Professional learning

Professional learning

'It was succinct and gave teachers opportunities to compare experiences and share ideas'

'An excellent range of interactive approaches and resources to provide stimulating and simple lessons'

'This was a very useful workshop – full of great conversation ideas and well-focused in activities which I know I can immediately use in the classroom'

'It was so refreshing to attend a course which was entirely relevant and where the speaker was so knowledgeable'

'It was a very well informed, well-delivered session'

- Testimonials from SCILT professional learning attendees

Professional Learning Opportunities

SCILT aims to provide high quality professional learning opportunities to support the teaching and learning of languages across all sectors and all parts of the country.

SCILT opportunities

1. Workshops for authorities, clusters or schools - group bookings

Free to book for groups of primary or secondary teachers working in local authority schools. Sessions are designed and facilitated by our friendly and experienced Professional Development Officers.

These sessions offer a chance for groups of colleagues to dive into professional learning that explores issues of curriculum, ethos, engaging pedagogies and examples of current practice. 

Requests from professional learning leads in schools, clusters, local authorities, networks and SCIS welcomed all year round. We welcome requests for primary, secondary and mixed sector groups.

Build your own workshop, choose one of ours or request a bespoke topic suited to your audience.

For more detail about the menu, and to book one or more workshops for the group of teachers that you support, visit the website below.

2. Workshops for student and early career teachers - group bookings

If you are looking for high quality professional learning related to languages pedagogy for early career teachers in your local authority or the student teachers in your university then look no further.

Always interactive and up-to-date, SCILT workshops provide the opportunity for early career teachers to engage with current aspects of practice and pedagogy.

You are welcome to choose an area of interest from the list below. Alternatively, opt for a pick ‘n’ mix approach and combine elements to build your own workshop(s) tailored to the needs of your group. We welcome requests for primary, secondary and mixed sector groups.

For more detail about the menu, and to book one or more workshops for the students or early career teachers that you support, visit the website below.

3. Scotland's Languages Leadership Programme

Scotland’s Languages Leadership Programme (SLLP) is the flagship subject specific leadership development opportunity offered in partnership, by SCILT and Education Scotland’s Languages Team. The SLLP is aligned with the national model of professional learning and comprises two distinct and complementary strands. Each year, the focus alternates between the SLLP professional development programme and the SLLP Alums Network.

Visit our dedicated SLLP webpage for more information.

4. Professional Learning Partnerships

Professional learning partnerships (PLPs) bring together educators, SCILT Professional Development Officers and any number of other partners from the education, business or charity sectors. Every PLP is unique, with each partner bringing different understanding, expertise and professional networks to the project. Typically, over the course of 9-12 months, partners adopt a collaborative and enquiring approach, to address a specific need identified by the educators. All PLP partners commit to sharing the work and outcomes of the project in and beyond their own contexts.

Previous PLPs have focused on exploring curriculum models to support increased uptake in Senior Phase; developed challenging interdisciplinary contexts for BGE language learning; family learning; strengthening literacy skills across languages and play-based approach for language learning in EY and early primary settings.

If you have an identified need and are able to commit to this longer term, organic form of professional learning please get in touch.

5. Online professional learning – open to individuals

The following opportunities are open to individual educators:

Teachers of Italian in Scotland (TOIIS) network and Teachers of German in Scotland (TOGS) network. Email SCILT putting TOIIS or TOGS in the subject line with any queries you have about upcoming events and joining the network.
Open Access workshops: monthly themed workshops for primary practitioners throughout the year. To receive notification when registration opens for these events, sign up to SCILT ebulletin or follow SCILT on Eventbrite.
Secondary Big Question series: regular themed workshops for secondary practitioners run once per term throughout the year. Dates, themes and booking details will be advertised via the SCILT e-bulletin.

6. Online professional learning for student and early career teachers – open to individuals

Regular ECT Primary Languages Signpost Sessions take place throughout the year. Specifically for primary education students, newly and recently qualified primary teachers. These are informal opportunities to connect with peers across Scotland, ask questions, find support and solutions for all things primary languages. Sign up to the SCILT ebulletin and follow SCILT on Eventbrite for registration details.

7. Self-directed professional learning opportunities

Professional learning resources built around bespoke material on a particular theme. Each comprises stimuli and reflective questions for discussion or journaling. Designed to be used by groups or individuals asynchronously. Engage anytime, anywhere. Dip in and out.

8. Additional opportunities

Additional professional learning opportunities will be offered by SCILT during the year. To keep up-to-date with these opportunities as they arise, please sign up to the SCILT weekly news bulletin.

Anytime professional learning for teachers

Are you a teacher, a student teacher or aspiring student teacher? Are you looking for some professional learning to do online, at your own time and at your own pace? Listed below are courses, webinars and materials that are free to access.

Education Scotland Professional Learning and Leadership

A collection of online learning activities on a wide variety of areas of practice. Each learning activity is aligned to the GTCS Professional Standards and professional learning recorded here can be uploaded to your MyGTCS. Registration required or login via Glow.

Digital Educator Communities

Free, online professional learning opportunities and educator communities for a range of digital platforms:

Apple Teacher Learning - work towards Apple Teacher status
Google Teacher Center - work towards Google Certified Teacher status
Microsoft Educator Community - work towards Microsoft Innovative Educator status

Moray House School of Education and Sport Professional Learning

A wide range of online offerings to support your professional learning.

Strathclyde Institute of Education

Our CLPL events support the continuing professional development of teachers and other professionals with access to high-quality learning, teaching and development opportunities.

University of Aberdeen

Whether you are looking to enhance your professional practice, change your career or get started on a new pathway, our undergraduate and postgraduate courses will help you achieve your goals.

Programmes are designed for professionals working with young people across many educational and community sectors. All programmes are delivered in a flexible way to enable you to achieve further qualifications while working.

Sabhal Mòr Ostaig

Sabhal Mòr Ostaig is the National Centre for Gaelic Language and Culture. Based in Sleat, Isle of Skye, we are the only centre of Higher and Further Education in the world that provides its learning programmes entirely through the medium of Gaelic in an immersed, language-rich environment.

We offer a range of learning opportunities, both on campus and via distance learning, full-time and part-time, for anyone with an interest in Gaelic.

Centre for Teaching Excellence Online

CfTE Online supports national collaboration by connecting teachers with research, professional learning, and one another through a flexible digital platform. The platform is designed to be accessible, inclusive, and supportive of all sectors, including Gaelic Medium Education.

Signposts for Global Citizenship

Scotdec, Wosdec and Highland One World Development Education Centres offer a range of free, Career Long Professional Learning (CLPL) opportunities for educators to support the development of Global Citizenship Education within their setting. Here you can find the CLPL twilights on offer for early, primary and secondary level educators over the coming year.

SALT - The Scottish Association for Language Teaching

Email SALT to be added to the SALT Team on Glow.

Scottish Association for Teaching English as an Additional Language

Skills Development Scotland

SDS Education Team Professional Learning programme

Apps

Free apps with a wide variety of languages:

Apps with free content for a range of languages:

Coffee Break Languages

Free podcasts from Radio Lingua to learn French, Spanish, German, Italian, Chinese and Swedish. Video materials also available on YouTube.

Go! Gaelic

This Gaelic Language Learning Training Course is designed for teachers who have little or no knowledge of Gaelic. The aim of the course is that on completion, teachers are equipped with both the necessary Gaelic language skills and teaching methodology to deliver Gaelic as L2 or L3 from early to 2nd level. The course consists of 18 units covering a variety of topics and functional language.

OpenLearn language courses

Free, anytime learning from the Open University. Create an account for free access:

track your progress
earn a statement of participation
access all course activities
submit a review of the course
available in Chinese, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Welsh
three levels – introductory, intermediate, advanced.
length of time ranges from 6 hours to 24 hours of study
interesting range of contexts.

OpenLearnCreate

An open learning platform hosted by the Open University. 16 free courses from Level 0 – 3 in languages such as Scots, Gaelic, Welsh, French and Spanish. Ranging from 1 hour to more than 24 hours of notional study. The OLC courses are not OU courses, they are built by teachers, colleges, universities, organisations and individuals.

Minato

Online languages courses for beginners Japanese lasting 6 months, tutor-supported courses and self-study cultural courses introduction to calligraphy, flower arranging and haiku lasting 3 months from the Japan Foundation.

Primary languages starter pack

This pack is designed for Language Assistants and other native speakers new to teaching languages in primary schools. It is also useful to schools hosting Language Assistants. The pack contains guidance on how to get started, examples of best practice, specific teaching ideas.

Education Scotland's Digital Learning Community blog

Find collections of online resources to support teaching and learning in a wide range of languages. Visit the Gaelic Education Wakelet and the modern languages Wakelet. Resources will be updated over the period of school closures.

Plurilingual Classrooms in Action MOOC

The “Plurilingual Classrooms in Action” MOOC from the Scottish Council of Deans of Education Languages Group is a free four-week course, hosted through FutureLearn at the University of Glasgow and aligned with the core principles and contexts of the National Framework for Languages: plurilingualism, diversity, policy and legislation, and transformative practices, and aims to support the teaching and learning of languages in primary classrooms.

The course consists of a series of short readings, videos, tasks, and opportunities to reflect on the role of languages in and for education. Each of the activities will take no longer than 5 or 10 minutes to complete and aim to provide an overview of language teaching and learning in the 21st century and foster and enhance the creation of effective and engaging learning approaches which support inclusive practices in the classroom.

Association of Language Learning (ALL) London branch webinars

Repository for past webinars and registration for forthcoming webinars by languages teachers, for languages teachers on a wide range of subjects. Hosted by ALL London

Digital tools for language learning and collaboration

Recording of the presentation given at the Scottish Learning Festival in September 2019 by Susan Sey, Digital Skills Development Officer, Education Scotland and Sylvia Georgin, Aberdeenshire Languages Development Officer and Northern Alliance Languages Workstream Lead.

Joe Dale's YouTube channel

Subscribe for recordings of webinars hosted or co-hosted by Joe Dale, independent languages and IT consultant.

Linguascope webinars

Linguascope organises weekly webinars for Modern Languages teachers on a wide range of topics. If you’d like to register for live sessions, as well as watch all previously recorded sessions on demand, simply log in to the Staffroom section of Linguascope or download the Linguascope Webinars app.

If you are not a Linguascope subscriber, you can still access the webinars by subscribing monthly or annually within the app.

Goethe-Institut webinars

For teachers of German, covering pedagogy or cultural topics. Webinars last an hour, are free and will be interactive. Join in live or catch up on recordings.

#mfltwitterati podcast

Hosted by Joe Dale (UK) and Noah Geisel (US): listen to episodes and download show notes for this wide-ranging podcast aimed at celebrating the voices of the modern language teaching community.

We Teach Languages podcast

A podcast from the US about language teaching from the diverse perspectives of teachers. Wide range of episodes with programme notes.

The Motivated Classroom

A weekly podcast hosted by Dr Liam Printer talking all things education, language teaching, motivation and engagement.

Episodes focus on linking research to practice as well as giving teachers zero-prep comprehensible input activities to boost motivation that can be implemented into classrooms immediately.

OpenLearn Create: Scots language teacher professional learning programme

This collection is home to a professional learning course for teachers/lecturers teaching in any subject area at any level in a Scottish school or Further Education context, who are keen to learn how to develop their skills in incorporating teaching Scots language and culture in their classroom.

The Kate Languages Podcast

Covers a wide range of education-related topics, from teacher wellbeing, to classroom management and ideas on teaching and learning foreign languages.

National Framework for Languages: LENS

Languages Education Network Scotland (LENS) is a resource bank of studies and research findings from national and international contexts. These findings help us to unravel the complexities of language teaching and learning and why things happen the way they do in classrooms. Key messages from over 300 studies have been organised according to specific themes relating to language teaching and learning in the curriculum.

National Framework for Languages: LEAP

Languages Education Academic Portfolio (LEAP) is a reflective tool to support implementation of the NFfL. Its suggested format is a portfolio for ITE and can also be used and developed further for CLPL purposes. It is built on CEFR and GTC(S) recommendations. LEAP is linked to the LENS resource which provides detailed information and guidance.

Professional Development Consortium in Modern Foreign Languages (PDC in MFL)

The PDC in MFL website features resources and videos of practice. The site was recently updated with materials related to the FLEUR MFL reading study, the Primary Languages Progress and Preparedness study (both funded by the Nuffield Foundation), and The Language Magician assessment tool.

Research in Primary Languages (ripl)

Find out the research behind the language learning from a collection of one page summaries of research under the following themes: curriculum policy and curriculum modules; literacy and wider academic achievement; the role of age in language learning; pedagogy and teacher expertise; linguistic development and expectations; multilingualism and additional language learning; cultural competence and intercultural understanding.

Scottish Languages Review

Thirty-four issues of the open access online journal from SCILT with varied articles from students, parents, educators and academics.

OASIS database

OASIS (Open Accessible Summaries In Language Studies) database contains useful one page summaries of language related reports. A great resource for student teachers of foreign languages

Recommended reading for language teachers

Scottish Languages Review

THE electronic journal for language practitioners in Scotland. The Scottish Languages Review aims to:

provide language teachers, students, and researchers in Scotland with a strong voice in relation to all aspects of language teaching and learning.
promote discussion amongst language practitioners across all education sectors about mutual areas of interest or concern.
encourage greater debate between language learning theory and practice.

Language trends in Scotland

Language Trends Scotland reports at British Council (2024/25 onwards)

Analysis 2012 – 2019 - SCILT's analysis of published SQA statistics on language trends in Scottish schools.

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