Developing Expertise Through Experience (edited by Alan Maley) is a new book focussed on the role of experience in teacher training and life-long development.

It is an exploration and extension of Prabhu’s concept of ‘the teacher’s sense of plausibility’.  Prabhu suggests that whatever forms of training and professional development teachers are exposed to, they will make sense of them in their own way, drawing on their own values, beliefs and experiences and their evolving sense of what will be appropriate for them in their specific context.

Twenty seasoned practitioners world-wide were invited to reflect on their own career trajectories in the light of Prabhu’s idea. Their responses offer fascinating insights into the way places, publications, ideas and key people have influenced the professional and personal development of the contributors.

The book concludes that it would be timely to incorporate trainees’ narratives and personal experiences as part of pre- and in-service training programmes and in Continuing Professional Development (CPD) in general.  There are suggestions for practical activities to achieve this in the accompanying e-file.

The book should be published by the British Council in September /October.  It will be freely downloadable from the Council’s websites:

English Agenda (https://englishagenda.britishcouncil.org/)  

TeachingEnglish (https://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/)

Please check the How to be a Teacher Trainer course at Pilgrims website.