Ofsted needs to be abolished (Trigger warning)

[MrsMurphyIWish]

Watched this heartbreaking story today:

www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m001k4r9

A headteacher took her own life as her school was rated inadequate. The pressures Ofsted creates are immense. Last week Ofsted were on strike Wednesday so decided to break protocol and rang schools Friday to conduct inspections on Monday - some schools were off for snow but that wasn’t a good enough reasons and even if the messages were picked up, that meant school staff would have worries over the weekend - some even going into school. Then there were schools who complained as these schools were given “extra notice”. Ofsted has created such a toxic work environment.

How has it come to this? A teacher who dedicated their life to education feels that a one word judgement meant life wasn’t worth living?

It does seem nuts that a school can go from outstanding to inadequate based on one day’s inspection, particularly when the "inadequate" is due to “safeguarding” which seems very subjective and would need a lot longer to assess. As a parent I would be much more interested in A level grades if my child was at secondary school. Safeguarding could be an issue but I would want to know why it didn't get a good score and I don't suppose they give details which would make it less useful. It would be much easier to improve, I would have thought, then attainment scores too.

Even having to come in over the weekend.

Even having worries about work over the weekend?

I know what I'm talking about. Bad schools and useless teachers.

This is appalling

I've read that three times now and must be missing something - isn't it just a straightforward statement of fact about a number of staff being new?
Obviously the circumstances of the HT being new are tragic, but I believe they always comment on it if there have been big staff changes?

Ofsted is a huge waste of money to schools.and students. It's purpose is to create figures to make it LOOK as though government policy improves education.

I know what I'm talking about. Bad schools and useless teachers.

Nope.

Obviously the circumstances of the HT being new are tragic, but I believe they always comment on it if there have been big staff changes?

There is a current inquest into the headteacher's suicide and the family are saying that the Ofsted report had a massive impact on the headteacher's mental health in the time leading up to the suicide.

It is entirely inappropriate for Ofsted to casually drop into the report after the fact that the headteacher died, when it seems fairly likely that that same report contributed towards her death, in the same breath as mentioning that the school has a breakfast club.

It's horrendously insensitive.

While what happened with this HT is indeed sad, why does an inspection warrant all the Potemkin village activity?

I guess a certain anxiety's only natural and that they'll want to be certain everything's "ready", but as you suggest I'd hope it would be a brushing up of things already in place rather than scurrying round to organise them at the last minute

Unless of course it's some new fad that nobody's had sufficient guidance on yet - I can certainly see that would cause problems

So there is no such thing as a bad school and useless teachers? They are all heroes in their own lunchtime as opposed to everybody else, who do not appreciate them, such as the evil Ofsted and clueless parents?

It must be nice and cozy in your little world.

Prime examples of toxic parents in this thread.

So there is no such thing as a bad school and useless teachers?

I didn't say that.

I am merely objecting to your assertion that going into school the weekend before an Ofsted implies that they are bad school or that the teachers are useless.

I can only assume that you've never been through an Ofsted inspection if you believe that to be the case.

@shrimp88 - safeguarding is not subjective. There are set processes and procedures, safer recruitment practices, chains of command about who to inform about what and when. Get this wrong and it’s an automatic do not pass go. Everything else could be perfect but you will be rated inadequate. Rightly or wrongly, most schools would have at least this part of the inspection spot on because they know they will be asked about it and there isn’t really an excuse for not knowing.

Take your bile to another thread, please, this one is about the death of a teacher and your comments are inappropriate.

Not really, rather some perfect examples of siege mentality as demonstrated by the teachers.

It is entirely inappropriate for Ofsted to casually drop into the report after the fact that the headteacher died ...

Ah, I think I see what you mean, NobleGiraffe - you'd have preferred the report not to have mentioned the death at all?

That would certainly have been an option, though doubtless some would have criticised them for not mentioning it. Overall though I still believe there'll be a lot about the circumstances of the HT's sad death that we don't know - and shouldn't know because frankly it's not our business

I agree completely. It should have been disbanded years ago but still it goes on causing fear, misery and distress.

@ChardonnaysBeastlyCat This is a thread to discuss the practices of Ofsted and how over the years, they have created a culture which has led to a head teacher taking their own life.

It is not a thread for you to infer she was useless. Please start your own thread about useless teachers but don’t besmirch a death of a teacher - they can not defend theirselves.

I did not suggest this particular teacher was useless.

I question the school practices in the in the run up to the inspections.

you'd have preferred the report not to have mentioned the death at all?

I think the report shouldn't have been published in the circumstances. It is certainly possible for Ofsted reports not to be published.

What's happening, even on this thread, is people picking over the report and discussing the details, as if somehow validating the report findings makes the process, which is totally unacceptable (and seems to have contributed to this worst possible outcome), acceptable.

It has been known for years that the Ofsted process has damaged the mental health of headteachers and poor reports have caused breakdowns. This is not an isolated incident and should be taken as evidence that the system needs to change, not as an opportunity for people to rake over the report and make further criticisms of the headteacher.

OFSTED expects a level of perfection in every minute of every lesson that is impossible to maintain. Primary teachers can't even contemplate 15 seconds going by while they find a pile of worksheets that they'd forgotten where they put. Or the photocopier breaking down. Or the wall display that they intended changing next week reflecting the topic that the class just finished rather than the one s/he's just started teaching.

That's why they're in at the weekend. Because OFSTED is so ridiculously petty that the unexpected simply can't be allowed to happen. The thinking on their feet that is what teachers have to do in response to the unpredictability of thirty small humans, has to turn into a rigid set of lessons with fail safe plans behind everything minute because NOTHING can go wrong. OFSTED is entirely unforgiving. No-one can teach day by day to the level expected of that observed lesson. They'd just break.

Get this wrong and it’s an automatic do not pass go. Everything else could be perfect but you will be rated inadequate

That's exactly what I was saying upthread, Overthebloodymoon. Regardless of the rights and wrongs, schools know perfectly well that this is the case, so all some of us are wondering is how so much was reportedly missed

I imagine everyone agrees that the HT's death is a tragedy; however I'm not sure that means the children's safeguarding should be swept under the carpet, especially when the report suggests there was a lot more than "a few bits of paper" involved here

No one is suggesting that safeguarding should be swept under the carpet.

OFSTED is not fit for purpose.

It does little, if anything, to improve education standards.

Undue pressure goes into doing things for OFSTED that do not benefit pupils teachers, families or the school. Schools are told they don't need to do a lot of these things but when inspectors come in they still expect to see them. What OFSTED say they don't need and what they do want to see evidence of at the time seem to be very mismatched

Many parents state they don't use OFSTED reports to make decisions about schools as they know they are often out of date and only take a snapshot. That's on both sides of the ratings. Parents at outstanding schools often comment that there are xyz issues. Parents at inadequate schools often comment that xyz isn't anywhere near as bad as reported. Parents are more likely to look for personal recommendations/reviews wherever possible, along with end of key stage and/or gcse/a-level results and value added.

The ratings need scrapping. It needs replacing with a simple - at required level or needs further support to reach required level with a list of targets to address, at all levels.

I think the report shouldn't have been published in the circumstances

I agree again that this could have been an option, though knowing the "school gate mentality" I'm not sure it wouldn't have made things even worse with parents filling in the blanks for themselves

As regards the alleged effect it's had though, I still think it's best to wait for the inquest, where doubtless the bigger picture will become clearer. It may be that the alleged horrors of Ofsted were the key factor here or it may not - the point is that we simply can't know

Exactly this. And not just with each lesson, within each curriculum area, policy, wall display…everything.

No Ofsted is the same so you have no idea idea what they are going to look for and what you might have to produce. Very little of it impacts the children or the teaching and learning, but not having something that they want to hand, is not good enough.

When that whole visit boils essentially down to a one-word verdict, the stakes are huge.

We were done recently as were another very similar local school. Our two inspections couldn’t have been more different-the approach, what they focused on, what they asked to see, who they spoke to. There is no consistency between inspectors and inspections.

Thats why people stay at school late the day before an expectation…not because they just aren’t bothering doing their job properly within the normal working day.

If it is so easy to pass as all schools have to do is document procedures then it seems even more reason to give the schools a chance to change their procedures rather than be automatically failed. It sounds a lot easier to do that than to suddenly obtain good academic results.