SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT AND SELF-EVALUATION IN THE NEW OFSTED FRAMEWORK – WHAT

DOES IT MEAN FOR GOVERNORS?

Wendy SheehanGL Performance

May 2012

Ofsted Annual Report, 2010/11

“Most commonly, the governing body knew too little about the school because monitoring was not rigorous or because over-generous self review judgements were accepted without sufficient challenge: at times of change and in an inherently challenging sector, they accepted too much on trust.”

Ofsted Key Issues

School 1:

Increase the role of the governing body in school improvement by: • involving governors more closely in monitoring the work of the school • ensuring their involvement in detailed planning that clearly identifies priorities for the school's long-term strategic development

School 2:

Increase the effectiveness of leadership and management by:

ensuring that the governing body receives additional training and support so that it can robustly hold the school to account

New Ofsted Inspection Framework 2012

• “Self-evaluation is now well established in schools, providing the basis for planning for development and improvement. Inspection takes account of and contributes to a school’s self-evaluation.”

• “The quality of its self-evaluation is a good indicator of the calibre of the school’s leaders and managers and of the school’s capability to improve.”

• When schools are first informed that they are to be inspected, they will be asked to “provide Ofsted with a summary of their self-evaluation. This should include evidence from school stakeholders”.

New Ofsted Framework Leadership and Management Grade Descriptor – Outstanding

“All leaders and managers, including the governing body, are highly ambitious for the school and lead by example. They base their actions on a deep and accurate understanding of the school’s performance and of staff and pupils’ skills and attributes”.

New Ofsted Framework Leadership and Management Grade Descriptor – Satisfactory (from Sept 2012 requires improvement)

“The headteacher and most other key leaders, including the governing body, provide a concerted approach to school improvement”.

The school self-evaluation cycle

Make judgements about strengths and areas for improvements

Write self-evaluation report

Devise school improvement plan

Gather evidence

Implement and monitor improvement plan

The Process

1. How well are we doing?2. How do we as Governors know? 3. What evidence do we have?4. How can we find out more?5. What are your schools’ strengths?6. What are the schools’ areas for

improvement?7. How do we monitor?

1. How well are we doing?

•How are you going to self evaluate?

•What questions are you going to ask?

•What are you going to measure yourself against?

•Ofsted Framework / ASCL Framework / Your own?

•What questions are the ones which will help you move forward?

•Do you need to add more?

Ofsted Framework

Quality of education provided in the school, its overall effectiveness, taking account of the four key judgements.

The four judgements cover:•the achievement of pupils at the school•the quality of teaching in the school•the behaviour and safety of pupils at the school•the quality of leadership and management of the school.

Ofsted Framework

Quality of education provided in the school, its overall effectiveness, taking account of the four key judgements and:how well the school is promoting the pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development

the extent to which the education provided by the school meets the needs of all pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

A Good education for all – consultation paper for Sept 2012 changes

•To require “outstanding” schools to have “outstanding” teacher•Only “good” and “outstanding” schools will be deemed providing an acceptable standard of education•“Requires improvement” will replace “satisfactory” and “notice to improve”•“Requires improvement” schools will be subject to re-inspection earlier than currently

A Good education for all – consultation paper for Sept 2012 changes

•Schools judged “requires improvement” on two consecutive inspections will be deemed as “special measures” •Inspections will be undertaken without notice•Inspectors will analyse anonymised information of the recent performance management outcomes as part of the Leadership and management judgement.

1. How well are we doing?2. How do we as Governors know? 3. What evidence do we have?4. How can we find out more?5. What are your schools’ strengths?6. What are the schools’ areas for

improvement?7. How do we monitor?

How do we as Governors know?

•Results

•Last Ofsted

•Headteachers report

1. How well are we doing?2. How do we as Governors know? 3. What evidence do we have?4. How can we find out more?5. What are your schools’ strengths?6. What are the schools’ areas for

improvement?7. How do we monitor?

Your turn: Your Headteacher says you are

OUTSTANDING in all 4 areasWhat evidence would you look for to

support this?

1. The achievement of pupils at the school

2. The quality of teaching in the school

3. The behaviour and safety of pupils at the school

4. The quality of leadership and management of the school

5 minutes…..

What did you come up with?

RAISE onlineAcademic Results internal / externalAttendance data, late books, exclusionsInternal testingEntry to school testsSchool plan and policies, subject department plans, teachers’ plans,The code of behaviour School inspection reports, previous school self-evaluation reports, school improvement plans, progress reports, agendas and minutes of meetingsAudits - for example, health and safety, finance

What did you come up with?

• Interviews with students, staff, parents.• Walking round the school at different times of the

day. • Displays

1. How well are we doing?2. How do we as Governors know? 3. What evidence do we have?4. How can we find out more?5. What are your schools’ strengths?6. What are the schools’ areas for

improvement?7. How do we monitor?

New Ofsted Inspection Framework

• “Inspections will give greater consideration to the views of parents, pupils and staff as important evidence.”

• Ofsted will draw on pupils’ and parents’ views to inform inspection judgements and they will strive to inform inspection activities by gathering the views of pupils and parents who have a significant interest in the school.

Parent Power• The Government is transforming the relationship schools have with parents. • The thoughts and views of parents have never been more important in shaping the way schools are run.• The SEN Green Paper emphasised the need for more parental choice in where and how their children are educated.• The Bew Review for KS2 assessment called for a wider range of data to be made available to parents.• The results of the new mandatory phonics screener at the end of Year 1 will be shared with parents.• As part of the new Ofsted framework, parents have been given the power to trigger a school inspection.

ParentView

• Ofsted launched the ParentView website in October 2011:

http://parentview.ofsted.gov.uk/ • The website enables parents to share their views on their child’s school and it covers a range of topics, including quality of teaching, bullying, behaviour and levels of homework. • The responses to the 12 closed questions that make up the questionnaire will help Ofsted decide which schools to

inspect, and when.

“Evaluating parental opinions is not easy”

“Response rates are usually poor and I have to question the quality of our data”

“Recording and analysing the data can take days – normally during the school holidays”

“What do my results really mean?”

Schools say…..

An effective parental survey

Start with the end in mind• What evidence do you need for your self evaluation?

• What evidence do you need to challenge assumptions from ParentView?

• What changes are you planning to implement?– Are they the right ones?

•What changes have you implemented? – Were they successful?

.

An effective Parental survey

• Importance v satisfaction

• Qualitative v quantitative

• Reliability

• Feedback

• Focus groups

• Repeat annually

.

Improving response rates

• Advertise• Paper v’s Online• Pupil power• Get teachers on board• Incentivise• Get the timing right• Feedback• Take action

Analysis

• Allow time and resource to enter the data• Use the expertise at your disposal• Understand and have confidence in your data•1 to 5 scale – standard error of the mean

•Read the qualitative results!–

Results

Be aware of parental bias

Kirkland Rowell Surveys 2011

An effective Parental survey

Importance verses satisfaction

Identify any disconnect

Results

• Gender Analysis

• Year Group Analysis

• Historical data

The customer is always right?

Don’t be alarmed by the results – you are measuring perception

1. How well are we doing?2. How do we as Governors know? 3. What evidence do we have?4. How can we find out more?5. What are your schools’ strengths?6. What are the schools’ areas for

improvement?7. How do we monitor?

• List 5 of your school’s strengths

• Avoid – “it’s a lovely school every one is so nice syndrome” be specific

• Do you have the evidence to prove each of those strengths?

What are your schools’ strengths?

1. How well are we doing?2. How do we as Governors know? 3. What evidence do we have?4. How can we find out more?5. What are your schools’ strengths?6. What are the schools’ areas for

improvement?7. How do we monitor?

•What are they at your school?

•How often are they set?

•Who decided what they should be?

•If you agreed, why?

School Improvement Actions

Press this week: Sir Michael Wilshaw,Chief Inspector Ofsted

•Almost a third of pupils who reached the national targets at the age of 11 failed to gain good GCSEs in the subject at 16

•Giving parents regular updates on their children’s reading age, showing whether they are reaching the basic standard expected for their peer group

National pressures on schools?

In the new inspection:

“There is greater focus on attainment of different groups as part of the understanding how well the school is helping to “narrow the gap” between the attainment of groups underperforming nationally and the attainment of all pupils”.

Are different groups of students at your school doing as well as nationally or are their any groups falling behind?

Narrow the gap!

1. How well are we doing?2. How do we as Governors know? 3. What evidence do we have?4. How can we find out more?5. What are your schools’ strengths?6. What are the schools’ areas for

improvement?7. How do we monitor?

The school self-evaluation cycle

Make judgements about strengths and areas for improvements

Write self-evaluation report

Devise school improvement plan

Gather evidence

Implement and monitor improvement plan

If Ofsted walked in tomorrow……

could you say where you are up to on each action in the plan •which are completed …in progress…and or… overdue……

•and why?

School Development / Improvement Plan

New Ofsted Framework

Leadership and Management Grade Descriptor – Outstanding

All leaders and managers, including the governing body, are highly ambitious for the school and lead by example. They base their actions on a deep and accurate understanding of the school’s performance and of staff and pupils’ skills and attributes.

New Ofsted Framework Leadership and Management Grade Descriptor – Satisfactory (from Sept 2012 requires improvement)

The headteacher and most other key leaders, including the governing body, provide a concerted approach to school improvement.

Which one are you?????

What key questions could you ask at your next Governors meeting?

Remember

“Most commonly, the governing body knew too little about the school because monitoring was not rigorous or because over-generous self review judgements were accepted without sufficient challenge: at times of change and in an inherently challenging sector, they accepted too much on trust.”

To summarise: 1. How well are we doing?2. How do we as Governors know? 3. What evidence do we have?4. How can we find out more?5. What are your schools’ strengths?6. What are the schools’ areas for

improvement?7. How do we monitor?

Thank you

Wendy Sheehan

E: wendy.sheehan@gl-performance.co.uk

T: 01400 250168

www:gl-performance.co.uk