The thesis is divided into six major chapters:
Chapter 1: An introduction provides an overview and presents the background to the context and purpose of the thesis. It introduces the subject area and briefly summarises the literature that has influenced the research.
Chapter 2: This explores in greater depth the field of knowledge as seen in the current literature. It provides a review of the literature on ppolicy and government changes in the last 25 years, the definition of CPD, characteristics of CPD leadership, and the role of CPD leadership, professional development and training programmes and the barriers and challenges for the CPD leadership role. From the information obtained from the literature review, the main research objectives were
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identified and the parameters of the research method emerged using semi-structured interviews with ten CPD leadership and seven SMT members in an FE college.
Chapter 3: The approach using qualitative methodology was considered the best research design for this type of study, the aim of which was to collect information from real settings and in a local context. Semi-structured interviews were used to facilitate data collection.
Chapter 4: This chapter is entitled Research Findings and is based on the views of CPD leadership and SMT members regarding CPD leadership development, definition of CPD, college policy on CPD, their understanding of individual CPD leadership roles and practices and the challenges and barriers facing CPD leadership in carrying out their roles effectively.
Chapter 5: This chapter is entitled Discussions of Findings; it presents the results of investigations and analysis from the literature review, as well as the semi-structured interviews with the participants.
Chapter 6: This chapter is entitled Conclusions and Recommendations. This chapter makes links with previous relevant research literature, highlighting where similarities and differences exist between the research findings of my study and that of other researchers in the field of CPD leadership development in FE this field.
33 CHAPTER 2 Literature review: Developing CPD leadership in FE
2.0 Introduction
This chapter presents a systematic review of the literature which is related to the development of CPD leadership in FE. A questioning and critical approach was used whilst reading the literature, which is related to the following research questions:
1. What are the CPD leaders’ perceptions and interpretations of the term CPD?
2. What are the individual roles and responsibilities of CPD leaders?
3. How are CPD leaders supported in their professional development?
Why do CPD leaders find some types of support more effective than others?
4. What are the challenges and barriers which individual CPD leaders face in carrying out their individual roles?
The chapter is divided into the following sections:
Conducting the literature review;
Policy and government changes in the last 25 years;
Literature review related to research question 1;
Literature review related to research question 2;
Literature review related to research question 3;
Literature review related to research question 4;
Theory and conceptual framework and summary.
34 2.1 Conducting the literature review
Searches were made of online databases using the following key terms: leader, leadership development, CPD, FE, CPD leadership. The focus was on CPD leadership development in the FE sector. The search review process drew on a variety of sources:
Government documents and other relevant websites, including the Institute for Learning (IfL) documents, Centre for Excellence in Leadership (CEL) reports, Learning and Skills Council (LSC), Lifelong Learning UK (LLUK) , Department for Education and Employment (DfEE), Department for Education and Skills (DfES), Department for Business Innovation and Skills (DBIS), Further Education National Training Organisation (FENTO), Her Majesty’s Inspectorate (HMI) reports, Office for Standards in Education (OFSTED) report, Kennedy report, (1997), Foster reports (2005), Lingfield report (2012), Leitch report(2006, 2010,2011,2013), and Wolf report (2014).
College documents, including prospectuses, Senior Management Team meeting reports, and Ofsted reports for the last 12 years.
Books and journal articles found by searching the online University of Birmingham e-resources directory, and by consulting the Education Resource Information Centre (ERIC), Emerald, Swetswise and Ingenta.
The Journal of Further and Higher Education.
The International Journal of Leadership in Education.
Research in Post-Compulsory Education.
I have also drawn on the work of the following authors who have written comprehensively about FE leadership development: Alma Harris, Ann Briggs, Daniel Muijis, Jackie Lumby, Paul Martinez, Kevin Orr and Helen Mitchel.
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In order to make the task manageable, the research was limited to studies which had been published from 2000 onwards. In total, 350 titles and abstracts were retrieved and subjected to a full critical review in order to establish their relevance to the aims of the study and to answer the research questions; the following reviewed titles comprised that:
Had a focus on CPD leadership development in FE.
Referred to CPD in FE.
Explored the role, characteristics and challenges of CPD leadership in FE.
The full literature of the 25 studies which were retrieved were subjected once more to critical review which stipulated the studies should include:
Detailed information on CPD leadership development in FE;
A clear description of CPD leadership development in FE;
Evidence to attempt to establish the validity and reliability of data on which the study was based.
It was hoped that the research review could yield some insights into the development of CPD leadership in the FE sector. This would inform the focus, the perspective and the context of the research.
In the last 25 years the FE sector has been overwhelmed with new policies and reforms aimed at improving the quality of teaching. The following are some of the changes which have affected the FE sector:
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1990 -1997 Conservative government (John Major era) 1992 Further and Higher Education Act:
Incorporation of colleges: the introduction of local management of colleges and independence from local authority control.
The Further and Higher Education Act (1992) provided for the creation of an unelected quango, the Further Education Funding Council (FEFC).
Colleges transformed into independent autonomous organisations, with every FE college being placed under the control of a board of governors.
The introduction of estate offices to look after maintenance of college buildings.
Creation of HMI, an inspection regime for FE colleges.
Robson, (1998) states ‘the further education teaching profession is currently in a state of crisis. After decades of official neglect, the Further and Higher Education Act (1992), the first major legislation to focus directly on Further Education (FE) since the war, has significantly raised the profile of the sector, but it has so far done little to improve the standing of the professional group, as a whole’.(Robson, 1998:585)
1997 – 2007 Labour government (Blair era)
1997 Kennedy report: reviewed under-participation in FE.
2000 The Learning and Skills Act 2000 established the Learning and Skills Councils (LSC) for England and Wales, allowed City Technology colleges to be named City Academies. The Labour Government replaced the FEFC with the LSC.
2001 DfES: Education Department renamed the Department of Education And Skills.
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2001 OFSTED and ALI (Adult Learning Inspectorate) replaced the FEFC (Further Education Funding Council), and become the council to ensure the quality and accountability of teaching and learning in the FE sector.
2002 Green Paper 14-19: referring to extended opportunities, raised standards, set out proposals for 14-19 curriculums, the e need for raising standards and changing structure as well as the call to place learning at the heart of all we do’ (DfES: 2002a:2)
2003 Green Paper 19: Opportunities and excellence set out proposals for the 14-19 curriculums taking into account responses to the 2002 Green Paper.
2004 Tomlinson Report 14 -19 Curriculums and Qualification Reform Report.
2005 White Paper 14-19 Education and Skills, rejected most of 2004 Tomlinson Report’s recommendations.
‘Given the changes in the policy dynamic of reform in the FE sector since 1999 in response to a combination of factors, ranging from policy neglect to mismanagement, low morale and recruitment issues, leadership is currently high on the policy agenda’ (DFES, 2002,2004,2005,2006).
2005 Foster’s Review of Further Education related to improved leadership, learning and professional development. This was referred to as the new discourse of FE (Leitch, 2006; LSC 2005). Since the Foster review that focused heavily on leadership, and leadership development.
2006 Launch of Train2Gain, a government-funded, employer-led scheme that provides free work-based training for adult learners.
2006 Leitch Review advocates routing all funding through employer-led schemes, such as apprenticeships.
2007 Ofsted became ‘The Office for Standards in Education.
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2007 Green Paper Raising Expectation: staying in education and training post 16. All young people to stay in education up to age 18. ‘Considerable policy change has been imposed on FE in recent years originating from growing concern that the UK economy would lose out within a global market if a highly skilled workforce was not available or maintained. The resultant plethora of policy documents have placed FE at the centre of strategies to ‘up skill’ the UK workforce’ (DfES, 2002; DfES, 2005; Leitch, 2006; DIUS, 2007).
2007 - 2010 Labour government (Gordon Brown era)
2007 Department of Innovation, Universities and Skills was created (DIUS)
2007 Further Education and Training Act 2007 , new arrangement relating to further education and Learning and Skills Council England.
2007 Introduction of mandatory CPD overseen by IfL.
2009 Act 2009 provides for the dissolution of the Learning and Skills Council Skills (LSC).
2010 – May 2015 Conservative/Liberal government (David Cameron era)
2011 HCEC Report Participation by 16 -19 year olds in education and training; a report by the House of Commons Education Committee
2012 Lingfield Report on Professionalism in Further Education, the interim report of the Independent Review Panel
2012 Lingfield review Final Report of the Independent Review Panel Established by the Minister of State for Further Education, Skills and Lifelong Learning October 2012. Final report from an independent review chaired by Lord Lingfield. Makes recommendations to government on a new framework for professionalism.
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2.2 Key policy shifts and their implications for CPD, CPD leadership and