Maintaining discipline is a key aspect of running a school. But the extent to which heads actively work with their classroom staff on behaviour varies dramatically between countries, research shows.

The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) asked lower-secondary leaders in 37 countries and regions whether they “collaborate with teachers to solve discipline problems”.

The results, published in the Education at a Glance 2016 report this month, show that less than a fifth (19.8 per cent) of heads in Russia do so “often” or “very often”, compared with 93.1 per cent in Romania. In England, less than four out of 10 (39.7 per cent) of the heads surveyed often collaborate with teachers on classroom discipline. This compares with the 78.4 per cent in England who say that they often observe “instruction in the classroom”.

Classroom observation

Classroom observation is most common in Shanghai, China - which tops the OECD’s Pisa (Programme for International Student Assessment) rankings - where 91.1 per cent of heads often or very often observe teaching. Shanghai also has one of lowest levels of headteacher involvement in class discipline - with just 23.7 per cent often collaborating with teachers on the issue.

In Scotland, government research found that two-thirds of primary school heads said pupils had been referred to them for low-level discipline issues - such as talking out of turn or chewing in class - in the past week. In secondary schools, less than half of heads said that pupils had been referred to them.