the future, this is also a chance for us here at the ETF to reflect on how we maintain an agile view of the external context and of global changes, to ensure that our offer of professional development, member engagement and sector influencing is aligned to what is happening within and beyond our sector, in the UK and internationally.

I commit to you all that I will ensure our offer in the future meets the needs of the connected professional. I wish to see the ETF becoming a catalyst for strategic insight in workforce development, a convenor of the sector to support workforce sustainability across the plethora and richness of the teaching and training organisations and practitioners we serve, and an active listener to teachers, trainers and leaders of further education.

KATERINA KOLYVA is chief executive of the Education and Training Foundation