Ofsted to provide schools inspection information to pupils

The education watchdog, the Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted) have announced plans to provide copies of school inspection reports to pupils.

The new measure is part of the plans to introduce "shorter, sharper school inspections", which will be introduced in September.

Under the new plans, inspections will take place every three years (instead of six years) and reports will be shorter. The new reports will begin with a statement describing the school's overall effectiveness, as well as a numeric grade score on a four-point scale and will include a letter to pupils.

Schools will also be required to describe their arrangements for consulting parents, demonstrate how they are acting upon their views and alert parents to how they can make contact with inspectors when an inspection has been called. Parents will also be provided with a short questionnaire about the school, which they can complete and return to inspectors.

David Bell, Chief Inspector of Schools, said: "School inspection is worthless if it does not get to the heart of what pupils do at school and this has been at the forefront of our thinking when designing the new system. Over the past ten years, Ofsted has helped 'up the ante' on seeking pupils' views. Including a letter to pupils in inspection reports in the future is no gimmick, but a response to the fact that pupils are surrounded by intense activity during inspections but are often never told, in language they understand, what the outcome is."

However, the NASUWT teachers' union said that the questionnaires would be open to "misuse and abuse" and were "totally inappropriate". Commenting on the plan, Chris Keates, General Secretary of the NASUWT, said: "Such strategies serve only to further undermine the authority and professionalism of teachers. Schools are rife with pupils who know their rights but not their responsibilities. All too frequently pupils threaten to report teachers who challenge their inappropriate behaviour. These letters and questionnaires will tilt even further the balance from teacher to pupil."

Ofsted also claimed that the new arrangements would reduce the burden of inspection on teachers, due to the introduction of a self-evaluation form, which would then by scrutinised by inspectors who would either confirm or challenge it.

Mr Bell said: "This new system of inspection is explicitly about 'raising the bar' of expected performance. I make no apologies for saying that. What was considered 'good' ten years ago may no longer be considered 'good' today. Our expectations as citizens and consumers are always rising, so it is right that our expectations of the education system should also rise."

(KMcA/SP)