| dc.description.abstract | This thesis explores the Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted) Education Inspection
Framework and its link to the Pupil Premium Grant (PPG) within England’s primary education
system. The Ofsted framework enables inspectors to rate schools with one of the following
designations: outstanding, good, requires improvement, or inadequate. By interviewing three
primary educators at various stages of their careers, this thesis primarily endeavours to
understand the role of Ofsted in relation to the PPG. A secondary goal is to identify the ways
those educators respond to factors that cause pupil deprivation while also working towards
closing the attainment gap between disadvantaged pupils and their peers. The psychological
approach to narrative inquiry, as described by Merriam and Tisdell, is employed so that focus
can be placed on the personal thoughts and motivations of the participants (2015, p. 35). To
achieve an outstanding designation, schools must show that they have closed the attainment gap
between pupils who receive the PPG and those who do not. The literature review shows that
deprivations faced by some pupils are outside the control of schools and therefore the provision
of additional funding to schools does little to impact the root cause of such deprivations. This
thesis concludes with a discussion of how primary educators use their scope of influence to
reduce the attainment gap. Research has found no link between school inspections and
improvement or that the PPG funding has closed the attainment gap calling into question their
efficacy in improving the social mobility of disadvantaged pupils. Finally, this thesis positions
this study in a post-pandemic climate alongside a recruitment and retention crisis that has led to
teaching unions initiating strike action. | en_US |
