Crossing the line? Moral support


WE HAVE noticed a trend at Teacher Support Network. While our e-newsletter and website articles are well read, whenever we print something from a student’s perspective, our “click-through” rates go mad. Our latest contribution was no exception. We asked Katie, a year 10 student who joined


us for a week’s work experience, to write an article. Katie, an aspiring writer, chose to write an article called: “How to spot a weak teacher? A year 10 student’s perspective.” Katie talked about what makes students target


a particular teacher in the first place and how students can spot a weak teacher. Katie also offered advice as to how teachers could prevent being targeted by a student and how to stop it from happening at the time. She wrote: “One of the most


effective ways to stop this happening is for the teacher to gain the pupils’ respect. Keeping authority. You are the one that has the power. Letting students get away with things will only give them the impression that they are the one in authority and they can do what they like.” Katie also believed that befriending


students was important: “Take time to get to know the students better. Take interest in what they are doing and where they are trying to go in their education, help them and give them advice, students feel a lot better when they think members of authority are taking an academic interest in them.” Interestingly, Katie has hit upon one


of the big dilemmas facing teachers: where is the boundary between befriending pupils or students and gaining the appropriate level of authority? It has been a subject popular in the media


of late. How many times have we seen stories of teachers in trouble over photos, comments or details on their personal social media accounts? How often have we heard of teachers whose students have discovered their past careers, which are now jeopardising their current teaching roles? How frequently are we told cautionary tales of teachers whose friendships with students have crossed a line?


The bottom line has to be that relationships


between teachers and their pupils must be appropriate. The personal safety and reputations of teachers and pupils is paramount. As a charity we would recommend that teachers


use their common sense. We strongly urge teachers either not to have a Facebook account or, if they do so, to use separate social media and email accounts for school use. Not only will this help manage a better work/life balance, but it also enables teachers to gain much better control and clarity in relation to student-teacher boundaries. I guess the real question is when does


a teacher’s personal life affect their professional one? Teachers, like any professionals, need the right to privacy and the right to do and act as they wish, as long as it does not harm anyone else and is lawful. Yet, do teachers lose or damage


their own professional standards when they act in an inappropriate manner outside of school? How effective can a teacher be if they lose their authority in the classroom thanks to revelations about their


personal life? If teachers do cross the line, what support is available? In her article, Katie writes about


clean slates: “If you have had a dispute with a student in a previous lesson, in the next lesson sit down and talk to them one-on-one, quietly. Explain that you do not hold grudges and you are prepared


to forget about it, if they are willing to do what they are told from now on.” Do teachers deserve the same


opportunity? What do you consider fair and


just in such situations? To find out more we have designed a short survey asking teachers for their experiences and looking for your top


tips and advice on how to support teachers. See the website (below) to get involved.


• Julian Stanley is chief executive of the Teacher Support Network. Visit www.teachersupport.info or call 08000 562 561 (England), 08000 855088 (Wales). Moral support returns in two weeks.


OFSTED From good


New research from the CfBT Education Trust has sought to


answer that key question for headteachers – how do you go from good to outstanding in the eyes of Ofsted? Tony McAleavy explains


O edusurv Only £149+vat/year Are you prepared for the new Ofsted framework and


undertaking your own Self Evaluation? Edusurv can help schools provide evidence for the following:


• Pupil Achievement - Proof pupils know what level they are and what they need to do to improve


• Quality of teaching - Help to identify the best learning environment for each individual enabling optimum differentiated learning


• Leadership and Management - Listen to parent and pupil voice to make changes and engage all stakeholders


• Behaviour and safety of pupils - Identify pupils who don't feel safe in school and address issues at individual level


Edusurv is an online surveying tool that allows schools to create and publish bespoke surveys in minutes (Sample surveys available to collect the above information). Already used by nearly 400,000 pupils across 2000 schools.


Unlike other online survey tools, Edusurv reports provide access to names of pupils who make up each result allowing schools to target pupils who need it most.


Every child really does matter!


Call 0845 680 6796 (local rate call) or register online for your free trial at:


www.edusurv.co.uk


UTSTANDING SCHOOLS have recently become the focus of policy-makers’ attention following increasing recognition of the role that these schools have to play as change agents for others. Not only does striving for excellence


help raise standards within an individual school, it can also have a positive impact on its wider community according to new research by education charity CfBT Education Trust. A total of 41 per cent of the UK’s schools are


currently rated as “good” with a further 22 per cent already rated “outstanding”. Supporting these schools to achieve their full potential and attain the outstanding classification will generate a greater body of experience and best practice which in turn will benefit those schools which are struggling to make the grade. Most schools will be aware of what outstanding


looks like in Ofsted terms, but how to get there can be an altogether different problem. CfBT Education Trust’s research report – To The Next Level: Good Schools Becoming Outstanding – aims to give schools practical advice and recommendations to set about making that leap from good to outstanding. A key difference between being a good school and


being an outstanding school involves going beyond tight quality controls towards the quality assurance of a self- confident, self-critical community in which learning is interactive and permanent. As one headteacher interviewed for the study said: “You need to tighten up to be good. You loosen to become outstanding.” School leaders are a central driving force behind


a school’s development from good to outstanding and in outstanding schools leadership is inspirational, providing clear vision and direction. Leaders looking to take a school from good to outstanding should focus on the following areas: • Raising attainment and accelerating progress. • Improving the quality of teaching and learning. • Improving the conditions for learning. • Developing the school as a professional learning community.


CfBT’s report looks at the experience of a number


of secondary schools which have moved from good to outstanding and explores their own personal journeys to identify common themes and processes. As a result, the report found that key to the success


of the school is the need to ensure that all staff within the school are familiar with the language of the Ofsted inspection and are fully engaged in the process. Successful schools placed great importance on all


staff in the school knowing and understanding the requirements of the Ofsted framework. Staff who know the requirements understand the emphasis Ofsted places on the quality of teaching and learning, innovative and creative lessons that engage children, the progress and achievement pupils make as well as their attainment, and the good behaviour that stems from this. Professional development sessions specifically


designed to explore the difference between Ofsted’s good and outstanding judgements help to put the framework into context. Staff were also asked to read the reports of other


schools judged by Ofsted to be outstanding. Staff then committed themselves to understanding that the way in which Ofsted inspectors talk about outstanding schools can help teachers picture their own school and class actually fulfilling those statements. Senior leaders also recognised that it was important


for all members of staff to understand how the inspection process works. Many teachers become worried and stressed with the arrival of an Ofsted inspection, afraid that the inspector will be criticising every little thing they do. The report found that it is therefore important to reassure staff that inspectors are trained to focus on students’ learning and progress as well as on the


8


quality of teaching – the teachers are not on trial in an inspection! The self-evaluation form available online from


Ofsted acted as a key document for all schools which made the jump to outstanding. Within the school different groups of staff were each asked to focus on particular sections of the framework, reviewing aspects of practice which needed to be improved. Giving staff individual responsibility in this way ensures that all aspects of the inspection are being addressed and that a wide range of staff members are involved in the process. Aside from the process itself, arguably the most


important improvement to be made is in the classroom. Headteachers in this study focused on eliminating “in-school variation”, or at least reaching a point where this had been reduced to an absolute minimum. Pupils at a school should receive a consistently high level of teaching, regardless of the teachers they have. Along with creativity, consistency was cited as the


most important aspect of teaching in an outstanding school. The school will offer a broad range of curricula to engage with all students and, where possible, offer a personalised approach to learning to accommodate individual aptitudes and needs. To support this consistency of high quality teaching


outstanding schools place great emphasis on evidence. According to the report, senior leaders did not engage in anecdotal talk about underperforming teachers because they had clear and systematic evidence based on regular lesson observations and teachers’ own self-evaluations. Systems should be in place which mean that leaders


know the strengths and weaknesses of all their teaching staff, allowing them to effectively target the necessary training and development. Professional development in outstanding schools will be relevant, continuous and of high quality – and, what’s more, this applies to staff of all levels. Another key indicator of school effectiveness is the setting of challenging targets and the use of arrangements


SecEd • June 9 2011


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