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Module

EDU8908 : National Professional Qualification (NPQ)

  • Offered for Year: 2024/25
  • Module Leader(s): Professor Rene Koglbauer
  • Lecturer: Mrs Stephanie Bingham, Dr Lisa Ramshaw
  • Owning School: Education, Communication & Language Sci
  • Teaching Location: Mixed Location
Semesters

Your programme is made up of credits, the total differs on programme to programme.

Semester 2 Credit Value: 10
Semester 3 Credit Value: 10
ECTS Credits: 10.0
European Credit Transfer System

Aims

The National Professional Qualifications for teachers and school leaders are a set of prestigious professional qualifications widely recognised in the sector and have been designed to transform the support and development offer for teachers and school leaders throughout their career. Each NPQ is underpinned by a framework, which sets out the learning objectives of each of the qualifications.
These NPQ framework are the latest addition to the wider suite of teacher education-focused frameworks, the Initial Teacher Training Core Content Framework (embedded also in PGCE courses) and the Early Career Framework (ECF). Combined they form the golden thread of teacher and school leader development in England.

This module is designed for participants to gain M-level credits alongside their Level 7 NPQ programme, if they successfully complete all assessment components.

Outline Of Syllabus

To date eight NPQ frameworks have been approved, with four being specialist NPQs (developing leaders in specific areas) and four being whole-school focused leadership NPQs.


The specialist NPQs (12-month programmes):
• National Professional Qualification for Leading Teacher Development (NPQLTD) – for teachers who have, or are aspiring to have, responsibilities for leading the development of other teachers in their school. They may have
responsibilities for the development of all teachers across a school or specifically trainees or teachers who are early in their career.

- Overview of content: Teaching: Consolidating of ECF, Designing Professional Development, Delivering Effective Professional Development, professional learning, implementation in own context.

• National Professional Qualification for Leading Behaviour and Culture (NPQLBC) – for teachers who have, or are aspiring to have, responsibilities for leading behaviour and/or supporting pupil wellbeing in their school.

- Overview of content: Consolidating of ECF, Culture, Enabling Conditions for Behaviour, Complex Behavioural needs, professional development and implementation in own context.

• National Professional Qualification for Leading Teaching (NPQLT) – for teachers who have, or are aspiring to have, responsibilities for leading teaching in a subject, year group, key stage or phase.

- Overview of content: Consolidating of ECF, Culture, how pupils learn, subject and curriculum, classroom practice, adaptive teaching, assessment, professional development and implantation in own context.

• National Professional Qualification for Leading Literacy (NPQLL) – for teachers who have, or are aspiring to have, responsibilities for leading literacy across a school, year group, key stage or phase.

- Overview of content: Teaching: consolidation of ECF, Developing Language, Reading and Writing, Professional Development and implementation in own context.


The Leadership NPQs (18-month programmes):
• National Professional Qualification for Senior Leadership (NPQSL) – for school leaders who are, or are aspiring to be, a senior leader with cross-school responsibilities.

• National Professional Qualification for Headship (NPQH) – for school leaders who are, or are aspiring to be, a headteacher or head of school with responsibility for leading a school.

• National Professional Qualification for Executive Leadership (NPQEL) – for school leaders who are, or are aspiring to be, an executive headteacher or have a school trust CEO role with responsibility for leading several schools.

Overview of content: all leadership qualifications will focus on school/trust culture, teaching, curriculum and assessment, behaviour, additional and special educational needs and disabilities, organisational management, professional development, governance and accountability, working in partnership and implementation in own context.

• National Professional Qualification for Early Years Leadership (NPQEYL) – for leaders with a full and relevant qualification who are, or are aspiring to be, managers of Private, Voluntary and Independent nurseries, headteachers of school-based and maintained nurseries, or childminders with leadership responsibilities.

Overview of content: Culture, Child Development, Curriculum and Assessment, additional and special educational needs and disabilities, organisational management, working in partnership, professional development and implementation in own context.

Teaching Methods

Teaching Activities
Category Activity Number Length Student Hours Comment
Guided Independent StudyAssessment preparation and completion65:0030:00N/A
Placement/Study AbroadEmployer-based learning501:0050:00N/A
Structured Guided LearningStructured research and reading activities202:0040:00N/A
Scheduled Learning And Teaching ActivitiesSmall group teaching82:0016:00N/A
Guided Independent StudyIndependent study521:0052:00N/A
Scheduled Learning And Teaching ActivitiesScheduled on-line contact time62:0012:00N/A
Total200:00
Teaching Rationale And Relationship

The blended approach to learning recognises that students’ range of prior learning experiences will be as diverse as they are different. It provides differentiated opportunities for them to begin, complement and/or extend their learning about and through effective leadership practice. Online materials will form the basis for each in-person delivery facilitated by school leaders. Serving school leaders from a range of contexts will enable challenge and support at an appropriate level for each student. Pastoral and assessment support will be available through the Newcastle University Educational Leadership Centre team. This approach helps to deliver the learning outcomes at the level of the individual. It also allows possibilities for networking, collaboration, peer support and continuous learning.

Assessment Methods

The format of resits will be determined by the Board of Examiners

Other Assessment
Description Semester When Set Percentage Comment
Prof skill assessmnt2M10Attendance and Engagement: In order to pass the NPQ, participants have to attend and engage with 90% of the activities.
Prob solv exercises2M25These tasks are set regularly throughout the programme (4 to 5 in a 12-month programme and 5 to 6 in a 18-month programme).
Case study3M658-day open book examination. Respond to presented scenario making reference to appropriate NPQ framework & literature 1500-2000 word
Assessment Rationale And Relationship

The assessment components for this module are aligned to the NPQ requirements.
a)       Attendance and engagement are carefully monitored as only those learners that meet the required engagement threshold are entitled to progress to the case study assessment.
b)       Problem solving exercises and reflective gap tasks are intended to help students to test students’ acquired knowledge and understanding as well as help them to reflect on how they have implemented the learning into their practice.
c)       Case Study: Students will be presented with a school-based scenario and are requested to respond as leader to the issues presented. They are required to draw upon the module content and materials, the appropriate NPQ framework and the related literature.

All assessment components, in line with national approaches, will be assessed as FAIL/PASS.

Reading Lists

Timetable