Introduction

'Professional development goes beyond the term 'training' with its implications of learning skills, and encompasses a definition that includes formal and informal means of helping teachers not only learn new skills but also develop new insights into pedagogy and their own practice, and explore new or advanced understandings of content and resources. [This] definition of professional development includes support for teachers as they encounter the challenges that come with putting into practice their evolving understandings about the use of technology to support inquiry-based learning. Current technologies offer resources to meet these challenges and provide teachers with a cluster of supports that help them continue to grow in their professional skills, understandings, and interests.'
(Ref: NCREL)

Working within Education you will no doubt wish at some point to enhance or improve your current skills or knowledge set. You may wish to do this for a number of reasons, for instance to:

• Gain knowledge about a particular subject or topic;
• Gain knowledge about pedagogy;
• Improve your employment opportunities;