National Professional Qualification for Headship (NPQH) Leading and Developing People Syllabus

Leading and Developing People syllabus — full chapter and topic list

Expand any chapter to see its topics and sub-topics. This is the whole examinable outline for Leading and Developing People in National Professional Qualification for Headship (NPQH), not a summary of it.

1. 1

   Professional Development and Staff Learning

   5 topics

   • Designing Effective CPD
     • Mechanisms of effective professional development
     • Sustained, collaborative and subject-specific CPD
   • Mentoring, Coaching and Instructional Leadership
   • Early Career Framework and Induction
   • Building Subject and Curriculum Expertise
   • Evaluating Impact of Development on Pupil Outcomes
2. 2

   Recruitment, Retention and Workforce Planning

   4 topics

   • Strategic Recruitment and Selection
     • Safer recruitment practices
     • Building a diverse leadership pipeline
   • Staff Retention and Workload Reduction
     • Tackling unnecessary workload
     • Promoting staff wellbeing and morale
   • Succession Planning and Talent Management
   • Performance Management and Appraisal
3. 3

   Building High-Performing Teams

   4 topics

   • Distributed and Middle Leadership
     • Developing and empowering middle leaders
     • Clear roles, accountability and delegation
   • Leading Change and Managing Resistance
   • Effective Communication and Feedback Cultures
   • Conflict Resolution and Difficult Conversations

Leading and Developing People flashcards for National Professional Qualification for Headship (NPQH)

21 of 53 cards from the Leading and Developing People deck — real questions with worked answers.

1. What is the purpose of Continuing Professional Development (CPD) in a school context?

   CPD is the ongoing, structured process of improving teachers' knowledge, skills and practice throughout their careers with the ultimate aim of improving pupil outcomes.

2. According to the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF), what are the four broad 'mechanisms' that effective professional development should combine?

   Building knowledge; motivating staff; developing teaching techniques; and embedding practice (sustaining and reinforcing changes over time).

3. Why is one-off 'spray and pray' CPD generally considered ineffective?

   Single events provide no time for practice, feedback or embedding; effective CPD is sustained over time, iterative, and includes follow-up so new techniques become habitual.

4. Name three design features that characterise high-quality, effective CPD.

   It is sustained over time, collaborative, subject/content-specific, includes expert input, models effective practice, and incorporates feedback and coaching.

5. In CPD design, what does it mean for development to be 'evidence-informed'?

   It means selecting content and approaches that are grounded in robust research evidence (e.g. EEF guidance, cognitive science) rather than fads, fashions or unsupported intuition.

6. Distinguish between mentoring and coaching.

   Mentoring is typically a more experienced colleague giving advice, guidance and modelling to a less experienced one; coaching is a non-directive, question-led process that helps a colleague find their own solutions and reflect on their practice.

7. What is 'instructional leadership'?

   A leadership approach focused directly on improving teaching and learning - leaders prioritise the quality of instruction, set high expectations, observe practice, give feedback, and support teacher development to raise pupil achievement.

8. What is the GROW model used in coaching, and what do its letters stand for?

   A coaching framework structuring a conversation: Goal (what to achieve), Reality (current situation), Options (possible actions), and Will/Way forward (commitment to action).

9. What is 'instructional coaching' and why is it considered powerful for teacher development?

   Instructional coaching is sustained, individualised support combining observation, granular feedback and deliberate practice of specific techniques; it is effective because it is precise, recurring and embedded in the teacher's own classroom.

10. In coaching, what is meant by 'deliberate practice'?

    Focused, repeated practice of a specific, broken-down technique with immediate feedback, aimed at improving a precise aspect of performance rather than general experience.

11. What is the Early Career Framework (ECF) in England?

    A statutory entitlement (introduced from September 2021) providing early career teachers with a structured, fully-funded two-year programme of training and support based on evidence about effective teaching and teacher development.

12. Over how many years does the Early Career Framework induction run, and what role supports the teacher?

    It runs over two years, and each early career teacher (ECT) is supported by a dedicated mentor alongside an induction tutor.

13. What are the two evidence statements that structure the Early Career Framework's content?

    'Learn that...' statements (the underpinning evidence/knowledge) and 'Learn how to...' statements (the practical skills teachers develop through expert guidance and practice).

14. What is the difference between the induction tutor and the mentor under ECF induction?

    The induction tutor assesses the ECT against the Teachers' Standards and makes formal progress judgements; the mentor provides regular, non-judgemental support, coaching and instructional guidance to develop practice.

15. What are the formal assessment points during the two-year ECF statutory induction?

    There are two formal assessments against the Teachers' Standards - one at the end of year one and one at the end of year two - alongside regular informal progress reviews.

16. Why is building strong subject and curriculum expertise considered central to teacher quality?

    Deep subject knowledge plus pedagogical content knowledge lets teachers sequence learning effectively, anticipate misconceptions, ask better questions, and explain ideas clearly - directly improving pupil understanding.

17. What is 'pedagogical content knowledge' (Shulman)?

    The blend of subject-matter knowledge and pedagogy - knowing how to make a specific subject's content comprehensible to learners, including the best representations, analogies, examples and ways to address common misconceptions.

18. How can a leader build subject and curriculum expertise across a school?

    Through subject-specific CPD, subject networks/communities of practice, collaborative curriculum design, use of subject associations, and giving teachers time to develop curricular knowledge.

19. What is the most important measure of whether professional development has 'worked'?

    Its impact on pupil outcomes and learning - not merely teacher satisfaction or participation - though changes in teacher practice are the key intermediate indicator.

20. What are the four levels of Guskey's model for evaluating professional development?

    Participants' reactions; participants' learning; organisational support and change; participants' use of new knowledge and skills; and (the fifth, ultimate level) student learning outcomes.

21. Why should CPD impact not be judged solely on participant satisfaction (the 'happy sheet' problem)?

    Positive reactions do not guarantee changed practice or improved pupil outcomes; satisfaction is the weakest level of evidence and can be high even when learning impact is nil.

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