All classes ripping out work from exercise books...

[EllenJaneisnotmyname]

...and having to rewrite them more neatly. Headteacher told the whole school in assembly that their work was too untidy. They spent 3 days rewriting literacy and maths. 'Outstanding' school hasn't had an Ofsted for ages...

I suspect it is OFSTED related.

As inspections under the new framework start, many of the stories circulating suggest OFSTED pays much more attention to books than previously and, because judgments are aggregated, that all classes need to have similar standards. Copying some pages from books and then demanding consistent high standards in the future makes some sense in response to this-and children should be presenting to high standards where possible.

But, equally, the old books can't be trashed because they have so much evidence in them, so I can't really see the point of tearing pages out, and this isn't really fraud, even if it is OFSTED driven. Unless, of course, a whole term's work is being recopied by every class?

But every class is copying work, all 7 yrs!

They have all spent 3 days doing it!

Sorry, hadn't read mrz's posts, but..

One head near us recently OFSTEDed said the inspectors asked for EVERY book across school on one day, and that inspectors used their observations of learning in the classroom to focus on books specifically. There is a new requirement to grade behaviour even when inspectors are not there, and care of presentation is one way forward.

Not suggesting that crap work showing no progress will be more regarded than well presented work, but addressing that issue is relatively easy for a head (even if a complete waste of time for everyone else).

I actually took over a class mid year 2 months before Ofsted arrived and the previous teacher took all the books when he left Ofsted didn't question the missing half year's work

The other significant difference doing the rounds is that children will need to know what they are learning and why. Again if marking was all for teacher assessment, some heads think this will cause problems.

Suspect mrz's school good enough not to be expected an OFSTED soon...

But, mrz, old framework?

new

There was that terrible moment when the inspector chose the child with language difficulties to ask ..."what are you doing?" .... answer "nowt! honest!"

By which I mean those colleagues I talk to who are expecting inspections state that they are being briefed that under this framework:
OFSTED will look at every book at least once.
OFSTED will use presentation as a guide to the learning culture in school in their absence.
OFSTED will specifically demand that children know what they are learning, and how to get better (and will judge this on feedback), not just that teacher's are tracking challenge.

So, knowing this, facing inspection, can see the head's point. But it won't save the school alone, since the new benchmark for 'Good' is that when OFSTED go into classrooms they see every child in every lesson learning something and knowing what it is. Or so we're told.

Still puzzled mrz, due to timings in your previous post. You've been inspected this half term?

To be honest I think the teacher should have made it clear he/she was unhappy with the presentationof the work by the comments made when marking. This could then have been a focus for all subsequent work and avoided this situation altogether by writing the standard expected in presentation on the whiteboard or the books (depending on what system is used in the school to let children know what they are learning) along with the learning objective and expected outcomes. Sounds as if it was more than the presentation that was lax. The marking and the comments must have been at fault I think.