Education Minister Paul Givan has announced two initiatives to boost teacher professional development in Northern Ireland, including a new summer school with bursaries for over 1,200 staff.

The TransformED Teacher Professional Learning Summer School will be delivered by higher education institutions in July and August 2026. Courses will run for one or two days, focusing on the needs of pupils with special educational needs and supporting the wider TransformED programme.

St Mary’s University College in Belfast will hold its summer school from 1 to 7 July 2026, with applications opening on 1 June. The programme covers leadership, special educational needs, equity and inclusion, pedagogical excellence, and Irish medium education. Details from other institutions will be released ahead of their August sessions.

Mr Givan said professional learning summer schools are widely used and provide a flexible way for teachers to build on their knowledge. He encouraged teachers to apply, noting that the department is subsidising course costs for more than 1,200 participants.

Separately, the minister confirmed that post-primary schools will retain access to the online Teacher CPD Academy for the 2026-27 academic year. The platform, developed with InnerDrive, drew over 10,000 teachers in 2025-26, who together logged more than 45,000 hours of instruction.

The academy offers modules on cognitive science principles such as adaptive teaching, feedback, modelling, and retrieval practice. It also provides materials to support schools’ TransformED development days.

Mr Givan stated that the extension demonstrates a sustained commitment to high-quality teaching and will help embed effective practices across the education system as TransformED moves into its next phase of delivery.