From this academic year, Ofsted will be inspecting schools based on the new framework. It was announced in October 2018 and would focus on schools providing a rich curriculum to its students instead of exam success at the expense of a broad education. Headteachers have had nearly a year to get in touch with Ofsted to fully understand the process of the new framework however, over 3,000 school leaders have tried to get in touch with authorities over the summer to access guidance on what was expected of them, their teachers and their schools.
Headteacher’s are ‘Extremely Anxious’
Although the new framework includes a lot of new judgements and regulations, the main points that head are concerned with are the dreaded call of notice; Ofsted will now give a school a ninety-minute window before arriving, it used to be at midday the day before. New expectations on the curriculum which may provide a heavy workload initially for leaders and teachers alike. Finally, inconsistency of judgements that are not reliant on data.
According to a poll for both teachers and school leaders, over three-quarters of those who took part agreed that the new focus of a richer curriculum will increase productivity and teaching efficiency in the classroom.