Estyn found that often governors rely too heavily on the information provided by school leaders, particularly the progress that the school is making towards meeting their priorities. 
 
The findings show that most governors work productively with senior leaders in schools, but a majority do not challenge them sufficiently. Whilst most governors are committed and enthusiastic, they do not have a wide enough understanding of their role in ensuring high expectations in all aspects of the school’s work.
 
Owen Evans, Chief Inspector, says,

Governors can play an important role in supporting and holding a school’s senior leaders to account. Our latest thematic report shows that whilst school governors across Wales carry out aspects of their roles well, their ability to challenge senior leaders on key areas, such as educational performance, is lacking.

The role of governors in holding leaders to account is essentially about monitoring improvement. This should involve establishing clear expectations, ensuring defined lines of responsibility, putting in place systems for monitoring appropriately and ensuring that evaluation leads to actions that secure improvement.

Our findings do show some strong examples of governors challenging senior leaders effectively and helping to drive whole-school improvement – but these are in the minority. Ensuring that governors in Wales have regular and worthwhile opportunities to observe first-hand the progress that their school is making towards meeting its priorities will be key to them acting as “critical friends”.
 
Inspectors found that in the schools where challenge is strongest, governors used the information presented to them by leaders alongside their own experiences and first-hand evidence. These governors were better able to formulate questions that challenged leaders on different aspects of the school’s work. This work is particularly strong in Pembroke Dock Primary School and Ysgol Plas Brondyffryn in Denbighshire.
 
In many schools, governors say that they challenge school leaders effectively, however, in too many schools, head teachers do not agree that governors’ challenge is robust or useful. Challenge appears to be most effective when there are governors with an educational background or experienced governors who have a very good understanding of a successful school.
 
Owen Evans continues,

I value the input of headteachers, governors and other stakeholders who took part in our sample of schools across Wales. Today’s report shares some important findings and recommendations that I encourage policymakers and the education sector to take note of. The governing body of a school can play an important role in maintaining and improving standards – but there is work to do.
 

Schools must make sure that teacher assessment informs teaching and helps pupils to understand and progress their own learning, according to a report published today by Estyn. Many school leaders express some uncertainty about how to approach assessment in the context of the Curriculum for Wales.

Today’s report, The changing approach to assessment, can help schools move towards assessment that supports pupils’ learning. As some schools adopt the Curriculum for Wales and others continue to prepare, the inspectorate recommends that schools should approach assessment in a way that deepens teachers’ understanding of pupils’ learning and how they can progress.

Inspectors visited a sample of schools across Wales previously recognised for having strong practice in teaching.

Owen Evans, Chief Inspector, says,

Getting assessment right is a priority for the Curriculum for Wales. We know that tests are only part of the story when evaluating how well pupils learn. Assessment in the classroom should respond to the needs of individual pupils and be an ongoing and natural part of teaching, not a method of accountability.

Today’s report can help schools to plan how they assess pupils’ work and develop their approaches to reflect the Curriculum for Wales. It identifies good practice from a wide range of primary, secondary, all-age and special schools. 

Case studies in the report highlight how schools have developed effective approaches to assessment. Staff at St Joseph’s RC High School, Newport, ensure that assessment is integral to teaching. In one approach, subject leaders identify key points when teachers must check that pupils have understood before they continue with their learning. The school also regularly reviews the impact of what they are doing and have brought on board parents, pupils and teachers with this system.

Further recommendations in the report include developing teachers’ and leaders’ understanding of this type of assessment and ensuring that teachers use the information they have to adapt their teaching to support and challenge all pupils as appropriate.