Measuring the Quality of Educational Services on the Example of Secondary Schools in Poland

Abstract

Research results, as well as the author’s own observations show that the quality of educational services is one of the most important factors affecting the level of civilization of modern states, by affecting all aspects of their socio-economic life, including health, natural environment and economic growth, in the long run. The quality of education directly influences the formation of the human capital of the society, and this impacts the pace of economic development. The starting point for actions aimed at improving the quality of educational services is undoubtedly both the proper recognition of the main factors determining the quality of educational services and the measurement of this quality determinants. Thus, measuring the quality of educational services, identification and gradation of key determinants were considered the main purpose of this study. The research method used to achieve the set goal was a two-part, anonymous questionnaire sent to secondary schools’ principals in the Zachodniopomorskie province in Poland. The conducted evaluation of the factors shaping the quality of educational services in the surveyed institutions indicated numerous needs in terms of improving their activity. It should be emphasized that none of the estimated factors obtained a fully satisfactory outcome in the survey of respondents' opinions. The general conclusion from the conducted research is to confirm the importance of recognizing properly the determinants of the educational services quality as the basis for developing a proposal for shaping the desired level of these services’ quality.