Office For Standards In Education Research Articles

Looking for patterns in OfStEd judgements about primary pupil achievement in design and technology

Respective English governments have placed considerable faith, political weight and not inconsiderable sums of money in a system of school inspection organised and led by the Office for Standards in Education (OfStEd). This article considers a so-called foundation subject, design and technology, and the extent to which we might meaningfully use OfStEd school and annual national subject summary reports over time to establish a clear picture about pupil achievement in design and technology. Change over time is almost certainly occurring but because of terminology and variation in information reported no clear picture emerges. If national school inspection is to be a vehicle for improving overall pupil achievement in subjects such as design and technology other approaches may be necessary.

The Ford score

We combined data from the Office for Standards in Education with those from a large national survey of child and adolescent mental health and developed a simple score that schools or LEAs could use to predict the level of emotional and behavioural difficulties that they are likely to encounter. The final Ford score is based on the rates of free school meals, exclusions, unauthorized absence and children with special educational needs. These data are collected routinely, so the Ford score could easily be calculated to provide estimates of the level of emotional and behavioural problems in mainstream schools without the use of additional resources. It needs further reliability and validity testing but could provide a means of allocating resources.

A Comparison between Inspection Reports on the Management of School Attendance Throughout the Education Service

This is the first article to compare and contrast the outcomes of Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted) reports on the management of school attendance issues in primary and secondary schools, out-of-school and local education authorities (LEA) provision. The findings indicate that schools and LEAs are judged using very strict criteria based on a school's or LEA's authorized or unauthorized rates of attendance, which are then compared with national norms, targets and Ofsted criteria. By contrast, out-of-school providers, often pupil referral units (PRUs), are given much more latitude despite their more obvious and serious attendance difficulties. This paper presents an insight into the reasons given by Ofsted inspectors for making either their positive or negative judgements on schools', PRUs' or LEAs' performances on the management of their attendance agenda. The implications of these findings are considered and conclusions drawn based on the evidence. Further research will be necessary to compare the findings in this paper with subsequent outcomes given the proposed changes with Ofsted's methodology and criteria for conducting its future inspections.

The Moral Dimension of Personal and Social Education

Throughout the 1990s there was considerable discussion of the moral dimension of teaching instigated largely by the Office for Standards in Education (1994) and School Curriculum and Assessment Authority (1995, 1996a, b) discussion papers. Although there was widespread acceptance among educationists, the inspectorate and the teaching profession that there was a moral dimension to teaching, differences were apparent in the perceptions of the significance of this dimension and the implications of it for schools. On the one hand, many teachers acknowledge the moral dimension of teaching, they recognize that teachers from time to time have to deal with controversial issues and have an obligation to respect the rights of children. However, they tend to see this dimension as peripheral to the main business of teaching and learning and not something which will influence how they are judged as professionals. Some recent perspectives on Personal and Social Education, such as the emphasis on personal competence or the self-esteem movement, have contributed to the marginalization of moral concerns in favour of a skills or therapeutic approach. This paper supports the view that teaching is inevitably a moral enterprise and that teachers need to be encouraged to see themselves as autonomous moral agents whose decisions have a fundamental impact on pupils' personal development.

Inspection and Inclusion

This paper outlines briefly the functions of the Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted) in England. It examines the role of inspection in promoting educational inclusion and describes features of good teaching, with particular reference to gifted and talented pupils. It concludes by looking ahead to Ofsted's new arrangements for the inspection of schools.

The Graduate Teacher Programme in England: mentor training, quality assurance and the findings of inspection

In its recent report on the Graduate Teacher Programme (GTP), an employment-based route to Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) in England, the Government's Office for Standards in Education found that, although almost all trainees meet the standards required to qualify, too often they do so at an adequate level, rather than achieving the high levels of which they should be capable. The underlying reason for this is the quality of mentoring provided in the schools. The inspectors concluded that schoolbased trainers are often not adequately prepared for their role in implementing wide-ranging training programmes for trainee teachers. Despite this generally bleak picture, Ofsted concluded that ‘the minority of cases of good practice in the training programmes and of high quality teaching by trainees indicate that the GTP can be an effective alternative route for training teachers’. This article considers the strengths and weaknesses of the Graduate Teacher Programme, introduced in January 1998, and also reports on a small-scale project, funded by the Teacher Training Agency (TTA), the key objective of which was to strengthen the existing partnerships by improving the quality of school-based tutor training and continuous professional development of staff.

The Professional Development Needs of Teachers with Responsibility for Pupil Attendance: a case study

This article focuses upon an evaluation of attendance issues within a local education authority (LEA) following two critical Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted) reports. After the publication of these reports, the contract and responsibility for managing schools, and the former LEA's remit, was awarded to a private company. As part of the company's external audit of ways to improve its attendance strategies within schools, the professional development needs of staff in schools and within the appropriate support services were assessed. Thereafter, a large number of continuing professional development (CPD) events were held that focused upon meeting the needs of schools, staff and the LEA in order to improve the management of attendance issues within the Borough. It is suggested that the evidence provided in this article probably represents the single largest amount of CPD activity ever undertaken within a single LEA on school attendance issues. All key staff have received appropriate training on fundamental attendance issues relating to truancy, as well as on how to implement short– and long-term strategic approaches to tackling truancy and raising attendance through innovative new schemes.

It's not which school but which set you're in that matters: the influence of ability grouping practices on student progress in mathematics

The mathematics achievement of a cohort of 955 students in 42 classes in six schools in London was followed over a 4‐year period, until they took their General Certificate of Secondary Education examinations (GCSEs) in the summer of 2000. All six schools were regarded by the Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted) as providing a good standard of education, and all were involved in teacher training partnerships with universities. Matched data on Key Stage 3 test scores and GCSE grades were available for 709 students, and these data were analysed in terms of the progress from Key Stage 3 test scores to GCSE grades. Although there were wide differences between schools in terms of overall GCSE grades, the average progress made by students was similar in all six schools. However, within each school, the progress made during Key Stage 4 varied greatly from set to set. Comparing students with the same Key Stage 3 scores, students placed in top sets averaged nearly half a GCSE grade higher than those in the other upper sets, who in turn averaged a third of a grade higher than those in lower sets, who in turn averaged around a third of a grade higher than those students placed in bottom sets. In the four schools that used formal whole‐class teaching, the difference in GCSE grades between top and bottom sets, taking Key Stage 3 scores into account, ranged from just over one grade at GCSE to nearly three grades. At the schools using small‐group and individualized teaching, the differences in value‐added between sets were not significant. In two of the schools, a significant proportion of working‐class students were placed into lower sets than would be indicated by their Key Stage 3 test scores.

OFSTED, fun, and learning: a case study of a school music inspection

In December 2001, the Times Educational Supplement reported on an OFSTED (Office for Standards in Education) inspection in which a school music department had been heavily criticised for placing too much emphasis on fun and enjoyment. In this paper, the OFSTED report is examined for evidence of the assumptions and justifications of its negative conclusions. The place of enjoyment in teaching and learning music is discussed and it is suggested that enjoyment is important to underpin necessary implicit learning, to maintain motivation and to ensure a lifelong commitment to music. Furthermore, enjoyment is not an easy option, depending as it does on a balance between challenge and developing competence. It is concluded that the OFSTED report fails to back its judgement with convincing evidence, fails to acknowledge the possibility and legitimacy of different positions, and relies on the power of OFSTED for its own legitimacy.

OFSTED Revisited: Re-living the Experience of an Initial Teacher Training PE Inspection

The Office for Standards in Education (OFSTED) inspects the quality of all Initial Teacher Training (ITT) provision in England on behalf of the Teacher Training Agency. This paper represents a sequel to an earlier paper which was published by colleagues following the first OFSTED inspection of secondary Physical Education Initial Teacher Training (ITT) at Loughborough University in 1996/97. Fired by dismay and frustration for the practices OFSTED demonstrated, Hardy and Evans (2000: 58) commented `we write... in fear that recent legislation will ensure that, in the future, we may receive more of the same'. This paper considers the extent to which `more of the same' was received during a second inspection in 1999/2000. It presents a commentary on staff experiences and reflections of the process and highlights the key issues encountered. The authors conclude that while `more of the same' was not experienced in terms of `outcomes' in 1999/2000, it was with respect to `process'. Given the many limitations of ITT inspection, they suggest that the credibility of the process remains questionable.

Media Representation of Research: The case of a review of ethnic minority education

AbstractConcern with the dissemination of research findings has increased in recent years, in the wake of critiques of research for failing to have an impact on policy‐making and practice. The most direct way in which research findings can be disseminated to a wide audience is via the mass media. However, coverage of social and educational research in the media is very limited. Furthermore, when it is covered researchers often complain that their work has been distorted. This article examines some of the media coverage of an Office for Standards in Education commissioned review of research on the education of ethnic minority children, published in 1996. Analysis of this media coverage is used as a basis for addressing questions about what is involved in media representation of research, how it should be evaluated, and what meaning can be given to the concept of distortion.

New Economy, New Pedagogy?

In England, the government wishes to integrate education into the economy. In this endeavour it has continued the previous Conservative government's stance on retaining direct, whole-class teaching in primary schools. It has retained the Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted). Standards of achievement in numeracy and literacy have increased. The country's international competitiveness is assumed to have been enhanced. But questions are being raised about this approach, mainly in government departments other than the Department for Education and Skills, notably in the Department for Media, Culture and Sport and in the Department for Industry. Their concerns can be put plainly: the Ofsted-endorsed traditional pedagogy will not well serve an emerging knowledge-based economy wherein creativity is at a premium. For its part, the government is ambivalent, seemingly reluctant to loosen its pedagogical grip on primary education, yet beginning to realise that pedagogical change is needed. Its reluctance seems not to turn on the lack of an academic basis for a new pedagogy, but on the financial implications of introducing a more progressive pedagogy which would require higher teacher-pupil ratios, and on the political risks of endorsing a more 'radical' pedagogy. The analysis is set within the context of economic globalisation and postmodern culture.

Do OFSTED Inspections of Secondary Schools Make a Difference to GCSE Results?

AbstractThe Office for Standards in Education (OFSTED) aims to improve school performance through inspection. A government indicator of a secondary school's performance in England and Wales is the students' success in examinations. The examination results of over 3000 OFSTED inspected secondary schools offering students for General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) examination during the 1992 to 1997 inspection cycle were modelled statistically. For kinds of schools where achievement was already much higher or lower than the average (e.g. selective schools), inspection was associated with slight improvements in achievement. For county, local education authority maintained, comprehensive schools (the largest single group), inspection did not improve examination achievement. Some implications for school improvement are discussed.

イギリスにおける学校視察と教師の自己評価

The purpose of this paper is to examine how teachers in England evaluate their teaching practice using the criteria based on OFSTED (The Office for Standards in Education) inspections. Also considered are the links and related problems between teaching practice and these evaluation criteria.This subject is of particular interest in the context of the new teacher appraisal system in Tokyo, which requires teachers to report on their own educational activities. The system of selfreporting there consists of ‘learning support’, ‘student guidance/career guidance’, ‘school management’ and ‘special activities/others’. Teachers in Tokyo have to set their own targets for assessing their activities in each category. Final appraisals are to be conducted by the school principal on the basis of the report submitted by each teacher.

‘Maintains a Good Pace to Lessons': Inconsistencies and contextual factors affecting OFSTED inspections of nursery schools

ABSTRACT This study explores the scope and reliability of Office for Standards in Education (OFSTED) inspections of nursery schools. All 513 inspections of nursery schools posted on the Web were coded for content. Thirty‐three nursery schools in three local authorities were visited, and basic data were collected from the schools and matched with that in the OFSTED report, and the headteachers' views on the inspections were sought. The study concludes that inspections were inconsistent, and at times misrepresented the work of the nursery schools. It argues that these inconsistencies and misrepresentations were largely due to the limited framework for inspection, which did not take account of the complexities and diversities of early years provision, and the rapid pace of change in the sector.

Children as inspectors? Evaluating school music provision for children aged 10–11 years

What do the views of children, teachers and inspectors about the quality of a school's music provision have in common, or are they all different? A trained expert visited ten primary schools, and her judgements about the music provision for children aged 10–11 were compared with those of the teachers, the children's views about music at the school, and the judgements reported in the school's most recent published inspection report. It was the children, particularly the boys, who agreed most closely with the expert. The judgements of the expert and the inspectors were broadly consonant, but the generalisation in the inspection writing led to its requiring a careful read if weaknesses in some schools' provision for Year 6 were to be detected. While there was general agreement between the expert and the teachers over children's attainment in the more effective schools, the judgements of the teachers were seriously awry in schools that neglected an aspect of the National Curriculum, typically composing. At present, inspectors routinely survey the views of parents and carers, but not those of pupils. The Office for Standards in Education (OFSTED), the government department responsible for the inspection of schools in England, is currently considering some limited use of older secondary pupils' views as inspection evidence. The evidence of the research described in this paper is that younger children, in Year 6, could usefully be involved in providing inspection evidence. Indeed, it is possible that they may prove to be rather better ‘inspectors’ than older children, and also than some of their teachers.

Ofsted and School Improvement: Teachers' perceptions of the inspection process in schools facing challenging circumstances

This article reports the preliminary findings from an ongoing study investigating teachers' views of The Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted) as a mechanism for improving secondary schools in challenging contexts. A case study approach in ten recently inspected secondary schools was utilised to address three research questions. First, how do teachers perceive the inspection process? Second, to what extent does Ofsted inspection generate changes in teaching and non-teaching practice in schools in challenging circumstances? And third, does Ofsted inspection identify similar priorities for change to those identified internally by schools in challenging circumstances? Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, survey and examination of documentary evidence. Findings to date highlight a number of common themes that illuminate the complex nature of the relationship between Ofsted inspection and the change process in these schools.

School improvement in the context of a primary school in special measures

This article is based on a case study of a large primary school placed in special measures as a result of an inspection by Ofsted (Office for Standards in Education). It examines the processes of school improvement and focuses on the leadership and management roles of the head teacher and deputy head teacher. It addresses approaches to improving the quality of teaching through systematic professional development cycles set up to support teachers. The role of senior staff in facilitating these cycles and the implications with regard to classroom observation, feedback to colleagues and action planning are significant themes. Data cover the perspectives of teachers, senior managers, Local Education Authority advisers and governors. The case study provides insights into school self-evaluation and its relationship to external scrutiny by Ofsted. External inspection may be an appropriate instrument for judging school performance, but cannot, on its own, lead to improvement (Lee & Fitz, 1998). This article explores what happens after a school (in England) failed an Ofsted inspection and was put in special measures. It focuses on the processes involved in improvement, in particular those aimed at improving the quality of teaching. It is, in many respects, a success story that relates to one aspect of a journey of school improvement, during which a school rapidly went from a state of crisis to a situation in which staff could celebrate their achievements in a school that, according to Her Majesty's Inspector, had ‘notable strengths’.

Can Race Equality be Inspected? Challenges for Policy and Practice Raised by the OFSTED School Inspection Framework

Abstract Although the system of school inspection in England has not changed radically since the 1997 general election, one significant policy development is that the Labour Government has given the Office for Standards in Education (OFSTED), the school inspection agency for England, a lead role in monitoring how schools are preventing and addressing racism. This article draws on findings from research funded in 1999‐2000 by the Commission for Racial Equality which set out to examine the effectiveness of OFSTED school inspection processes in monitoring race equality objectives in schools. It considers the extent to which the school inspection framework provides an effective model for the promotion of race equality in English schools and its potential for wider applicability in other European contexts. It examines how the British Government's pledges to eradicate racism and promote race equality in British society are being interpreted in one area of social policy, that of education. In particular, the authors explore the potential of school inspection to contribute to race equality and OFSTED's effectiveness in fulfilling its designated role to examine and report on initiatives to prevent racism and promote race equality. The inspection framework is analysed in terms of its overall fitness for the purposes of promoting race equality and preventing inequality. The article focuses on the consistency and adequacy of the reporting framework as it relates to race equality; the extent to which there was a commonality of understanding among inspectors about the framework, its processes and outcomes; how headteachers understood OFSTED's role and assessments of race equality; and the potential and actual impact of that reporting upon subsequent school‐based developments. The reasons for the relatively low profile given to issues of race equality in inspection reports and the considerable variations in levels of understanding and perceptions about race equality among inspectors are discussed. New legislation at both European and national levels will strengthen anti‐discrimination legislation and place greater responsibilities on employers and on public bodies to ensure greater racial equality. Such legislation will require inspectorates, including school inspection agencies, to monitor how various public authorities and employers are fulfilling race equality objectives. The authors provide a case study where the instrument of inspection meets legal and political demands for greater racial equality but where its implementation fails as a result of institutional inertia and lack of accountability to local communities. Their conclusions point to an urgent need to revise inspection processes so that inspection might have a positive impact upon the maintenance of standards for equality and racial justice. Some key recommendations are made for policy and practice to achieve greater equality in education, addressing the relationships between external assessment and self‐evaluation and between organisations and the communities they serve.

FORUM: SCHOOL INSPECTION IN ENGLAND: PAST DEVELOPMENTS AND PRESENT PROBLEMS

No AccessFORUM: SCHOOL INSPECTION IN ENGLAND: PAST DEVELOPMENTS AND PRESENT PROBLEMSDavid PhillipsDavid PhillipsSearch for more papers by this authorPublished Online:Jan 2019https://doi.org/10.7788/bue.2002.55.2.221SectionsPDF/EPUB ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack Citations ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail About Previous article Next article FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails Download book coverVolume 55Issue 2June 2002 ISSN: eISSN: HistoryPublished online:January 2019 PDF download