Engels onderwijsminister verwijt inspectie dat ze de voorbije decennia de leraars een pedagogische aanpak opdrong, het zelfstandig leren e.d. Dit kwam ook in inspectierapporten tot uiting. Leraars die zelf nog veel lesgaven kregen veel kritiek.
However, he added, the watchdog was no longer taking this approach. Weve worked with Ofsted to make sure inspectors dont penalise teachers who... teach from the front, he said.
(Commentaar: In Vlaanderen stelden we een analoge opstelling van de inspectie vast. In Onderwijskrant besteedden we hier de voorbije 20 jaar veel kritische bijdragen aan. )
Schools minister Nick Gibb has accused Ofsted of a reign of error in which the watchdog effectively forced schools to adopt new teaching styles with an emphasis on independent learning.
Speaking at the Research Ed conference in London today, Mr Gibb said that, for several years until 2013, inspection became geared towards imposing its preferred teaching style on the profession.
He said that as recently as 2013, Ofsteds reports on secondary schools showed a preference for pupils learning independent of teacher instruction or criticised lessons where teachers talk too much.
He referred to this period as a reign of error and said Ofsteds support for independent learning had directly contradicted the common sense of hundreds of thousands of teachers.
For many schools, pupils working independently became more important than pupils actually learning, he said.
However, he added, the watchdog was no longer taking this approach. Weve worked with Ofsted to make sure inspectors dont penalise teachers who teach from the front, he said.
An Ofsted spokesman agreed, saying: "As HM chief inspector Sir Michael Wilshaw has repeatedly made clear, Ofsted does not have a preferred teaching style. It is up to the classroom teacher to determine how they should teach."
