How CPTD training can help your career

Continuing Professional Teacher Development (CPTD) is a system that encourages teachers to continue to further their careers and grow on a personal level. This system is managed by the South African Council for Educators (SACE), but it is of the utmost importance that schools follow through and encourage teachers to build up their professional development (PD) points. The CPTD system is a method to identify challenges that South African teachers face and ways and means to improve this.

Here is a quick recap of exactly how the CPTD system works:

– Only relevant and good-quality teacher development activities will be endorsed by SACE.

– SACE will allocate professional development (PD) points to endorsed activities. 

– Each educator will have a PD points account with SACE and SACE will credit their accounts with the points they have earned.

– Each teacher will be expected to earn a target number of points every three years.

– In that way, teachers will keep up to date and on their toes professionally with help and encouragement from SACE. What activities will qualify for PD points?

 PD activities that are endorsed by SACE and are:

– Chosen by teachers themselves to suit their needs and interests.

– Developed and managed by School Management Teams (SMTs) and teachers in schools to meet the needs of the school.

– Offered by providers to meet system needs identified by the Department of Basic Education (DBE), or SACE or teacher unions.

– Activities are broken down as follows:

• • Type 1 – these are teacher-initiated activities.
  • Type 2 – these are school-initiated activities.
  • Type 3 – these are externally-driven activities offered by selected service providers.

As much as participation in the CPTD system is compulsory, schools have to drive the initiative and encourage teachers and create opportunities for them to build up their points. In South Africa, it is of the utmost importance for teachers to focus on their in-career personal development, as the education landscape in our country is not equal for all when it comes to resources, training and even infrastructure in schools. Quality teachers are very hard to come by, which is concerning, as teachers are the foundation and set the tone for the outcome of achievement for our leaders of tomorrow.

We are all well aware that teachers have a mountain on their shoulders when it comes to admin, and the thought of additional activities to build up points for the CPTD system might be seen as a burden. In reality, your career as a teacher will only reach its maximum potential by being engaged with activities that keep you ahead of trends in the education sector and finding new ways to improve your own style of teaching in the classroom. To improve the bigger picture, it starts with us as individuals. One step for development, one giant leap for education!