Developing Data-Driven Administrative Policy for International Montessori Center, Thailand

Abstract

This institutional survey research was used to improve administrative policies at International Montessori Center (IMC), a private international kindergarten in Bangkok, Thailand. The main goal of the study was to gather input from school stakeholders regarding daily conditions and functions, with the ultimate goal of improved administrative policy implementation. A literature review indicated no direct prior research. A survey gathered input from four stakeholder groups, including 15 teachers, 104 parents, 17 staff, and 3 administrators, regarding Physical Safety, Child Sense of Being Valued (classroom atmosphere), Classroom Conditions, Information Availability, Parent-Teacher Meeting Quality, Administrative Support, Parental Support (overall), Educational Tools and Technology, Quality of Peer Professional Relationships, and Availability of Needed Supplies. Stakeholders rated the daily operations areas using five-point Likert-style questions and responded to two open-ended questions. In sum, findings highlighted a number of useful perspectives for the little-studied early-childhood administrative community: a) seemingly mundane school functions are important to those who experience them on a regular basis; b) all stakeholder input is valuable when gathering school daily operations feedback; c) similarities and differences in stakeholder input help administrators develop a more holistic perspective of school functioning; and d) stakeholder input is a valuable tool for administrators to use when critically considering responsive policy formulation. Conclusions reached were limited to correlations and patterns found in one institution. However, it is clear that this original research is a valuable step in improving administrative policy implementation at the private international kindergarten level.