Teaching outdoor and adventure activities: an investigation of a primary school physical education professional development p

Conclusion.
Physical education curriculum content design and supporting 
documentation for teachers in Ireland has evolved considerably over the last number of 
decades. However, aligned with these changes are the continuing challenges which 
teachers face in implementing these curricular changes such as not enough curriculum 
time, poor or inadequate facilities and resources, lack of time for pre-service and in-
service education and the variety of contextual factors facing teachers within and 
between schools. For many reasons, least of all the current economic climate, there is a 
lack of investment in physical education by the government on a number of fronts, most 
importantly investment in the professional development continuum for pre-service to 
retirement for primary school teachers. Research needs to be carried out to establish 
which types of professional development teachers require and in what aspects of 
delivery of the physical education curriculum. Further research, on how best to provide 
this professional development, taking into account the barriers and challenges that 
remain in schools for the foreseeable future also needs to be addressed. We need to 
establish which professional development programmes provide the most positive 
outcomes, taking into account the challenges, imposed internally and externally, that 
face teachers in their work. This study is a step towards adding to this research field.
Now that a picture of the context for undertaking professional development in Ireland 
has been presented, the literature on professional development needs to be examined to 
establish what professional development is and in turn professional development in 
physical education and how best it can be facilitated and evaluated. 

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Professional development in Ireland.
Developing teachers across the professional life-cycle has become a policy 
priority in many countries as can be seen from the Organisation for Economic Co-
operation and Development (OECD) report ‘Teachers Matter’ (Organisation for 
Economic Co-operation and Development, 2005). Prior to designing any professional 
development programme, it is important to examine the professional development that 
already exists in that context (Wayne, Suk Yoon, Zhu, Cronen & Garet, 2008) and what 
professional development the teachers may have experienced in the past. Many types of 
professional development exist and are available to primary teachers in Ireland.
Teachers in the study school may be participating in other professional development in 
subject or topic areas and this ‘ambient PD’ (Wayne et al., 2008, p. 473) may pervade 
the context in which the study is taking place. Although in the study school the chance 
of interference with the professional development programme under study is low and 
does not share common elements it is important to be aware of their existence. In order 
to understand the needs of teachers further, an overview of professional development 
for Irish primary teachers is required. 
In Ireland the importance of developing teachers was highlighted as early as 
1967,
it is now generally recognised that the training of all categories of teachers 
cannot be regarded as concluded as the end of the normal training 
period…refresher courses must be regarded as an essential feature of the general 
provision for teacher training. (Government of Ireland, 1967, p. 235)
Collinson and colleagues (2009) point out that for far too long, ITE has appeared to be 
the ‘end rather than the beginning’ (p. 10) of a teachers learning. Internationally, 
educating teachers to the level that is required for a knowledge society, ‘is seen as 
something that needs to happen over a number of years, extending well beyond the 
initial professional education phase, and which encompasses a wide variety of 
knowledge and experiences in supportive contexts’ (Conway et al., 2009, p. xiv). The 
stages of a teacher’s career demands different supports, therefore initial teacher 
education, induction and career long learning need to be inter-connected to create a 
more coherent learning environment for teachers and it needs to be integrated into a 
supportive framework (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, 
2005). In preparation for the 1993 National Development Plan, the DES sought over 35 
million euro from the European Union (EU) fund to invest in teacher development, with 

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emphasis on improving management capacity particularly at school level (Sugrue, 
2002) and a further 10 million was secured from the EU for the expansion and 
development of Education Centres. Recommendations were also made for future 
teacher developments; the establishment of a Teaching Council and the implementation 
of pilot induction/mentoring programmes (Killeavy & Murphy, 2006). 
The continuum of teacher education has traditionally been referred to 
internationally as the “three I’s” of initial teacher education, induction and in-
career development. The council is adopting another set of “three I’s”, namely 
innovation, integration and improvement which should underpin all stages of the 
continuum. (Teaching Council, 2010a, p. 8) 
What is needed at each stage of the continuum will vary but what is vital is that 
the different parts of the continuum should not function in isolation from the others 
(Travers, 2006). Sugrue and colleagues (2001) insist that policy lags behind provision, 
a belief also to be found in Hardman (2008), ‘the crux of the issue is that there is too 
much of a gap between the promise and reality’ (p. 15). The Irish National Teachers’ 
Organisation (INTO) (2004a) argued that policies and legislation in education will not 
enhance primary education in Ireland unless accompanied by commitments to allocate 
resources to the sector. This is particularly important for physical education where lack 
of resourcing is a major barrier to the implementation of physical education. There is 
the added issue in Ireland, whereby even if resources and infrastructure were available, 
the decentralised autonomy of education, whereby principals and boards of management 
are having increased autonomy in the finance and management of schools, may lead to 
further challenges if leadership in schools is lacking (Hogan, Brosnan, DeRóiste, 
MacAlister, Quirke-Bolt & Smith, 2007). Without the support of the principals for 
physical education and an understanding of its value, physical education will not 
achieve its potential in schools.
Coolahan (2007) writes that professional development was first given priority in 
the seventies, in Ireland, with the establishment of the regional Teacher Centres. Over 
the next twenty years the early momentum was lost due to economic difficulties and 
policy decisions (Coolahan, 2004). Coolahan (2003) saw the mid-nineties as a 
landmark in the historical development of continuing professional development 
in terms of acceptance by national government of its importance, putting in 
place an in career development unit (ICDU, now known as the Teacher 
Education Section - TES) to co-ordinate and promote it and the increased 
investment devoted to it. (p. 33-34) 

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Sugrue (2002; 2003) reports that in-service professional development is 
‘inadequate and poorly conceived due to lack of differentiation, that is sensitive to 
context and career stage’ and that it is ‘fragmented and lacking in
coherence’ (p. 211).
There are no annual minimum professional development requirements for teachers in 
Ireland (Coolahan, 2007) and the Teaching Council (Teaching Council, 2010b) have 
admitted that when professional development courses are taken, the focus has often 
been on system reform rather than school or teacher needs. Although there has been an 
increase in the amount of in-school professional development, most professional 
development has taken place outside of school hours (Coolahan, 2003)
.
According to 
best practice, the Teaching Council (2010b) state that time should be built into the 
normal work schedule of the teacher without compromising the school calendar. There 
is, however, constant pressure and concern from school management and principals that 
professional development should not ‘erode the teaching-learning year for pupils’ 
(Coolahan, 2003, p. 39).
The Teaching Council (2010b) recognises that ‘teacher beliefs and practices are 
circumscribed by the prevailing culture’ (p. 26) and they insist that there is a 
‘prevalence of professional insulation and isolation’ (p. 26). Hogan and colleagues 
(2007) noted a strong reluctance when it comes to sharing positive innovations with 
colleagues, for fear that they would look like they were ‘showing off, or as setting a 
standard that would show the work of colleagues in a poor light, or as attempting to 
advance their own careers at the expense of colleagues’ (p. 34). This does not help in 
the current climate where future policy is directing that professional development is to 
be supported by teacher communities of learning (TCL), operating through the 
Education Centres. According to Clancy and colleagues (1994) ‘there should be a 
variety of forms of in-service teacher education’ and this should include ‘an emphasis 
on school-based in-service provision and such courses should embrace ‘the personal and 
professional needs of the teacher’ (p. 87).