Management guru Peter Drucker is supposed to have said this little gem: "Culture eats strategy for breakfast." But it also eats processes for lunch, well-laid plans for dinner, and probably has "good intentions" for a mid-morning snack, too.

The culture of any organisation is hard to define and pin down. Yet most of us can think of a time when a negative culture got in the way. Even the most well-planned and evidence-informed professional learning processes can be undermined by a negative culture. 

A very well-planned collaborative process, thought out by an overenthusiastic leader, can fall flat because the buy-in isn’t there. Or the peer observation that led to real developments in practice in one classroom could be feared and judged in the classroom next door.

We can’t attempt to list all the possible activities which might be important in your professional learning culture but there are some important building blocks which all leaders should consider.

1. Trust and respect

An environment of trust, respect and an openness to feedback has been shown to help teachers. It increases job satisfaction and, more importantly, impacts on students’ learning. Active leadership of professional learning means considering how to build fairness, agency and shared outlook. Leaders are more successful at doing so when they are predictable, competent and relatable.

2. Modelling

Remember the leader who asked others to submit detailed lesson plans but repeatedly failed to do so themselves? Or the senior colleague who would regularly walk into classrooms unannounced to judge teaching but somehow avoided being observed? Or how about the CPD session where ‘all staff’ were expected to attend but certain leaders felt they were above it. Great leaders set the tone by how they are seen to behave. Avoid making expectations of staff that you don’t stick to yourself and make your own learning very visible to others to show that you really value it.

3. Ultimate impact

Professional learning that has a clear and specific focus on student outcomes is more likely to have the planned impact on students. But, on top of that, a culture where professional learning is driven by student needs, by the community that the school serves, is much more likely to have staff buy-in and to be successful. Too often leaders focus on external pressures, like Ofsted, or direct everyone to a certain approach that might be well informed by evidence but doesn’t necessarily meet the most urgent needs that students have in the classroom. Where professional learning is driven by a shared goal for student success, teachers and students are more likely to succeed.

4. Priorities and resourcing

Time and money are always in high demand, especially now. However, where you do invest time and money says quite a lot about your culture and your priorities. An increasing number of schools are finding over an hour each week for staff to work together in teams to co-plan teaching and discuss their own learning. Professional learning is one of the most powerful things that you can invest in for teachers and for students.

Bridget Clay is Head of Programme (Leading Together) at Teach First. She tweets @bridget89ec

David Weston is the CEO of the Teacher Development Trust. He tweets @informed_edu

Look out for their new book, Unleashing Great Teaching. Buy it here.