This is the first in a series of articles exploring how the Great Teaching Toolkit can support professional development in busy primary schools. Across the series, we’ll speak to schools already using the platform and the advisors who support them, exploring the approaches they’ve taken and the lessons they’ve learned along the way.

We’re starting with Faye Morris, one of our Teaching and Learning Advisors. Having supported hundreds of primary schools with professional development through the Great Teaching Toolkit, we asked Faye a simple but important question: what is the best way to get started?

‘In reality, there isn’t a single right approach. Primary schools tend to adopt a few different models, depending on their context, priorities, and capacity. Each can be highly effective when implemented thoughtfully.

Start with key tools

Some schools begin by introducing one or two key tools from the platform, such as student surveys, video feedback, or structured teaching techniques, and integrating them into existing professional development structures.

This approach works well where the GTT is aligned with established systems for coaching, monitoring, or teacher development. Rather than introducing something entirely new, the tools enhance what is already in place, bringing sharper focus to areas such as reflection and feedback.

One of the main benefits of this model is that it feels manageable. Teachers can see immediate, practical applications of the GTT without needing to engage with everything straight away. It also helps to build confidence and familiarity over time, creating a strong foundation for deeper engagement later on.

A shared focus

Other schools choose to take a more unified approach, engaging all teachers around a single, shared development priority, such as questioning or feedback.

In this model, teachers work through a shared development cycle, engaging with similar learning materials, sharing feedback, and taking part in structured discussions and action planning. The focus is collective, with everyone working towards improving the same aspect of teaching.

The strength of this approach lies in its coherence. It creates a shared language around teaching and learning, aligns professional development with school priorities, and allows for rich, collaborative discussion. Because everyone is working towards the same goal, small improvements become visible more quickly, and successes can often be shared more easily.

Personalised pathways

Another approach involves engaging all teachers with the Great Teaching Toolkit, while allowing individuals, year groups, or phases to focus on an element of great teaching that is most relevant to their context.

Teachers then use the platform to support their own development cycles, while still coming together regularly to share ideas, reflect, and learn from one another. This can work particularly well in larger schools, where bringing the whole team together frequently can be more challenging, and where you have strong middle leaders who can empower their teams and drive effective development.

This model offers a balance between individual ownership and whole-school collaboration. It allows teachers to focus on what matters most in their own context, which can increase motivation and engagement, while regular opportunities for discussion help to build a shared culture of professional learning.

Over time, this approach can also help to develop a broad range of expertise across the school, as teachers explore different areas and bring their learning back to the wider team.

Choosing what works for your school

In practice, many schools blend elements of these approaches over time. The key is not which model you choose, but how well it is implemented.

Ultimately, the most successful approaches are those that feel manageable, purposeful, and rooted in the context of the school. By choosing a model that fits your setting, and being willing to adapt it over time, you can create the conditions for meaningful, sustained teacher development.’

Got questions on how the Great Teaching Toolkit can be implemented in your context? Book a call with us to see the platform and what it can do for you.