Teachers’ learning in an innovative school

The successful establishment of a purpose-built innovative school designed to support new ways of teaching and learning in the senior secondary years, particularly in the area of science and mathematics, required a comprehensive and research-based professional development policy and program. Planning professional learning opportunities for the teachers located within the Australian Science and Mathematics School (ASMS) emerged from reviewing the literature on effective professional development and collaboration between the ASMS leadership team and staff from Flinders University. In keeping with honouring the individual teachers and their specific learning needs a professional learning program that provided a range of options was developed. This article reports on the reasoning behind the design of the professional development policy and two specific strategies used to support teachers’ learning and practice in this innovative environment.