Effective Schools Transforming Resources into Results at the School Level Comments: Adriaan Verspoor

Structure of presentation The messages of Grand Baie Findings in the international literature on effective schools and school improvement Summary of the findings of the research and analysis undertaken for the 2006 biennal meeting Priorities for the way forward towards sustained quality improvement

Messages from Grand Baie (1) Implementation is of the essence: high level political leadership, systematic well organized participation and sustained support to front line implementers The quantity of resources does not by itself ensure performance Quality improvement is a process that lives or dies in the classroom Teachers are at the heart of the quality improvement process

Messages from Grand Baie (2) Good teaching incorporates a range of instructional and assessment strategies Head teachers are the transformational leaders on the path towards quality Teacher support systems are a key element of the quality improvement process Support of communities and organized civil society often is central to school effectiveness

Continuing the Quest for Quality: Central Questions: What are the features of effective schools in SSA? What are the central elements of the process of school improvement? How to transform poorly performing schools into effective ones

ADEA Follow-Up Assembling and reviewing evidence on Effective schools in Africa Cost effective resource allocations Effective head teacher leadership Issues in teacher development and deployment Curriculum challenges: Language of instruction, gender sensitive pedagogy and competency based instruction Decentralization and parental and civil society involvement Equity of access and quality

Thinking about Educational Effectiveness: Main Features Classroom factors (time, grouping procedures, instructional strategies) are key School factors (leadership, emphasis on order, academic achievement) enable and reinforce System factors (vision, standards, resources, incentives) provide direction Community factors ensure local relevance and ownership Consistency principle: alignment reinforces the effects

Consistent Findings: Key Factors of Effectiveness FactorsComponents Educational Leadership  School leader as information provider  Initiator and facilitator of staff professionalization School climate  The importance given to an orderly climate  Good conduct and behavior of pupils  Perceptions of effectiveness-enhancing school climate  Pupils' engagement  Appraisal of roles and tasks Monitoring student learning  Monitoring pupils' progress  School process evaluation  Use of evaluation results  Keeping records on pupils' performance Effective learning time  Time  Monitoring absenteeism  Time at classroom level Curriculum quality  Opportunity to learn  Setting curricular priorities

Lessons from Effective Schools Research Emphasis on: Learners’ educability – it is possible for all children to learn Outcomes – examining indicators of learning Taking responsibility for students – don’t blame the victim (the student) for the shortcomings of the school; schools should take a fair share of the responsibility for students’ learning performance Consistency throughout the school community – treat the school as an organic whole, – more than the sum of it’s parts – and don’t focus on only the parts (Hopkins, 2001)

Effective Schools in Sub Saharan Africa (1) Overall learning levels remain low; several schools demonstrate that even when the existing level of school inputs is less than desired, improvements are possible. Improvement is essentially a local process that can be supported through local capacity building

Effective schools in Africa (2) Good learning outcomes: Teachers who plan for teaching, put into practice what they have learned and correct and remediate students’ work regularly; Head teachers who emphasize teaching and learning; and Communities that actively support their school.

Effective schools in Africa (3) Low learning outcomes: –Overcrowded classrooms, –Perfunctory school level and external pedagogical oversight –Continued use of ineffective teaching practices in spite of training in alternative approaches

Effective schools: Resources and Institutions Textbooks, teachers guides and time are the most cost-effective inputs; Class size up to 60 does not affect student performance. Repetition is not an efficient way to enhance learning. Long pre-service programs show little evidence of improved learning, but do imply higher salary cost. Contract-teacher programs do not necessarily affect quality.. Incentive systems can increase staff motivation Decentralized management can help improve schools

Effective Teaching the Key to Powerful Leaning But … Many rural schools serve disadvantaged populations and have great difficulty attracting and retaining qualified teachers Pre service and in service training often do not affect classroom practice Teacher support systems often are barely functional New technologies may help with teacher development

Educational Leadership in African schools Management systems in high performing schools: Well structured, visible and transparent school management involving all staff Regular monitoring of student performance and teaching practices combined with support for professional development and training of staff. Student learning as the central concern of school management. Effective management of the involvement of external partners

Curriculum Language of instruction stock taking: Existing language-in-education policies need radical reform to build high performance education systems; From bilingual model early exit model to “additive model” with African languages as the language of instruction for 6-8 years plus high quality instruction in a second international/official language; Reforms will increase education budgets by 1-5% and are feasible building on existing experience and mobilizing local institutions with specialist knowledge.

Curriculum (2) Adapting Curricula : Competency based curriculum is key to making progress towards –Language of instruction reforms –Gender sensitive pedagogy –Learning for understanding and application Countries will need to develop national competency objectives

Parental and civil society participation Considerable parental or civic participation at the school level, but little involvement at higher levels. National organizations rarely involved in national level policy making. Different civic groups with different views on governance and management issues, Many civil society actors only have a limited capacity to participate in policy-making processes. Effective use of direct support to schools requires local level capacity building

Effective Schools for All: Equity in Access and Quality Providing rural people with equitable access to quality learning with often require non-traditional approaches and additional resources Complementary education programs currently provide access to more than 3 million children, many of these provide cost-effective and equivalent opportunities to children who do not have access to formal schools Effective teaching recognizes and responds to gender differences in learning style, takes place in a gender sensitive school environment, adopts girl friendly classroom management practices and recognizes the impact of culture and tradition on girls’ performance

Implementation is of the essence Some key findings Continued use of ineffective teaching practices in spite of training in alternative approaches Capacity problems that limit the effectiveness of decentralization and school based management reforms

Conventional Wisdom about Reform (1) Good curriculum is largely self explanatory and self-implementing Success of reforms depends mainly on the quality of the reform ideas Key variable is teacher motivation not instructional methods

Conventional Wisdom about Reform (2) Schools and teachers are generally resistant to reforms Tight inspection and control are essential Materials need to be designed so well that that it can be implemented faithfully with minimal training High-stakes tests and public accountability will drive instruction and improve achievement

Outcomes Outcomes: –Implementation only by highly motivated teachers –Often watered-down versions were implemented –Little increase in student learning –Classroom remain largely as they were

Experience with School Improvement in Developing Countries Education reform is a local process The reform process is a learning process Teachers need to be seen as learners Central support is vital Effective system linkages are vital Focus on classroom practice is key Both local and central initiation can work Parent and community participation is a key element of success ( Dalin, “ How Schools Improve’, 1994

Responding to the Challenge of Learning: Priority to School Improvement …. But … Weak local capacity for planning and management constrains the transfer of authority, resources and accountability. Pre-service and in-service teacher education programs and supervision have little impact on instructional strategies and classroom practice. Strengthening school management is a key to school improvement that still requires much attention and action. Foreign language of instruction has a clear negative impact on student learning; yet teachers are ill prepared to deal with this reality Few attempts to recognize gender and other differences in instructional strategies and classroom management. Limited transfer of experience between formal and complementary programs.