A case of intention deficit disorder? ICT policy, disadvantaged schools, and leaders

Since the mid-1990s, government policies in the USA, Canada, England, and Australia have promoted the need to produce an ICT skilled workforce in order to ensure national competitiveness in globalised economic conditions. In this article, we examine the ways in which these policy intentions in 1 state in Australia were translated into a techno-determinist and technocentric plan which focused primarily on getting wired up and connected. We summarise the findings from 2 projects: an investigation of a state-wide principals' professional development programme and an action research study investigating literacy, educational disadvantage, and information technologies. We found significant differences in the distribution of the physical and human capabilities between schools which made the task of engaging with ICT harder for some than others. Nevertheless, we suggest that some school leaders did develop innovative practice. We suggest that policy deficits made it difficult for school leaders to grapple with the dimensions of and debates about the kinds of educational changes that schools and school systems should be making. © 2006 Taylor & Francis.

Front page schools, back page schools : a case study of factors perceived to affect academic performance in five Papua New Guinea secondary schools

Papua New Guinea has reformed its colonial established education system and made huge investments with the help of donors to achieve equal access and quality education for all its citizens. Despite this national aspiration and these policy reforms and investments, secondary schools that enrol grade 9 students who are relatively equal in education ability show huge disparities in their grade 10 academic performances. This study examined perceptions of students, teachers and principals regarding factors affecting the disparity in academic performance in the context of a developing country. The central question for the study is: What are the perceptions of students and teachers of the factors that affect disparities in secondary schools' academic performance? This qualitative case study involved two high and three low academic performing secondary schools in Western Highlands Province of Papua New Guinea. Primary data were collected through focus groups and semi-structured interviews involving 112 participants. Students and teachers are key participants in this study, as it intends to find out the realities of schools, yet they are an under-researched group. A postcolonial and sense of community conceptual framework was developed for the analysis of the participants. perceptions. In addition, scholarship on school effectiveness and equity in education informed the interpretation of the findings. Three themes were evident in participants. views. First, participants expressed their view that differences in academic performance were related to the adequacy and equitability of resources. The inequities in resource inputs led some of them to coin the metaphor of .back page and front page. schools. Second, many expressed the view that deficiencies in implementing bilingual education, given the difficulty of catering for 800 vernacular languages, contribute to poor English proficiency and subsequent poor academic performance. Finally, participants believed that, in order to have a positive school culture, it is necessary for educators to recognise and respect contemporary students. identities, communal/tribal membership and needs. This study has implications for national education policy on resource allocation to address equality and equity, bilingual education and teacher education. Moreover, as the study found that high academic performance in this context is also influenced by intra-school social relationships, these relationships need to be nurtured. When appropriately nurtured, they become an important factor in sustaining quality education for all secondary school students. This thesis has laid the foundations for further research and invites further investigations into policy and implementation of school reforms aimed at improving academic achievement.

Professional Educational Psychology and Community Relations Education in Northern Ireland.

This article provides an account of practice-based research of, at least, one-star quality in terms of its contribution to both theory and practice. Aimed at practitioner (as opposed to academic) psychologists, the article addresses a dimension of the practitioner role that has remained silent in the literature. The article makes creative and original connections between school effectiveness, school improvement and education in a divided society. Post 11th September, the article was described as being highly original, significant and relevant to all practising educational psychologists. Concrete evidence for this is gained from, eg: hits on the online electronic version (2002-2003 Annual Report of the Association of Educational Psychologists), citations in reviews of research, and author invitations to present his work at UK and international practitioner psychology conferences. The article is published in the premier journal reporting on quality applied educational research and practice within the United Kingdom and beyond.

Reform, Standards and Teacher Identity: Challenges of Sustaining Commitment

Teacher commitment has been found to be a critical predictor of teachers’ work performance, absenteeism, retention, burnout and turnover, as well as having an important influence on students’ motivation, achievement, attitudes towards learning and being at school (Firestone (1996). Educational Administration Quarterly, 32(2), 209–235; Graham (1996). Journal of Physical Education, Recreation and Dance, 67(1), 45–47; Louis (1998). School Effectiveness and School Improvement, 9(1), 1–27; Tsui & Cheng (1999). Educational Research and Evaluation, 5(3), 249–268). It is also a necessary ingredient to the successful implementation, adaptation or resistance reform agendas. Surprisingly, however, the relationship between teachers’ motivation, efficacy, job satisfaction and commitment, and between commitment and the quality of their work has not been the subject of extensive research. Some literature presents commitment as a feature of being and behaving as a professional (Helsby, Knight, McCulloch, Saunders, & Warburton (1997). A report to participants on the professional cultures of Teachers Research Project, Lancaster University, January). Others suggest that it fluctuates according to personal, institutional and policy contexts (Louis (1998). School Effectiveness and School Improvement, 9(1), 1–27) and identify different dimensions of commitment which interact and fluctuate (Tyree (1996). Journal of Educational Research, 89(5), 295–304). Others claim that teachers’ commitment tends to decrease progressively over the course of the teaching career (Fraser, Draper, & Taylor (1998). Evaluation and Research in Education, 12 (2), 61–71; Huberman (1993). The lives of teachers. London: Cassell). In this research, experienced teachers in England and Australia were interviewed about their understandings of commitment. The data suggest that commitment may be better understood as a nested phenomena at the centre of which is a set of core, relatively permanent values based upon personal beliefs, images of self, role and identity which are subject to challenge by change which is socio-politically constructed.

Eficácia da escola e eficácia do professor no âmbito do ensino-aprendizagem da História e Geografia

Mestrado, Ensino de História e de Geografia no 3.º Ciclo do Ensino Básico e no Ensino Secundário, 9 de Março de 2016, Universidade dos Açores (Relatório de Estágio).

L’influence du climat scolaire sur les résultats des élèves: effet-établissement ou perception individuelle?

La littérature montre que les résultats scolaires ne sont pas seulement imputables aux caractéristiques individuelles et familiales des élèves, mais qu’ils sont également influencés par l’établissement scolaire fréquenté. Utilisant une analyse multiniveaux comprenant deux niveaux hiérarchiques, soit l’élève et l’école, la présente recherche vise à démontrer l’impact du climat scolaire sur les résultats des élèves du secondaire. Dans ce contexte, le climat scolaire perçu est mesuré à partir de six indicateurs de perception mesurés à l’aide du Questionnaire sur l’Environnement Socioéducatif (QES) (Janosz, 2000). Les indicateurs utilisés pour rendre compte de l’effet-établissement sont ces indicateurs de climat scolaire agrégés par école. Les analyses ont été effectuées sur un échantillon transversal de 54 écoles publiques, parmi lesquelles 30 685 élèves âgés de 13 à 17 ans ont complété le questionnaire. Les résultats de l’analyse permettent de constater d’une part, que le climat scolaire influence bel et bien la réussite des élèves et d’autre part, qu’il est possible de différencier l’effet du climat perçu selon qu’il se situe au niveau de l’élève ou qu’il soit plutôt agrégé au niveau de l’école. À cet effet, seul le climat agrégé, plus particulièrement les climats éducatif et d’appartenance, permet d’expliquer les différences entre les écoles sur la base des résultats scolaires en français et en mathématiques.

Analyse socio-historique de la recherche en éducation : le cas de la recherche américaine sur l'efficacité scolaire

Mémoire numérisé par la Division de la gestion de documents et des archives de l'Université de Montréal

El fenómeno del apoyo al aprendizaje fuera de la escuela visto a través de un análisis comparado.

Investigación original con el título: 'Xplika : The private tutoring market, school effectiveness and students performance'. Resumen basado en el de la publicación

Representações sociais de professores sobre inclusão e o projeto político pedagógico: a escola em movimento

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Schulische Umwelterziehung und Umweltbewußtsein

„Abstract“ Pantring, Heinz Schulische Umwelterziehung und Umweltbewußtsein. Eine empirische Untersuchung zur Umwelterziehung und zum Umweltbewußtsein an Wiesbadener Schulen. Das Ziel der als Fallstudie konzipierten Untersuchung bestand darin, die Wirksamkeit schulischer Umwelterziehung nicht nur auf der Wissens- und Einstellungsdimension des Umweltbewußtseins, sondern vor allen Dingen auf die Dimension des Umwelthandelns im Sinne von „ökologischem Tun“ in Abhängigkeit von manifesten Persönlichkeitsmerkmalen wie Alter, Geschlecht und Dauer des Schulbesuchs zu überprüfen. Diese Überprüfung geschah durch das Angebot an alle Schüler und Lehrer, sich an einer konkreten Umweltaktion - Anlage eines Feuchtbiotops - zu beteiligen. An den Fragebogenerhebungen waren 1821 Schüler der 4., 8. und 12. Klassen aus 19 Wiesbadener Grund- und weiterführenden Schulen beteiligt. Parallel wurden bei den 550 Lehrerinnen und Lehrern, die an den entsprechenden Schulen unterrichteten, unter anderem Ausmaß und Qualität schulischer Umwelterziehung und umweltbezogener Fortbildung sowie Aspekte der Ökologisierung von Schule und Ansichten zum Umweltunterricht erfaßt. Wesentliche Ergebnisse waren: 1) Die zur Zeit praktizierte umweltorientierte Lehrerfortbildung erreicht nur einen geschlossenen Teilnehmerkreis. 2) Eine qualitative Verbesserung des Umweltunterrichtes ist eher auf Privatinitiative, als auf ein umfassendes institutionalisiertes umweltbezogenes Fortbildungsange-bot zurückzuführen. 3) Grundschüler zeigen ein ausgeprägteres Umweltbewußtsein als Schüler weiterführender Schulen. 4) Ein Großteil der in den Grundschulen durch eine intensive Schüler - Lehrer - Interaktion erreichte Motivation für Umweltprobleme und Umweltthemen geht beim Übergang von den Grundschulen zu den weiterführenden Schulen - insbesondere Gymnasien - verloren. Im Alter von 13 - 16 Jahren fallen die Schüler in ein „Motivationsloch“ für Umwelt-erziehung. 5) Schüler zeigen eine deutliche Diskrepanz zwischen verbalem umweltorientierten Engagement und dem faktisch praktizierten „Ökologischen Tun“. 6) Es gibt keinen signifikanten Zusammenhang zwischen der umweltbezogenen Handlungsbereitschaft von Schülern und der Qualität des Umweltunterrichtes. 7) Das bei Schülern allgemein entwickelte Umweltbewußtsein hängt eher mit ihrer Sozialisation in einer umweltbewußteren Zeit als mit den unmittelbaren Anstrengungen der Schule zusammen.

Alternative Strategies for Identifying High-Performing Charter Schools in Texas

The Obama administration's recurring policy emphasis on high-performing charter schools begs the obvious question: how do you identify a high-performing charter school? That is a crucially important policy question because any evaluation strategy that incorrectly identifies charter school performance could have negative effects on the economically and/or academically disadvantaged students who frequently attend charter schools. If low-performing schools are mislabeled and allowed to persist or encouraged to expand, then students may be harmed directly. If high-performing schools are driven from the market by misinformation, then students will lose access to programs and services that can make a difference in their lives. Most of the scholarly analysis to date has focused on comparing the performance of students in charter schools to that of similar students in traditional public schools (TPS). By design, that research measures charter school performance only in relative terms. Charter schools that outperform similarly situated, but low performing, TPSs have positive effects, even if the charter schools are mediocre in an absolute sense. This analysis describes strategies for identifying high-performing charter schools by comparing charter schools with one another. We begin by describing salient characteristics of Texas charter schools. We follow that discussion with a look at how other researchers across the country have compared charter school effectiveness with TPS effectiveness. We then present several metrics that can be used to identify high-performing charter schools. Those metrics are not mutually exclusive—one could easily justify using multiple measures to evaluate school effectiveness—but they are also not equally informative. If the goal is to measure the contributions that schools are making to student knowledge and skills, then a value-added approach like the ones highlighted in this report is clearly superior to a levels-based approach like that taken under the current accountability system.

Modelo de competencias profesionales para directivos escolares: desarrollo y aplicación al ámbito de la educación particular subvencionada, Chile

La trascendencia de la educación sobre la construcción del capital humano y social, ha sido vastamente discutido, considerando entre otros elementos, la correlación entre las inversiones en educación, las políticas educativas, los actores involucrados, y los efectos que tienen sobre la calidad de la educación. Esto se refleja en los esfuerzos, de los diferentes estamentos, por mejorar los resultados del proceso educativo, intentando construir una sociedad más equitativa en la cual todo individuo pueda tener acceso a una educación de calidad, que permita tener las mismas oportunidades para el desarrollo personal, profesional y social. La educación entonces, pasa a ser un pilar fundamental en los modelos de desarrollo - y un tema de debate constante- en especial en aspectos tales como: resultados de aprendizaje, gestión y efectividad escolar, como ejes para mejorar la construcción del capital humano en la sociedad. En Chile, a partir de un proceso de descentralización de la educación iniciado en los 80, el modelo de planificación y gestión de la educación pública fue transformado, pasando de un modelo centralizado a un enfoque en el cual el establecimiento educacional – el proyecto educativo – adquiere autonomía de gestión que se vuelve determinante en la calidad de la educación. Es al interior de los establecimientos escolares donde los diferentes agentes educativos llevan a cabo los procesos pedagógicos y administrativos, y se generan las condiciones para poder desarrollar una educación de calidad. Durante los últimos 30 años, los esfuerzos se han centrado en las capacidades docentes y en alcanzar la cobertura universal. Sin embargo, en los últimos 10 años la investigación aplicada ha evidenciado que los directores y equipos directivos tienen efectos directos e indirectos sobre la gestión escolar, pedagógica y de convivencia dentro de la escuela a través de su desempeño y liderazgo escolar. Es en este contexto, que se propone esta investigación con el fin de contribuir en el fortalecimiento de las capacidades de estos actores y promover un desempeño que impacte positivamente en la calidad de los aprendizajes en las escuelas Esta tesis se estructura en cinco capítulos. En el primer capítulo, se define y analiza el marco conceptual de la investigación centrado en los dos ejes de este trabajo: por un lado, conceptos de competencia, competencias profesionales; y por otro lado, liderazgo y dirección escolar, definiendo el concepto de competencias profesionales para la dirección escolar. A continuación, en el segundo capítulo, se presenta un análisis del contexto enfocado en el proceso de descentralización de la educación pública en Chile y sus efectos sobre el rol de los directivos escolares en Chile, el cual a través de su proceso de evolución ha transformado las responsabilidades de este estamento, en cuanto la gestión y la administración de los proyectos educativos definiendo un perfil del directivo escolar. Complementariamente, y en función de la gestión directiva, se realiza una conceptualización de buenas prácticas directivas como los instrumentos a través de las cuales se movilizan los elementos de competencia. En el tercer capítulo, se presenta la propuesta de modelo de competencias profesionales para la dirección escolar, como la principal aportación de esta investigación, que se sustenta sobre cuatro componentes como base científica: el enfoque holístico de competencia, el enfoque de dirección de proyectos de la International Project Management Association (IPMA), el paradigma de gestión escolar y el modelo Working with People (WWP). La propuesta considera una metodología de implementación para el desarrollo de procesos de intervención para la mejora de la gestión escolar, articulando las competencias profesionales directivas y las prácticas de gestión, como los principales componentes del modelo. En el cuarto capítulo se presenta la aplicación del modelo propuesto en un estudio de caso desarrollado en el Colegio público Kings´ School de San Bernardo (Chile), un establecimiento particular subvencionado, del área urbana de Santiago con condiciones socioeconómicas media, con un alto porcentaje de vulnerabilidad y cuyos resultados en las pruebas de evaluación nacionales evidencian una caída. La aplicación del modelo se realiza a lo largo del curso 2012-13, trabajando de forma directa con el equipo de dirección, a través de un proyecto de innovación educativa, diseñando e implementando una propuesta de intervención de la cual se sistematizan los resultados y los aprendizajes obtenidos. A partir de la investigación y los resultados obtenidos permiten concluir que el modelo propuesto puede ser considerada una herramienta estratégica de planificación e intervención para la gestión de proyectos educativos, promoviendo que a los equipos directivos contrastar su realidad con los estándares propuestos, y de esta forma poder articular las capacidades – en términos de competencias - de los recursos humanos con las prácticas directivas que buscan lograr los objetivos y resultados esperados, incidiendo positivamente en los resultados de aprendizaje y la calidad educativa. ABSTRACT The importance of education on the construction of human and social capital, has been vastly discussed, considering among other things, the correlation between investments in education, educational policies, stakeholders, and the effects they have on education quality. This is reflected on the efforts of different stakeholders, to improve educational outcomes, trying to build a more equitable society in which every individual can have access to quality education, allowing the same opportunities for personal, professional and social development. Education then becomes a cornerstone at development models - and a topic of constant discussion, especially in areas such as learning outcomes, management and school effectiveness, as core concepts to improve the construction of human capital in the society. In Chile, after a process of decentralization of education that started in the 80s, planning and management model of public education was transformed from a centralized approach to a decentralized perspective in which schools - the educational project - acquires management autonomy and becomes determinant in the quality of education outcomes. It is within the school context where teachers, principals and administrative assistants held teaching and administrative processes, and generates the conditions to develop quality education. During the past 30 years, efforts have been focused on teaching skills and achieve universal coverage. However, in the last 10 years applied research has shown that the principals and management teams have direct and indirect effects on school management, teaching and school environment through their performance and school leadership. This research is proposed within this context in order to contribute to strengthen the capacities of these actors, and promote a professional performance that will positively impact schools´ quality of learning. This thesis is divided into five chapters. The first chapter defines and analyzes the conceptual framework focused on the two main ideas of this work: first, concepts of competence, professional competence; and secondly, leadership and school management, defining the concept of professional competences for school leadership. Then, in the second chapter is developed a context analysis focused on the process of decentralization of public education in Chile, and its effects on the role of school leaders which through this process has been transformed the responsibilities on management and administration of educational projects, allowing to define a school leader’s profile. In addition, and related to principals´ management, it is proposed a conceptualization of school leadership best practices, as the instruments through which competence elements are mobilized and placed in action. Within chapter three, is presented the proposed model of professional competences for school principals, as the main contribution of this research which is based on four components as scientific basis: holistic competence approach, project management approach from the International Project management Association (IPMA), effective school management paradigm; and Working with People model (WWP). The proposal considers an implementation methodology for the development of intervention processes to improve school management, articulating professional competences and school leadership practices, as main elements of the model. Chapter four presents the implementation of the proposed model, using a case study at the Kings´ School of San Bernardo (Chile), subsidized school located at the urban area of Santiago with average socioeconomic conditions, with a high percentage of vulnerability and whose national educational assessment results show a fall. Model implementation was developed through 2012- 2013, working directly with the management team, through an innovative educational management project, designing and implementing an intervention which processes, results and lessons learned are systematized. Research and obtained results through its implementation indicates that the proposed model can be considered a strategic tool for planning and operational management for educational projects, encouraging the principals to compare their reality with the proposed standards, and thus articulate capacity - in terms of competences – in human resources with principals´ practices to achieve the objectives and expected results, impacting positively on learning outcomes and educational quality.

El análisis de los efectos de la escuela sobre el rendimiento académico en matemáticas: un análisis multinivel con datos de PISA 2003

Esta investigación, enmarcada dentro del movimiento sobre Eficacia de la Escuela, realiza una explotación parcial de los datos PISA 2003, para el territorio español, obtenidos en la investigación llevada a cabo por la OCDE. El alumnado español que ha participado en el estudio PISA, supone un total de 10.791 estudiantes de 383 centros de Educación Secundaría pertenecientes a varias Comunidades Autónomas. Las variables predictoras que forman parte de la investigación se obtienen de alumno y del centro. La variable de respuesta, desde un enfoque criterial, establece información sobre el nivel de competencias alcanzado por el alumno en matemáticas. Los resultados del análisis multinivel proporcionan diferentes modelos que tratan de explicar la variabilidad observada entre los centros a través de la incorporación de sus variables. El modelo resultante reconoce que las variables de centro: titularidad, porcentaje de alumnas, fomento de actividades matemáticas y compromiso y moral del alumnado se relacionan con el rendimiento en matemáticas.

How do teachers prepare their students for statewide exit exams? A comparison of Finland, Ireland, and the Netherlands

Statewide exit exams are often believed to have a positive impact on school effectiveness and the alignment between instructional practice and state standards because of their mandatory nature and the stakes attached for students and teachers. They may also, however, lead to teaching to the test and to a perceived de-professionalization of the teaching role. While some studies suggest a narrowing of contents and an increase in teacher-centered instruction, little is known about how the impact on instructional practices and teacher cognitions varies between different exam systems. This study compares the strategies teachers use to prepare their students for the exams at the end of upper secondary education in Finland, Ireland, and the Netherlands using a standardized questionnaire survey with responses from 385 teachers. The goal was to develop hypotheses about the relationship between differences in the exam procedures and the stakes attached, and the differences in teacher preparation strategies. The results suggest country-specific variations regarding teacher beliefs as to how much time should be spent on exam preparation; however, there were smaller differences in the strategies applied. Regression analyses indicated that the way in which preparation intensity was associated with the stakes for students and schools, and the attitudes towards the exams themselves varied across the three countries. The different exam systems appeared to affect preparation in markedly different ways, but nevertheless led to the exercise of comparable strategies. (DIPF/Orig.)