• Effective teachers of history recognise that the context of their teaching is continually evolving.
• They reflect on, analyse and are able to articulate all aspects of their professional practice, constantly reviewing and refining their teaching to improve students' learning opportunities, and searching for answers to challenging pedagogical questions.
• They seek opportunities to discuss the effectiveness of their teaching with colleagues, students, parents and care givers.
• With their own learning goals in mind, effective teachers of history pursue new knowledge through professional renewal activities such as classroom-based action research, professional reading, academic study, discussion and debate with colleagues and participation in conferences and workshops.
• They utilise the resources of relevant professional associations. They keep themselves informed about recent research and debates regarding the teaching and learning of history, taking particular interest in ideas and insights relevant to the contexts of their own teaching.
• They use professional standards to identify personal professional development needs and plan accordingly.
• They recognise that their professional practice is grounded in a set of personal beliefs and values about teaching and learning and about the social and cultural importance of their discipline.
• They continually scrutinise and review their beliefs and values, monitoring [and maintaining integrity in] the ways in which these values impact on their work in classrooms and shape their professional lives.

Key Points for Practice

How do I maintain and further develop my personal and professional growth?

To what extent do I contribute to and learn from current debates about teaching and learning? How open am I in questioning and evaluating classroom, school and community practices in historical literacy?

What professional learning goals do I have in my subject area? What opportunities are taken up to learn from courses, colleagues and the workplace?