When it comes to making changes, it can be difficult to know how to get the whole team on board.
Not everyone will immediately agree with leaders when they say, “This is important –we need to do it!”
So, where do we start?
Working with the whole staff team to identify priorities and then address them through professional development is an effective approach. As the EEF’s guidance on implementing change states, ‘people value what they feel part of.
This isn’t easy and will take time.
Here are three simple tips to help you get started:
1. Start slowly – don’t assume knowledge
When sharing key messages from research it is important to start with a conversation.
What does the team know already? Are there any misconceptions? What are they curious about?
2. Keep a child in mind
Apply the research evidence to real situations in your setting. Doing this makes research relevant and shows how it addresses a real need.
This enables educators to recognise that there is a clear reason behind your, “This is important - we need to do it!”
3. Respond to your team’s needs
Very often teams need to learn in bite-sized chunks, revisiting new information and how to embed it in practice. Educators always need time to properly understand research evidence and its purpose in practice.
It can be helpful to watch video clips that show how educators are using the research evidence - again, this makes it relevant to daily practice. Educators can discuss the clips, sharing their ideas with colleagues.
Introducing any change is unique to each team and setting.
Daily practice and ongoing conversations
The main thing to remember is that effective training doesn’t happen in a one-off event. It takes time and relies on follow-up.
Allocating someone from the team to lead on making changes to daily practice is generally useful. They can, for example, organise modelling effective practice, explaining the key messages and referencing the research.
If you want to unlock the potential of professional development in your setting there are some useful prompt and action plan templates in The EEF Guide to Professional Development in the Early Years.
Join us at our monthly Wednesday Webinars here - we will support you with how to follow them up with professional conversations in your setting.
Questions for reflection?
- How relevant is the evidence to your setting and your children?
- What do you think could be the ‘best bets’ to focus on?
- What skills and practices do you feel most confident and least confident with?
Want to know more?
Use the Professional Development Conversation Cycle and Action Plan Template to plan priorities with your team.
Watch this recorded webinar to find out more about research evidence: A Brighter Start (2024): Wednesday Webinar - Using Research Evidence Well :YouTube
Read about what works well when planning effective professional development: EEF (2025): Guide to Professional Development in the Early Years