Does Ofsted require improvement?

Fewer than one in ten teachers think Ofsted has raised standards at their school, according to polling for The Times. 

A survey of 5,000 teachers found “overwhelming levels of unhappiness” with the government watchdog, as the vast majority of teachers told pollsters they would rate the regulator as “inadequate” or “requires improvement”.

Just 0.5% of teachers polled by the Times Education Commission said Ofsted’s performance was outstanding, 13% said it was good, while 41% said that it required improvement, 38% thought that it was inadequate, and 8% did not know.

Respondents were also asked whether Ofsted had improved education at their school: 32% disagreed that the regulator had, and 27% strongly disagreed. Just 8% agreed while the rest could not answer.  

The commission said that its final report showed there has been a “breakdown of trust” between Ofsted and schools, reported The Times, and will recommend reforms so that the watchdog works more collaboratively with headteachers.

The paper reported that Amanda Spielman, Ofsted’s chief inspector, “said recently that schools overwhelmingly found Ofsted inspections to be fair and constructive, and dismissed suggestions that the pressure of scrutiny was driving headteachers from the profession”. 

Schools under intense pressure after Covid

At a time when many schools are still dealing with the fallout of Covid-19, which saw a heightened number of pupil and staff absences, the government has given Ofsted an additional £24m to “accelerate inspections” of schools, reported The Guardian last year. 

But headteachers have said that the “intense pressure” of Ofsted inspections means that school staff are resigning from the profession.

“Our inspector was intimidating, raising his voice and making accusations. There was not one apology each time I proved his accusation unfounded. He just swiftly switched to another accusation, then another,” one headteacher told the paper. The inspector’s questioning also unnerved some students. “They felt they were being interrogated and pressured to give negative feedback.”

One primary school adviser, Ruth Swailes, told the paper that inspectors refused to understand the difficulties placed on schools by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Swailes said: “I’ve been told inspectors are using phrases like ‘Covid is no longer an excuse’. In one instance where a member of the school community had died of Covid, the headteacher was told: ‘I don’t want to hear the word Covid’.”

Article source: https://www.theweek.co.uk/news/education/957060/does-ofsted-require-improvement