Exploring the Changing Face of School Inspections

Abstract

In 2017 and 2018, engineering applications and design process were given weight to with the updates carried out in the Physical Sciences Lesson Curriculum in Turkey. For the STEM education which is at the center of this update to reach its target, it is highly important that students accurately learn what engineers do, what their work field is, the characteristics they should carry and understand the nature of engineering. The present study aims to identify the perception of engineers of 5th, 6th and 7th grade middle school students through drawings. Research Methods: The study group of this research which is a descriptive

Processes of reforming: The case of the Norwegian state school inspection policy frameworks

“…school inspection reports do not directly lead to school principals losing their positions or schools being closed, there are nevertheless clear implications for the parties involved (Gunnulfsen & Møller, 2017;Skedsmo & Møller, 2016). As in the case of Norway, inspection frameworks across Europe have undergone numerous changes in their configurations and are today not only geared towards controlling legal compliance, but also include developmental functions aimed towards supporting and improving schools (Brown et al, 2016). As shown in the historical material presented, such a difficult balance was commonplace even a century and a half ago, when school directors struggled to fulfil their role as controllers of the law while striving to offer pedagogical advice and support to schools and school teachers under scrutiny (Mediås, 1996).…”

“…To examine key changes from a national perspective, it is thus necessary to study policy shifts in view of trending international policy processes, documents, and regulation (Karseth, Møller, & Aasen, 2013;Møller, 2014;Ozga, Dahler-Larsen, Segerholm, & Simola, 2011). Moreover, international agencies such as the OECD have, through international assessment systems such as the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), led to an increase in reform work aimed at improving student outcomes funnelled by growth in school inspection regimes, among other efforts (Brown, McNamara, O'Hara, & O'Brien, 2016).…”

“…Using Norwegian state school inspection as a case example, the guiding question for this article is: How can the enactment of state inspection policy be viewed through dynamical processes of reforming, rather than focusing on reform initiatives alone? Drawing on key concepts of reform, reforming, and enactment, as well as recent literature studies on school inspection, the main argument in this article is that educational reform involves more than mere policy initiatives from state policy actors, seeking to trigger changes in the institutional fabrics of school districts, municipalities, and individual schools through use of various governing tools such as inspection (Ball et al, 2012;Baxter, Grek, & Segerholm, 2015;Brown et al, 2016;Courtney, 2016;Hall, 2016;Hood, 2007;Lindgren, Hult, Segerholm, & Rönnberg, 2012;Rönnberg, 2011;Spillane, 2004;Supovitz & Weinbaum, 2008).…”

The performative shift: middle leadership ‘in the line of fire’

“…Adding an additional conceptual layer to understanding state inspection in Scandinavian welfare states, such an approach needs to be viewed in addition to 'inspection for compliance' 9 (Brown et al 2016). Thus, in such a system, policy actors in local school districts such as middle leaders and individual teachers are held accountable for any legal deviances pertaining to state legislation and regulation (Elstad 2009, Skedsmo andMøller 2016).…”

“…European inspection systems are undergoing substantial change, in which frameworks for supervision are taking on new appearances (Baxter et al 2015, Brown et al 2016. However, policy contexts vary nationally in their mix of governing tools and levels of accountability (Hood 2007, Altrichter and Kemethofer 2015, Ehren et al 2015.…”