Framework+

2. Introducing self-evaluation with Framework+ ™ Evidence Based Improvement

3. ? How to use this tutorial This tutorial explores Framework+™ and the principles of on-line evaluation. To navigate within the tutorial, you will need to use the forward and back arrows (at the bottom of the screen). Sometimes, content is linked to other pages in the tutorial. To visit these, click on the text hyperlink and then to return to the page where you were previously, click the back button. To return to the learning menu, click the () button at the top right of the screen. If you want to view the help screen, click the (?) button. To navigate to different sections of the tutorial, click on the grey boxes which are at the top right of the screen. These will link you to the relevant content. We hope that this tutorial helps you to understand and get the most from your use of Framework+™.

4.  End Tutorial Framework+™ provides a self-evaluation frameworks with expert guidance and development planning tools for primary and secondary schools Introduction Getting started Getting things done - actions Identifying and managing priorities Reporting 10 steps to consider for effective evaluation

5. Introduction (1/4) Framework+™ is an on-line evaluation tool that supports robust and effective self-evaluation. Being aware of strengths, areas for improvement, actions and risks are tools that school leaders need to support them in delivering school improvement.Best practice includes judgements that are reflective, evidence is of high quality and the lessons learnt across many disciplines are acted upon. Self-evaluation is less onerous when it is regularly reviewed, completed with support from high quality experts and the responsibility is shared. When carried out well, self-evaluation leads to the clear identification of the next actions required to bring about improvement. Framework+™ helps manage this process through encouraging collaboration by up to at least 20 different contributors and as a management tool can monitor the activity of all involved. The guidance statements that are contained within Framework+™ have been compiled by school leaders and experts in self-evaluation. It is important that judgements made about your school are robust and it is equally important to recognise that these may not necessarily align with judgements that have been made by others. To ensure that the judgements that you make are robust as possible, it is important to consider the many facets that surround each statement and to provide evidence that helps to substantiate your judgement.

6. Introduction (2/4) Framework+™ provides guidance that will help you give full consideration to each component of self-evaluation, where applicable you will find- • framework graded statements; • Guidance in the form of questions you may wish to consider (quantitative and qualitative where relevant); • Common questions and answers that are often raised; • Links to websites. It is important to note however that Framework+™ does not automatically aggregate judgements from the key sections or from the aspects. A school needs to consider all of the evidence that it has (including judgements from all aspects) in order to make its overall judgement of effectiveness. In addition, the new inspection schedule for schools however does identify that where schools demonstrate that components are inadequate then therefore the overall provision may also be inadequate. Here, limiting judgements can also be enforced should aspects or key sections not meet expected judgement. Framework+™ provides alerts on the dashboard should the overall effectiveness of your school have the potential to be restricted by aspects within your own judgement.

7. Introduction (3/4) To ensure that your evaluation is robust, consider all of the guidance and questions associated with your area of responsibility. In addition, you should remember that for your evaluation to be an accurate reflection of your school, you should avoid making judgements that: • reflect where you would like to be rather than where you are at this point in time • are above where you are because you meet some points but certainly not all • cannot be justified through your evidence or that you do not have any evidence for Therefore, if you do not have sufficient evidence to make your judgement, it is wiser to act with caution rather than over exaggerate your school’s performance. Alternatively you may decide to leave the section incomplete and ensure that you revisit it when you have evidence. You should use the tools within Framework+™ to ensure that actions are completed, strengths, areas for development and risks are addressed and that these are managed to ensure that the focus of this work is to drive improvement.

8. Introduction (4/4) The underpinning features..... • Framework+™ delivers a highly effective management framework that enables self-evaluation to feed directly into a school development plan. Actions and risks are effectively managed to ensure that improvement remains the core strategic objective. • Framework+™ is highly efficient at encouraging multiple authors to simultaneously collaborate; contributing evidence on every aspect of your school’s performance using pertinent questions and up to date, expert written guidance that encourages robust evaluation. • Framework+™ keeps you up-to-date with powerful dashboards that allow you to see your school’s performance at a glance, accurately monitor progress and keep on top of workflow towards improvement. . • Framework+™ integrates with your existing technologies: using email to encourage colleagues to engage in regular evaluation, action and risk monitoring whilst reports are easily produced in formats that you already know (.ie. Word, Excel, PDF). Now you have read about the features, lets get started.

9. Getting started (1/7) To help visualise the self-evaluation process using the current framework, its hierarchy is presented as a visual dashboard made up of blocks. • The overarching layer indicates overall effectiveness. • The key sections beneath are used to group the key themes that are covered in the evaluation. • Finally, the sub-aspects contribute relevant detail. Questions are provided to encourage a more in-depth focus on the performance of the school on each aspect, all contributing to the overall effectiveness of the school. In this section, you will learn about the structure, what the colours on the dashboard represent, how to allocate sections to others and then how to capture evidence for your evaluation.

10. Getting started (2/7) To navigate to the different components of your evaluation, click on the boxes. Where there is not sufficient space to visualise what is being represented, you can see what the aspect covers by rolling your mouse over each aspect. Teaching To view all of the aspects beneath the key section, click on the key section and an overview will appear.

11. Getting started (3/7) Framework+™ uses the following colours to differentiate between the judgements made.

12. Getting started (4/7) One of the core benefits of Framework+™ includes the ability to assign responsibility of evaluating key sections or aspects to others. To do this, select the aspect that you would like to allocate to somebody else. In this instance, we have selected Achievement. When you are in the key section or aspect that you wish to allocate to somebody else, select Edit (You will only be able to see Edit if you have responsibility for this section). You can now see two buttons at the top of the screen. To allocate this section to somebody else, select Assign Aspect to User. If you are the main user at the school, you can equally retrieve access from a User. On selecting Assign Aspect to User you will then be able to select an existing user or add a new user.

13. Getting started (5/7) On clicking assign user- you will be able to see all of the people who have registered in your organisation. You can either click on one of these people or alternatively, you can enter the email address of a new user. You must then click Invite or Save User. The user will then be sent an email informing them that they have been invited. On completing the form they will then be assigned with access to a particular area. To help identify which sections you are responsible for these are brightest and boldest. Where the colours and sections are muted and less bright (for example below for Achievement) this section has been allocated to somebody else. For sections allocated to others, you can still see what has been recorded in the evaluation but are not able to edit it.

14. Getting started (6/7) Clicking on an aspect which you are responsible for, either from the dashboard or from the key section screen will give you further information about the aspect. Here you can see the descriptor for the aspect. As there is not any text that has been saved, the summary box is empty. You will recognise that you are responsible for this section as your name will appear adjacent to the Assigned to text and the Edit button is visible. Pressing the Edit button allows you to access guidance and enter the summary text. To provide some evidence for this section, click on the Edit button.

15. Getting started (7/7) Now you can see all of the detail surrounding the section that you are working on. The guidance box (left) is scrollable so you can work without moving the screen. To the right, the drop down box marked ‘Overall Judgement’ is used to define the judgement for this section and the Summary box is designed for free text that you use to provide a summary of evidence for this section. When you have finished adding your summary, click Save. We will next explore how actions can be used to get things done.

16. Getting things done - actions (1/5) Framework+™ helps you to allocate actions to others and provides monitoring (workflow) processes to help leaders ensure things are not only done on time but the activity and evidence surrounding their completion is captured. The following list shows the lifecycle of an action in Framework+™: • An action is identified, priority evaluated, allocated to an owner and a timeframe for both review and completion is set. • The action that is set is sent via eMail to the person it is allocated to or to yourself. • On the date that the action needs to be reviewed, an eMail reminder is automatically sent. • The action owner then provides an update which includes a percentage that can be used to monitor progress and is able to set another date for review. • This process continues until the action is complete. • When the action is complete, the action owner provides a description of impact and also decides whether this completed action now represents a strength or remains an area for development and whether it can contribute to the evidence for this work

17. Getting things done - actions (2/5) The add an action form collects all of the information that is needed to ensure that the action is owned, has a priority and is reviewed. Actions should be ‘SMART’ Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Time-bound. Framework+™ supports all users with on-screen instructions and the workflow process discussed earlier. When the action is saved, the eMail is sent to the user who is responsible for this action. If you would like to add users that have not already registered with the organisation, enter their eMail address in the New user box and they will be invited to contribute.

18. Getting things done - actions (3/5) To add an action/ review actions, click on the Actions box (on aspects, key sections or overall judgement screens). The number of actions here is shown. On pressing the pencil/ edit the update screen will appear. Here you can change the review date, status and provide an update.

19. Getting things done - actions (4/5) When the action‘s status is changed to completion, the action’s owner is asked to describe the impact and provide some detail. There is also the opportunity to identify which evidence category this should be stored in. There are 3 options, none, strength and area for development and when any one of these options are selected, the completed action will be saved as evidence. A file that provides further evidence can also be saved. You will also note here that the action log has been populated over time. This demonstrates the activity which has taken place. This activity is useful particularly where an action remains incomplete as it demonstrates what work has taken place to complete an action.

20. Getting things done - actions (5/5) To view the number of overall actions, if you click on Overview in the menu bar or on the overall effectiveness block on the dashboard. Clicking on any key section or aspect will also show you the number of actions that are contained within these sections. In addition, the reporting section will also allow you to list all actions completed or in progress. Actions also form an important component of the school’s development plan and are also recorded here. Framework+™ encourages users to contribute to the overall evaluation of the school through engaging them in these activities. Next, we will explore how risks, areas for developments and strengths are also managed to provide a comprehensive overview of the school and its priorities.

21. Managing priorities (1/5) In school’s everything seems to have a high priority but applying a disciplined approach to managing priorities helps ensure that the elements that really matter are addressed appropriately. This section covers how the dashboard displays warnings. In addition we will specifically explore how to engage with risks, evidence, areas for development and strengths. To support the evaluation process, Framework+™ identifies and displays limiting judgements as warnings on the main dashboard. As there are a number of limiting judgements, only two have been provided here as an example. The dashboard also displays prioritised risks which helps ensure visibility and enables leaders to ensure that these are addressed.

22. Managing priorities (2/5) To begin with, we will explore how risks are managed. Whilst the nature of the word risk carries connotations of danger, it is important to categorise the extent to which a component is a risk to the overall effectiveness of the school. Highlighting that something is a risk helps to give it a priority and a focus. Framework+™ encourages that risks are monitored as appropriate by the right person at the right time. As in actions, reminders are sent at an interval defined by the user to provide an update. Top risks are escalated to the dashboard and all risks can be viewed through the reporting screen. To reduce or even remove the risk, mitigation strategies are evidenced and then updated. Now you will learn how this happens in Framework+™

23. Managing priorities (3/5) To add a risk, click on the aspect, key section or overall effectiveness area where you would like to add a risk. Then click on Risks. When the Risks screen appears, click on Add New Risk. Now complete the focus of the risk, add some detail to describe it. Include what might be done to mitigate against the risk occurring, identify who is responsible, select a priority and update the frequency for the risk to be reviewed. An eMail will then be sent to the person responsible for this risk.

24. Managing priorities (4/5) To add evidence, click on the aspect, key section or overall effectiveness area where you would like to add evidence. Then click on Evidence. When the evidence screen appears, click on Add Evidence. Now identify whether the evidence is a strength, area for improvement or other (which means it is neither of the above). You can allocate the responsibility to someone else or yourself. Now add content to describe the evidence. You can also provide an indication of the status of the evidence which helps to manage this. In addition you can set a due date for when it needs to be completed and a review date for when it needs to be considered again/ refreshed. These dates trigger eMails to keep the evidence up to date and complete.

25. Managing priorities (5/5) It is important to evaluate the evidence that you have. However, not all evidence needs to be reviewed monthly or even termly. There will be key points in the academic year where the evidence which was provided previously may become out of date. Through using the due and review date categories you or the person allocated to the evidence will be reminded that activity is due. Embedding regular reviews of evidence, strength, areas for development and the monitoring of risks will ensure that the leadership team of the school and other stakeholders (ie. governors) are fully appraised of all areas of the school’s evaluation. Framework+™ therefore provides the tools to organise and maintain this knowledge, however to be most successful it is important that all areas are understood, critically evaluated and evidence is provided in a timely fashion. Next we will explore how reporting brings together the whole process.

26. Reporting (1/3) Framework+™ includes a number of predefined reports to enable you to engage with the data that has been provided for your organisation in a number of different formats. Framework+™ allows exports into csv (a file type that can be opened in Excel). Word documents so that you can edit content prior to printing if required. PDF documents that permanently store the information and cannot be changed. All of the above reports when run are populated with the latest information in Framework+™

27. Reporting (2/3) Framework+™ has predefined reports that are produced in Word format so that they can be edited prior to printing for development planning and also an overview of your school’s self-evaluation. These reports can be personalised with your school’s logo (Navigate to organisation in the top menu bar and add your logo here). It is important to note that reports that are changed in Word after being produced from Framework+™ will not be saved. You need to make all changes in Framework+™ for them to be fully recorded across all of the different reports.

28. Reporting (3/3) Framework+™ also allows reports to be exported into Excel using the CSV export button. These reports are useful for adhoc requests such as how many risks do we have, how many actions are outstanding. These reports are designed to help you get useful information which can be used for leadership and governor meetings or alternatively for the regular monitoring activities that take place in good schools.

29. 10 steps - effective evaluation (1/2) The process in 10 steps • Look at the framework which is linked to the inspection schedule to make sure you understand how it feeds the overall judgement. Descriptions and screen shots. Decide who is responsible for making the overall judgement on your self evaluation. This would normally take place once all the feeder sections have been completed • Decide who should be asked to complete the judgement for each of the four key themes/sections Attainment, Teaching, Behaviour and Leadership. In each section that person should assess the strengths, areas for development, actions needed and evidence collected to support the judgement • With the lead for each section decide who should be responsible for completing the sub aspects in terms of strengths, areas for development, actions needed and evidence collected. • Assign the sections to those individuals. How to assign. Then you will see that the sections an individual is responsible for will show in a brighter colour and sections/aspects they are not responsible for are shown in a more muted colour. • Once a section has been assigned there is also an option to add a date by which the assignment should be completed and reviewed. Assigners and assigned will both receive reminders on those dates that work is due to be completed. You can see at a glance when actions have been completed and when they are overdue, helping you to track and monitor workflow

30. 10 steps - effective evaluation (1/2) • Where sections are showing as requiring improvement and inadequate you should expect to see a lot of actions and areas for development being populated as well as the evidence base that supports the judgement completed in the evidence locker. • Where sections are showing as good and outstanding you should expect to see significant population of strengths, some actions and significant robust evidence to support the judgement in the evidence locker. • Once actions are completed their impact should be evaluated and the evidence for that judgement should be added to the evidence locker. If the impact has been positive and there has been sufficient improvement, the summary judgement should be edited accordingly. • A constantly improving school will be adjusting its self evaluation regularly, recording impact, adding actions and evidence and reviewing the position on every aspect; aspiring to a development plan that will achieve a totally green dashboard. • At any point you can print a report giving you the status of your risks and your action plan; a tailored mini self evaluation report to present to the lead inspector and a school development plan for wider use across the school.

31. End Tutorial You have now completed this tutorial. By now you will have a clear understanding about self-evaluation and have learnt how Framework+™ provides the guidance, management tools and processes to support your work. If you require further support in self-evaluation or in the use of Framework+™ we would be keen to hear from you. You can contact us via eMail by clicking here. To get the latest news about Framework+™, please visit our site. To close the tutorial, please click on End tutorial (top of this page).