Professional Knowledge Award
– for teachers and school leaders
Do you want to be recognised for excellent professional knowledge?
✓ Demonstrate your strong professional knowledge around teaching and learning and/or school leadership in three ‘Professional Knowledge Examinations’
✓ Engage with wider reading and core content to deepen your understanding of assessment principles, ready to showcase how you would apply this knowledge to support the development of classroom practice
✓ Connect research to practice, explaining how you would interpret key ideas from education research within your area of specialism
There are three pathways to achieving the Professional Knowledge Award, meaning you can select the pathway that is most relevant for your role.
For: Practising teachers and middle leaders Cost: £139
Length: 3-12 months*
Eligibility: You will need to be a teacher with relevant classroom experience and member of the Chartered College of Teaching.
Please note: The Certificate in Evidence-Informed Practice course covers a number of the content domains that are assessed in these examinations. Therefore, you are strongly encouraged to complete the Certificate in Evidence-Informed Practice course before, or alongside, completing this unit.
Within the Professional Knowledge Award you will undertake three examinations:
• Multiple Choice Question (MCQ) examination, which assesses knowledge of evidence-informed teaching, learning, curriculum and assessment.
• Objective Structured Teaching Exercise (OSTE), which is a scenario-based examination, designed to assess knowledge of formative assessment.
• Written Examination, which is designed to assess knowledge of effective teaching and learning strategies within the context of your subject, phase or specialism.
Upon successful completion of the unit assessment you will be awarded the Professional Knowledge Award and 30 credits towards Chartered Teacher Status.
*This unit can be completed in a term or less, however many candidates choose to undertake this unit alongside other Chartered Status units, for example completing one exam per term over three terms.
The content for this assessment unit includes:
– Detailed examination guidance
– Practice examinations and exemplars
– Reading lists.
You will also have access to a short online course on Principles of Assessment, which includes:
– An introduction to assessment theory
– Understanding assessment purpose, reliability, validity
– Recognising the potential for assessment error and bias.
All content will be accessed via the Chartered College of Teaching’s online learning platform, MyPD.
You will undertake three examinations in total. Each examination will be taken online and must be taken under test conditions.
The MCQ examination includes 30 multiple choice questions relating to teaching and learning, curriculum and assessment. (Time allowed: 45 minutes)
The Objective Structured Teaching Exercise (OSTE) is a video-based examination where you produce a written response to a fictional scenario, focused on an aspect of formative assessment. This is an open-book examination, which means you may refer to notes or reading material during the exam. (Time allowed: 45 minutes)
The Written Examination will assess your knowledge of how specific evidence-informed approaches apply in the classroom. You will be able to choose one of four given themes and produce a written response to three questions to demonstrate your understanding of your chosen theme and how it applies within your subject / phase / specialism. (Time allowed: 60 minutes)
Examination Access Arrangements
At the Chartered College of Teaching we are committed to ensuring that our Chartered Teacher examinations are accessible to candidates, without compromising the Professional Principles being assessed.
Access arrangements allow candidates with special educational needs, disabilities and/or medical conditions to access the online examinations without changing the demands of them. Reasonable adjustments that can be made include extra time to complete an exam paper or include the provision of rest breaks. Further details of access and support arrangements can be found in the Candidate Policy Handbook.
✓ Be recognised for your strong professional knowledge
✓ Deepen your understanding of assessment purpose, reliability, validity and bias
✓ Connect research to practice as you demonstrate how you would interpret key ideas from education research within your area of specialism
‘I am more critically reflective of what I do and use my knowledge of research evidence to try out new strategies and techniques’
(Chartered Teacher graduate)
1. Am I eligible to undertake this assessment unit?
This assessment unit is aimed at teachers and middle leaders. If you are registered as a Candidate on the Chartered Teacher pathway you should undertake this assessment unit.
2. How long will it take to prepare for and complete this assessment unit?
The length of time you will need to spend preparing for your examinations will vary depending on how confident you are with the aspects of professional knowledge that are being assessed. The three examinations themselves are relatively short – with each examination lasting no longer than an hour.
3. When will I find out the outcome of examinations?
The MCQ results are released immediately after the examination has been taken. The OSTE and Written examinations will not be assessed until the next assessment point. You will be able to find full details on submission points and when examination outcomes will be released on MyPD.
4. How can I purchase this assessment unit?
You can purchase the assessment unit via our online shop on MyCollege. Please note you will need to log in via your membership account. If you do not currently have membership, you can find further information on our website.
5. I am interested in being considered for Recognition of Prior Certificated Learning (RPCL), where can I find out if my qualifications meet the criteria?
You can read about Recognition of Prior Certificated Learning and find out how to apply on our website.
If you have any other questions, please get in touch with us at charteredteacher@chartered.college.
For: School leaders (Headteachers, DHT, AHT, Executive Headteachers and leaders working in similar roles across a school or trust e.g. Director of Education).
Cost: £139 Length: 3-12 months*
Eligibility: You will need to be a school leader with relevant leadership experience and a member of the Chartered College of Teaching.
Please note: The Certificate in Evidence-Informed Practice course covers a number of the content domains that are assessed in these examinations. Therefore, you are strongly encouraged to complete the Certificate in Evidence-Informed Practice course before, or alongside, completing this unit.
Within the Professional Knowledge Award (Leadership) you will undertake three examinations;
• Multiple Choice Questionnaire (MCQ) examination, which assesses knowledge of evidence-informed teaching, learning, curriculum and assessment.
• Objective Structured Teaching Exercise (OSTE), which is a scenario-based examination, designed to assess knowledge of formative assessment and teacher professional development.
• Written Examination, which is designed to assess knowledge of effective leadership and school development approaches, applied within your school context.
Upon successful completion of the unit assessment you will be awarded the Professional Knowledge Award (Leadership) and 30 credits towards Chartered Teacher (Leadership) Status.
*This unit can be completed in a term or less, however many candidates choose to undertake this unit alongside other Chartered Status units, for example completing one exam per term over three terms.
The content for this assessment unit includes:
– Detailed examination guidance
– Practice examinations and exemplars
– Reading lists.
You will also have access to a short online course on Principles of Assessment, which includes:
– An introduction to assessment theory
– Understanding assessment purpose, reliability, validity
– Recognising the potential for assessment error and bias.
All content will be accessed via the Chartered College of Teaching’s online learning platform, MyPD.
You will undertake three examinations in total. Each examination will be taken online and must be taken under test conditions.
The MCQ examination includes 30 multiple choice questions relating to teaching and learning, curriculum and assessment. (Time allowed: 45 minutes)
The Objective Structured Teaching Exercise (OSTE) is a video-based examination where you produce a written response to a fictional scenario, focused on an aspect of formative assessment. This is an open-book examination which means you may refer to notes or reading material during the exam. (Time allowed: 45 minutes)
The Written Examination will assess your knowledge of effective leadership and school development within your school context. You will choose one of four possible school development themes as the focus for your examination and produce a written response to three questions linked to your chosen theme. (Time allowed: 60 minutes)
Examination Access Arrangements
At the Chartered College of Teaching we are committed to ensuring that our Chartered Teacher examinations are accessible to candidates, without compromising the Professional Principles being assessed.
Access arrangements allow candidates with special educational needs, disabilities and/or medical conditions to access the online examinations without changing the demands of them. Reasonable adjustments that can be made include extra time to complete an exam paper or include the provision of rest breaks. Further details of access and support arrangements can be found in the Candidate Policy Handbook.
✓ Be recognised for your strong professional knowledge around teaching and learning, and school leadership
✓ Deepen your understanding of assessment purpose, reliability, validity and bias
✓ Connect research to practice as you interpret key ideas from education research into practice
‘Chartered Status offers the profession the opportunity to raise the status of teaching as a more rigorous pursuit. Personally within my setting it has afforded us access to a wider range of evidence-informed solutions and leadership practices’
(Chartered Teacher (Leadership) graduate)
1. Am I eligible to undertake this assessment unit?
This assessment unit is aimed at school leaders with either whole school or cross school responsibility, who have excellent knowledge of teaching, learning, curriculum and assessment, as well as effective leadership and school development. If you are registered as a Candidate on the Chartered Teacher (Leadership) pathway you should undertake this assessment unit.
2. How long will it take to prepare for and complete this assessment unit?
The length of time you will need to spend preparing for your examinations will vary depending on how confident you are with the aspects of professional knowledge that are being assessed. The three examinations themselves are relatively short – with each examination lasting no longer than an hour.
3. When will I find out the outcome of examinations?
The MCQ results are released immediately after the examination has been taken. The OSTE and Written examinations will not be assessed until the next assessment point. You will be able to find full details on submission points and when examination outcomes will be released on MyPD.
4. How can I purchase this assessment unit?
You can purchase the assessment unit via our online shop on MyCollege. Please note you will need to log in via your membership account. If you do not currently have membership, you can find further information on our website.
5. I am interested in being considered for Recognition of Prior Certificated Learning (RPCL), where can I find out if my qualifications meet the criteria?
You can read about Recognition of Prior Certificated Learning and find out how to apply on our website
If you have any other questions, please get in touch with us at charteredteacher@chartered.college.
For: School-based mentors
Cost: £139 Length: 3-6 months*
Eligibility: You must be a school-based mentor and a member of the Chartered College of Teaching.
Within the Professional Knowledge Award (Mentor) you will undertake three examinations:
• Multiple Choice Question (MCQ) examination, which assesses knowledge of evidence-informed teaching, learning, curriculum and assessment.
• Objective Structured Teaching Exercise (OSTE), which is a scenario-based examination, designed to assess knowledge of formative assessment and supporting teacher development.
• Written Examination, which is designed to assess knowledge of effective mentoring within the context of your subject, phase or specialism.
Upon successful completion of the unit assessment, you will be awarded the Professional Knowledge Award (Mentor) and 30 credits towards Chartered Teacher (Mentor) Status.
*This unit can be completed in a term or less, however many candidates choose to undertake this unit alongside other Chartered Status units, for example completing one exam per term over three terms.
Please note: The Certificate in Evidence-Informed Practice course covers a number of the content domains that are assessed in the MCQ examination. Therefore, you are strongly encouraged to complete the Certificate in Evidence-Informed Practice course before, or alongside, completing this unit.
The content for this assessment unit includes:
– Detailed examination guidance
– Practice examinations and exemplars
– Reading lists.
You will also have access to a short online course on Principles of Assessment, which includes:
– An introduction to assessment theory
– Understanding assessment purpose, reliability, validity
– Recognising the potential for assessment error and bias.
All content will be accessed via the Chartered College of Teaching’s online learning platform, MyPD.
You will undertake three examinations in total. Each examination will be taken online and must be taken under test conditions.
The MCQ examination includes 30 multiple choice questions relating to teaching and learning, curriculum and assessment. (Time allowed: 45 minutes)
The Objective Structured Teaching Exercise (OSTE) is a video-based examination where you produce a written response to a fictional scenario, focused on an aspect of formative assessment and supporting teacher development. This is an open-book examination which means you may refer to notes or reading material during the exam. (Time allowed: 45 minutes)
The Written Examination will assess your knowledge of effective mentoring within your subject, phase or specialism. You will choose from one of four possible themes and answer a series of questions to demonstrate how your chosen theme manifests for mentees within your subject, phase or specialism, and how mentees can be supported in their development of their practice linked to the theme. (Time allowed: 60 minutes)
Examination Access Arrangements
At the Chartered College of Teaching we are committed to ensuring that our Chartered Teacher examinations are accessible to candidates, without compromising the Professional Principles being assessed.
Access arrangements allow candidates with special educational needs, disabilities and/or medical conditions to access the online examinations without changing the demands of them. Reasonable adjustments that can be made include extra time to complete an exam paper or include the provision of rest breaks. Further details of access and support arrangements can be found in the Candidate Policy Handbook.
✓ Be recognised for your strong professional knowledge around teaching and learning, and mentoring
✓ Deepen your understanding of assessment purpose, reliability, validity and bias
✓ Connect research to practice as you interpret key ideas from education research into practice
1. Am I eligible to undertake this assessment unit?
This assessment unit is aimed at school-based mentors. If you are registered as a Candidate on the Chartered Teacher (Mentor) pathway you should undertake this assessment unit.
2. How long will it take to prepare for and complete this assessment unit?
The length of time you will need to spend preparing for your examinations will vary depending on how confident you are with the aspects of professional knowledge that are being assessed. The three examinations themselves are relatively short – with each examination lasting no longer than an hour.
3. When will I find out the outcome of the examinations?
The MCQ results are released immediately after the examination has been taken. The OSTE and Written examinations will not be assessed until the next assessment point. You will be able to find full details on submission points and when examination outcomes will be released on MyPD.
4. How can I purchase this assessment unit?
You can purchase the assessment unit via our online shop on MyCollege. Please note you will need to log in via your membership account. If you do not currently have membership, you can find further information on our website.
5. I am interested in being considered for Recognition of Prior Certificated Learning (RPCL), where can I find out if my qualifications meet the criteria?</strong
You can read about Recognition of Prior Certificated Learning and find out how to apply on our website
If you have any other questions, please get in touch with us at charteredteacher@chartered.college.
When taking accreditations through third-party organisations, we strongly encourage you to verify the provider’s authenticity. Please be aware that some entities have replicated our work.
Please note you will require active membership of the Chartered College of Teaching to be able to purchase this assessment unit.
Contact us
Please do not hesitate to get in contact with any queries about our course on charteredteacher@chartered.college
