WHY OFSTED INSPECTIONS ARE THE REAL PARENT POWER
Jun 13 2010
WHY OFSTED INSPECTIONS ARE THE REAL PARENT POWER
One of the least publicised aspects of the new government’s education policy is the announcement that ‘Outstanding’ schools will no longer require Ofsted inspections. Not just less frequently - but never.
This is a quite extraordinary decision. School inspection has formed a crucial role in the English education system since the nineteenth century and school league tables are not enough to make up for their absence. Good exam results can be achieved by parental tutoring, selective intakes, manipulation of the exam system and repetitive teaching. They tell parents little about how a school operates.
And schools change - even the most ’outstanding’ schools. Eton, for example, in the 1960s, was landed with Anthony Chevenix-Trench, a head notorious for his alcoholism and brutal beatings. The Independent Schools Inspectorate won’t let this happen again and, unlike its state-school counterparts, Eton, along with Harrow, Westminster and St Paul’s, will continue to be inspected on a regular basis to help fee-paying parents understand how to make the right choice. Only state-school parents will remain in ignorance of what goes on behind locked school gates.
This policy is also damaging to schools. ’Outstanding’ schools often welcome Ofsted visits. Regular inspections gives them encouragement, focus and a sense of pride; and Ofsted’s understanding of why these schools do well helps Ofsted itself guide less successful schools.
From Academies to parent-run schools, the Tories have shouted parent power and school choice, yet they now intend to remove the key means by which parents are empowered to make an informed decision.