Bureaucratic Control or Professional Autonomy?: Performance management in New Zealand schools

Since 1997 appraisal has been a mandated requirement of New Zealand schools. While the management of teacher performance is not new, schools are increasingly being faced with difficult and complex decisions regarding accountability mechanisms for teacher performance. Moreover, in a climate of school self-management the potential exists for tensions between bureaucratic systems and the professional autonomy of teachers to surface. This article reports on research conducted in 2001 that investigated teachers' perceptions of the bureaucratic and professional approaches to performance management in their schools. In a climate of increasing control of teachers' work and professional activities by the State, results from recent research indicate that school managers have adopted a professional approach to the appraisal of staff. Moreover the involvement of teachers in developing school-level appraisal systems is pinpointed as fundamental to the long-term success of appraisal in New Zealand schools.     

Professional Development Schools: New Opportunities for Training School Counselors

The authors examine how counselor educators can become involved in professional development schools to create enhanced training opportunities for school counseling internship students. The benefits of collaboration between university and public school faculties are explored, and research opportunities are discussed. Counselor educators' expertise in research and program evaluation, combined with school counselors' pragmatic experience in dealing with real‐life issues, may promote best practices in the schools and improved training for school counselors and can set the stage for collaboration as an educational team at the preservice level.     

Stability of School Academic Performance Across Subject Areas

Recent studies on the stability of school academic performance across school subject areas show two weaknesses: a lack of research attention to elementary schools and a lack of adequate statistical adjustments for school characteristics. With data describing elementary students (N = 6,883 students in Grade 6 in 148 schools) from the New Brunswick School Climate Study (NBSCS), the current study examined correlates of academic performance across mathematics, science, reading, and writing among students and among schools, using a multivariate multilevel model with statistical adjustments for student characteristics and school context and climate characteristics. Results indicated that (a) students were differentially successful in different subject areas, (b) schools were differentially effective in different subject areas, and (c) the differential success was more obvious among students than among schools. Findings of this study call for a new type of school programs that aim to ensure that students progress equally in different subject areas and for stronger school policies that systematically coordinate classroom or department practices.     

Do schools affect girls’ and boys’ reading performance differently? A multilevel study on the gendered effects of school resources and school practices

Few studies on male–female inequalities in education have elaborated on whether school characteristics affect girls’ and boys’ educational performance differently. This study investigated how school resources, being schools’ socioeconomic composition, proportion of girls, and proportion of highly educated teachers, and school practices, being schools’ application of well-rounded assessment methods, influenced girls’ and boys’ reading performance differently. We hypothesised that positive effects of school resources would be greater for boys than for girls, and that more frequent use of well-rounded assessment methods would be associated with increased girls’ and decreased boys’ reading performance. Using advanced multilevel analyses of 2009 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) data, we found that boys profited more than girls from having a large proportion of girls in school. Contrary to our expectations, girls gained more than boys from a school’s advantaged socioeconomic composition. These gendered effects of school resources were not explained by differences in school learning climate.     

Four Types of School Environment: Multilevel Self-Management and Educational Quality

How school-based management in the form of multilevel self-management is related to educational quality is a crucial issue in current educational reforms. An empirical study was conducted to explore this issue in a sample of 68 primary schools in Hong Kong. It was found that the school environment of sampled schools could be classified into 4 types: Bottom-level Self-Managing (BSM), Top-level Self-Managing (TSM), Mediocre Self-Managing (MSM), and Poor Self-Managing (PSM). The performances of the school, groups, and individual teachers among these 4 types were significantly different. Some implications were drawn for practice and policy formulation.     

Leadership for Organisational Learning and Improved Student Outcomes—What Do We Know?

The Leadership for Organisational Learning and Student Outcomes (LOLSO) Research Project addresses the need to extend present understandings of school reform initiatives that aim to change school practices with the intention of supporting enhanced student learning. In this article results from LOLSO's teacher surveys ('teacher voice') and student surveys ('pupil voice') are organised around six of the project's major research questions: how is the concept of organisational learning (OL) defined in Australian secondary schools (teacher voice)? What leadership practices promote OL in schools (teacher voice)? What are some outcomes of schooling other than academic achievement (pupil voice)? What are the relationships between the non-academic and academic outcomes of schooling? Do school leadership and/or organisational learning contribute to student outcomes? What other factors contribute to student outcomes? The answers to these questions lead to four clear implications relating to distributive leadership, development, context, and a broader understanding of student outcomes. The answers also raise concerns about the current emphasis on transactional leadership, that is school leadership that overemphasises the managerial or strategic.     

Social and Cognitive Outcomes: A Comparison of Contexts of Learning

This study determines effects of social learning contexts (classroom, school and boards) on social and cognitive outcomes of primary school pupils. Central to this research are the differential effects of attending private and public schools for pupils' math achievement and sense of well-being at school. The relationship between pupil backgrounds, sector, characteristics of classrooms, schools and governing bodies on the one hand and pupil outcomes, on the other, have been analyzed using multilevel analysis (VARCL). The sample consisted of 103 schools and 2023 pupils (grade 8, age 11). After controlling for socioeconomic backgrounds, the results show that indicators of cognitive and social effectiveness are mainly climate factors. Basic elements of cognitive school effectiveness (math) seem counter-productive with respect to pupils' sense of well-being at school.     

Effects of school quality,school citizenship policy,and student body composition on the acquisition of citizenship competences in the final year of primary education

This study examines the effects of general educational quality of schools, school citizenship policy, and ethnic homogeneity of the student body on the acquisition of citizenship competences in the final year of primary education. The theoretical framework is based on developmental, psychological, and sociological studies into effects of social context on educational outcomes and research into effective schools. The effects of school quality, school policy, and student population were analysed using 2-level (students, school) multilevel models. The results show that differences in citizenship competences between students and schools are mainly explained by factors at student level. Although the school also appeared to play a role, the school variables used in the analysis did not offer sufficient explanation for these differences. In order to further investigate the relationship between school factors and students’ citizenship, more insight is needed into characteristics of citizenship practices of schools.     

Gender organization of schooling and television viewing among early adolescents: a test of two alternative hypotheses

In this analysis, single‐sex and mixed schools are compared in terms of pupils' television viewing habits, the latter factor being considered as an indicator of a pupil's sense of educational responsibilities. It was hypothesized that the presumably lower levels of television watching among girls attending single‐sex schools could be explained by school climate factors pertaining to adolescent subculture values and/or to the pedagogic approaches of a predominantly female staff. Use was made of data from 68 academic‐type secondary schools in Flanders (Belgium). Of these schools, 25 were mixed and 43 were single‐sex (21 girls', and 22 boys' schools). Respondents were third‐year pupils: 3370 girls and 3057 boys, aged 14 and 15 years. A multilevel analysis (HLM) was performed controlling for parental socio‐economic status, curriculum enrolment, school residency and school mean SES. The results mainly indicate that the differential effect of single‐sex and coeducational schools on girls' TV watching habits may be partially accounted for by factors associated with pedagogic approaches by the predominantly female staff in girls' schools, but not at all by norms related to the adolescent subculture.     

The Relationship between Students' Connections to Out‐of‐School Experiences and Factors Associated with Science Learning

This study examined the relationship between students' out‐of‐school experiences and various factors associated with science learning. Participants were 1,014 students from two urban high schools (secondary schools). They completed a survey questionnaire and science assessment describing their science learning experiences across contexts and science understanding. Using multilevel statistical modelling, accounting for the multilevel structure of the data with students (Level 1) assigned to teachers (Level 2), the results indicated that controlling for student and classroom factors, students' ability to make connections between in‐school and out‐of‐school science experiences was associated with positive learning outcomes such as achievement, interest in science, careers in science, self‐efficacy, perseverance, and effort in learning science. Teacher practice connecting to students' out‐of‐school experiences was negatively associated with student achievement but has no association with other outcome measures. The mixed results found in this study alert us to issues and opportunities concerning the integration of students' out‐of‐school experiences to classroom instruction, and ultimately improving our understanding of science learning across contexts.     

Analysis of the Effects of School Variables Using Multilevel Models

Multilevel models allow data to be analysed which are hierarchical in nature; in particular, data which have been collected on pupils grouped into schools. Some of the associated variables may be measured at the pupil level, and others at the school level. The use of multilevel models produces estimates of variances between schools and pupils, as well as the effects of background variables in reducing or explaining these variances. One data set which has been analysed relates to the national surveys of mathematics carried out in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In this case the basic unit of analysis was a pupil's performance in a group of items within one of 12 sub‐categories of maths. Each pupil tackled two such item groups (or sub‐tests) and thus a three‐level model was required, with the levels representing sub‐tests, pupils and schools. A number of background variables at both pupil and school levels were also measured, and interesting results were obtained when a multilevel model was fitted. The program used was a version of one developed by Professor H. Goldstein. A quite different data set related to pupils’ responses to a questionnaire survey about their reactions to their current course of study. The dependent variable was a measure of pupils’ satisfaction with the course derived from their responses, and other pupil level variables were also derived, relating to their school experiences and personal attributes. School level variables such as size and type of school were obtained from a schools data base. The program Hierarchical Linear Model (HLM) was used to model these data, using only two levels. The two multilevel program used have different strengths and capabilities, but are related in terms of the kinds of models that can be fitted. Such models can lead to greater insights into the relationships between school and pupil level variables, and their influence on pupil results or attitudes.     

A Market in Waste: Psychic and structural dimensions of school-choice policy in the UK and children's narratives on 'demonized' schools

Transformations in local secondary schools markets in the UK have not simply been accomplished at a structural and policy level: social changes are crosscut by fiction and fantasy that resonate with and implicate subjects at the level of the personal. Drawing on a study of children's transitions to secondary school, we analyse the emotional processes through which particular schools come to be 'demonized' in the minds of Year 6 children, consider the impact such damaging discourses have on children who were to go to those schools, and explore connections between social and psychic realities in the increasing polarization of secondary schools. We examine the impact of discourses of race and racism on the psychic construction of 'good' and 'bad' schools and explore how this connected with family practices of secondary school choice and current constructions of UK local educational markets.     

Rural-Urban Differences In Intelligence

Abstract

This study examined possible divergencies between the way elementary school principals evaluated their performance in carrying out certain administrative practices and an evaluation of the principals' performance as judged by the teaching staff. The principals' performance was evaluated on 46 administrative practices. Teachers and principals in 66 elementary schools participated in the study.

The null hypothesis proposed that there was no significant difference between principals' evaluation of their performance and an evaluation made by teachers. The chi square test of significance was used to test the hypothesis. The results were: (1) the two groups differed significantly on their evaluation of the principals' performance on 22 of the 46 administrative practices, and (2) principals rated their performance as more satisfactory than did the teachers.     

Grade retention and its association with school misconduct in adolescence: a multilevel approach

Few studies with respect to grade retention and school-disruptive behavior have focused on adolescence. Moreover, previous retention research has ignored multilevel issues. This study aims to fill these research lacunae by addressing the role of grade retention in adolescent students' school misconduct. Furthermore, we explore the role of the percentage of retained students at school in individual-level school misconduct and in moderating the relationship between retention and misconduct. Multilevel analyses of data (2004–2005) from 11,872 students in 85 Flemish secondary schools suggest that, while students retained in primary education exhibited less school misconduct in adolescence, those retained in secondary schools were more likely to break rules. Furthermore, students attending schools with a higher percentage of retainees were found to be more deviant. However, schools' retention composition moderated the relationship between grade retention and school misconduct. Implications are discussed.     

The Influence of Secondary and Junior Schools on Sixteen Year Examination Performance: A Cross‐classified Multilevel Analysis∗

This paper presents a model for the explanation of examination (GCSE) performance at the age of 16 years in terms of both secondary and junior school attended together with prior achievement measures and certain background factors. Using a cohort of 758 students in 48 junior schools and 116 secondary schools it compares the variation in performance due to secondary schools with that due to junior schools in a multilevel cross‐classified analysis. It shows that the variation among junior schools is substantially larger than that among secondary schools. It also demonstrates that those junior schools with high average achievement scores for the students when they leave junior school also tend to have high average scores for their students at the age of 16. The implications of these findings, if replicated, are profound. They imply that current attempts to measure the ‘effectiveness’ of secondary schools using achievement measured at the start of secondary schooling may be fruitless and they point to the need for school effectiveness research to become involved in very long term studies of schooling, rather than being restricted to a single phase.

     

Skilled Students and Effective Schools: Reading Achievement in Denmark,Sweden, and France

This study investigates how reading achievement relates to student and school characteristics in countries with different reading scores at the fourth grade level. Data comes from the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) 2011 for Denmark, Sweden, and France and the multilevel analysis includes two levels: student/home and schools. The school effectiveness and the home literacy models informed the selection of the independent variables. Results show that students’ early literacy skills, home literacy practices and resources, and reading behavior are associated with reading scores in all countries. Furthermore, across different countries there are student/home universals and school particulars that explain variation in reading achievement. Educational policies should address home and school literacy skills and practices, school climate, and school composition to improve students’ reading ability.     

Gender and ethnic differences in precollege mathematics coursework related to science,technology, engineering,and mathematics (STEM) pathways

This paper aims to investigate how stability varies with the approach used in estimating school performance in a large sample of English primary schools. The results show that (a) raw performance is considerably more stable than adjusted performance, which in turn is slightly more stable than growth model estimates; (b) schools’ performance indicators are less dependent on the schools’ social composition score when scores are adjusted, and in particular for growth scores; (c) in the multilevel growth models (MGM), 74% of the variance in student rates of growth is attributable to schools; (d) the trajectories of individual students within a school are highly convergent, as if they were all being brought towards a common, stable target. Some implications for using these indicators for evaluating and regulating school improvement are discussed.     

Combining multilevel analysis with national value‐added data sets—a case study to explore the effects of school diversity

The advent of large‐scale matched data sets, linking pupils' attainment across key stages, gives new opportunities to explore the effects of school organisational factors on pupil performance. Combined with currently available sophisticated and efficient software for multilevel analysis, it offers educational researchers the chance to develop objective evidence about issues both old and new. Previously reported research, based on separate data sets from Key Stage 2 1997 to Key Stage 3 2000 and Key Stage 3 1998 to General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) 2000, focused on the impact of selective, specialist and faith schools. We now have access to a national data set with 380,000 pupils' Key Stage 2 levels in 1996 matched to their GCSE performance in 2001, and this has enabled us to rework these analyses based on value‐added results across all five years of secondary education. Results of the analysis largely confirmed the findings of previous work, in terms of the apparent impacts of different school types on pupils' progress. The article emphasises the important contribution that the marriage of national matched data sets and multilevel modelling will continue to make to educational research.     

The multilevel impact of transformational leadership on teacher commitment: Cognitive and motivational pathways

A growing body of research indicates that transformational leadership affects teachers’ commitment to their school. The present study aims to investigate the processes explaining this effect at the organisational level. Using a sample of 660 teachers within 50 primary French‐speaking Belgian schools, the authors test a model hypothesising that the impact of the school principal's transformational leadership (as an organisational‐level construct) on teacher commitment to school is mediated by school culture strength (cognitive pathway) and teacher collective efficacy beliefs (motivational pathway). Results of multilevel analyses largely support the theoretical model, but show that schools have a limited impact on teacher commitment.     

Does it matter who your schoolmates are? An investigation of the association between school composition,school processes and mathematics achievement in the early years of primary education

Although many studies have focused on the importance of school composition for student achievement, there is still no consensus on whether school composition matters to student achievement, and, if so, why. Therefore, the present study investigates the association between school composition and mathematics achievement at the end of second grade in Flanders. International research points to the initial ability level, SES, ethnicity and sex composition of the school as potential variables in explaining differences in student achievement. Moreover, some researchers suggest that schools ‘react’ to their student body and for that reason we investigated the possible association between school composition and school processes. Data from the SiBO Project have been analyzed using multilevel regression and multilevel mediation analysis. The results showed no direct school composition effects with respect to prior achievement, SES, ethnicity and sex on math achievement. We found two small differential effects, indicating that mean school prior achievement seems to positively affect initially high achievers, and the proportion of minority students in school seems to negatively affect students speaking a non‐European language except for Turkish, Arabic or Berber at home. Furthermore, two small indirect effects were found which suggest that schools with a high mean prior achievement or a high mean SES keep in regular contact with their students' parents and this, in turn, appears to enhance students' math achievement. Overall, our results seem to indicate that school composition in the early years of primary education hardly matters.