New Start for School Inspection Needed Says Committee
18 Jun 2014 11:46 AM
The Education Committee today
published its report on
the Education and Training Inspectorate (ETI) and the school improvement
process.
The Committee inquiry was launched in response
to proposals to increase the powers of the ETI and following concerns that some
schools serving deprived areas or in particular sectors were not
improving.
Committee Chairperson Mervyn
Storey MLA said: “The Committee began this inquiry over six months ago
and since then we have spoken to and gathered evidence from over 60
organisations and individuals. We believe that the end result is a radical
report which contains a number of innovative proposals for school
improvement.
“One of our key
recommendations is for much more support to help struggling schools improve. We
are also calling for greater and more effective cooperation and communication
between the inspectors, the schools they inspect and most importantly of all,
parents.
Mr Storey continued: “The
Committee is concerned about the current format of inspection reports. One word
evaluations of schools clearly do not provide a full picture of a
school’s overall performance. As well as highlighting where improvement
is required, it is crucial that the inspection process properly recognises the
areas were schools are performing well and adding value.
“In order to reboot key
relationships and draw a line under the past, we are also proposing that the
ETI be renamed the Northern Ireland Education Improvement Service (NIEIS) and
that this organisation be heavily focused on improvement through inspection.
Most Members of the Committee also feel that the reformed NIEIS should be
made statutorily independent of the Department for
Education.”
Mr. Storey concluded:
“Most importantly of all, we are very keen to ensure that there is a new
role for parents in the school improvement process. Parental engagement
strengthens the effectiveness of education generally and is essential for the
school improvement process.”
ENDS
Notes to
Editors:
The full Committee Report on its
Inquiry into the Education and Training Inspectorate (ETI) can be accessed via
the following link http://nia1.me/23o