This past week I’ve been putting together the finishing touches for a new venture into teacher CPD with the University of Derby!
As a historian and part of the Rayburn team, I’ve spent a lot of my professional career working with teachers and educators – I’ve written education resources and developed educational programmes, and I regularly talk to teachers to try and keep on top (as much as anyone can) of what changes are made to the curriculum and exams.
Also, in my work with The Historical Association, I follow educational policy changes and read a great deal about history as a subject and pedagogical developments.
Does this qualify me for anything? Well no, not in particular, but it does make me very keen to ensure that history teachers get as much support as possible for the work they do.
So I’m very pleased to say that Rayburn Tours, a commercial company, have agreed to support some work with the University of Derby to bring free twilight CPD events to teachers.
The idea is that a member of the history team at the university will give a lecture on a subject that’s significant within the study of history currently, either at Key Stage 3 or for exams. This will be followed by a short session led by me to explore how the information can be used in the classroom, the type of enquiry questions that might be appropriate and how the information might be used to develop a series of study plans suited to different abilities.
With input from those present, we’ll examine how the content of the key talk can be used for addressing the topic and themes that exam boards focus on.
The first of these sessions will explore American Civil Rights history, put into a long term framework of modern American history and used to explore key questions around activism, gender, violence and democracy.
This aspect of American history has been a significant component of study for schools for some time, and is one of those areas that is constantly reviewed due to ongoing scholarship and political events. In light of this, the CPD event will provide a useful and timely opportunity to listen to an expert on the field and understand his current interpretations.
Presenting the lecture will be Alasdair Kean, who has published on American history and politics, and is currently exploring some of the more recent developments of African American engagement in US politics.
We will be putting on these free CPD events every term – sometimes twice – and we would love you to join us and feedback so that we can get them right for you.
Will we have some travel brochures there? Yes, of course. Are these CPD events a hard sell for a school tour? No, absolutely not. The Rayburn team and I are keen to work with academics and promote events where teachers get as much help as possible to improve their own knowledge and skills.
Engaged and enthused teachers enrich education and the teaching profession as a whole. That in turn makes young people want to study history and have an enthusiasm for a subject that we all love.
We look forward to seeing you in Derby!
To book your place, visit the University of Derby’s website here!