Principals’ reactions to feedback received by school inspection: A longitudinal study

Use and impact of external evaluation feedback in schools

“…Fourth and finally, the reinforcement-oriented use of the feedback was also observed in three interviews. Consistent with research by Penninckx et al (2016a) and Behnke and Steins (2017) and as stands to reason, such use has primarily occurred in schools that received positive evaluation judgements.…”

“…The evaluation findings can give individuals and schools a sense of pride and confidence in what they do and thus reinforce good practices but do not directly prompt observable actions. Although the reinforcement-oriented use of the findings of external evaluations is seldom discussed in the literature, some studies have revealed the positive effects of favourable results on self-worth, self-efficacy (Behnke & Steins, 2017;McCrone et al, 2007;Penninckx et al, 2016a), and collective efficacy (Penninckx et al, 2016a).…”

“…Most research on the impact of such evaluations has been conducted in countries where the pressure for accountability is greater than in Iceland, as discussed by Ólafsdóttir et al (2022), which makes similar research in Iceland warranted. Moreover, most studies have been performed shortly after schools received the evaluation findings and therefore could not capture the (im)permanence of the measures for improvement taken by the schools (e.g., Behnke & Steins, 2017;Chapman, 2002;Ehren & Visscher, 2008;Verhaeghe et al, 2010). As an antidote, a longitudinal approach may be required to better determine the longer-term impact of external school evaluations.…”

“Governing by templates” through new modes of school inspection in Norway

“…A wide range of studies on school inspection (SI) have been undertaken, focusing on multiple perspectives, settings and conceptual applications. In a recent study by Behnke & Steins (2016), scholars reported on inspection in the German context, especially at how SI functions as feedback, specifically investigating the perspectives of school principals following the inspection process.…”

“…Furthermore, the style of feedback and communication is a central aspect in how key actors view school inspection (SI) (Ehren & Visscher, 2006). Finally, as recently discussed by Behnke and Steins (2016), accountability systems vary internationally, from high-stakes environments based on test scores such as in the federal system of the United States, to systems more relying on SI as one of several external measures to ensure quality of schools such as for example in Germany, The Netherlands, Norway and Sweden (Behnke & Steins, 2016;Ehren & Visscher, 2006;Hall, 2017;Rönnberg, 2014).…”