Estyn
"Estyn is the office of Her Majesty's Inspectorate for Education and Training in Wales"(ESTYN p2)
ESTYN is responsible for inspecting the standerds of school's and educational centers in Wales. They have to inspect all types of schools including, nursery schools, primary schools, comprehensive schools, special schools and independant schools. They also have the responsability of inspecting referral units where children are sent too, further education schools like Universities, specailist independant colleges, adult community learning centers, community education for children, education and teach training centers, work based learning, career companies and also they have to inspect offender learning centers. ESTYN also give advice to the Welsh Assembly Government and they also encourage good practice throughout the schools and Educational centers in Wales. (ESTYN)
Holmes (2009) states that “inspection has been a part of school life in one form or another since formal education began, and undoubtedly will continue to be central to education policy for the foreseeable future. (p2)
Estyn (2003) highlights that one of the main priorities of the National Assembly for Wales is to make sure that all children and adults have the opportunity to experience better learning. Dr Russel Grigg explained that reports on schools are extremelly usefull for communitys, parents and also parliments. ESTYN (2011) state that "Our advice provides evidence of the effect of the Welsh Government's stratagies policies and initatives on the education and training of learners"(page2). By doing reports on primary schools it is allowing the Government to find out if they are achieveing their aims on education
ESTYN say that their reason for inspecting is to highlight the good and bad features within a school or training place so that they can improve and raise their standards, so that their learners can achieve more. Holmes (2009) says that we have school inspections as they "provide an independant and external view of the most important features on school life; Quality and standerds." (p23) ESTYN agree with this and believe that their reason for inspecting is to highlight the good and bad features within a school or training place so that they can improve and raise their standards, so that their learners can achieve more.
Holmes (2009) identifies that there are many benefits and advantages of schools inspections. These include the children being encouraged to focus and develop their skills and their confidence can increase as it gives them an opportunity to publicise their good work.
References
ESTYN (2003) Advice on School Partnerships, A report on good practice in primary schools Cardiff; ESTYN
ESTYN (2011) About Estyn, Annual report 2010-2011 Cardiff: ESTYN
Holmes, E (2009) FAQS for school inspection, practical advice and working solutions. Oxon:Routledge
ESTYN, retrived 30th April 2012 from Role and Remit http://www.estyn.gov.uk/english/about-us/role-and-remit/
ESTYN, retrived 30th April 2012 from Inspection reports http://www.estyn.gov.uk/english/inspection/overview/
Monday, 30 April 2012
Friday, 13 April 2012
On March 20th Jane Davidson, who used to be the Minister of Education,spoke to us about the History of Education.
She states that in 1983 Margaret Thatcher was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. She wanted to develop a curriculum that gave all children the same chances and experiences, no matter what country they lived in or what country they were from. Teachers at the time were not completely happy with this as it meant less freedom for them, as before this curriculum was introduced, they were able to teach the pupils whatever they wanted to. This was the first time in nearlly 50 years that teachers in the United Kingdom were being told what to teach (Baker 2009). The Conservative Government then introduced the SAT tests into the United Kingdom. Every child in the United Kingdom would sit this test when they are at the ages of seven, eleven and fourteen.
In 1997 the Labour Government came back into power, under the leadership of Tony Blair. British Political Speech states that Tony Blair said, after winning the General elections in 1997 "Today, we are charged with the deep responsibility of government. Today, enough of talking - it is time now to do." Jane Davidson said that Tony Blairs three word quote "education, education, education" gripped the nation, as the majority of the bristish public did not agree with Margaret Thatchers policys within education.
The Guardian (2005) state that Tony Blair said in his Education Campaign speech that "education was, is, and will remain our number one priority". The Labour Government thought that Margartet Thatchers views on Education was to structured and that children and teachers should have more freedom.
Jane Dividson said that in 1999 the Welsh Asembly Government was introduced, and this meant that Welsh education policies were now seperate from the English education policies. To begin with, there were two ministers of education. One was for the Pre 16 comitee and one was for the post 16 commitee.
In 2000 Rhodri Morgan became the first Minister of education and Jane became the Minister. Jane Davidson helped to develop the Learning Country and the Learning country, vision into action. These two documents try highlight the fact that "Education and training are of the first importance for Wales" (WAG 2001).The Learning Country highlights that you have to work in partnership with your community, as it will make the foundations for learning stronger. The Learning Country talks about understanding how important schools are to the community and how they can develop and his people with their confidence (WAG 2001). The Learning Country Vison into Action highlights the fact that there are more job and educational opportunities for all ages. Also, when the Welsh Assembly Government developed 'The Learning Country' they knew that it would take ten yeares to develop and structure properly. (WAG 2008)
This lecture was extremelly interesting as i have always enjoyed history and loved learning about it. I learnt a lot of new things that i didnt know. I believe that it is important to know the History of your own country.
references -
Welsh Assembly Government (2001) The Learning Country, Cardiff: Welsh Assembly Government
Baker, M (2009) retrived 10th April 2012 from Was Mrs Thatcher right about the curriculum? http://www.mikebakereducation.co.uk/articles/48/was-mrs-thatcher-right-about-the-curriculum
BBC retrieved 10th April 2012 from 1997: Labour routs Tories in historic election http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/may/2/newsid_2480000/2480505.stm
The Guardian retrieved 10th April 2012 from Tony Blairs Education campaign speech http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2005/mar/03/schools.uk1
British Political speech retrieved 10th April 2012 from General election victory speech 1997 http://www.britishpoliticalspeech.org/speech-archive.htm?speech=222
The Welsh Assembly Government (2008) retrived 10th April 2012 from The Learning Country, vision into action http://wales.gov.uk/topics/educationandskills/publications/guidance/learningcountry/?lang=en
Tuesday, 10 April 2012
January 23rd, February 6th and the 13th - Steve Gullick
Steve Gullick, who is the director for All Wales Centre for Training and Research, spoke about the Governing body's within a school.
There are around 300,000 school Governors, which means that they are one of the largest voluntary groups in the country. School Governors are part of the 'Corporate body' which means that they are protected and not blamed individually for what decisions the whole Governing body have made as long as they acted in reasonable manner. (Department for Education)
"Governors Wales is committed to supporting the effective management and provision of high quality learning opportunities for all pupils and young people in Wales" The Governing body encourages the schools to achieve high standards of education, they set targets that are appropriate for the pupils to achieve, they take responsibility for the functioning and behaviour of the school, they manage the schools budget, which includes the teachers pay, they have to make sure that the teachers are following the right curriculum, the are involved in deciding who becomes head teacher and deputy head, they make sure the staff are behaving in the right way and they must draw an action plan for after an inspection. The Governing body must meet at least once a term in a meeting.
There are more Governor's in a secondary school, then a primary school. You have to be a Governor for 4 years, even if your child has left that school. While the head teacher is in charge or running the school day-to-day, the Governors are the ones who will work out a ling term plan for the school. Governors should ask questions but then they should also be very supportive, like a critical friend.
The staff in the school do have regular contact with the Governors, as the Governors are there for job interviews, informal visits, celebrations, presentations and staff disciplinary meetings. There are only two groups of people you can officially stop from entering your school, with Governors being one, and the other being inspectors.
Governor's do not get paid. If they did get paid they might be a Governors for the wrong reason, as they should be there as they want the school to do well and help improve it, not for the money. "The work of Governors Wales recognises that governors voluntarily give their time, experience and expertise to help their schools and the communities they serve". However,you could argue that if a Governor has to miss their day-to-day job for an interview or meeting, shouldn't they get expenses? As their manager might not pay them for that day they have missed.
There are several types of Governors that make up the Govorning body. These are, parent governors, who are appointed by election, staff governor, who the teachers and the rest of the staff in the school elect, community governors, who the governing body choose who they think are interesred in the community, authority Governors, who the local authority choose, sponser Governors, these get chosen by the Governing body for making a financial contribution to the school, associate members, who are asked to attend the meeting due to a certain skill that they have, Partnership Governors, who are only part of a Governing body if there is no founding body and finally, the foundation governers, who are not in the Governing body of a community school, but they are apoointed by an organisation, like a church, outside of the school. Within a Governing body, there must be a Chair Governor and a Vice-Chair Governor. (Department for Education)
Becoming a governor is a rewarding way of making an important contribution to education
If you become a Governor you are making a contribution to education in a rewarding way, as you can learn new skills and devlop the one you already have further (Direct Gov). Parent Governors are the biggest Catagory in a school, where as the Community Governors is the shortest Catagory. In areas where there is poverty there is a shortage of Governors. Also, there is a shortage of black or foreign governors, due to their type of work. As a lot of foreign people work in restuarants and newsagents, they are working during the evening, and that is the time that the meetings would be held. Also, to be a Governor in this country you have to be able to speak English quite well, and this could be a problem for Foreign people. People under the age of 40 might also struggle to cope with being a Governor, as they might have children to bring up and may not have enough time to attend the meetings or job interviews. People of a low class in society are not usually Governors as travelling can be a problem, especially if they do not own a car, and due to them not having a highly paid job then they might question the value of school as they did not do very well in it.
Steve Gullik highlighted four different type of Governing bodys. If you are in the abdicator group of governers you are not very supportive towwards the school and claim to be very busy. They leave everything to the head teacher. If you are in the adversaries group you put too much pressure on the school. You may visit occassionaly without warning and are critical about the school. If you are in the supporters club then you leave all descions down to the head teacher. You see your role as being there to offer advice but do not ask questions. If you are in the partners group then you work equally with the head teacher and the staff. There is a bond of trust between you all.
In order to be an effective school Governor, it is important to do the training that is offered to you. The training can help a Governor learn how to deal with problems that occur quite often, to keep them updated with any changes in education and it shows them how to raise the standerds of the school by supporting them. (Department for education)
references - http://www.governorswales.org.uk/about/
- http://www.education.gov.uk/schools/leadership/governance/a0056694/categories-and-roles-of-school-governors
http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/HomeAndCommunity/Gettinginvolvedinyourcommunity/Volunteering/DG_10038366
There are around 300,000 school Governors, which means that they are one of the largest voluntary groups in the country. School Governors are part of the 'Corporate body' which means that they are protected and not blamed individually for what decisions the whole Governing body have made as long as they acted in reasonable manner. (Department for Education)
"Governors Wales is committed to supporting the effective management and provision of high quality learning opportunities for all pupils and young people in Wales" The Governing body encourages the schools to achieve high standards of education, they set targets that are appropriate for the pupils to achieve, they take responsibility for the functioning and behaviour of the school, they manage the schools budget, which includes the teachers pay, they have to make sure that the teachers are following the right curriculum, the are involved in deciding who becomes head teacher and deputy head, they make sure the staff are behaving in the right way and they must draw an action plan for after an inspection. The Governing body must meet at least once a term in a meeting.
There are more Governor's in a secondary school, then a primary school. You have to be a Governor for 4 years, even if your child has left that school. While the head teacher is in charge or running the school day-to-day, the Governors are the ones who will work out a ling term plan for the school. Governors should ask questions but then they should also be very supportive, like a critical friend.
The staff in the school do have regular contact with the Governors, as the Governors are there for job interviews, informal visits, celebrations, presentations and staff disciplinary meetings. There are only two groups of people you can officially stop from entering your school, with Governors being one, and the other being inspectors.
Governor's do not get paid. If they did get paid they might be a Governors for the wrong reason, as they should be there as they want the school to do well and help improve it, not for the money. "The work of Governors Wales recognises that governors voluntarily give their time, experience and expertise to help their schools and the communities they serve". However,you could argue that if a Governor has to miss their day-to-day job for an interview or meeting, shouldn't they get expenses? As their manager might not pay them for that day they have missed.
There are several types of Governors that make up the Govorning body. These are, parent governors, who are appointed by election, staff governor, who the teachers and the rest of the staff in the school elect, community governors, who the governing body choose who they think are interesred in the community, authority Governors, who the local authority choose, sponser Governors, these get chosen by the Governing body for making a financial contribution to the school, associate members, who are asked to attend the meeting due to a certain skill that they have, Partnership Governors, who are only part of a Governing body if there is no founding body and finally, the foundation governers, who are not in the Governing body of a community school, but they are apoointed by an organisation, like a church, outside of the school. Within a Governing body, there must be a Chair Governor and a Vice-Chair Governor. (Department for Education)
Becoming a governor is a rewarding way of making an important contribution to education
If you become a Governor you are making a contribution to education in a rewarding way, as you can learn new skills and devlop the one you already have further (Direct Gov). Parent Governors are the biggest Catagory in a school, where as the Community Governors is the shortest Catagory. In areas where there is poverty there is a shortage of Governors. Also, there is a shortage of black or foreign governors, due to their type of work. As a lot of foreign people work in restuarants and newsagents, they are working during the evening, and that is the time that the meetings would be held. Also, to be a Governor in this country you have to be able to speak English quite well, and this could be a problem for Foreign people. People under the age of 40 might also struggle to cope with being a Governor, as they might have children to bring up and may not have enough time to attend the meetings or job interviews. People of a low class in society are not usually Governors as travelling can be a problem, especially if they do not own a car, and due to them not having a highly paid job then they might question the value of school as they did not do very well in it.
Steve Gullik highlighted four different type of Governing bodys. If you are in the abdicator group of governers you are not very supportive towwards the school and claim to be very busy. They leave everything to the head teacher. If you are in the adversaries group you put too much pressure on the school. You may visit occassionaly without warning and are critical about the school. If you are in the supporters club then you leave all descions down to the head teacher. You see your role as being there to offer advice but do not ask questions. If you are in the partners group then you work equally with the head teacher and the staff. There is a bond of trust between you all.
In order to be an effective school Governor, it is important to do the training that is offered to you. The training can help a Governor learn how to deal with problems that occur quite often, to keep them updated with any changes in education and it shows them how to raise the standerds of the school by supporting them. (Department for education)
references - http://www.governorswales.org.uk/about/
- http://www.education.gov.uk/schools/leadership/governance/a0056694/categories-and-roles-of-school-governors
http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/HomeAndCommunity/Gettinginvolvedinyourcommunity/Volunteering/DG_10038366
16th January - Dr Russel Grigg
Estyn have said that their aim is "to achieve excellence for all learners in Wales… through providing an independent, high quality inspection and advice service"
In this lecture we learnt about ESTYN. Estyn inspects the standards within Education in Wales. They are responsible for inspecting all schools from Nursery to secondary schools, independent and special needs schools, pupil referral units, Universities and colleges, adult community learning, local authority services for children and young people, teacher education and training, work based learning, career companies and offender learning. ESTYN also provide advice on the standards in education and training to the Welsh Assembly Government and they influence good standards in education and training (ESTYN)
ESTYN write reports on the schools that they have inspected. These reports are to help improve schools and their standards. These reports are helpful for the community, parents and Parliament, as it allows them to know about the schools or any other educational establishments performances. Reports let the schools know how well they are doing, but it can also let them know if they are not up to the standard that they should be. The ESTYN report framework shows that there are topics that need to be covered. These topics are, standards, well being, learning experiences, teaching, care, support and guidance, learning environment, leadership, improving quality, partnership working and resource management.
Refernces - http://www.estyn.gov.uk/english/about-us/role-and-remit/
In this lecture we learnt about ESTYN. Estyn inspects the standards within Education in Wales. They are responsible for inspecting all schools from Nursery to secondary schools, independent and special needs schools, pupil referral units, Universities and colleges, adult community learning, local authority services for children and young people, teacher education and training, work based learning, career companies and offender learning. ESTYN also provide advice on the standards in education and training to the Welsh Assembly Government and they influence good standards in education and training (ESTYN)
ESTYN write reports on the schools that they have inspected. These reports are to help improve schools and their standards. These reports are helpful for the community, parents and Parliament, as it allows them to know about the schools or any other educational establishments performances. Reports let the schools know how well they are doing, but it can also let them know if they are not up to the standard that they should be. The ESTYN report framework shows that there are topics that need to be covered. These topics are, standards, well being, learning experiences, teaching, care, support and guidance, learning environment, leadership, improving quality, partnership working and resource management.
Refernces - http://www.estyn.gov.uk/english/about-us/role-and-remit/
January 9th - Ken Jones
On the 9th January 2012, Professor Ken Jones spoke about local authorities in Education and their size.
He started of the lecture by speaking about the population in Wales and how 50% of the population live in the South and the South East of Wales.
Before 1999 there were 8 local authorities in Wales. However,due to the re-organisation in 1999, there are now 22 Unitary authorities. Democratic Elections are held every four years to choose who will be in the local authorities. All local authorities are democratically accountable through elections held every four years.The Welsh government provide the majority of the funding for the Unitary authorities and all members of the Unitary authorities are members are part of the Welsh Local Government Association. (Welsh Government, 2011)
Reynolds (2010) explains that the number of pupils in La maintained schools decrease year after year, which can lead to redundancies and closure of schools. However, there are 10 or more schools in Wales that have under 90 pupils, and the smaller the school the more expensive the costs per pupil, which makes the school more expensive to run. The Local authorities do not have enough money to keep the small schools open. (Cost of small primary schools in Wales)
Ken Jones said that in 2006, the PISA (International tests) confirmed that Wales had made progress, compared to other countries, but they needed to do even better. Due to this, the Welsh Assembly Government introduced the School Efectiveness Framework. The Welsh Assembly Government (2008) say that "The School Efectiveness Programme will coordinate all of the good work that is already being carried out in order to improve learning and wellbeing for all of our school aged children and young people in Wales." They also say that "The Framework describes the key characteristics required to build on existing good practice and improve children’s and young people’s learning and wellbeing throughout Wales, and each partner’s contribution to securing that."
I thought this lecture was quite interesting, but dont feel like their was enough information. However, it was quite easy to research my own information. It was quite an interesting lecture.
References -
Welsh Assembly Government (2008), School effectiveness framework, building effective learning communities together. Cardiff: Welsh Assembly Government
Reynolds (2010) retrived 10th April 2012 from Questioning the closure of small schools http://www.clickonwales.org/2010/07/questioning-the-closure-of-small-schools/
Welsh Assembly Government (2011) retrived 10th April 2012 from Unitary Authorities
http://wales.gov.uk/topics/localgovernment/localauthorities/?lang=en - 10/04/12
He started of the lecture by speaking about the population in Wales and how 50% of the population live in the South and the South East of Wales.
Before 1999 there were 8 local authorities in Wales. However,due to the re-organisation in 1999, there are now 22 Unitary authorities. Democratic Elections are held every four years to choose who will be in the local authorities. All local authorities are democratically accountable through elections held every four years.The Welsh government provide the majority of the funding for the Unitary authorities and all members of the Unitary authorities are members are part of the Welsh Local Government Association. (Welsh Government, 2011)
Reynolds (2010) explains that the number of pupils in La maintained schools decrease year after year, which can lead to redundancies and closure of schools. However, there are 10 or more schools in Wales that have under 90 pupils, and the smaller the school the more expensive the costs per pupil, which makes the school more expensive to run. The Local authorities do not have enough money to keep the small schools open. (Cost of small primary schools in Wales)
Ken Jones said that in 2006, the PISA (International tests) confirmed that Wales had made progress, compared to other countries, but they needed to do even better. Due to this, the Welsh Assembly Government introduced the School Efectiveness Framework. The Welsh Assembly Government (2008) say that "The School Efectiveness Programme will coordinate all of the good work that is already being carried out in order to improve learning and wellbeing for all of our school aged children and young people in Wales." They also say that "The Framework describes the key characteristics required to build on existing good practice and improve children’s and young people’s learning and wellbeing throughout Wales, and each partner’s contribution to securing that."
I thought this lecture was quite interesting, but dont feel like their was enough information. However, it was quite easy to research my own information. It was quite an interesting lecture.
References -
Welsh Assembly Government (2008), School effectiveness framework, building effective learning communities together. Cardiff: Welsh Assembly Government
Reynolds (2010) retrived 10th April 2012 from Questioning the closure of small schools http://www.clickonwales.org/2010/07/questioning-the-closure-of-small-schools/
Welsh Assembly Government (2011) retrived 10th April 2012 from Unitary Authorities
http://wales.gov.uk/topics/localgovernment/localauthorities/?lang=en - 10/04/12
Monday, 16 January 2012
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