Professional development for teachers
Here you’ll find a wide range of free, self-access training and resources designed to help you build the skills and knowledge you need as an English teacher.
All TeachingEnglish professional development resources are aligned with the British Council Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Framework for teachers, to help you plan your learning and develop the areas most relevant to your professional growth.
You can explore resources in a way that suits your goals:
- by professional practices – to focus on specific areas of teaching where you want to deepen your skills and expertise
- by professional development levels – to find resources matched to your training and experience and see how they can help you progress within each area.
Each resource includes a timer icon to show how much time you’ll need, helping you plan your learning effectively.
Engagement
9–12 hours
9–12 hours
Planning lessons and courses
Knowing the subject
TeachingEnglish: How to teach pronunciation
Increase your understanding of phonology and your ability to support learners with effective pronunciation activities in the classroom. How to teach pronunciation is open now – enrol until 23 September 2026.
Engagement
9–12 hours
9–12 hours
Knowing the subject
Planning lessons and courses
TeachingEnglish: How to teach listening
Improve your understanding of how people listen and learn to plan effective, engaging listening activities. Explore key listening skills, solve common teaching challenges and develop strategies to support both your learners and your own active listening. How to teach listening is open now – enrol until 23 September 2026.
Engagement
9–12 hours
9–12 hours
Assessing learning
Using inclusive practices
TeachingEnglish: Assessing learning
Help all your learners benefit from and get actively involved in assessment in the language classroom. Assessing learning is open now – enrol until 23 September 2026.
Integration
9–12 hours
9–12 hours
Understanding my learners
Understanding my professional identity
Understanding my context
TeachingEnglish: Classroom research
Discover how to reflect on and explore issues in your teaching context, plan and carry out a small-scale classroom research project and communicate your findings effectively. Classroom research will open on 1 October 2026 – enrol now.
Engagement
9–12 hours
9–12 hours
Understanding my professional identity
Understanding my context
TeachingEnglish: Focus on professional development
Take control of your professional growth by exploring the wide range of development opportunities available to you as a teacher and discover how to maximise their impact through collaboration and reflective practice. Focus on professional development will open on 1 October 2026 – enrol now.
Integration
9–12 hours
9–12 hours
Knowing the subject
Using 21C skills or core skills
TeachingEnglish: Building understanding through dialogue
Create positive relationships and effective communication in your classroom by exploring techniques to develop empathy, critical thinking and intercultural competence. Building understanding through dialogue will open on 1 October 2026 – enrol now.
9–12 hours
9–12 hours
Using inclusive practices
Using multilingual practices
Understanding my context
TeachingEnglish: Including learners' languages
Use your learners’ existing languages to support their learning of English, and discover how valuing and celebrating home languages in the classroom enhances learning while promoting inclusion and equity. This new course will open on 2 October 2026 – enrol now.
Integration
9–12 hours
9–12 hours
Using digital technologies
Understanding my professional identity
Using 21C skills or core skills
Digital competences for teaching English
Discover how to integrate digital tools to support language learning, collaboration, formative assessment and effective feedback. Improve your digital communication skills and teamwork in your professional context and learn about online continuing professional development. Digital competences for teaching English will open on 2 October 2026 – enrol now.
Engagement
9–12 hours
9–12 hours
Planning lessons and courses
Using 21C skills or core skills
Climate action in language education
Learn to integrate environmental issues in English language teaching and develop the skills you need to take and sustain meaningful and impactful action to protect the environment in your local context. This updated course will open on 2 October 2026 – enrol now.
Understanding
9–12 hours
9–12 hours
Planning lessons and courses
Managing the lesson
TeachingEnglish: Classroom management for primary
Give your primary learners the best environment to learn English by improving your management of instructions, learning activities, resources and physical space. Classroom management for primary will open on 5 October 2026 – enrol now.