To be annoyed by this or am I overreacting?

[BerryCheesecake]

The head will sometimes come and do classroom observations. I work in a school with 2 classes per year group. The year group leader was too last Friday that she (and I) were being observed this week.

She didn't tell me till lunch time the day before so I had very little time. (The planning etc was already done so I didn't have to Prepare anything special as extra) but I was a little annoyed she had all weekend to prepare and have me less than 24 hours notice.

She had prepared all sorts of extra stuff that we don't normally do and she didn't tell me about so I stayed late doing extra things too doing similar for my class.

AIBU to be annoyed she didn't tell me sooner?

That's what I said. PM are the only observations that should use official OFSTED ratings.

Learning walks etc happen but should not be officially graded as anna is implying happens in her school.

not my union put this link here goes through the regulations.

No one is arguing that informal observations/general should not be done; but to Ofsted standards in every lesson is not possible due to the many constraints we have in our working day

Nobody mentioned ofsted standards in every lesson. Also, link doesn't say a grade should not be given, it says a grade should not be given in a simplistic way eg. Just a grade and not why it was given. Frankly, the things mentioned on here that I object to the most are that at Anna's school only the head and deputy do observations and that the OPs head (or whoever was observing) didn't tell the OP about the observation but relied on her finding out through a third party.

YANBU, and I have laughed loudly and long at those who are saying you should just do what you normally do! So unrealistic! I can really see that you are annoyed about not having fair warning.

In schools observations are so artificial, and so different to an everyday lesson, yet everyone has to do a all-singing, all-dancing lesson for an obs or you would look really bad.

For those who are saying that we should be doing observation-standard lessons all the time, well then we would have no life at all and would crack up within a term. It takes hours to prepare a special lesson for an observation, and less than an hour to actually teach it! So I'm not even going to consider that.

To anyone who has not worked in a school, it may seem crazy that you put on a 'show' lesson for an observation or Ofsted, but that's how it is. It may seem a bit 'emperor's new clothes' in that everyone knows this isn't a normal lesson but somehow pretends it is. You may prefer to look at it as showing your best side to a visitor (rather as you might clean and tidy the house before visitors come). In a 'normal lesson you would include some of the features of a 'special' lesson but not all of them in every lesson!

Anyway, to get back to the OP, I can see why you are annoyed!

I doubt they are 'happy' - morelike not wanting to rock the boat...

Massive x-post!!!

Coconutty, you're not wrong. And detailed lesson plans are expected for observed lessons. They take ages to fill in, and you need to give masses of info to the observer, including the latest data on individual children and groups. It would be impractical, time-consuming and pointless to do these on a daily basis. So extra preparation IS needed for observed lessons. Perhaps your colleague has come across as not being a team player. It was a horrible thing to do to you. I understand why people who don't teach are saying that you should carry on as usual, and that's fine when the head teacher/subject leader pops in to a lesson, but an observed lesson has extra requirements.

We went through our OFSTED in November so I do know what it is like. In this case it is not an OFSTED but your boss observing your practises.

OP you may have said and I have missed it how come she knew but not you?

Upahill - she was asked to tell me and didn't when she mentioned it today she told me SHE had the head in and then did a btw, the head is coming to see you too!

If I had an observation on one of my year 11 lessons who are currently doing coursework- Im sure I would not get a good grading. They sit there at the computers and there is very little learning going on- they just have to complete the work to pass the course.
When I have an observed lesson - every single thing is planned to the nth degree. I teach Food Tech and the last observed lesson I had- half the pupils hadnt cleared up properly but I had to stop them so I could do a plenary. If there is no plenary- then you get an unsatisfactory. So guess who spent their lunch hour cleaning and tidying the room??
On a daily basis, I need the pupils to clear up properly so I have the room ready for the next group.

Yes, many (possibly most) lessons we teach would not get more than a 'satisfacory' OFSTED rating because we actually teach the children rather than jumping through hoops. One particular example I'm irritated about at the moment is the requirement that we get numeracy into every lesson. How the frig am I meant to do that without making weird unnessecery links in the lesson. I teach RE!

That is indeed a mean trick to pull.
Sounds dilberate.

Pointlessly mean spirited to do to a colleague.

She is very competitive... Most things that go on in her room are very secretive... I have no idea what she does most of the time!

Berry, you are not being unreasonable. I totally get what you're saying. Just do what you do. Do your best and be real. She's obviously not a friend. Good luck.

And ignore those who were giving you grief. Of course you plan a bit better for your HT in an observed lesson, it would be very arrogant of a teacher not to.

Here's a little trick.

Regularly invite the Head to stop by when you are doing something appealing she might like to see, and/or think up ways of involving her with the children or taking her on trips when you can.

Then she'll see you and your teaching holistically. And it will be a lot more collegiate and professional as a relationship.

Anna the school I work in does frequent unannounced observations too. We have nothing to hide but we are far from happy with the situation!

We do what we're told, sadly - the Head is ferocious and spins like crazy.

SnapesMistress exactly the problem I have, there are only so many graphs you can do about the class belief in reincarnation etc (the only bit of explicit numeracy I do!)

OP you deserved equal treatment and didn't get it. That's the point.

Of course you would plan more thoroughly when being observed - the new framework and the endless checklist of things an 'outstanding' lesson should be is not doable every lesson, every day. It's gone mad.

Yet another thread where people who have never taught pontificate about what we should be doing

That sounded very grumpy. Sorry. I'm grumpy.

The more I think about it the more annoyed I am!! Can't complain to the head though as the other teacher is on the SMT and the head thinks the sun shines out of her ass!

It was a tad grumpy but no less valid.

Of course YANBU OP. We have observations 3 times a year by our (lovely) headteacher and we do peer observations too. I have become much more relaxed about them these days but I still make sure that I am extra prepared and organised on that day. If you didn't you wouldn't be human! I would definitely make the point to the head that you had very little notice. We get at least a couple of days.

Thank you for making me feel better :)

I can understand where alot of posters are coming from as in other proffesions the moment you find out that you are to be observed/ inspected is when the inspector introduces themselves to you and that is the moment that your inspection begins.

However if a colleague had been told of a joint inspection and then failed to give me warning then I would think that they were being unreasonable.