School inspection in Canterbury and East Kent 1850-1870 and 1992-2000 : a comparative study

• Main Author: Finucane, Patrick Michael
• Published: University College London (University of London) 2000
• Subjects: 371.2
• Online Access: http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.536182

The aim of this study is to compare critically the development, operation and impact of school inspection in two historical periods. The first period 1850 to 1870, following the introduction of formal state inspection of schools is contrasted with the introduction and operation of the Office for Standards in education (Ofsted) in the years 1992 to 2000. The study examines the introduction, processes and effects of inspection in a group of Church of England infant and primary schools in Canterbury and east Kent. Its wider context is the development and implementation of school inspection policy in two eras, separated by over 150 years, and its effects on teacher professionalism. Although a gulf of time stands between the two periods, it is believed that such a comparative perspective is both valid and meaningful for a number of reasons. Inspection is a dimension of effective government and public accountability. In both eras the involvement ofthe state and its role in securing improvements in the provision of publicly funded education has been linked to the national, economic and social well being of the state. The study has involved extensive archival and empirical research, including interviews with headteachers in east Kent to learn from their experience ofthe inspection process both before and after the introduction of Ofsted. Finally, the study has set out to show that the past is clearly relevant to today. It raises the question of whether educational change is cyclical, and not a process of permanent progress. Just as the Revised Code, introduced in 1862 was to last until 1895, and then in hindsight be widely regarded as 'unenlightened', is it today possible to predict a cyclical term for the reforms of the 1980s and 1990s? Will they too have a finite span?