This document summarizes an Ofsted presentation given to trainee teachers. It outlines what Ofsted does, including inspecting schools, colleges, early years providers and local authorities. It discusses the common inspection framework and grading scale. It aims to dispel myths that trainees had about inspections, such as that Ofsted expects to see specific types of lesson plans or marking. It notes that judgements are made through triangulating evidence from lesson observations, work scrutiny, data and discussions. The presentation also addresses trainees' concerns that inspections provide an incomplete picture and that pressure affects lessons.

1. What Ofsted does
The facts and the myths
Ian Hodgkinson
Senior HMI West Midlands
Wolverhampton NQT conference Slide 1

2. What does Ofsted do? A trainee’s view
“Moderators of education. They ensure standards are met
consistently and that pupils’ progress is at an expected level.”
Trainee teacher discussion groups with Ofsted
July 2016
Wolverhampton NQT conference Slide 2

3. The remits that Ofsted inspects
Wolverhampton NQT conference Slide 3
Local area
SEND
inspections
Inspection of
initial training
for schools, FE
and EY ITT
Inspection of
academies,
including free
schools
Further
Education
and Skills
inspections
Ofsted
Inspection
and
regulation of
children’s
social care
Inspection of
all maintained
and some
independent
schools
Inspection
and
regulation of
early years

4. Raising standards, improving lives
Wolverhampton NQT conference Slide 4
Ofsted’s reach
About one in three people come into contact
with the services we inspect and regulate
1.5 million childcare places are provided to
benefit children
Over 8 million children are in school
Over 500,000 referrals are made to
children's services each year
Nearly 3.6 million 16+ benefit from
publicly funded courses
Ofsted’s reach

5. The common inspection framework
 In 2015, Ofsted published the common inspection framework (CIF)
 It brings together the inspection of different education, skills and early
years settings to provide greater coherence
 It sets out the way in which inspection is carried out
 The CIF is accompanied by guidance for inspecting safeguarding in early
years, education and skills and 5 handbooks including the school
inspection handbook
 Handbooks are published to provide detailed guidance about what will
happen during each type of inspection
Wolverhampton NQT conference Slide 5

6. The common grading scale for
all inspection judgements
 A common grading scale is used in making judgements for
inspections:
− Grade 1 outstanding
− Grade 2 good
− Grade 3 requires improvement
− Grade 4 inadequate
Wolverhampton NQT conference Slide 6

7. What to expect on inspection
 Schools are usually given half a day’s notice of an inspection
 Full inspections do not normally last longer than two days
 Short inspections of good schools normally last for one day
 The size of the inspection team will vary according to the size and nature
of the school
 Inspectors will spend most of their time gathering first-hand evidence to
inform judgements
 Inspections are carried out by professionals with extensive teaching and
leadership experience and often by serving headteachers/school leaders
who work part time for Ofsted
Wolverhampton NQT conference Slide 7

8. Inspection reports
Following an inspection, the
lead inspector produces a
report, which is quality assured
and published on Ofsted’s
website.
Wolverhampton NQT conference Slide 8

9. Myth-busting
 ‘Clarification for schools’ document published in 2014 in
response to sector feedback about teachers feeling
overwhelmed by the need to do ‘what Ofsted wants to see’
 This is now included as a section in the school inspection
handbook, pages 9−11
 It explains what inspectors do and do not ‘expect’ to see
during school inspections
Wolverhampton NQT conference Slide 9

10. Schools’ myth-busting materials
 Mythbuster and inspection
handbook
 Blogs from Ofsted leaders on
busting myths
 Slides from Ofsted on
inspections and myths
 Videos from Ofsted on
mythbusting
Wolverhampton NQT conference Slide 10

11. If you want to find out more, search for
#Ofstedmyths on www.twitter.com/Ofstednews
Wolverhampton NQT conference Slide 11

12. True or False?
Wolverhampton NQT conference Slide 12
1. The grading of individual lessons contributes to the final
judgment given by Ofsted.
2. Inspectors do not expect to see lesson plans in the lessons
that they observe.
3. Schools should use Ofsted’s grading criteria to grade teaching
and learning.
4. Ofsted determines how many lesson observations should be
carried out in schools each year.

13. True or False?
Wolverhampton NQT conference Slide 13
1. The grading of individual lessons contributes to the final
judgment given by Ofsted.
2. Inspectors do not expect to see lesson plans in the lessons
that they observe.
3. Schools should use Ofsted’s grading criteria to grade teaching
and learning.
4. Ofsted determines how many lesson observations should be
carried out in schools each year.
F
T
F
F

14. Lessons and planning (1)
Section 5 school inspections:
 Ofsted does not award a grade for the quality of teaching or
outcomes in the individual lessons visited. It does not grade
individual lessons. It does not expect schools to use the Ofsted
evaluation schedule to grade teaching or individual lessons.
 Ofsted does not require schools to undertake a specified
amount of lesson observation.
 Ofsted inspectors do not grade individual lessons during school
inspections.
Wolverhampton NQT conference Slide 14

15. Lessons and planning (2)
 Ofsted does not require schools to provide individual lesson
plans to inspectors. Equally, Ofsted does not require schools
to provide previous lesson plans.
 Ofsted does not specify how planning should be set out, the
length of time it should take or the amount of detail it should
contain. Inspectors are interested in the effectiveness of
planning rather than the form it takes.
Wolverhampton NQT conference Slide 15

16. True or False?
Wolverhampton NQT conference Slide 16
5. Ofsted expects pupils in primary and secondary schools to respond to
marking in their books using green pens.
6. Ofsted will evaluate whether marking and assessment in secondary
schools is consistent with the school’s marking and assessment policies.
7. Ofsted will not make any recommendations that identify marking as
an area for improvement for a school.
8. Ofsted do not expect to see written evidence of oral feedback
given to pupils.

17. True or False?
Wolverhampton NQT conference Slide 17
5. Ofsted expects pupils in primary and secondary schools to respond to
marking in their books using green pens.
6. Ofsted will evaluate whether marking and assessment in secondary
schools is consistent with the school’s marking and assessment policies.
7. Ofsted will not make any recommendations that identify marking as
an area for improvement for a school.
8. Ofsted do not expect to see written evidence of oral feedback
given to pupils.
F
T
F
T

18. Busting myths about marking pupils’ work (1)
 We know that marking and feedback to pupils, both written and oral, are
important aspects of assessment. However, Ofsted does not expect to
see any specific frequency, type or volume of marking and feedback;
these are for the school to decide through its assessment policy.
 Marking and feedback should be consistent with that policy, which may
cater for different subjects and different age groups of pupils in different
ways, to be effective and efficient in promoting learning.
Wolverhampton NQT conference Slide 18

19. Busting myths about marking pupils’ work
(2)
 While inspectors will consider how written and oral feedback is
used to promote learning, Ofsted does not expect to see any
written record of oral feedback provided to pupils by teachers.
 If it is necessary for inspectors to identify marking as an area for
improvement for a school, they will pay careful attention to the
way recommendations are written to ensure that these do not
lead to unnecessary workload for teachers.
Wolverhampton NQT conference Slide 19

20. Trainee teacher discussion groups with
Ofsted − July 2016
 Followed a similar engagement exercise with qualified teacher groups
 4 focus groups in June (London, Birmingham & Newcastle) led by SHMI,
supported by consultation/comms staff
 30 attendees – 20 female, 10 male
 Period of training ranged from 1 month to 2 years
 20 core postgraduates, 9 School Direct (3 salaried), 1 undergraduate
 Provider types: Majority HEI with around a quarter SCITT
 Knowledge of Ofsted: 21 – “not very much”, 9 – “A lot”
Wolverhampton NQT conference Slide 20

21. Views of Ofsted among trainees
 Positive reputational view of Ofsted as an organisation.
 They saw it as a good, reliable source of quality information and said it was there to do
what it had to in order to improve standards in education.
 Some had checked inspection reports for background prior to placements and a few had
read Ofsted’s resources to assist with theoretical information.
 Their impression of Ofsted’s inspection work erred very much on the negative but seemed
to be based on a lack of clarity about what inspection entails, along with fear of the
unknown and their influenced perceptions from others.
 They thought inspection only gave a brief glimpse into a school’s performance. They saw
it as a box ticking exercise and questioned the accuracy of judgements. They said, the
short period of time the inspector was there meant they’d only see a snap shot of what
the school was like rather than a true reflection of how it operates on a daily basis.
Wolverhampton NQT conference Slide 21

22. Views of Ofsted among trainees 2
 Some felt inspectors were only looking for weaknesses not strengths, particularly in
underperforming, low graded schools.
 They thought that pupils should be more involved in the inspections and that inspectors
should ask pupils directly their impressions on how well lessons were being delivered.
 Some questioned the benefit of lesson observation because they felt both teachers and pupils
behaved differently. Teachers would often try and repeat a previous ‘good lesson’ and that
many pupils felt pressurised to represent the school well so would often not be themselves.
 They described teachers as ‘not being themselves’ because of this pressure with many just
showcasing what they can do.
 The issue of subject specialisms was raised as concerning to some who queried how learning
and progress could be assessed accurately when the inspector may not be a specialist in the
lesson field.
Wolverhampton NQT conference Slide 22

23. So how does Ofsted judge teaching, learning
and assessment across the school?
Discuss: What activities and evidence do you think inform inspectors’ judgements about the quality
of teaching across the school? (2 minutes)
E.g.
 Lesson observations and learning walks
 Pupils’ written work
 School data
 ASP/RAISE
 Inspection dashboard
 Discussions with staff, e.g. pupil progress meetings
 Discussions with different groups of pupils
 Listening to pupils read
Anything else?
Wolverhampton NQT conference Slide 23

24. Triangulation of the teaching judgement
Wolverhampton NQT conference Slide 24
Learning walks
Lesson observations
Discussion with staff
Students’ books – work scrutiny
Student/class attainment/progress data
Discussion with students

25. Checking pupils’ books
Paired discussion: (2 mins): What are inspectors looking for when they ask to see pupils’
books during observations/ work scrutinies?
When reviewing pupils’ work, inspectors may consider:
 the level of challenge provided, for and evident progress of, different groups (e.g. by ability,
gender, SEND, EAL, PP)
 pupils’ effort and success in completing their work and the progress they make over a period of
time
 implementation of whole-school priorities, for example on improving students’ literacy, numeracy,
handwriting and presentation
 the quality of planning to cover key elements of the subject curriculum
 how the school’s marking policy and other feedback and assessment are used to help teachers
improve pupils’ learning
 whether pupils respond by correcting/improving their work.
Wolverhampton NQT conference Slide 25

26. Last words to the trainees…..
 “Everyone is afraid of the unknown and as a newly qualified
teacher you want to know what magic formula Ofsted is
looking for.”
 “Lack of clarity on whether a conservative standard lesson is
needed when being observed during inspection vs one that’s
all singing and dancing with crazy activities.”
 “Evidence”, equals checklist. “The big E” - This is what has led
to the follies and myths propagated!
Wolverhampton NQT conference Slide 26

27. Ofsted and the DfE: reducing teacher
workload
 The DfE published in February 2017:
− the first biennial teacher workload survey
− the DfE’s action plan and protocol
− pamphlets and posters for teachers
 Eliminating unnecessary workload around marking
 Eliminating unnecessary workload around planning and teaching
resources
 Eliminating unnecessary workload associated with data
management
Wolverhampton NQT conference Slide 27

28. Ofsted on the web and on social media
www.gov.uk/ofsted
http://reports.ofsted.gov.uk
www.linkedin.com/company/ofsted
www.youtube.com/ofstednews
www.slideshare.net/ofstednews
www.twitter.com/ofstednews
Wolverhampton NQT conference Slide 28