Teachers and schools in the implementation phase of the Together 4 All Programme for Schools have received significant levels of training and support. This provision has been made in a number of ways and has embraced all members of the school community.
Training in the use of the programme began in October 2008 with teachers from the implementation schools being provided with the opportunity to receive training on lesson content, lesson instruction and use of resources. These one-day training sessions prepared the teachers for teaching lessons from the early units of the manuals.
A further day’s training in January consolidated teachers’ understanding and provided them with the opportunity to review the progress of their lesson implementation and gain an insight into the remaining lessons in their relevant manuals.
The schools and teachers have the added value of weekly two-day support visits from the Specialist Coach who has been assigned to their school. During this time Coaches may model lessons, team teach, provide an insight into upcoming lessons or give guidance and support with technical issues related to the programme.
Teachers have also been allocated one-to-one time with their Specialist Coaches once a term to review previous lessons and to receive guidance on upcoming lessons. Teachers report that these sessions allow them to feel confident that the programme development is progressing well in their school and that they are teaching the lessons well.
In-School Coordinators have also been appointed in each of the six implementation schools. They offer direction and help to teachers if required and generally oversee the running of the programme. Coordinators attended the three full days of the initial teacher training on manual instruction to ensure they were knowledgeable in all areas of the Together 4 All programme.
They received a further one-day training session to substantiate this initial training on the manuals and to provide them with the opportunity to deepen their understanding of the holistic Together 4 All Programme for Schools and its impact on the day-to-day life of the whole school.
In-School Coordinators also have the added benefit of further, funded, non-teaching days to plan for the embedding of the Together 4 All Programme in all of school life.
Training and support is also provided to the non-teaching staff of all schools. This is provided by the Specialist Coaches who give the staff an overview of the programme and who ensure that the core messages are being used throughout the school building.
It must be said that the training and support provided to our implementation schools is ongoing. Schools are aware that guidance and assistance are provided as and when required, and Specialist Coaches are always on-hand so that their schools can avail of them.
Principal Leadership training is currently being organised, as we recognise their significant role in sustaining the benefits of the Together 4 All Programme for Schools for their pupils and in embedding the skills, practices and procedures in the ethos of the whole school community.
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