Educational leaders: The value of professional development schemes for recognising influence in learning and teaching

This chapter discuss a new understanding of how leadership is performed and internalised, from which a sustainable model of supporting and promoting educational leadership at the institutional level can be developed. It focuses on what is actually happening in an institution to capture ‘leadership’ in an English higher education institution (HEI). It considers leadership in the context of a continuous professional development route for Senior Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy at a Post 1960 English HEI. Higher Education Academy (HEA) Fellowship and the UK Professional Standards Framework (UKPSF) are increasingly used within British higher education institutions to support the professional formation of university teachers. The SFHEA is an internationally recognised accreditation for experienced university staff (academics/support/administrative) able to provide evidence of a sustained record of effectiveness in their practice, incorporating leadership of specific aspects of teaching and learning provision. Participants are evaluated against the criteria and dimensions of practice set by the UKPSF (UK Professional Standards Framework for Teaching and Supporting Learning in Higher Education), which identifies the areas of competence that need being demonstrated to achieve Descriptor 3, Senior Fellow. In the UK, it is increasingly the case that HE teacher development programmes for new and experienced staff are accredited by the Higher Education Academy (HEA) against the UK Professional Standards Framework (UKPSF) (Land & Gordon, 2015). There is a dearth of literature on programme leadership and sustainable leadership in higher education. This chapter is, therefore, particularly timely and suggest that CPD programmes ‘model’ good practice, which participants transfer to their own teaching.