Don’t squeeze all the joy out of school
WHAT constitutes a ‘good’ school? My daughter’s, on the Isle of Wight, has just received a ‘good’ rating from Ofsted. Instead of celebrating this achievement, along with many other parents, I am left with a bad taste in my mouth. There have been a lot of sacrifices and sadness during the past two years since the appointment of a new head. This has been driven by the Government’s desire to bring every school to at least ‘good’ status, measured by standards and results, and to ensure every child goes to university, whether they are academic or not. Each pupil should be competent in maths, English and handwriting, which in itself seems reasonable and appears to be the main focus of Ofsted. However, certainly in some schools, the ruthlessness it takes to achieve that status appears highly focused, unrelenting and creates an overall atmosphere that is far from a nurturing primary school environment. Music and art, including impromptu guitar-led teaching sessions, have all but disappeared. Instead, the children have been issued with lanyards to wear to display their merits. Positive reinforcement and fun learning were once the mantras; now, there is pressure to complete work and do well in SATS. What about childhood? Despite years of loyalty and experience, a very large proportion of the teaching staff have left, citing unreasonable working conditions. In a good school, the value system set for the children should also be followed by the head and the governors. I have kept my daughter at the school because of her long-term friendship group. I have had little acknowledgment from the local council, the Department for Education or Ofsted about the huge difficulties the school has experienced. Nothing was mentioned in the Ofsted report of any complaint being lodged, even though my official school complaints as a parent stakeholder of poor communication from senior leadership with parents and poor governance were upheld by an independent governors’ panel hearing. I fear it will never again be the school it once was. The true impact can perhaps be measured by the number of children moving to other schools. Spaces are being advertised, which is a first for the school. The latest reception class took 18 pupils when it is normally oversubscribed at 30 pupils. What is the point of a ‘good’ rating for a school when parents are choosing not to send their children to it? Mrs J. SMITH, Newport, Isle of Wight.