Comparison of Teacher Professional Development Systems in Slovakia, Finland and The Netherlands

Abstract

The aim of the comparative study is to compare teacher professional development systems in Slovakia, Finland and the Netherlands on the basis of 3 comparative criteria: a) national policies and regulations, b) content and forms, c) counselling and support systems in the professional development of teachers. Data were obtained from scientific articles published in the online databases ERIC, EBSCO, Education Source, Google Scholar and from national legislative documents available on the websites of the countries. The results point to the validity of implementing andragogical counselling in teachers’ professional development as a non‐focal part of lifelong learning while highlighting the requirements of the European Commission in their legislative documents.