Ofsted to crack down on bad behaviour in class

OFSTED WILL be cracking down on bad behaviour in classrooms, with schools being judged on the learning environment they provide for students.

Proposals for its new framework include the introduction of separate judgments about learners’ personal development, and behaviour and attitudes. Ofsted says this approach will mean behaviour and learners’ attitudes will be given the importance they are due.

The consultation, published today, says: “Creating a sufficiently disciplined environment is a prerequisite to any learning taking place. If behaviour is not managed effectively and learners are not instilled with positive attitudes to learning, nothing much will be learned.”

Ofsted’s national director for education, Sean Harford, inset, said: “We want to really update the profile of behaviour. It is my personal opinion that if every child behaved in school that the standard would rocket up.”

Referring to a previous report Ofsted published on behaviour, he added: “And what it said effectively was, there aren’t the terrible examples as often as there were if you go back 15-20 years of behaviour.

“The problem now is more one about low level disruption – swinging on chairs, tapping when the teacher is talking, passing notes, whispering, mobile phones, you know getting distracted by electronic devices etc.

“That kind of thing is what has been on the rise, and is the bane of teachers’ lives.”

The separate behaviour judgment will assess whether schools are creating a calm, well-managed environment free from bullying.

While a personal development judgment will look at the work schools and colleges do to build young people’s resilience and confidence in later life – through work such as cadet forces, National Citizenship Service, sports, drama or debating teams.

Nick Brook, deputy general secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT), said: “Ofsted already judges schools on behaviour, so we know that the overwhelming majority of schools are orderly places where children learn effectively.

“What parents really want to know is whether their children are happy and safe in school, and making good progress. In nine out of 10 schools, this is the case. In places where it’s not, support rather than sanction is what is needed.”