218. ark; mike baker a fellow of the royal society for the arts
TRANSCRIPT
7/31/2019 218. Ark; Mike Baker a Fellow of the Royal Society for the Arts.
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/218-ark-mike-baker-a-fellow-of-the-royal-society-for-the-arts 1/2
Home Articles Cancer Blog Biography Calendar Links Contact
New head of Ofsted - too close togovernment?1 4 O c t 2 0 1 1
The new head of Ofsted and Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Schools forEngland is to be Sir Michael Wilshaw, although he has first to appear beforethe Parliamentary Select Committee.
Sir Michael Wilshaw has long been the poster -boy of the Schools Secretary,Michael Gove. The latter frequently mentions and quotes the success SirMichael has had in leading the Mossbourne Academy in Hackney, London.Mind you, Sir Michael - who was kni ghted in 2000 - was als o pretty popularwith the last Labour government.
ARK takeove r?
Sir Michael is an enthusiast for academies and is Director of Education atARK, which runs 9 academies and 2 free schools. Indeed, ARK seems to be
taking over the education world: Ofsted's chair, Sally Morgan, has been anadvisor to the charity's global board and the Chair of Ofqual, the examsregulator, is the Director of Research and Policy at ARK.
Discipl inar ian
I have met Sir Michael a few times and visited his school some time ago. Heis renowned for running a tight ship. He believes in strong discipline and isan enthusiast for strict rules on school uniform. He has had great academicsuccess at Mossbourne, although neighbouring schools have been knownto grumble that Mossbourne somehow manages to attract the mostmotivated pupils with the most supportive parents.
Although he appears to share the educational views of Michael Gove, myimpression of him is that he is also strongly independent and confidentenough to be his own man. He will need to demonstrate this in the newrole if he is to win the trust of schools.
The best Chief Inspectors have been those who are strongly independentof government and the Department of Education in particular. Otherwisethere is a risk that Ofsted becomes little more than the policeman of currentgovernment policies and minister's favoured methods. Ofsted should notfavour one approach over another but should say it as it sees it, observingwhether or not schools are doing a good job with whatever methods theythemselves have chosen to use.
Coast ing schools
Sir Michael has suggested to the BBC that he thinks Ofsted has spent toomuch time focusing on failing schools. This could fit well with currentconcerns in government that more needs to be done to raise standards in
s o-called 'coasting' schools.
Roy Blatchford of the National Education Trust would welcome this, sayinghe hopes Ofsted will ensure that thousands of pupils 'no longer languish ingrindingly satisfactory classrooms'.
User Comments
Rebecca Hanson - 14 Oct 2011
Ofs ted shou ld no t f avour one approach ove r ano th e r
This is an issue for all regulatory bodies and was addressed properly by theHampton Review, which led to the Legislative and Regulatory Reform Act
(2006) to which Ofsted became obligated in (2009).
If Sir Michael understands and implements this law properly, he will be asuccess. If he doesn't he will not be.
The implications of this law for Ofsted are expored in detail in a series of
To get an update email each timethe website is updated please sign-up using the form below.
Why we need a World Education Forum - 15/11/2009
Education White Paper - key points -24/11/2010
Education Bill 2011- the details -27/01/2011
Facebook protest over AQA Englishexam - 20/06/2010
Ofqual talks tough with exam boards -09/12/2011
Anyone else experiencing Academy'blackmail'? - 08/01/2009
Gove's crazy O Level plans -22/06/2012
Spending Review - what it really means - 20/10/2010
My cancer diagnosis and 'beatingcancer' blog - 29/04/2011
Full breakdown and analysis of education cuts - 08/06/2010
July 2012 (2)
June 2012 (2)
May 2012 (2)
April 2012 (2)
March 2012 (6)
February 2012 (3)
January 2012 (6)
December 2011 (7)
November 2011 (7)
October 2011 (8)
More
Sign-up for email alerts
N a m e
Sign-up
Search this website
SearchCustom Search
Most read blog entries
Archive
Mike's latest tweets
Stay updated withthe Mike Bakernews feed.Click here
RSS
Advertisements
Blog
ttp://www.mikebakereducation.co.uk/blog/412/new-head-of-ofsted-too-close-to-government/ Page 1 / 2
7/31/2019 218. Ark; Mike Baker a Fellow of the Royal Society for the Arts.
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/218-ark-mike-baker-a-fellow-of-the-royal-society-for-the-arts 2/2
Mike Baker 2007-12. Website by Norwich Creative Network Ltd. Search engine optimisation by Norwich SEO.
posts in my blog here:http://mathseducationandallthat.blogspot.com/ (you may need to scroll down)
I'd be deligted to provide further advice to anyone needs it and/or referthem to the expert legal and professional regulators who advised me onthis issue.
Post a comment
After posting your comment you will need to confirm it by checking youremail and clicking the confirmation that will be sent to you.
Comments will appear once reviewed for appropriate content.
N a m e
Sub jec t
Comment 55
66
Post
Like Sign Up to see what your friends like.
ttp://www.mikebakereducation.co.uk/blog/412/new-head-of-ofsted-too-close-to-government/ Page 2 / 2