Although significant resources are yearly allocated to the professional development of adults in Latvia, there is a lack of evidence on whether the implemented professional development policies and activities has brought the expected practical results, resonating with the insights arrived at worldwide (Kennedy, 2019; Botma et al., 2015; Hughes et al., 2021, etc.), revealing the encountered challenges when transferring the acquired knowledge into practice.  The problems still exist despite some early research on transfer of learning (Curry et al., 1994) and many follow up publications on the transfer and impact of professional development. (Borg, 2018; Brion, 2020, 2023; Kennedy, 2016; King, 2014; Blume, et al., 2010; Curry et al., 2005)

Besides, these problems are compounded by the lack of clarity about what effectiveness of transfer really means, and also the lack of evidence on how to transfer professional development results into practice effectively. Despite the concept of transfer is being thoroughly explored, it still requires an in-depth look into the factors influencing the process of applying and transferring training results into practice. (Blume, et als, 2010)

In the context of Latvia, only indirect evidence can be provided on the existence of such transfer. For example, the report "Results of adult education survey" (CSBL, 2018) mentions that 50.7% of respondents in formal education and 65.3% in non-formal education indicated adult education      having led to better job performance. Besides, with teachers being one of the most relevant target groups when learning and professional development are in the focus, it should be noted that in 2018, 88.6 % of teachers in Latvia admitted a positive impact on their teaching practices over the 12 months prior to the survey (OECD, 2020). One of the most recent studies on teachers' work and professional development,  (UL Interdisciplinary Centre for Educational Innovation, 2023) points to the need for a qualitative transformation of the professional development system for teachers, including the development of a targeted and goal-oriented support system within the organization. Measuring the impact and quality of implementation of professional development was another important finding, as well as preparing professional support staff for different needs.

Nowadays understanding of the nature, implementation and results of professional development has evolved, and there are many definitions, models and approaches to the concept, most of them related to the teacher professional development. The current study seeks to further elaborate the definition of the concept by focusing on holistic perspective of processional development, thus including various forms of learning - formal and informal learning, training, workplace learning, coaching, mentoring, etc.

To find evidence-based solutions for developing effective and efficient ways of professional competences of adults and assessing of the transfer of its results into practice in Latvia, first of all, it is necessary to raise awareness of the existing knowledge base, conduct a conceptual feasibility study, and identify indicators for the transfer of professional development results which in the current situation sufficiently reflect the transfer efficiency revealing also methodological concerns (including the recognition that self-reflected evidence produce ’inflating’ effect; see Blume, et al., 2010) related to the measurement and conclusions.

Three research questions are stated for systematic literature analysis:

1) What characterizes effective professional development? 2) Which theoretical concepts in the scientific literature represent the transfer of adult professional development into practice? 3) What processes and indicators show effective ways of transferring results professional learning outcomes into practice?

The research questions will be addressed by using guidelines of Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA, Page at al., 2021). A systematic review attempts to collect all the existing knowledge on the topic area (Grant & Booth, 2009) and uses a systematic approach to synthesize findings of relevant studies, which is why the research is organized in three steps. First, a preliminary qualitative research of the already published systematic reviews and meta-analysis regarding the transfer of professional development results into practice, the total of 99 units, is done by searching relevant databases (Scopus, ERIC, EBSCO, Sage Journals, SpringerLink Contemporary Journals, Wiley Online Library, Taylor & Francis Library, ScienceDirect, MDPI, Emerald eJournals Premier). The goal of this preliminary research is to identify objectives, keywords, the main theoretical concepts, processes and sectors, and to propose the eligibility criteria (i.e., the inclusion and exclusion criteria related to publication year, language, type of publication, target group, research context, field, etc.) and data sources for the systematic literature analysis according to PRISMA statement (Page at al., 2021). Then, the research field shall be narrowed to the most appropriate published systematic reviews for the specific project objective selected for detailed analysis to identify indicators for measuring how effective professional development and transfer of professional results into practice are. A decision was made to narrow down the databases where articles were searched (Web of Science and Scopus), as it is mostly possible to find articles published by other publishing houses in these databases. This will allow to move into the final research stage – the analysis of new original studies (not systematic reviews) to provide answers to the research questions.

The proposed systematic literature review (January-March 2024) will identify the main relevant theoretical concepts, processes, models, solutions as well as performance indicators related to effective professional development and effective transfer of its results into practice. So far we conclude that the system is recommended to be designed so that it was focused, personalized and effective, which can be achieved by designing specific, flexible targeted programs according to the needs of different teaching profiles, commissioning/financing forms of professional development that have an impact on practice, both workplace learning and a flexible choice of different modules (micro-courses), etc. The results of systematic literature analysis will empower the next steps of the research, namely, identification of good practice examples transferable into the socio-cultural and legislative contexts in Latvia. This includes the tools for measuring how effective and efficient transfer of professional development into practice is. This research is funded by the Ministry of Education and Science Republic of Latvia, project “Elaboration of evidence-based solutions for effective professional competence development of adults and assessment of the transfer of its results into practice in Latvia”, project No. VPP-IZM-Izglītība-2023/4-0001.

Blume, B. D., Ford, J. K., Baldwin, T. T., & Huang, J. L. (2010). Transfer of Training: A Meta-Analytic Review. Journal of Management, 36(4), 1065-1105. Borg, S. (2018). Evaluating the impact of professional development. RELC Journal, 49(2), 195-216. Botma, Y., Van Rensburg, G. H., Coetzee, I. M., & Heyns, T. (2015). A conceptual framework for educational design at modular level to promote transfer of learning. Innovations in Education and Teaching International, 52, 499–509. Brion, C. (2020). Learning transfer: The missing linkage to effective professional development. Journal of Cases in Educational Leadership, 23(3), 32-47. https://doi.org/ Brion, C. (2023). The impact of local culture on adult learning transfer: Implications for human resources professionals. Human Resource Development International, 26(3), 331-340. CSBL - Central Statistical Bureau of Latvia (2018). Results of adult education survey. https://admin.stat.gov.lv/system/files/publication/2018-03/Nr%208%20Apsekojuma%20Pieauguso%20izglitiba%20rezultati%20%2818_00%29%20LV_EN.pdf Curry, D. H., Caplan, P. & Knuppel, J. (1994). Transfer of training and adult learning (TOTAL). Journal of Continuing Social Work Education, 6(1), 8-14. Curry, D., McCarragher, T. & Dellmann‐Jenkins, M. (2005). Training, transfer, and turnover: Exploring the relationship among transfer of learning factors and staff retention in child welfare. Children and Youth Services Review, 27(8), 931-948. Grant, M. J., & Booth, A. (2009). A typology of reviews: An analysis of 14 review types and associated methodologies. Health Information & Libraries Journal, 26(2), 91-108. Hughes, A. M., Zajac, S., Woods, A. L., & Salas, E. (2020). The Role of Work Environment in Training Sustainment: A Meta-Analysis. Human Factors, 62(1), 166-183. Kennedy, M. M. (2016). How does professional development improve teaching? Review of Educational Research, 86(4), 945-980. Kennedy, M. M. (2019). How We Learn About Teacher Learning. Review of Research in Education, 43(1), 138-162. King, F. (2014). Evaluating the impact of teacher professional development: An evidence-based framework. Professional Development in Education, 40(1), 89-111. Page, M. J., McKenzie, J. E., Bossuyt, P. M., Boutron, I., Hoffmann, T. C., Mulrow, C. D. et al. (2021). The PRISMA 2020 statement: An updated guideline for reporting systematic reviews. BMJ, 372(71). OECD (2020), TALIS 2018 Results (Volume II): Teachers and School Leaders as Valued Professionals, TALIS, OECD Publishing, Paris, UL Interdisciplinary Centre for Educational Innovation. (2023). Kā izglītības sistēma var atbalstīt skolotāju, lai skolēni varētu apgūt 21. gadsimta prasībām atbilstošu izglītību? Ieteikumi izglītības politikas veidotājiem [Recommendations for education policy makers on how the education system can support teachers to provide students with a 21st century education]. UL ICEI. https://www.siic.lu.lv/fileadmin/user_upload/lu_portal/projekti/siic/LU_Izglitibas_Sistemas_Atbalsts_Skolotajiem.pdf