Reflections on the death of Ruth Perry
There is the nature of Ofsted and what happens to some inspectors who are given such power when inspecting schools.
There is the isolation that heads in particular feel, not only during an inspection but in their daily working lives.
There is the hurt that teachers feel as they see their schools to which they have made such contributions and commitment crumble in the face of the facile criteria, wielded by brainwashed inspectors who therefore don’t have to use their professional judgement.
And there are the children who may be aware, and suffer the consequences of the adults who look after their education and welfare, being ill and absent.
Three things stand out:
The crassness of the inspection process
The fragility of our profession
The lack of effective peer support both during inspections and in daily working lives.
How should we deal with these issues? Ofsted needs to embrace change, in both structural and cultural ways. It should be objective, but collegial, critical but supportive. Professional judgements should be made on the basis of three key questions:
What is being done?
How is it being done?
Is it being done well?
These three questions could allow professional discussions which can analyse the achievements of the school and outline improvements that can be made for the benefit of the children.
The profession requires a means of supporting head teachers and teachers in being both mentally and emotionally prepared in terms of being able to stand up to adverse criticism and justify the work we do in our schools and classrooms. In other words, lessons in the abilities of resilience and survival.
This is what makes a professional professional, being able to give a narrative on what is being provided for children in their care, how it is being provided, and then demonstrating achievements.
Finally, the importance of a professional network which can be supportive through an inspection, during daily life at school, and have close enough relationships to help out of school hours. A professional network can consist of trusted governors, local head teachers/teachers, unions, expertise in universities, and friends.
In my view, changes to Ofsted should be pursued by the unions. Fragility in the profession, and setting up supportive networks are problems for the profession to solve.
