Beyond formal training: An account of informal, self-directed professional development

Abstract

Professional development in tertiary ESL settings is generally discussed in terms of formal workshops and training programmes. The informal, self-directed professional development (PD) that emerges through everyday teaching practice, particularly in under-resourced ESL settings, is often overlooked. Addressing this gap, this study presents an autoethnographic reflective narrative of a longitudinal, informal, self-directed PD trajectory undertaken by an ESL practitioner-researcher in Sri Lanka Informed by Dewey’s and Schön’s reflective practitioner model, Farrell’s framework for reflecting on practice, and the British Council’s continuing professional development (CPD) framework for teachers, the study uses data from the author’s PhD research, experiential data from classroom experimentation with digital tools, social platforms, and more recently AI technologies, as well as classroom practice, conference participation, contributions to peer-reviewed publishing, and feedback from learners and colleagues. Situated within the author’s specific institutional and sociocultural context and influenced by personal motivations, this autoethnographic reflective narrative suggests that teacher agency, critical reflection, ethical responsiveness, pedagogical innovation, and contextual sensitivity can foster sustained PD. A key pedagogical takeaway from this study is that ESL practitioners should view technology integration into instruction as a reflective process of experimentation, evaluation, and adaptation. The study presents actionable strategies for ESL practitioners, institutions, and policy makers. ESL practitioners can professionally develop through systematic observation, critical reflection, pedagogical experimentation, and the documentation and dissemination of classroom-based insights. Institutions and policymakers can support such informal, self-directed PD by recognising reflective practice, integrating mentoring and peer learning into workload structures, and endorsing context-sensitive policies that validate classroom inquiry and blended professional learning pathways.