Schooling Decisions Research Articles

The Effects of FDI on School Enrollment in Developing Countries: New Evidence

ABSTRACTUsing data on 118 developing countries over the period 1973 to 2019, this paper finds that FDI stocks have positive effects on school enrollment rates. The magnitude of the effects is modest. They are larger at the tertiary than at the secondary level. At both levels of education, females benefit more than males. The paper also explores the channels through which FDI might affect enrollment rates and finds that a well‐developed financial sector enhances the positive effects of FDI on schooling. In contrast to almost the entire literature, the paper uses data on stocks rather than inflows of FDI. FDI stocks are more likely to affect schooling decisions because they are much larger and less volatile than FDI inflows. Indeed, the paper finds that FDI inflows do not affect enrollment rates. Throughout, it accounts for endogeneity of FDI and controls for all major determinants of schooling.

NGO Navigators, Information Support, and Parental Assistance with Pk-12 School Decisions

ABSTRACT This study provides empirical insights into the perceptions and agency of navigators who provide school selection assistance and this NGO’s unique insider–outsider status. As semi-private actors, navigators offer an important bridge between two kinds of social capital: the informal types of trust and legitimacy that families rely on, and the skills, knowledge, and networks necessary to access higher-quality schools in choice policy contexts. Data for this study are derived from an exploratory case study, including 13 in-depth interviews, documentary and social media analysis, and informal conversations. The findings illustrate the benefits and shortcomings of NGO information support in choice policy contexts.

Skipping Breakfast and Academic Grades, Persistent Feelings of Sadness or Hopelessness, and School Connectedness Among High School Students - Youth Risk Behavior Survey, United States, 2023.

Breakfast consumption is positively associated with academic achievement and diet quality among students, whereas skipping breakfast has been linked with poor mental health. Data from CDC's 2023 nationally representative Youth Risk Behavior Survey were used to describe how often high school students ate breakfast in the past 7 days and the associations between skipping breakfast every day (ate breakfast on 0 of the past 7 days), experiencing persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness, school connectedness, and self-reported grades. Prevalence estimates and corresponding 95% CIs were calculated, and t-tests were used to identify differences within demographic groups (e.g., sex, race and ethnicity, and sexual identity). Logistic regression analyses were conducted to calculate prevalence ratios describing breakfast skipping, adjusting for demographics, and stratified by sex and race and ethnicity. Most students missed breakfast ≥1 time in the past 7 days (72.6%), and 17.9% of students skipped breakfast every day, with differences by sex, sexual identity, and race and ethnicity. Overall, and among both males and females, students who experienced persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness were more likely to skip breakfast every day. The association between feelings of sadness and hopelessness and skipping breakfast was generally consistent across racial and ethnic groups. In contrast, greater levels of school connectedness and earning mostly As or Bs were inversely associated with skipping breakfast. Students who had higher school connectedness were approximately 30% less likely to skip breakfast on all 7 days. Skipping breakfast and poor mental health co-occur among many adolescents and might impede students' readiness to learn. School efforts to make breakfast accessible and appealing to high school students might yield multiple benefits and help reinforce school administrators' efforts to recover student learning losses that occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic. Parents, school decision-makers, and organizations that partner with schools and families can use these findings to guide efforts to promote breakfast consumption.

Youth Involvement in School Decision-Making during the Pandemic

Youth Involvement in School Decision-Making during the Pandemic

Constructing a Predictive Model for High School Students' Enrolment Results

Nowadays, data-informed decision-making can assist high-school educational decision-making, especially student test scores, and further education data, then these data can be used to inform decision-making in schools and boost overall school performance. We aimed to assess the relationships among high school students' admission scores, academic performance at school, and psychological tests in the school system. The relationships were used to predict the departmental fields and universities that students would select for advanced studies in the future. This research will utilize data mining algorithms, including Naïve Bayes, SVM, and Neural Network classifiers, to extract and analyze hidden patterns in students' academic records and credentials. When the Bayesian Network model was used to predict whether a student's university is public or private, our results showed 78.46% of the predicted results. Predicting the accuracy of the top three departmental fields, the SVM model achieved the highest performance with an accuracy of 69.77% .Given that students' academic performance varies across high schools, each school should develop its customized predictive model using only its students’ data. This will help students believe in and pursue their interests.

The roles of AI and educational leaders in AI-assisted administrative decision-making: a proposed framework for symbiotic collaboration

AbstractEducation has always been in a state of flux because of technological disruption. As schools head towards a present in which digital technology is normalised as part of the fabric of everyday society, a post-digital paradigm, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is changing the educational administration and leadership. It is crucial to find ways to coexist with AI while striving for a human-centric future. While numerous studies advocate for a collaborative synergy between AI and human leaders in educational governance, there is a gap in explicating the precise roles they undertake. This paper aims to address the void by providing a conceptual framework for the symbiotic roles of AI and educational leaders in the administrative decision-making process. This paper views administrative decision-making in schools as a political process involving negotiations among administrators, teachers, students, and parents. Within the framework, AI shoulders informational roles such as collecting and analysing data with its data analysis capability. Conversely, educational leaders are tasked with establishing the vision, disseminating information, managing conflicts, identifying new opportunities, negotiating and allocating decision-making authority to stakeholders. Moreover, educational leaders should encourage and supervise the implementation of AI in schools. The framework serves as a theoretical lens for prospective studies of AI impacts on education leadership and administration and bears practical implications for the preparation of future school leaders, contributing to the creation of a scenario where AI augments, rather than replaces educational leadership.

Youth Leadership and Intersectionality: Which Youth Have a Say in School Decision-Making?

Research has shown that youth participation in school decision-making is hindered by both racism and adultism. However, less is known about the implications of intersecting forms of injustice for youth leadership to advance social justice. We address this area using the lens of intersectionality in a qualitative study of youth leadership at a school in an urban area. Our findings point to the complexity of representation in youth leadership, considering the intersections of not only age and race but also disability and language. Ultimately, our research indicates that efforts to increase youth influence should consider intersectionality.

Interpretation Evidence for the Multidimensional Test Anxiety Scale: A Brief Report

Standardized testing is an integral part of the English and American education systems. However, the use of high-stakes testing has unintended consequences, one of which is test anxiety. Over the last 50 years, increased attention has been directed to developing tools to identify students experiencing test anxiety. However, many test anxiety instruments have been created for research purposes rather than use within school decision-making and lack evidence for interpretation. The purpose of the current study was to support the use of the Multidimensional Test Anxiety Scale (MTAS) in applied settings by using a latent profile analysis to identify respondent groups to support score interpretation. Participants included 918 secondary students in England.

Exploring parental decision-making in school commutes: A structural equation model of public transport utilization and child safety in Thailand

Concern is growing regarding the increasing use of private car in many developing countries, including Thailand. Car usage is rising in Thailand in part because the public transit system is inadequate and unreliable, especially in rural and suburban communities. Often, children’s route to school is unsafe due to the increasing number of cars around the school. This prompts parents to worry about their child’s safety when in transit. The model of travel by public transportation is an alternative for reducing road congestion and improving children’s safety. This study seeks to better understand the factors that influencing parents’ decisions regarding the use of public transportation for their children’s school commutes. Data were gathered through a questionnaire from a sample of 750 parents with children between the ages of 6 and 18 years in Nakhon Ratchasima Province, Thailand. The findings of the structural equation model analysis showed a relationship between service users’ loyalty and the components of satisfaction, trust, expectation, and perception of service quality. The outcomes derived in this study can serve as practical guidelines for public and private transportation system operators to improve service efficiency, meet consumer demand, and foster positive interactions between service users and operators. In this way, this study can lead to important internal and external benefits for the continued development of the public transportation system and motivate more service users to transition to the use of public transportation.

Long-term effect of trade liberalization on human capital: evidence from Chinese students

ABSTRACT This study examines the long-term effects of trade liberalization on human capital accumulation for students, specifically through schooling decisions. To establish this linkage, I leverage the significant reduction in trade tariffs following China’s WTO accession in 2001 as an identification strategy and construct the shift-share instrument variable for each Chinese prefecture’s exposure to trade shock. Utilizing cognitive test scores from the China Family Panel Studies (CFPS) dataset for cohorts aged between 13 to 20 at the time of trade liberalization, I find that the trade shock leads to a decline in cognitive test scores approximately 15 years later. Furthermore, combining CFPS data with the China Population Census, I demonstrate that export expansion has resulted in a reduction in university enrollment and less education years among youth.

Occupational choice, human capital and financial constraints

AbstractWe study the aggregate productivity effects of firm‐level financial frictions. Credit constraints affect not only production decisions but also household‐level schooling decisions. In turn, entrepreneurial schooling decisions impact firm‐level productivities, whose cross‐sectional distribution becomes endogenous. In anticipation of future constraints, entrepreneurs underinvest in schooling early in life. Frictions lower aggregate productivity because talent is misallocated across occupations and capital is misallocated across firms. Firm‐level productivities are also lower due to schooling distortions. These effects combined account for between 36% and 68% of the US–India aggregate productivity difference. Schooling distortions are the major source of aggregate productivity differences.

Adolescents’ Active Transport to School and Parental Perspectives in a School Choice Policy Environment

Internationally many adolescents do not meet the recommended level of regular physical activity. Although active transport to school (ATS) is promoted to increase physical activity in adolescents, relying solely on ATS is not feasible for those who live beyond walkable or cyclable distance to school. School choice education policies complicate the potential of ATS when adolescents do not enrol in the closest school. This research contributes to sparse New Zealand and growing international literature to examine parental perspectives on school choice, travel to school decisions and modes of travel to school in adolescents enrolled in the closest versus non-closest school.We analysed questionnaire responses from 352 parents in Dunedin, differentiating results for enrolment in the closest versus non-closest school. Overall, only 38.9% of adolescents enrolled in their closest school. The adolescents who enrolled in their closest school lived closer to school and more frequently used ATS compared to their peers who enrolled in a non-closest school (home-to-school distance (walkable (≤2.25 km)/cyclable (>2.25–4.0 km)/beyond cyclable (>4.0 km)): 47.4%/27.8%/24.8% versus 4.8%/20.3%/74.9%; p < 0.001; transport to school (active/motorised/mixed): 40.9%/56.9%/2.2% versus 9.3%/82.7%/7.9%; p < 0.001). Nearly three-quarters of school choice decisions were made by parents jointly with their adolescent. Parents whose adolescent enrolled in the closest school more frequently reported proximity to home, social connection and school’s co-educational status (only for adolescents enrolled in co-educational school) as reasons for school choice compared to their counterparts. Mixed-mode initiatives may support adolescents to increase ATS when they attend a school beyond cyclable distance.

STUDENT LEADERS INVOLVEMENT IN DECISION MAKING AND DISCIPLINE MANAGEMENT IN PUBLIC SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN RWANDA A CASE OF NYARUGENGE DISTRICT

Despite the government sustained efforts to improve discipline among students in secondary schools, cases of indiscipline still persist in secondary schools in Rwanda. This study involved an investigation of effects of student leaders involvement in decision making on discipline management in secondary schools. The specific objectives of the study included to assess the effects of student leaders involvement in formulating rules and regulations on discipline management, to determine the effects of student leaders involvement in time keeping on discipline management and lastly to examine the effects of student leaders involvement in disciplinary meetings on discipline management in secondary schools. The study utilised descriptive survey design and causal research design to achieve study objectives. The target population was 378 consisting of head teachers, dean of studies, dean of discipline and other teachers and student leaders from public and private secondary schools. The study used purposive and simple random sampling techniques in selecting the sample population. Questionnaires and interview guides was used to collect the data from respondents. Data was analysed using IBMSPSS version 21 and findings were computed using descriptive statistics including means, frequencies and percentages and inferential statistics including Pearson correlation coefficient, beta coefficients and p-values. The findings were presented in tables and charts. Cronbach Alpha value was 0.83 which indicated the instruments were reliable and the experts opinions were also incorporated to ascertain instruments validity. The findings did indicate that over 65% of respondents agree that student participate in decision making including drafting rules and regulations, time keeping and disciplinary meetings. The mean for all items was approximately 4 with less than 1 standard deviation. Additionally, the beta coefficients for drafting rules and regulations, time keeping and disciplinary meetings were 26.9%, 30.1% and 30.5% respectively with p values of 0.001, 0.004 and 0.001. The study did conclude that there is positive significant effect of student leaders involvement in drafting rules and regulations, time keeping and disciplinary meetings on discipline management. The conclusion of the study was that head teachers should ensure student are represented in school decisions particularly when amending or introducing new rules and regulations, when drafting time tables that guides school activities and when having disciplinary meetings through their leaders. The government through education ministry should also enforce mandatory law in schools that ensures student leaders are involved in decision making process in schools by engaging their leaders. The study is important to school administrators, teachers and students in enhancing discipline.

Effects of Teachers’ Participation in Decision-Making on Organisational Commitment in Ghanaian Basic Schools

This study investigated the effects of teachers’ participation in decision-making in Ghanaian basic schools on their organisational commitment. The study utilised a descriptive survey design to randomly select 285 teachers from the La Nkwantanang-Madina Municipality of the Greater Accra region of Ghana to participate in the research. The generated data were analysed using descriptive statistics (means and standard deviations), confirmatory factor analysis, and structural equation modelling. The results showed that teachers moderately participated in school decision-making. Similarly, their level of organisational commitment to the teaching profession was moderate. Finally, the effect of teacher participation in decision-making on organisational commitment was positive and statistically significant. The study’s findings suggest that implementing shared leadership models, where teachers are consistently involved in discussions about school policies, curriculum development, and other critical areas, can enhance their commitment and performance. Consequently, the study recommends that school leaders initiate pragmatic policies to promote teachers’ participation in decision-making, thereby increasing their organisational commitment.

School Teams’ Reported Implementation of Family–School Partnerships in PBIS: Current Practices and Opportunities for Growth

Despite the potential benefits of integrating family–school partnerships into school-wide Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS), many barriers persist that limit a school’s ability to engage in meaningful family–school partnerships. These barriers to implementation suggest the importance of understanding the extent to which school teams can overcome these obstacles and promote family–school partnerships in PBIS. The present study adds to the literature by evaluating school teams’ reported implementation of different recommended practices in family–school partnerships in PBIS. Specifically, school teams in the U.S. state of Massachusetts (N = 79) participating in a 3-year PBIS implementation training program completed a survey (65% response rate) where they reported the extent to which they were implementing family–school partnership practices in PBIS across a variety of domains. Findings suggest relative strengths (i.e., communication, resources) and opportunities for growth (i.e., shared decision-making) in schools’ implementation of family–school partnership strategies in PBIS. We also found school characteristics related to increased enrollment and greater racial diversity of the student body posed additional challenges for school staff in ensuring high fidelity implementation of family–school partnership strategies in PBIS. We end with suggestions for researchers and practitioners to boost implementation of key features of family–school partnerships in PBIS via equitable and culturally responsive implementation strategies.

Microcredit versus Child Schooling Nexus: Exploring Child Schooling Decisions in Rural Bangladesh

The study investigates if the microfinance loan burden influences the children’s education of the borrowers. By surveying the microfinance borrowers of Agarpur and Thakurmollik— distant rural areas under the Barisal district (Southern part of Bangladesh)— and by applying the OLS regression technique and logistic regression technique, the study identifies that the amount of microfinance loan installment does not have any significant direct effect on the dropout or enhancement of child education. Instead, the dropout tendency increases as kids move from primary to secondary or higher secondary level or as the number of kids increases in the family. However, as more kids are going to primary school, the school dropout tendency decreases. Thus, in remote rural areas, children’s school dropout appears as a matter of social behaviour rather than being an issue of microfinance loan burden.

Decisions and Influential Factors Regarding Class-Specific School Closures Against Seasonal Influenza Outbreak.

Background One of the characteristics of school closure in Japan is class-specific school closure, which involves a reactive, short-term closure in the event of an infectious disease outbreak. These closures are implemented at each school in reaction to the annual seasonal influenza outbreaks. Very little research has addressed the formation of class-specific school closures to combat infectious diseases in elementary schools.We carried out a survey on factors involved in the decision to close classes and the determination of the timing and duration of class closures in elementary schools in Japan. Methods A mail-based questionnaire survey of elementary schools from four prefectures in western Japan was conducted between August and September 2021. The questions addressed the criteria for school closures (the timing and duration of class closure), various considerations, and confusion regarding class closures, with answers analyzed using descriptive statistical methods. Results In total, 714 elementary schools responded to the survey (37.9%). Furthermore, 398 (55.7%) schools established criteria for class closures during seasonal influenza. Class closure was most frequently initiated in schools with criteria when either 20% or 30% of class pupils were absent; the most common duration was three days. The duration of class closures was decided upon depending on the outbreak in some schools (69.8%), depending on the circumstances of the outbreak. Regarding class closure decisions, schools viewed school physicians' opinions as a priority, followed by school events, adjustments for Saturdays and Sundays, and Yogo teachers' opinions. Schools answering "no criteria for class closure" or "adjustments for Saturdays and Sundays" had difficulty determining class closure duration. Conclusion To guarantee the continuation of children's education and improve the effectiveness of preventive efforts against seasonal influenza, the following were considered important and helpful in class closure decision-making in elementary schools: scientific evidence, the school physician's opinion, and Yogo teachers' analysis of children's health information.

A Comparative Study of Instructional Leadership Practices and Collective Decision Making in Public Secondary Schools in Morogoro Municipal, Tanzania

This study aims to provide an in-depth understanding of strategies for enhancing the implementation of instructional leadership practices for collective decision-making in Public Secondary Schools in Morogoro Municipality. This study adopted the Distributed Transformational leadership theories propounded by James Spillane and Bernard Bass. The study adopted a convergent research design under a mixed research approach. Probability and non-probability sampling techniques were employed to sample respondents in this study. The study collected data from five (5) Heads of Schools (HoSs) and fifty (50) Teachers using an interview guide and questionnaire. The study found that instructional leadership encompasses the actions and strategies undertaken by school leaders to promote effective teaching practices, curriculum development, and student achievement. Nevertheless, the study also found that instructional leadership is a critical factor influencing teaching quality and student achievement. There is limited understanding of how these practices manifest and interact with collective decision-making structures within school settings. The hypothesis test indicated no significant relationship between instructional leadership practices and collective decision-making in public secondary schools. This study concluded that school administrators should work on improving instructional leadership practices to enhance collective decision-making. The study also resolved that instructional leadership and collective decision-making jointly create an effective collaborative school environment that focuses on improving teaching and learning outcomes for all students. Therefore, the study recommended Ministry of Education to organize capacity-building programs for HoSs focusing on instructional leadership skills and effective decision-making.

School social media use and its impact upon children's rights to privacy and autonomy

The role schools are playing in children's datafication is increasingly recognised. This article explores how school publication of children's images on social media is contributing to children's datafication and how it is negatively impacting upon children's rights more generally. Identifying that schools across the UK, the US, Australia and Europe are now publishing children's images online, it situates the findings of an inquiry into UK practice within wider discussion of school practices worldwide.This article uses practice-based documentary analysis to evaluate guidance provided to schools by local education authorities (LEAs) across England, Scotland and Wales. It identifies that LEAs are failing to recognise children's Article 12 UNCRC right to be heard. LEAs frequently advise schools to seek consent from parents, denying children agency. Online publications which identify children potentially contravene Article 16 UNCRC's requirement not to subject a child to arbitrary or unlawful interference with their privacy and may expose children to harms such as harassment and grooming. Nonetheless the template consent forms provided to parents provide minimal information about such risks. Concerns are raised that online publications are not always in children's best interests, thus contravening Article 3 UNCRC.With similar concerns having been raised in other jurisdictions, this article argues for a new child-rights focused approach. Drawing upon Dimopoulos’ (2021) theory of children's decisional privacy and upon best practice from the UK, it suggests how schools across the globe can ensure children's rights and views inform school decisions to share children's images via social media.

Senior Secondary School Students’ Academic Performance in Katsina Zonal Education Quality Assurance of Katsina State, Nigeria

This study explored how Katsina State Zonal Education Quality Assurance principals' leadership styles effect student achievement. The study revealed that principals must involve all stakeholders in school decisions. Simple random sampling was used in this investigation. The study included 19 principals and 114 instructors. Data was collected using the principals leadership style questionnaire (PLSQ) and students' previous test questions. Mean, standard deviation, and related sample t-test were employed to answer research questions and test hypotheses at 0.05 significance. The study found that democratic leadership affects SSCE performance more than other approaches. At the end, it is suggested for the state education ministries to establish workshops to train principals on successful leadership styles. Similarly, principals should use democratic leadership approaches that involve the entire school community in decision-making. Furthermore, school principals should adopt transformational leadership, involving individual involvement in decision-making. Finally, there is need to address academic deficits through regular meetings between principals, teachers, and students. Keywords: School, Students, Academic Performance, Education, Quality Assurance and Nigeria