Professional Development Program (PDP)

Cohorts

At SFU, we believe that teaching is fundamentally grounded in relationships. That is why the Professional Development Program (PDP) is designed to help student teachers develop strong relational practices and build their professional community.

Throughout the 16-month program, student teachers work in small groups — a Professional Learning Community (PLC) and a Module. This structure provides student teachers with extended opportunities to establish and build close working relationships with their peers, teacher educators, and practicing K-12 teachers.

PROFESSIONAL LEARNING COMMUNITY (PLC)

During the first semester of the PDP, student teachers join a PLC — a group of student teachers who work closely with an instructional team to explore foundational themes, begin their guided inquiry, and participate in focused learning experiences in educational communities. Some PLCs are based in Surrey and others are based in Burnaby. The location of your PLC will be based on your campus preference.

Note: Student teachers admitted to the French and International Teacher Education Module (ITEM) will have separate PLCs.

MODULES

From the second semester onwards, student teachers become part of a Module — a small group of approx. 32 student teachers who work with dedicated teacher educators to focus on the integration of theory and practice. Each Module has a different theme (see below), but all address the core matters of diversity, equity, indigeneity, literacy, numeracy, ecology, technology, artistry and creativity, and health and physical activity.

Most student teachers will be placed in a Module after they have been admitted to the program. Students who are admitted to the French, International Teacher Education Module (ITEM) or Indigenous Perspectives on Teacher Education Module (IPTEM) will be automatically placed in these Modules.

Note: These three 'specialty' modules require a letter of intent to be submitted with your PDP application.

For more information, see our Module and Placement FAQs