Spielman: "Most catch-up learning will happen in the classroom"
Ofsted's chief inspector Amanda Spielman has said that most pupils' catch-up learning will occur in the classroom with their usual teachers.
Speaking at the Festival of Education, she said: "So much has been said about catch-up – or education recovery, to use the language that sits more comfortably with the sector. Plans were hatched and then scaled back. New ideas are still being floated ahead of the next spending review. But as I’ve consistently said, for most children, most catching up will happen in their usual classroom with their usual teachers.
"The magic of teaching – imparting knowledge, developing skills and building confidence – will mostly happen where it always happens. We should not let the pressure to fill learning gaps bend what schools and colleges do out of shape.
"Broadening minds, enriching communities and advancing civilisation is still exactly what’s needed from our schools."
Spielman also said that Ofsted’s Education Inspection Framework is to remain in place.
She said: "When I’m asked how we will inspect in September, I keep those purposes in mind. There are technical answers about methodology, and appropriate answers about meeting schools where they are.
"But there is also the central truth – we still believe in the substance of education, and that’s what we want to see in action. So the Education Inspection Framework, the EIF, focused on the curriculum, is here to stay.”
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