This week, Ofsted shared their plans to reform the inspection framework and called for teachers to respond to a consultation on the new inspections.
Under the new plans (due to launch from November this year), schools could be inspected in up to nine areas, and each area will be given a 1-5 judgement, ranging from ‘exemplary‘ to ‘causing concern‘.
If you want to find out more about the plans, you can watch the chief inspector of Ofsted explain the proposals in this video.
Teacher reactions
The most common response at this stage is that they ‘have not read the plans’ (38%) – understandable given they only came out on Monday!
However, among those who have read them, the reaction isn’t that enthusiastic. Just 6% responded ‘somewhat positive’ and 0% ‘very positive’.
35% felt somewhat or very negative, and 21% felt neutral.
Teachers reactions to the new Ofsted plans
Headteachers were the most likely to have read the plans, but also the most likely to feel negatively about the reforms: 43% feel ‘very negative’ and 24% ‘somewhat negative’.
Are the plans more fair, more clear or more accurate?
One of the criticisms for the old-style inspections was that a single word judgement lacked nuance. So will the proposals provide reports that are more fair, clear and accurate?
To find out, we split our panel into three, with each third answering the same question with one small tweak:
- Do you think the five-tier rating system (from ‘causing concern’ to ‘exemplary’) will provide a fairer picture of schools than the current system?
- Do you think the five-tier rating system (from ‘causing concern’ to ‘exemplary’) will provide a clearer picture of schools than the current system?
- Do you think the five-tier rating system (from ‘causing concern’ to ‘exemplary’) will provide a more accurate picture of schools than the current system?
We did this to try and find out if one of these words elicited a different response in comparison to the others…and the answer is, not really.
When asked if the system would be more fair, or more accurate or more clear – the most common response was the same: it wouldn’t make a difference.
‘Accurate’ and ‘clear’ received very similar results with no statistically significant differences between them. Headteachers always felt the most strongly about the question, with 20% feeling they will be ‘much less fair‘ compared to 5% of classroom teachers.
How will the changes impact children with SEND?
The reforms include a new focus on inclusion and will assess whether schools are making a “tangible difference to pupils’ learning, development and wellbeing”.
However, teachers remain sceptical as to whether this will lead to meaningful improvements in how schools support disadvantaged and SEND pupils.
11% believe the new improvements will ‘definitely not’ lead to meaningful improvements for SEND pupils, and a huge 42% feel they probably won’t.
1% believe they ‘definitely’ will, and 15% that they ‘probably’ will and 30% remain unsure.
Watch for more Ofsted questions over the next few months as more of the plans are shared, and let us know what you think of these results on social media. You can find us on most platforms using @teachertapp.
