Overview
Are you ready to take your career as a TA to the next level? Wondering how to become a higher-level teaching assistant? This Ofsted-approved level 4 teaching assistant course will give you the opportunity to boost your salary, recognition, and responsibilities. Also ideal for those seeking management or mentoring roles, this course will build upon your existing experience and allow you to work unsupervised in a classroom setting.
Designed for TAs already practising at a level 3 standard, it’s specially structured so that you can continue to earn as you learn – simply incorporate your online studying into your working day, and put your newfound skills and knowledge to good use along the way!
You’ll discover how to support children and young people with their mental health and wellbeing, uncover the roles and responsibilities of a Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator (SENCo), and further improve your working relationship with family members and other education professionals. You’ll complete a detailed research project which will help you to reflect on how to implement positive change in an academic setting and explore leadership and management skills. As you continue to work as a TA, you’ll complete workplace observations that will be signed off by your Oxbridge tutor.
Why study this level 4 advanced practitioner certificate?
- After completion, you can boost your salary and responsibilities
- It’s internationally recognised, accredited, and Ofsted approved
- You can study while you continue to work as a TA
- You can advance into management or leadership positions
- You’ll receive unlimited tutor support as you study
What you'll learn
In this unit, you’ll understand the roles and responsibilities of an advanced practitioner. You’ll gain awareness of the statutory educational frameworks in the UK and how to safeguard people of all age ranges, for example, against drug use or bullying. You’ll also look at how people learn, put the relevant theory into practice, and evidence how to apply new learning to the day-to-day role, reporting on changes to practice in one’s own setting through development of a learner portfolio. In addition, you’ll be expected to consider how the environment and learning activities influence an individual’s development. Finally, you’ll explore various leadership, mentoring and management skills and styles.
In this unit, you’ll uncover the core components of mental health and well-being, such as happiness, confidence and engagement. You’ll analyse factors that influence individuals from infancy to early adulthood, such as language and academic ability. You’ll also gain insight into current legislation within the UK and how individual perceptions can be shaped by media, cultural or public surroundings. Finally, you’ll explore coping strategies and resilience building to better support and improve individuals’ mental health and well-being.
In this unit, you’ll cover current frameworks for inclusive practice, evaluating policies and procedures in relation to statutory frameworks and national guidance. You’ll examine factors that impact those learning with special education needs or disabilities, as well as the level of assistance required to support them. You’ll also discover the role and responsibilities of the Special Education Needs Coordinator (SENCo), analysing strategies used by practitioners to help those with additional needs. Finally, you’ll consider aspects that affect families caring for individuals, evaluate partnership working with other professionals, and reflect on a range of policies and procedures to better support individuals with additional or special educational needs or disabilities in one’s own setting.
In this unit, you’ll understand the requirements for partnership working in schools and colleges, such as different strategies to incorporate and barriers to overcome when working with families. You’ll discover the diverse needs of families and how to address them. Finally, you’ll learn how to lead, coach and mentor staff within one’s own setting, using methods and strategies for overcoming challenges in relation to partnership working.
In this unit, you’ll plan a research project from scratch. This will include selecting you research topic and using established methods and techniques to design your project. You’ll perform a literature review of academic research papers exploring ideas for change in one’s own setting. You’ll also use research methods to review an established research paper, summarise its main findings, and provide recommendations for change. In addition, you’ll implement and evaluate any changes in one’s own setting. Finally, you’ll consider the nature of your findings and identify various ways and suitable methods in which to explain and share those findings with others.
Extra info
Awarding Body
CACHE stands for the Council for Awards in Care, Health and Education, and are the leading specialist Awarding Organisation for the Care and Education Sector.
Click here to confirm it's real with OfQual.
Course Outcome
At the end of this course, successful learners will receive the following qualification: NCFE CACHE Level 4 Certificate for the Advanced Practitioner in Schools and Colleges. This means that it is independently accredited at a level of learning equivalent to Level 4 on the National Qualifications Framework (NQF) for England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
NCFE CACHE has been developing courses in the childcare, education and healthcare sectors since 1945 and is one of the most reputable awarding bodies for qualifications in the UK and overseas. Practitioners working in these areas are much more employable having gained NCFE CACHE certification and many employers specifically ask for their qualifications when taking on members of staff.
How is this course assessed or examined?
This Level 4 certificate is designed to provide you with everything you need to develop professionally as an Advanced Practitioner and to expand the career opportunities available to you.
This course takes place across five mandatory units, with learners achieving a total of 21 credits. As you demonstrate your ability to work at level 4 in a school or college environment, you will be assessed by written assignments, professional discussions and observations that should take place as part of your everyday routine. Your Oxbridge tutor will sign off your observations, as well as mark your assignments.
Your performance in the workplace can be assessed by a workplace assessor who has held a supervisory role for over two years and has a Level 4 or above support teaching qualification or full teaching qualification. Alternatively, you can be assessed by a colleague who has an assessing qualification such as A1 or CAVA, alongside a Level 4 or above support teaching qualification or a full teaching qualification. Oxbridge will verify the suitability of your assessor, and we offer free guidance on how to observe and write in a format suitable for marking by your tutor if needed. An Oxbridge assessor can also be provided for you if needed, for an additional fee. Find out more about what’s required of an assessor here.
When you submit your written work, you will be required to include a bibliography using clear citations and references. You will also need to provide documentation of your work, such as an evidence record, and a log of placement hours. Your tutor will explain exactly what is needed.
Entry requirements
Students should be at least 18 years old and need to be working or volunteering in learning support in a school. Students should also have completed (or be completing) a Level 3 Teaching Support qualification such as NCFE CACHE Level 3 Certificate in Supporting Teaching & Learning.
