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1.
With decentralisation becoming increasingly widespread across Europe, evaluation and accountability are becoming key issues in ensuring quality provision for all (Altrichter & Maag Merki, 2010; Eurydice, 2004). In Europe, the dominant arrangement for educational accountability is school inspections. The purpose of this research is to identify and analyse the ways in which school inspections in The Netherlands impact on the work of schools. The results of 2 years of survey data of principals and teachers in primary and secondary schools show that inspection primarily drives change indirectly, through encouraging certain developmental processes, rather than through more direct and coercive methods, such as schools reacting to inspection feedback. Specifically, results indicate that school inspections which set clear expectations on what constitutes “good education” for schools and their stakeholders are strong determinants of improvement actions; principals and schools feel pressure to respond to these prompts and improve their education.  相似文献   

2.
In this article, different inspection models are compared in terms of their impact on school improvement and the mechanisms each of these models generates to have such an impact. Our theoretical framework was drawn from the programme theories of six countries’ school inspection systems (i.e. the Netherlands, England, Sweden, Ireland, the province of Styria in Austria and the Czech Republic). We describe how inspection models differ in the scheduling and frequency of visits (using a differentiated or cyclical approach), the evaluation of process and/or output standards, and the consequences of visits, and how these models lead to school improvement through the setting of expectations, the use of performance feedback and actions of the school's stakeholders. These assumptions were tested by means of a survey of principals in primary and secondary schools in these countries (n?=?2239). The data analysis followed a three-step approach: (1) confirmatory factor analyses, (2) path modelling and (3) fitting of multiple-indicator multiple-cause models. The results indicate that Inspectorates of Education that use a differentiated model (in addition to regular visits), in which they evaluate both educational practices and outcomes of schools and publicly report inspection findings of individual schools, are the most effective. These changes seem to be mediated by improvements in the schools’ self-evaluations and the schools' stakeholders’ awareness of the findings in the public inspection reports. However, differentiated inspections also lead to unintended consequences as principals report on narrowing the curriculum and on discouraging teachers from experimenting with new teaching methods.  相似文献   

3.
In recent years, school inspections have been newly introduced or adapted to the evidence-based governance logic in many European countries. So far, empirical research on the impact of school inspections has produced inconclusive results. Methodologically, it has mainly focussed on analysis of a national inspection model and used cross-sectional data. In the following paper, we investigate the effects of school inspections in a comparative and longitudinal perspective in Sweden and Austria (province of Styria). In these countries, inspections follow different governance approaches. While Austria represents a low-stakes system which does not link consequences for schools to inspection results, sanctions and even financial penalties are potential consequences of Swedish inspections. To discuss the effects of inspections, we asked principals in three consecutive years about the impact of inspections. Our results indicate that school inspections in Austria and Sweden do have a small to medium impact on school improvement and school effectiveness.  相似文献   

4.
Indicators and instruments for determining and measuring school quality within inspection systems are usually based on frameworks for inspection. These frameworks rely heavily upon school and teacher effectiveness research. Thus, a central assumption is that the effectiveness and improvement-oriented school conditions, as measured within an inspection, are related to student achievement. It is unclear if this assumption really holds true, as empirical evidence is still lacking. This study uses data from a random sampling of schools (n = 37) and teachers (n = 1663) and the achievement data from students (n = 23,943) to validate the interpretations and uses of school inspection results regarding the factor school leadership. The study follows Kane’s argument-based approach for validation. Results reveal that principals of schools with recurrent high student achievement very often demonstrate instructional leadership. It is evident that these principals are also leading in a fundamentally different way from principals in schools with lower achievement in that they lead with the specific school context in mind. The study demonstrates that it is possible to make inferences from scores provided by school inspections and to generalize from them. However, this generalizability does not extend to making extrapolations or decisions based on these scores. The analyses make it clear that providing feedback solely on the strengths and weakness of a school is insufficient when it comes to stimulating school improvement through inspection.  相似文献   

5.
In many countries the need for education systems and schools to improve and innovate has become central to the education policy of governments. School inspections are expected to play an important role in promoting such continuous improvement and to help schools and education systems more generally to consider the need for change and improvement. This article aims to enhance our understanding of the connections between school inspections and their impact on school improvement, using a longitudinal survey of principals and teachers in primary and secondary education. Random effects models and a longitudinal path model suggest that school inspections in particular have an impact on principals, but less so on teachers. The results indicate that the actual impact on improved school and teaching conditions, and ultimately student achievement, is limited. Schools in different inspection categories report different mechanisms of potential impact; the lack of any correlation between accepting feedback, setting expectations and stakeholder sensitivity and improvement actions in schools suggests that the impact of school inspections is not a linear process, but operates through diffuse and cyclical processes of change.  相似文献   

6.
School inspection is used by most European education systems as a major instrument for controlling and promoting the quality of schools. Surprisingly, there is little research knowledge about how school inspections drive the improvement of schools and which types of approaches are most effective and cause the least unintended consequences. The study presented in this paper uses interviews with inspection officials and a document analysis to reconstruct the “program theories” (i.e. the assumptions on causal mechanisms, linking school inspections to their intended outcomes of improved teaching and learning) of Inspectorates of Education in six European countries. The results section of the paper starts with a summary of the commonalities and differences of these six national inspection models with respect to standards and thresholds used, to types of feedback and reporting, and to the sanctions, rewards and interventions applied to motivate schools to improve. Next, the intermediate processes through which these inspection models are expected to promote good education (e.g. through actions of stakeholders) are explained. In the concluding section, these assumptions are critically discussed in the light of research knowledge.  相似文献   

7.
Abstract

The new system for the inspection of special schools was introduced in England in September 1994, using common criteria as those used for mainstream schools. One of the main purposes of inspection stated by the Office for Standards in Education (OFSTED) is school improvement. This paper presents the perceptions of headteachers of the inspection process arising from the first inspections carried out during September‐December 1994. The evidence base used on these inspections is also considered. These data are used to suggest that school improvement can be enhanced by the inspection process under certain conditions. A preliminary exploration of these conditions is provided in the paper. Implications for the school inspection process, school self‐review and future research questions are identified.  相似文献   

8.
Inspection is employed by most European education systems as an instrument for controlling and promoting the quality of schools. Yet there is little research knowledge about how inspection drives the improvement of schools. The study reports on surveys to principals in primary and secondary education in six European countries to attempt to clarify how school inspection impacts on the improvement of schools. Based on an analysis of principals’ perceptions the evidence suggests that inspection primarily drives change indirectly, through encouraging certain developmental processes, rather than through more direct coercive methods. Inspectorates that set clear expectations and standards have an impact on the increased utilization of self-evaluation and on developing the capacity of schools to improve in a variety of ways.  相似文献   

9.
This article outlines the findings from a contemporary study of principals' leadership practices in Malaysia as part of the 7 System Leadership Study. Recent policy developments within Malaysia have increased principals' accountability and have underlined the importance of the role of the principals in transforming school performance and student learning outcomes. This article draws upon emerging empirical evidence about principals' leadership practices and highlights some of the challenges associated with the new accountability expectations and demands placed upon principals in Malaysia. It provides a contemporary insight into the way in which principals in Malaysia view their leadership practice. The article proposes that despite the pressure on them to secure better school and student outcomes, principals in Malaysia increasingly view their leadership practices as transformational and distributed.  相似文献   

10.
This article presents the results of a follow-up study on the attitudes of German principals towards receiving feedback from school inspections. In a first study, we explored the attitudes of 50 principals towards feedback from school inspections [Quality Analysis (QA) in North Rhine-Westphalia] before school inspections took place at these schools (Bitan et al., Int J leadersh Educ 18(4):418–439, 2015). In the present study, the change in attitude of 20 of these principals towards the feedback instrument was investigated in a longitudinal study that took place 6 months after the schools had been inspected. Mixed methods were used. The main aim of the study was to assess the principals’ reactions and attitudes toward the feedback given by school inspectors as well as the change in principals’ attitudes after the school inspection and to explore the underlying reasons for their attitudes and reactions. 20 % of the principals changed to a more negative attitude towards the QA after the inspection, whereas 0 % voiced a neutral attitude. 60 % changed to a more positive attitude and 20 % remained positive after the QA. The discussion presents implications for school inspections as a feedback instrument as well as school development.  相似文献   

11.
Since the late 1990s, broad discussions on education and educational quality have given impetus to the implementation of many new measures aimed at the improvement of schools in Germany. In this context, school inspections have been introduced in all 16 German federal states during the last 6 years. In the meantime, scientific research into the functioning of this steering instrument has begun. In this article, first empirical findings on the effects of school inspections in Germany are presented by drawing on a survey study with 468 principals of schools in the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia that were externally evaluated during the years 2005 to 2008. Findings indicate that school inspection results are considered by a large group of stakeholders within schools and that they are discussed in different settings. In many schools, development measures have already been planned and implemented. Moreover, first effects are perceived in different fields. On the whole, findings agree with the results of two thematically related German studies but draw a less heterogeneous picture than the international research context.  相似文献   

12.
The present study summarized research on school inspection of the last 30 years to provide an estimation of its effectiveness and to identify factors influencing inspection effectiveness. Following a systematic literature search, k = 30 inferential statistical studies on school inspection were coded. Due to the large variety in the analytical strategies used in the studies, the findings were synthesized in a systematic review. Twenty-four percent of the n = 222 effects of the k = 16 control group studies indicated positive and 18 % negative inspection effects. The majority of effects (58 %) was not significant. The most consistent positive inspection effects resulted for standardized achievement tests in Mathematics and in the mother language. Perceived accountability pressure and the perceived quality of the inspection were two of several factors that influenced inspection success in the k = 16 comparison group and correlational studies. The findings highlight new avenues for school inspection research and practice.  相似文献   

13.
This study uses a school-level longitudinal control-group design to examine how teachers and principals of inspected versus uninspected schools perceive school improvement at their schools. During the phasing in of school inspections in the states of Berlin and Brandenburg (Germany), both inspected and uninspected schools were surveyed with respect to school improvement activities over a 1-year period. The main finding is that principals’ and teachers’ perceptions of school quality were highly stable, irrespective of the introduction of school inspections. The results show school inspections had a comparatively low impact on the aspects of school quality measured here.  相似文献   

14.
School inspection is a function in school systems which aims for quality assurance and quality development by having external persons monitor and evaluate the work in schools. This article begins by sketching the historical development of this function in schooling and other systems. The main features of ‘new school inspections’ which are seen as important are explained and characteristic elements of evidence-based governance models and their relationship to school administration is discussed. In the second part of the article, theoretical models which conceptualize the conditions, processes and effects of this complex instrument of school governance are explained. Finally, the state of empirical research in this field is summarized which show that the results with respect to effects and effective processes remain inconclusive. The article concludes with open questions for further research.  相似文献   

15.
This study systematically reviews research evidence regarding two questions: (1) to what extent do schools gain insight into the quality of their own functioning as a result of an inspection? and (2) what are the emotional consequences of inspections experienced by school staff?

It provides a review of empirical research studies published as full-length articles in scientific journals and proceedings of international conferences, symposia and workshops, as well as in books or as book chapters, from 1995 until 2012. Both quantitative and qualitative data are considered. The review process identified 35 relevant publications that met the criteria for inclusion.

The review leads to the conclusion that inspections fail to contribute significantly to schools’ self-understanding, but that they lead to a severe negative emotional impact on school staff. Furthermore it is concluded that the current evidence base shows several gaps, mainly related to underlying explanatory features that contribute to the occurrence of these effects.  相似文献   

16.
17.
This article investigates the role of emotions of inspectors while inspecting schools as reported by inspectors themselves within an education context of increased accountability that arguably privileges rationality over emotions. The study is built on an emotion management framework that regards emotions not only as unavoidably natural and intimately linked to ‘rational’ judgements that people make, but also that such judgements are social constructions used to regulate expression of emotions. In-depth interview data of one retired and another, semi-retired Office for Standards in Education, inspectors were thematically analysed to assess the extent to which their emotions formed part of school inspections. In the absence of an officially sanctioned narrative of inspectors’ emotions during inspections, two kinds of self-prescribed emotions emerged as key findings: emotions for accountability, to which inspectors gave expression, and emotions for improvement, that they suppressed. For an inspection body that needs to ensure both accountability and improvement of schools to justify its viability, these research claims open up a new area of discussion that should lead to a review of inspection body’s stance on emotions and individual inspectors’ self-reflections on the moral as well as professional obligation to pursue both emotions for accountability and improvement.  相似文献   

18.
ABSTRACT

The role of school principals is an evolving one, calling them to become agents of change, focusing on educational leadership as they take the schools forward. All this is happening in a context that is becoming more challenging and stressful as school leaders try to juggle the state-mandated accountability devices. In relation to the Italian context, this paper analyses the growing penetration of accountability systems in school management and the implications for leadership practices. The results of a research project conducted with school leaders show that accountability systems can provide an opportunity for school improvement if school leaders defuse their potential bureaucracy, consistently integrating them into their practices of leadership, respecting the organisational idea of the school as professional learning community. An authentic educational leadership is a fundamental condition for governing the risks and contradictions that accountability systems bring with them in the complex reality of schools.  相似文献   

19.

Increasing job duties and responsibilities associated with the changing role of school principals have prompted even greater accountability. As a result, principals are faced with competing demands and expectations in various forms of accountability from multiple stakeholders. This study examines principals’ perception of accountability in the context of work intensification with a particular focus on the question of “accountable to whom and why.” A total of 1434 practicing principals responded to an online survey that sought to determine the groups and individuals to whom principals feel accountable, and why principals feel accountable to those particular individuals or groups. The survey achieved a response rate of 52.68%. The research results show balancing competing accountabilities concerning students has become a daunting task for school principals. The competing if not conflicting expectations from (federal and state/provincial) educational authorities, teachers, parents, students, and various interest groups often pose significant challenges to principals’ work and add to the complexity of principals’ role. The unrealistic expectations imposed on principals make it imperative to critically examine the changing role of school principals and identify essential and legislatively mandated duties and responsibilities of principalship to better reflect and address their intensified work realities.

  相似文献   

20.
ABSTRACT

State school inspection in Norway is currently changing with targeted schools becoming subject to more complex methods of inquiry. Not only school principals but middle leaders are exposed to this shifting system, for the latter are in the frontline of their schools’ everyday practices. The article examines how state school inspection is used as means of controlling legal compliance, as well as evaluating the formative assessment routines and practices of schools, middle leaders, and individual teachers. Drawing on the concepts of accountability and performativity, field observations of inspectors interrogating department heads in primary education are analysed. The empirical study demonstrates how use of standardised rubrics steer the inspection process in schools, aiming more towards completing on task, rather than supporting middle leaders in their struggle to comply with legal standards. During such interrogation, the department heads comply with the system, and are at the same time open towards the inspectors’ questioning concerning the school’s lack of fully implemented routines.  相似文献   

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