Pardew will not be in the dugout for the New Year's Day clash at St James' Park having entered talks with Premier League rivals Crystal Palace about a return to Selhurst Park as boss.
With the 53-year-old out of the picture, Newcastle will be led by Carver and Steve Stone as they look to build on Sunday's 3-2 victory over Everton.
Carver, who has labelled the Newcastle post as his "dream job", is not treating the visit of Burnley as an audition, but remains determined to keep up the team's recent form.
"It's quite a unique situation, [and] it's been pretty hectic," said the 49-year-old. "As soon as I knew he [Pardew] was in talks with them [Palace] I had to get my head around preparing the team for Burnley.
"That's all I've done, it's been carnage actually, with two games in short period it's quite difficult, I've had to delegate to ensure we are ready.
"Burnley deserved their draw at Man City. They don't look like a side at the bottom and the manager's done a fantastic job."
Sean Dyche's men head to Tyneside brimming with confidence after coming from two goals down to draw 2-2 with Premier League champions Manchester City on Sunday.
"There is a learning curve and I have been very pleased with the players and how they have adapted," he said.
"It is a 'so-far' story and I remind the players of that. It's important that we keep the humility and belief in what we do on occasions like City because there's another game coming along quickly and we need more points and more wins on the board."
Newcastle will be without striker Papiss Cisse as he serves the first of a three-game ban for elbowing Everton's Seamus Coleman, and first-choice goalkeepers Tim Krul (ankle) and Rob Elliot (thigh) remain on the sidelines.
