Evaluate

Series:

Do you and your leadership team have the same views on essential issues?
Are your subject teachers and classroom support staff in harmony?
Are boys and girls equally positive about their lives in school?
Do parents' views of the school change as their children get older?
Do different ethnic groups have different perceptions?

Real help with the SEF

With the new Framework for Inspection in place, gathering information to help you fill in your SEF must be a priority. Ensuring you have convincing evidence to back up the statements used in Part A of the form can also prove crucial.

Gathering, analysing and presenting the perceptions of key groups

In many ways, the most awkward and potentially contentious evidence to gather for your SEF revolves around the views of staff, students, parents and governors. Meeting the SEF requirements demands a massive data-gathering exercise, with detailed subtle analyses and an attractive presentation of the resulting information. This then needs to be followed by careful interpretation and action planning.

Step-by-step assistance

A concise guide to using the information in the Evaluate reports is included. This sets out how the reports can contribute to the evidence you will need to convince inspectors that you really understand your school, the challenges it faces and the logic behind your approach to practical solutions.

The Evaluate family of online tools and supporting materials can help to ensure that you meet all these demands. Each element can be purchased separately and is easy to manage. They consider important characteristics of school effectiveness in order to provide you as head with a detailed report. In combination, the Evaluate family can make a real contribution to your SEF and more general development planning. All respondents remain reassuringly anonymous and a free comparative report can be included.

Address your self-evaluation

Evaluate is an exciting online self-evaluation service specifically designed for headteachers and principals. Fully compatible with Ofsted self-evaluation requirements, Evaluate enables schools and colleges to evaluate their present and potential effectiveness. This is done by comparing the school, through the eyes of its staff, students, parents and governors, against 11 key characteristics identified by international research.

A key tool for any head or principal who is:

facing inspection in the next 18 months
new to the post and assessing their organisation’s current situation
driving forward school improvement
embarking on a new round of development planning
monitoring staff morale and building cohesion
keen to report on whole school/college issues to governors and parents/carers.

Key effectiveness characteristics

Respondents complete Evaluate online at a time and place convenient for them. The questionnaire is accessed using a unique password that ensures complete confidentiality. Options are selected from dropdown menus to evaluate each of the following 11 characteristics:

School/college leadership
Vision and goals
Organisation of learning and teaching
Organisation of resources and the learning environment
Management of behaviour and discipline
Monitoring and evaluation of student performance
Monitoring and evaluation of staff performance
Organisation of student care and involvement
Organisation of extra-curricular provision
Organisation of parent involvement and responsibility
Organisation of staff training and development

Each characteristic is rated against five dimensions:

Clarity
Involvement and motivation
Procedures and systems
Emphasis on achievement
Equal opportunities

Each dimension is further rated as improving, steady or declining.

Comparative report included

For schools who use two or more of the Evaluate family, a separate report, Evaluate: Comparative, which compares the responses from the different groups, is included. This is free of charge.

Demonstrating improvement

By repeating the process in the future, you can help to demonstrate that your actions have addressed weaknesses and increased effectiveness. Subsequent uses of the service are heavily discounted.

The complete service for an average secondary school costs only £895^+VAT – excellent value when you consider how much time can be saved and the quality of information received.

Includes ethnicity/AEN

Schools ordering Evaluate – Pupils or Parents can choose to have information on pupils’ ethnic groups and additional needs included. Call 01223 350 555 for further information.

Need help?

In many parts of England, Pearson Publishing can, through our various associates, provide specialised consultancy based around the use of the Evaluate service. For more information, please call 01223 350555.