Professional development for teachers made simple

What professional development really means

While professional development can sometimes feel like a compliance exercise, it also has the ability to reignite your passion for teaching while building confidence in new areas. The key is finding the kind of professional development that enhances your practice rather than something that simply ticks a box.

For teachers, professional development can be defined as any learning activity that builds your skills, knowledge and effectiveness in the classroom. Think of it as how you stay current with educational research, refine your practice and keep growing throughout your career. It’s the kind of learning that genuinely shapes how you teach.

As a rule, professional development falls into two categories: mandatory professional development and teacher-identified professional development.

Mandatory professional development

This is set out by your employer or state education department. Topics such as child protection training, first aid courses, and school-wide initiatives that are a requirement for staff each year are just a few examples.

Teacher-identified professional development

This is learning you choose to take on, based on your own professional goals, interests, or the needs of your students. This can include anything from attending conferences, through to completing postgraduate study and exploring new strategies for teaching.

What counts as professional development?

When it comes to professional development, not all learning activities count towards your required hours. Let’s break it down into what typically does and doesn’t qualify:

What counts

• Accredited courses and postgraduate qualifications

• Workshops, seminars and conferences

• Professional reading linked to teaching Standards

• Collaborative learning with colleagues (like lesson study or peer observation)

• Mentoring or coaching (both giving and receiving)

• Action research or inquiry projects in your school

• Online courses and webinars with learning outcomes

• Presenting at professional learning events

What typically doesn't count

• Staff meetings about administrative matters

• General school planning days without a clear learning focus

• Informal conversations with colleagues

• Personal reading unrelated to your professional growth

• Activities outside your role as an educator

Any professional development you undertake needs to connect to the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers, the national benchmarks that guide quality teaching across Australia. You'll also need to show how your learning has actually made a difference in your classroom.

How much professional development teachers are required to do

Professional development requirements vary from state to state. Becoming familiar with your teacher registration requirements is a good place to start. Further to this, here’s a quick snapshot of how many hours are required by state:

Meeting your hours is one thing, but making your hours count is where the real value in PD lies.

Choosing professional development that’s actually useful

When deciding where to allocate your time, it helps to remember that not all professional development is created equal. The best learning is practical, evidence-based, and relevant to your teaching journey.

Start with your goals

Consider where you want to grow professionally as a teacher. Are you interested in leadership? Do you want to better support diverse learners? Or are you curious about how to integrate technology more effectively in the classroom?

Your professional development should align with both your goals and your students’ needs. What’s more, the right specialisation can also help you progress up the pay scale.

“When choosing between different professional development options, teachers should look for learning that is practical, evidence-based and directly relevant to their everyday teaching context,” says Jeanette Keser, Program Director Education at Torrens University Australia.

It's important to choose programs where assessments and activities can be applied to real workplace projects, so the learning immediately enhances practice rather than remaining theoretical.

The Australian Professional Standards for Teachers

All professional development should directly connect to at least one of the seven teaching benchmarks across the three teaching domains: professional knowledge, professional practice, professional engagement. When selecting your learning opportunity, consider which of the Standards you want to develop, as well as how this growth will be evident in your teaching practice.

Consider the broader priorities in education

Quality professional development will also reflect current priorities in education, says Jeanette.

"Teachers should also consider whether the professional development aligns with broader priorities, such as inclusion, social justice and supporting diverse learners, which are central to current school and government agendas," she says.

Look for contextualised learning

The most effective professional development allows you to apply what you’ve learned to your own classroom or school. Any program that integrates assessments with real workplace projects helps create lasting change, rather than leaving you with learning that’ll never be used.

“Torrens University's postgraduate education courses are a strong example of high-impact PD because they are flexible, contextualised to each teacher's work environment, and designed to build capability through authentic, linked assessments,” says Jeanette.

“This allows teachers to trial strategies, lead initiatives and improve outcomes for their learners while they study, ensuring the PD creates meaningful and lasting change in their practice.”

Capturing and showcasing your growth

Keeping track of your professional development is just as important as meeting the requirements. Here are some of the best ways to capture and showcase your growth as a teacher.

What documents you need

For each professional development activity you complete, collect:

• Certificates of attendance or completion

• Evidence of learning outcomes (via notes and action plans)

• Examples of how you’ve applied the learning to your teaching practice

• Student work samples or any data showing impact

• Feedback from colleagues, students, mentors

Building your teacher portfolio

Your teaching portfolio should be able to tell the story of your growth as an educator. Organise your folio by the national Standards, keep it up to date throughout the year so you’re not scrambling at registration renewal time, and include things like:

• A professional learning plan that shows your goals

• Annotations to explain how each activity developed your teaching practice

• Reflections on what you learned and how it aids your teaching

• Any evidence of impact on things like student learning, school improvement

• Digital platforms are available in some states, which can be a quick and easy way to keep track of and submit evidence of professional development.

Where to find professional development courses

There are plenty of courses for professional development to choose from, from mandated training to postgraduate study, and short courses in specialist areas.

Professional associations and education departments

Professional teaching associations in your subject area (like the Australian Association of Mathematics Teachers, or the Australian Literacy Educators' Association) offer conferences, publications and specialised workshops.

Your state education department is also a great source of approved courses, particularly for any mandatory professional development topics.

Universities

Postgraduate study offers structure, in-depth learning that can help significantly advance your career. Open Universities Australia provides easy access to a wide range of education and teaching courses from leading universities across Australia, with online study that fits your schedule. This is particularly useful for fitting in study when you already work full-time in teaching.

Relevant courses include:

• Leadership and innovation courses like the Master of Education (Leadership & Innovation) Advanced that will help prepare you for senior roles

• Technology in education courses to help keep your teaching up to date in the digital age, like University of New England’s Graduate Certificate in Digital Learning

• Counselling and trauma-informed practice to help you support students’ wellbeing, like University of Southern Queensland’s Master of Education (Guidance, Counselling, and Careers), and Adelaide University’s Graduate Certificate in Childhood Trauma

• Inclusive education to support diverse learners, like Griffith University’s Graduate Certificate in Autism Studies

In fact, autism and neurodivergent studies courses are an increasingly popular (and relevant) area for many teachers to upskill in.

Torrens University says the demand is increasing because teachers are seeing more neurodivergent students in their classrooms and want practical, evidence-based strategies to support them.

"Growing awareness of inclusion and social justice is also a major driver," explains Jeanette. "In addition, both state and federal governments are introducing autism-focused policies, programs and leadership roles in schools, which is prompting more teachers to upskill in autism and neurodivergent studies.

While balancing postgraduate study with a full workload might seem tricky, Jeanette says choosing flexible, part-time programs that allow online learning can help.

Planning ahead, setting realistic study schedules, and integrating assessments with workplace projects can make learning more manageable and directly relevant.

Short courses

If you’re not ready for a full postgraduate program, there are plenty of short courses focused on professional learning in specialists areas. These can be an efficient way to develop any specific skills you’d like to hone, or explore new interests.

Planning your next step

Start with a plan. Making professional development work for you is all about the groundwork. Take time at the start of each year to look across the various areas to:

• Look at where you are now in your current practice. What’s working well and where would you like to grow?

• Set clear goals for yourself that are linked to the professional standards and your career aspirations

• Research your options for professional development, see how they align with your goals and how they can fit into your schedule

• Create a timeline across the year

• Build in time for reflection to capture your learning and its impact in the classroom

FAQs about professional development for teachers