Research Summer Week Two
The second week of the research summer began with a visit to St John Fisher Catholic Primary School where our team was given an opportunity to consult the headteacher on the main obstacles they face, the most notable of which is the challenge of performing under the pressure of an Ofsted inspection, especially with a student body so diverse in nationality, culture and styles of learning. It was unexpected to learn the extent to which a single inspection can change the capacity of a school to function for years to come, even more so when acknowledging the reasonable possibility that any misfortune on just one day can have calamitous repercussions. This was a clear sign to us that we need to learn more about this process as we delved further into our literary research.
There were naturally less contact hours this week which meant we spent more time focusing on independent research. As a team, we divided the general approach between the four of us, primarily narrowing down on particularly recent white papers on the topic and the mechanisms Ofsted deploys when making its assessments, as well as other standalone tools which provided additional data as to how many non-attainment based creations are perceived in practice, for example, the Education Endowment Foundation Research.
Finally, we mapped stakeholder involvement in our research, and produced a summary of a literary review up to now.
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Hi Athan,
Thank you for another thoughtful reflection. I particularly liked your observation about the pressures associated with Ofsted inspections. Rather than simply describing the visit, you began to reflect on the wider policy environment in which schools operate. That curiosity about why organisations behave as they do is an important habit for researchers to develop.
One suggestion for your future reflections is to move a little further beyond describing what happened and spend a few more sentences exploring what it means. For example, what does the pressure of inspection tell us about how accountability systems shape the decisions that school leaders make? How might those pressures influence the experiences of teachers and pupils? Those are the kinds of analytical questions that elevate a good reflection into an excellent one.
I'm also interested in hearing more of your own thinking. You mention mapping stakeholders and reviewing the literature — what has surprised you so far? Has anything challenged assumptions you held before the project began?
Finally, a question to ponder as your research develops. We often talk about leadership in terms of strategy, systems and accountability, but where does character fit? What personal qualities does a Headteacher need to lead well when working under intense external pressure? Courage? Integrity? Humility? Compassion? Resilience? There may be an interesting connection here between the policy environment you are studying and the human qualities required to navigate it effectively.
I'm looking forward to seeing how your thinking develops over the coming weeks.
Best wishes,
Ben