**2.2. Competence for networking and partnerships**

Networking both in and out of school, and also cultivating partnerships, are important areas of competence for professional teachers. Networks allow the sharing of ideas, opinions and experiences and are also important in the creation and adoption of educational innovations [20]. In a partnership, at least two parties are engaged in collaborating in pursuit of common aims. Networks such as grade-level teams and principal teams and, moreover, networks with healthcare experts are important in-school networks.

Moreover, networking and partnerships are needed in engagements with entities outside the school, including organisations and companies in the surrounding community, and especially with parents. School-family partnerships can be cultivated through school-family events and personal meetings to support communication and the clarification of shared goals.

#### **2.3. Competence for life-long-learning**

Another competence that is missing from the knowledge base initially defined earlier is the competence for life-long learning. A professional teacher is ready to learn new knowledge needed in the teaching profession. This competence is often assumed to be developed through the study of research methodology and engagement in research activity. Therefore, a professional teacher is viewed as both a critical user as well as a producer of educational knowledge [21, 22].

A professional teacher is a user of educational knowledge when theory and practical experience are combined and when educational situations are interpreted through reflection. *Reflection* refers to the process in which an experience is recalled, considered and evaluated, usually in relation to a broader purpose. Rodgers [23] describes reflection as a meaning-making process comparable to the research process and lists phases of reflection: setting aims and recognising the problem(s), observing one's own behaviour in practice, describing observations and analysing observations and experiences. Moreover, this type of knowledge and competence is needed in planning, broadly conceived, including the preparation of the local curriculum, the implementation of teaching and learning activities and the assessment of teachers' teaching.
