Any thoughts on this new drop in regime?

[NannyOggsKnickers]

Can't put too many detail. You never know who is reading.

New system of drop ins by senior staff. Was originally sold as pupil tracking. Now it seems that they will be making judgements on marking, behaviour management, classroom ethos and class paperwork.

Surely this cannot be enforceable. What would you do? The drop in could be as often as twice a week. And all info will be recorded centrally with teacher name attached.

The head needs to know what's happening in classrooms, and has a team of minions to find out. Meetings with middle leaders and occasional drop ins should tell them all they need to know.

Drop ins every week sound like constant observation. May be time for union reps to consult their members and meet with Head to discuss concerns? If staff unhappy, regional union reps can help to negotiate.

Yes, but there's a difference between knowing what's going on because you are confident in your staff and constant surveillance because he doesn't trust us. It does feel like the latter. It's quite frankly insulting. Results are good etc. He has no reason not to trust us.

Our Head is constantly in classrooms. You turn round and he's there, sitting with a group, getting involved. Sometimes he feeds back 'formally' - via email -, sometimes informally, sometimes he just disappears to another classroom.

When he first started, a number of people found it quite stressful and nerve wracking as the previous Head had only really come in for formal full-on observations. Now though we hardly even notice and find formal observations relatively relaxing! We've also all carried out joint observations of each other as part of school monitoring schedule which has also helped.

Is it part of the school monitoring schedule and does feedback include positives? What happens after feedback? Are their CPD opportunities or chance to discuss the observation at least? Has there been a discussion about or rationale for doing it?

Think it's important Head knows what is going on in their school and what teaching and learning looks like in each class but should be a process done with not to staff.

Sorry - took me so long to type I hadn't seen your second post. It's awful when you're left feeling like that. Are there any SLT members who teach and who could have that type of conversation with your Head?

No supportive feedback. We won't even get told the comments. It's going on a central spreadsheet and being sent to heads of department. Apparently, not for performance management purpose but it don't know how it won't affect the way your line manager views you. It won't be the head but other SLT.

Morale is already pretty low and this has hit everyone hard. The union is setting up a meeting but I am really angry. I don't feel like I have ownership of my own teaching anymore. I think this is me done with teaching.

Sorry if it came across that I was defending the -spying- relentless drop-ins. I wasn't. Occasional drop-ins, well, OK, but surveillance is different.

We have also had a change in the SMT structures, and everything that used to be informal now has pages of protocol and rationale. And like you, we are not in need of fixing. The staff are on edge, and cannot trust managers.

I suggested unions because we've found them helpful.

Thanks. I think I'm a bit on the defensive. It feels like they are sending in the Stasi for no reason. I've already started to look for other jobs. It's sad really that the head can't see that people will leave rather than be subjected to this.

Sounds like my academy. At this week's staff meeting they even.dropped the bombshell of video surveillance in the classroom. Then they can see "every classroom is on timetable". Really it's to collect evidence on.us and those pupils that they deem less cost effective. We already have to catalogue every little infringement online so it's easy to "access evidence of behaviour. Or in plain speak, get rid of the expensive time eating SEND.

I'm so sad. There are now only 3 primaries in my area not eaten by this or another academy chain.

Surely if they are writing something about you and storing it, you have the right to see it under the Data Protection Act... I realise that's a minor thing but you can ask to see what the comments are

Video?!?!

I'm feeling the pressure. We have book and planning scrutinies and drop ins. We only seem to get shit feedback. Positive stuff is never fed back, we just don't hear about it again.

This stuff is more and more prevelant and it is killing the profession. I'm really torn but am now looking for non-teaching posts. Videoing is bullshit and it mostly seems to be academy chains that are doing this.

We can see the feedback but it isn't going to be passed to us at the end of the lesson. We'll have to go find it. Essentially, it is mostly for spying purposes. Some people could be seen over 50 times a year.

Our newbuild academy features IWB only so all words written are stored electronically, to accompany the video-ing of all lessons

That is horrendous albert

Refer it to your Union rep.

Our Head drops in when she fancies but nowhere near that often. It's actually really nice, the kids love her and want to show her their work and she doesn't bring a clipboard and make notes or anything. If she saw something that concerned her then I'm sure she'd raise it but she's been into my lessons when they are not sparkly Ofsted lessons and has never been anything other than polite and complimentary. We both know that she hasn't just witnessed an Ofsted "Outstanding" lesson but we also know that whizz bang lessons aren't what gets outstanding results.

I think the drop ins in themselves are fine so long as they are supportive and the person dropping in has realistic expectations. If they are coming in with checksheets and looking to find fault then that's wrong and likely to make teachers stressed. Stressed teachers don't teach as well IME. I find it so frustrating to hear about schools where the obsession with "raising standard" actually means good teachers end up stressed and underperforming because of unreasonable workload and pressure and the kids end up with a merry go round of supply, NQTs and unqualified teachers because the school keeps burning out their staff.

Video that is outrageous no way I would stand for that. I'm really shocked

When our IT was set up in the newbuild the (utterly clueless) RM technicians were tasked with ensuring that all IWBs stored whatever was written on them. When they finally cracked this six months later, digital files on all staff's work were created. This was referred to in tiny print in the 'Acceptable Use Agreement', requiring us to sign to authorise access to all material presented to students & staff under our login profiles.

A departing colleague, forced into early retirement, took the opportunity to 'send a message' to the Head in lieu of an exit interview, with a few home truths.

We are trying to work in untenable conditions i.e 'anything you do say may be held against you' ...

What has happened to the teaching unions. Working conditions are pretty appalling at the moment and getting worse. I now have to minute every call made home to a parent so they can check that I'm making them.

Same here to all that.
Head walked into my lesson the other day.
Me, with my back to the door, not seeing who came in 'go out and knock before you enter please'.
Kids faces 😬.
Me, realising, 'Ah. Hello. Come in.'
but please fucking knock next time because walking in like that is rude

How much longer will we all have to teach before teaching is truly professionalised and we are trusted? I mean if you qualified this year, would it happen before you retired?

We are scrutinised more than the kids.

A 'student influencer group' (not exact name-too identifying) has just been created at my school. They report directly to SLT on 'matters of teaching and learning'. The kids that is. The spies are everywhere!
Just.Let.Me.Teach.

On the unions-over a matter of redundancies and restructure at my previous school the unions were as much use as chocolate teapots.

We had the new style 'inspection' (if you can call it that) on Tuesday of this week. Phoned 2pm on Monday to say they were coming. Two inspectors turned up and went through the data. For about 4 hours. They saw three members of staff teach for 10 minutes each,in a school with 1600 pupils.

Spent the rest of the time walking round the school, checking gates/doors/fire escapes etc. before meeting with the Head to give their verdict.

Although we aren't allowed to know the result yet, the fact they didn't come back means we didn't go up or down.

Bit disheartening to know that they just ticked some boxes to go "Yep, we agree with the inspection 3 years ago-see you in three years" without inspecting the school in detail for a fair chance to get outstanding.

Most parents just won't understand how little the school is checked in real terms.
And the outstanding schools won't even get this-just an eye kept on results. A school in the same borough was last 'inspected' in 2007. Mind boggles.

Everything I write on the IWB is saved on our shared drive so that my partner teacher could find it. I'm sure if SLT were so inclined, they would go into our file and check our Smarts. I care not. They are all there and I haven't written anything bad.

I'm expecting a drop in any day now and it makes me jumpy waiting for the door to open and someone to come in and tell me my lesson is shit.

BeingATwat If it's a one day 'inspection', they don't observe longer than 10 mins or so and therefore no feedback and no 'grading' either. It's on the gov website too. That's one positive at least.