Amazon.com description: Product Description: As quality, issues in university teaching and learning move to centre stage, so too does the theory and staff development. But upon what do developers base their own practice? where does the idea of 'development' come from and what problems does it raise? What are the shortcomings of organizing principles staff developers have been urged to take up such as 'deep' and 'surface' approaches to learning, reflective practice and action research. How can the philosophical tradition of 'understanding' and the contemporary ideas of postmodernism inform staff development practice? Graham Webb poses three key questions: What are the bases for educational and staff development? What are the weaknesses of current practices? What will an informed staff development for the future look like? Understaning Staff Development charts the philosophical landscape of staff development. It will be of interest to staff developers of all kinds, and more generally, to anyone concerned with education and human development.