English and the Ofsted Experience Book

This book is a timely examination of the impact of OFSTED inspections on English, a key area of the curriculum. The case studies, which form the heart of the book, are based on extensive interviews with the head-teacher, head of English, an English teacher and the English inspector in each of six very different schools. Introduced by a sensitive reminder of what inspections used to be like, the book features the inspector who cried, the head of English who went to the opera, the English teacher who was sick and the head of English who thinks OFSTED-speak is an insult to the language. It is a 'must' for all English teachers yet to undergo 'The OFSTED Experience' - and for those who have survived it! The authors' conclusion is that OFSTED inspections can be a powerful instrument for change, provided they are encouraged to operate for school improvement rather than just to feed in data to the central OFSTED database.