Ofsted reform is very much on the agenda. Rightly so. The impact of inspection is now one of the factors contributing to the decline in morale of the teaching profession and, unintentionally, to our inability to close the gaps in outcomes between the rich and the poor. Much of this debate focuses on the design […]
Category: Accountability
Reading the Casey Review into the Metropolitan Police
The Casey Review into the standards and culture of the Metropolitan Police Service is deeply disturbing but, after repeated revelations over many years, sadly not surprising. It describes pervasive sexism, racism and homophobia. One of the country’s worst sex offenders was found inside the police service. Institutional racism remains decades after the Macpherson report. In […]
Which schools should we emulate?
Through a high stakes and narrowly quantified definition of performance, we allow institutions to appear that they are high performing by externalising some of their true costs: they make other actors in the system pay some of the price for their results…
Taking stock: nine maxims for management
Some reflections and lessons from this blog so far. Including nine ‘management maxims’ and some daily prompts.
Measurement
The practical value and harm of a measurement system does not seem solely tied to its validity. It is equally dependent on the consequences attached to the measurement.
Long term thinking
It is amazing how seemingly intractable conflicts disappear with the right timeframe. If only you can play a long enough game, you can almost have it all. If we could build longer term thinking into our organisations we would see a sustained improvement in performance and welfare.
Don’t manage teachers with data
Don’t manage teachers with data. Manage your teachers with your theory. Manage your theory with the data…
Strong and stable
This was my final article, I think, while at the NAHT, published with TES in June 2017. It captured many of my conclusions about effective leadership and the sometimes toxic relationship between politics and the profession. “Strong and stable leadership? School bosses embody it “It’s time for a different approach to leadership, says Russell Hobby […]
Accountability, authority, ability
Do not hold people accountable for results outside their control. It is pointless, toxic, dishonest and all too common…
Imposter syndrome
The work you have chosen is demanding. You will struggle with the responsibility, the uncertainty, the comparisons and the criticism. But you belong exactly where you are, making mistakes, second guessing yourself, taking the flak and making the world a better place…
Note to self 