Chris Woodhead

Sir Christopher Anthony Woodhead (20 October 1946 – 23 June 2015) was a British educator. He was head of Ofsted, the Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills, from 1994 to 2000. Ofsted is a non-ministerial department of the UK government. The head of Ofsted is also Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Schools in England, which is a crown appointment.The Chief Inspector is appointed by royal decree.

 Career 
Woodhead graduated in English at the University of Bristol, where he also took a PGCE.PGCE = Postgraduate Certificate of Education He obtained a Master of Arts in English from Keele University in 1974.

In 1976, he left teaching, allegedly as the result of an affair with a sixth-form pupil, something he always denied. Later, he moved into teacher education.

Woodhead was one of the most controversial figures in debates on the direction of English education policy.The Times 3 February 1997 Valerie Grove interview Woodhead advocated "traditional teaching methods". He took a scornful view of "progressive educational theories" introduced into English schools from the 1960s onwards.

He was Chairman of Cognita, a company dedicated to fostering private education, from 2004 to 2013.

Death
Woodhead died after a nine-year battle with motor neurone disease, aged 68.

 Books 
 1984. Nineteenth and twentieth century verse: an anthology of sixteen poets. Oxford University Press. 
 2002. Class War: the state of British education. Little, Brown. 
 2009. A desolation of learning: is this the education our children deserve?. Harriman House. 

References

Other websites
 His departure as seen by The Guardian in November 2000
 The public view on his departure in 2000
 Telegraph 2001 article
 TV appearances

Category:1946 births
Category:2015 deaths
Category:British teachers
Category:Businesspeople from London
Category:Deaths from motor neurone disease
Category:Disease-related deaths in London
Category:Alumni of the University of Bristol