Governors’ Visits to Classrooms Policy

Aims

To enable governors to:

  • gain insight into the life of the
  • create and develop relationships with staff, children and parents where appropriate.
  • better understand the governors’ roles in raising standards
  • have a better understanding of the governors’ role to support and challenge

Principles

  • the termly ‘Monitoring Visits’ will be made in line with the School Development Plan and governing body priorities
  • other visits can be agreed with the Senior Leadership Team (SLT) to fulfil the above aims.

Setting up the visits

  • the visiting governor(s) will make contact with the appropriate member of staff (by telephone, email or in person) to negotiate dates/times and to agree the focus of the visit
  • governors will not ask for additional paperwork for the visit but will receive a copy of any relevant plans or documentation
  • governors may make visits to classrooms in pairs but larger groups could be approved by the SLT in exceptional circumstances.

Undertaking the visit

  • governors will arrive in good time (as arranged)
  • if possible allow time for an informal briefing from the staff concerned, prior to visiting a lesson or activity
  • brief notes may be taken in the classroom and copies of these could be made available to staff, if required
  • governors will concentrate on the agreed focus of the visit
  • if in the rare eventuality, the governor feels that their presence is making the member of staff feel very uncomfortable, or the lesson is clearly going awry for some reason, the governor will judge whether to withdraw. If a major problem arises in a classroom, a member of the SLT should be informed before leaving the school
  • during the lesson opportunities may arise for the governor to talk to pupils
  • governors should be sensitive about distracting pupils from their tasks but should use the opportunity to see the lesson from the pupils’ perspective eg “Can you tell me what you are learning?” is a much better opener that “What are you doing?” and will, hopefully, allow them to talk about skills, knowledge and understanding rather than their tasks.

See Appendix 1 and 2 for further advice.

  • Governors will be expected to follow our ‘Code of Conduct’ and behave in an appropriate manner at all times showing courtesy to all adults and children.

At the end of the visit

  • monitoring visits will be discussed with the member of SLT at the end of the visit and a written record made. Ideally a time will be arranged for the member of staff to also meet with the governor(s)
  • the governor(s) will avoid being drawn into judgements about the quality of teaching and learning
  • the governor(s) may ask for clarification about aspects of the lesson or activity
  • the governor(s) will share with staff what has been learned from the visit and the record can be made available to staff and FGB

See Appendix 3 for a pro forma to record visits.

Appendix 1

What if……………… (questions that may arise)

What if I see children misbehaving when the teacher doesn’t?

It depends how serious the misbehaviour is and how frequently it happens. The occasional incident should probably be overlooked, but if the teacher is consistently failing to notice misbehaviour, it is something which should be taken up after the lesson.

You could ask the teacher if they noticed a particular incident for example, and what they would have done about it had it been noticed, or whether they chose to ignore it?

If you still have major concerns you may need to talk to the headteacher or member of the SLT about it, in confidence. The headteacher should find a way of following it up without suggesting in any way that you have reported a concern.

What if a pupil asks me how to do something?

It depends what it is. If it is something the teacher has already explained in the lesson, you can reinforce the teacher’s message by explaining it again to the pupil. Otherwise, unless it is a trivial thing, you should ask the teacher on the pupil’s behalf or encourage the pupil to ask the teacher directly. You might also be able to ask a teaching assistant, if one is present.

What if the teacher has problems controlling the class?

It depends on the level of poor control. Maintaining perfect class control at all times is not easy, especially in practical activities, so some leeway should be given. Also a certain level of noise might just be a sign of enthusiastic participation in an activity.

Usually if a teacher is really struggling, the headteacher would know about it anyway and not encourage a governor to visit in the first place. There will be some kind of support available for the teacher, possibly from a more senior colleague. But if control is obviously seriously lacking, then the headteacher needs to be told.

Appendix 2

1.Purposes of Visits

Potential Benefits to Governors / Potential Benefits to Teachers
To recognise and celebrate success
To develop relationships with the staff
To get to know the children
To recognise different teaching styles
To understand the environment in which teachers teach
To see policies and schemes of work in action
To inform decision-making
To find out what resources are needed and prioritise them
To help identify any training need and development needs / To ensure governors understand the reality of the classroom
To get to know the governors
To understand better the governors’ roles and responsibilities
To have an opportunity to reflect on practice through discussion
To highlight the need for particular resources
2.What school visits are not about
Making judgements about the quality of teaching
Checking on the progress of one’s own children
Pursuing personal agendas
Monopolising teachers’ time

3.Visit Protocols (Code of Conduct)

ALWAYS / NEVER
Before / Arrange details of visit
Agree level of confidentiality
Agree purpose of visit
Discuss the context of the lesson to be observed / Turn up unannounced
During / Observe any class guidelines/rules
Fulfil agreed purpose / Walk in with a clipboard
After / Thank the teacher and the pupils
Discuss observations with teacher / Leave without a word

Appendix 3

GOVERNORS VISITS RECORD at ………..
Name of Governor and Member of staff
Date
Area of Focus
Discussion points/comments
Points Arising
Signatures / Governor Staff Member

Date reviewed by staff: Spring term 2015

Date due for next review:Spring term 2018