Schools in England will no longer be punished for failing to meet the government’s standards in national exams or tests, Damian Hinds will announce as part of a new strategy to attract and retain teachers in the profession.
The proposals to be unveiled by the education secretary means schools will not be defined as failing or “coasting” based on results of national tests or GCSE exams, removing a burden of assessment that has been criticised for unfairly hitting schools with challenging pupil intakes.
Instead, only Ofsted inspection results are to be used in future as a trigger for intervention in schools such as a change in management – a decision welcomed by school leaders as removing the assessment double jeopardy that many faced. Read more.