The transfer of training: Improving the effectiveness of CPD

It is widely acknowledged that improving the quality of teaching and leadership are two of the key levers for improving educational outcomes (Hattie, 2003; Leithwood et al., 2019). The provision of high-quality professional development is vital to that mission and should be seen as a key driver not only of staff development but also of recruitment, retention and wellbeing (DfE, 2016). But many of our CPD efforts still fail to break through the thresholds of knowledge and understanding and into long-term behavioural change, with CPD initiatives leaving participants knowing more but not changing their practice. So how can we transfer more of the knowledge, understanding and skills that come from professional development into tangible changes in practice? I suggest that looking beyond educational research, into wider research on the transfer of training, may lend some insight. The transfer of training The degree to which individuals effectively apply the knowledge, skills and attitudes