GTCW Calls For Fundamental Change In School Inspections

Yn disgwyl cael ei gyfieithu

2 September 2008

As Estyn plans its consultation on future inspection arrangements in Wales, the voice of the teaching profession the General Teaching Council for Wales (GTCW) has called for a fundamental change in the way schools are inspected and a move towards a more reflective, holistic approach.

GTCW has identified seven key themes that should be reviewed to reduce the burden on teachers and to make the inspection process more effective and useful to the development of best practice and successful learning environments.

As teachers return to the classroom after the summer break, the profession is likely to echo GTCW’s recommendations, which have been developed over a six month period involving Council members and officers. The Council policy will form basis for the GTCW’s response to the Estyn consultation exercise beginning in October and is part of a wider process of capacity building for continued improvement in the education sector.

Chair of the GTCW and headteacher of Willows High School in Cardiff, Mal Davies said, “The Council’s position on inspections has been developed around the ethos of maximising the positive impact of the review process while minimising the intrusion that the current inspection system brings into the whole school. We have developed a considered position on future arrangements, led by the work of a specially convened GTCW working party. Our policy position is based on the views of the problems associated with the current inspection system, yet keeping at the forefront Estyn’s purpose of inspection and the need for it to maintain integrity, confidence and standards in the profession and school settings. However, there is a much better way to achieve this than by putting undue stress and increased workloads on teachers which the current inspection system does while at the same time providing few benefits to teachers, schools or individual pupils.”

GTCW recommends moving away from a ‘snapshot’ inspection of a school once every six years to an ongoing review of the whole education service - which would encompass schools, LEAs and the Welsh Assembly Government. In keeping with this, the GTCW proposes that the term ‘inspection’ be replaced by the term ‘service review.’ Such a change should help the move away from the traditional negative perception of an inspection that leads to teachers feeling under immense pressure.

Increased use of robust self-evaluation outcomes would minimise unnecessary inspection activity. It is important there is no increase in teachers’ workload and reducing the notice periods for inspections and associated post-inspection actions would help achieve this.

The Council believes contracted private inspection teams should be replaced with HMI-led teams of serving teachers who are seconded from the classroom to conduct peer review and commentary. The reason for this is that teachers who leave the profession quickly lose touch with advances made in education. Seconded teachers would be more in tune with the current demands teachers face both inside and outside the classroom.

The numeric values attached to inspection grades are unhelpful in assessing the performance of a school or an area of activity according to the GTCW. Many do not look at the narrative that supports the numerical value and take this as the sole measure of a school.

GTCW believes there should be an end to the public labelling of under performing schools as, ‘giving cause for concern’ as this is unhelpful in terms of building and retaining a schools capacity to improve and instead use the term ‘schools in need of enhanced support.’

Mal Davies concluded, “The inspection process has made a contribution to raising standards but it is important now to focus on the systemic barriers to improvement and not focus on individual institutions in isolation. The GTCW understands that many of the changes proposed have major structural, legislative and logistical implications and are unlikely to be achieved by 2010 however, there are certain areas that could be changed then and we would welcome these being considered.”