Abstract
The present study focuses on the exploration of the perceptions and experiences of school administrators (principals and vice-principals) and teachers regarding school improvement and influencing contextual factors. Designed as case study research, this study utilized data gathered from school principals, vice-principals, and teachers from various school levels in the fall semester of 2019-2020 academic year. The researcher collected data in a graduate-level course offered in a master’s program without a thesis at a large state university in Southeastern Turkey through course assignments. Delving into school improvement perceptions and experiences from the eyes of three different groups of practitioners offered significant insights into contextual factors, namely hindrances to and enablers of school improvement, along with the steps to be taken at the praxis level and certain external factors. The results of the research might indicate that both issues related to the human side of school improvement such as the behaviors, practices, and attitudes of school staff, students and parents and the structural side like physical characteristics, budget, education system, and socioeconomic status of school environment have impacts on school improvement. These factors are likely to govern school improvement efforts and outcomes.
Highlights
Reform and change are essential in education for both improving schools and re-building educational systems to attain more quality school outcomes
The researcher compiled the findings of SI and contextual factors, and six main themes were identified and presented in six thematic maps
This study set out to reveal the contextual factors that affect SI based on the reports written by school administrators and teachers from different school levels
Summary
Reform and change are essential in education for both improving schools and re-building educational systems to attain more quality school outcomes. Centering on cultivating quality school outcomes, school improvement (hereafter SI) is considered to be “a distinct approach to educational change that aims to enhance student outcomes as well as strengthening the school’s capacity for managing change” SI refers to a systematic way of generating change and development within the schools (Harris, 2002) and makes inquiries on how to enhance student achievement through focusing on the teaching-learning process and the conditions that support this process (Hopkins, 2001) because student achievement can be considered to be one of the most important indicators of school quality and learning process outcomes (Şen, Yıldırım, & Karacabey, 2020). After an initial overview of what SI means and targets, prior work on SI and related issues are presented
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