KEEP emphasises that effective learning for young children is dependent on secure relationships, an appropriate learning environment and high quality teaching.
The elements reflect key findings of recent research into what helps early years staff reflect on their work and what effective practice looks like.
Each of the six areas below is ‘key’ to effective practice. Each area is dependent on the others and contributes to the whole:
relationships with both children and adults
understanding of the individual and diverse ways that children develop and learn
knowledge and understanding in order to actively support and extend children’s learning in and across all areas and aspects of learning
practice in meeting all children’s needs, learning styles and interests
work with parents, carers and the wider community
work with other professionals within and beyond the setting
For practitioners, KEEP provides a framework for:
outlining expertise
logging qualifications
identifying future continuous professional development (CPD) needs
For heads, managers and co-ordinators, KEEP provides a framework for:
mapping staff experience
mapping staff qualifications
identifying the training needs to support the development of their setting
planning the development of the setting and the staff
For the Primary Strategy Early Years team, KEEP provides a way of structuring the CPD programme and strengthening the impact of training
The CPD course programme for 2006/07 has been categorised under the six key elements of KEEP to support practitioners in their own professional development.
Some courses may appear in more than one category, as the content of the course covers several of the key elements. Practitioners should choose courses from across the six key elements when planning their own professional development. Download a copy of how the CPD course programme links to KEEP at the bottom of this page.
Page Last Updated: 31 October 2008