The new Ofsted Framework September 2019 Elizabeth Fitzpatrick

The new Ofsted Framework September 2019 Elizabeth Fitzpatrick Head of School Improvement, Merton

Key themes • ‘There are 2 linked themes that run all the way through the framework: the substance of education, and integrity. We are proposing an evolutionary shift that rebalances inspection to look rather more closely at the substance of education: what is taught and how it is taught, with test and exam outcomes looked at in that context, not in isolation. ’

Key changes proposed • "Good" schools will be subject to 2 days of Section 8 inspection, up from one. • Outstanding schools remain exempt. • Section 5 inspections are also 2 days. The size of the inspection team will vary according to the size and nature of the school.

Ofsted - the curriculum will be at the heart of the new framework • Ofsted’s working definition: – The curriculum is a framework for setting out the aims of a programme of education, including the knowledge and understanding to be gained at each stage (intent); – for translating that framework over time into a structure and narrative, within an institutional context (implementation), and – for evaluating what knowledge and skills children have gained against expectations (impact/achievement).

Concepts that matter when debating the curriculum • • Progress means knowing more and remembering more. Prior knowledge allows learning of new content. Knowledge is connected in webs or schemata. Vocabulary size relates to academic success, and learning in early years is crucial for increasing the breadth of children’s vocabulary.

Long-term memory Working memory Retrieval ‘The big mental warehouse of things we know’ Small amounts of information for short duration Schema construction Forgotten Organised in schemas, ever more complex as learning takes place

Ofsted - Curriculum • ‘A divisive debate has emerged in some quarters that creates an unnecessary opposition between knowledge and skills, suggesting they are separate alternatives. In reality, knowledge and skills are closely interconnected. Ofsted considers a skill to be the capacity to perform complex operations, whether cognitively or physically, drawing on what is known. The education inspection framework and inspection handbooks ask inspectors to consider what providers are doing to develop both learners’ knowledge and their skills. ’

Intent • Rooted in the solid consensus of the school’s leaders about the knowledge and skills that pupils need…. ’powerfully address social disadvantage’ • Clear direction – what is curriculum building to? • Planned and sequenced well. • Broad for as long as possible. • High ambition for all pupils

Implementation • Teachers: – have expert knowledge – enable pupils to understand key concepts – Check pupils’ understanding effectively – Ensure pupils embed key concepts in memory and apply fluently – Use assessment to check understanding and to inform teaching. • Curriculum is designed and delivered that enables knowledge transfer to long term memory

Impact • A well constructed and taught curriculum will lead to good results. • What is given to SEND and disadvantaged pupils to gain cultural capital to succeed in life • Balance will be given between national assessment outcomes and information from inspectors’ first hand evidence. • Learning builds towards goal of preparation for next stage. • Reading.

Ofsted - curriculum • ‘There is no need for anyone to think they must develop a new curriculum, or design everything themselves from scratch, or put themselves through intellectual gymnastics. The early years foundation stage framework, the national curriculum and the specifications for GCSEs, A levels and other qualifications can carry much of the load. So, for example, a primary school that fulfils the spirit as well as the letter of the national curriculum, across the full range of subjects, is already in the right place with its curriculum. ’

The Inspection • ‘Ofsted does not advocate that any particular approach should be used exclusively in teaching. Different approaches to teaching can be effective. What is appropriate will depend on the aims of a particular lesson or activity, and its place in the sequence of teaching a particular topic. Nevertheless, any approach used has features that must be present to ensure that it is delivered effectively. Ofsted has published a research commentary alongside this handbook, and that document sets out our understanding of those factors. ’

• ‘Education inspection framework: overview of research’, Ofsted, January 2019; www. gov. uk/government/publications/education-inspectionframework-overview-of-research

First hand evidence gathering during inspection • ‘Deep dives’ – In primary, always reading, plus two other subjects, perhaps including maths – In secondary, six subjects. • Visit lessons (move away from use of term ‘lesson observations’) – Eg where same subject is being taught, to different year groups • • • Talk to teachers and pupils Look at pupils’ work Does work match leaders’ intentions about the curriculum? ‘The crucial element here is the connection between different pieces of evidence’. Test out what is ‘systematic’ or ‘unusual’.

Leadership and Management • High expectations and ambitions (including for those ‘harder to reach’. • CPD alignment with curriculum • Coherence and consistency across the school • Engaging parents and the community • Leaders understanding roles • High ambitions for all pupils, including those that are harder to reach

Implications for subject leadership • ‘Our experience of piloting the EIF has shown that inspectors meet with curriculum leaders more often under the new approach than under our previous inspection framework. ’ • Meetings with subject leaders to discuss: – their area and to form an understanding of the intended curriculum in it – what leaders expect inspectors will see when they visit lessons, look at pupils’ work and speak to pupils and teachers. • Joint lesson visits and work scrutinies, and subsequent discussion. • Acknowledgement that this will need to be carefully planned for class teachers. • Senior leaders can be present (in the vast majority of cases).

Implications for subject leadership • • Subject Leaders will play an important part in inspection Clarity about intention with regards to your subject area Links to broader intention across the school, and to other subjects (INTENT) How is your subject well sequenced so that learning is structured? (IMPLEMENTATION) • How is subject expertise developed? For you, and for other staff? • How is assessment used appropriately? • What do you know about the quality of the curriculum in your subject? (IMPACT)

Activity • • In groups of 5 What evidence do you have of these? What else do you need to go and find out about? Might you need to talk to senior leaders about doing some things differently? • Discuss with your group, and identify the top three actions for you to take away

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