An IPDP is an Individual Professional Development Plan. It is a personal contract that you make with yourself that outlines the plans for professional development over no more than a three-year period.

In an IPDP, you indicate the actions you intend to take to address development needs identified by your performance appraisal or from reflecting on your career path.

You can use the IPDP to chart your learning and career needs and to proactively seek activities that will foster your development in these areas. Since your IPDP will be aligned to the teaching standards, it will also strengthen your ability to meet the needs of students.

When you complete your IPDP, the Council will be able to identify and invite you to participate in targeted development activities.

The Professional Development Committee in your school can use the IPDP to plan for and execute in-house PD activities that meet the needs of all teachers

Data from the outcomes of your yearly appraisal as well as a reflection of your projected career growth path should be used to guide your IPDP planning process.

You should create your IPDP no later than 2 weeks after your final appraisal.

You should submit your IPDP in July before the end of the academic school year.  This should be done via the Appraisal Progress management System hosted on Zyqual Platform. https://zyqual.com

Your IPDP should be written or updated after your yearly final appraisal activity. You should aim to achieve your development goals for one IPDP within 2 -3 years.  This means that you are to review and update your IPDP yearly in order to reflect the changes as the need arise within the IPDP cycle.

You are the one responsible to review your IPDP throughout the year(s) ensuring that goals are attained.  There is an expectation that you will discuss your progress with your supervisor during your formative appraisal. At your summative appraisal you should supply evidence of your PD growth and discuss with your supervisor changes to be made to the IPDP.

The IPDP document should be signed by you and your supervisor.

• Your signature indicates that you have reflected and will hold yourself accountable for attaining the development goals.
• Your supervisor’s signature indicates that he/she has consulted with you or reviewed the IPDP document submitted by you and will serve as an accountability partner in ensuring the attainment of stipulated goals.
• No supervisor should withhold his/her signature based on disagreement with the standards that you have selected.

All teachers will complete a standard IPDP form located on Zyqual. However, the type of IPDP you develop is dependent on the appraisal instrument you used, your final credit score obtained for each guiding principle on your teacher appraisal document as well as your career path projection.

You will first need to conduct an analysis of your summative appraisal document in order to select one standard from each guiding principle that you have identified as needing PD support or you wish to develop for career purposes.

After selecting your standards, you will rank them then share your top 3 development needs that you will action in the upcoming academic year.

If after the development of the IPDP you were unable to accomplish a goal based on a selected teaching standard, upon the review of the IPDP you may choose to carry forward that standard or replace it for the next academic year. You also have the option of keeping the teaching standard but changing your intended actions.

In the case of non-compliance, even after an intervention activity by your supervisor, the principal has the autonomy to assign to you a Directed IPDP. In addition, if you did not complete your IPDP you might not be invited to participate in some development activities as your information would not have been listed with the Council.

The Jamaica Teaching Council disseminates to the education system via its website an annual Matrix of Professional Development Opportunities. You are encouraged to view the listings and voluntarily register for courses that addresses PD needs stated on your IPDP.

However, there will be some courses that you, based on your submitted IPDP will be invited by the Council, your Region, QEC or MoEY to participate in.