There is nothing as practical as a good theory: an examination of the outcomes of a ‘traditional’ MA in education for educational professionals

Abstract

This article begins by examining the rationale for the recent policy changes in the criteria for funding teachers' continuing professional development. It illustrates how in the pursuit of greater national competitiveness, the 'evaluative' state has increased central control of the provision of in-service education of teachers through a specification of teachers' competencies, the criteria for funding courses and the expectation of measurable outcomes of courses in terms of pupil achievement. This policy initiative threatens to reduce the variety of provision in Higher Education for teachers' continuing professional development (CPD). In the light of what is known about what makes for effective models of in-service education for professionals the article draws on the results of a survey of a thousand Open University graduates of the MA in Education (1993-98) to evaluate the outcomes of the more traditional in-service provision over an extended time period. It demonstrates that academic courses are effective in extending teachers' knowledge, developing their skills, and offering new insights and understanding into their own educational values and the context in which they work. Moreover, in linking practice with theory, they furnish teachers with a frame of reference, such that they can tackle other exigencies as they arise. It is, therefore, an appropriate form of CPD for professionals in a post-Fordist era.