Success or failure? Presenting a case selection strategy for studies of school improvement

Jarl, Maria; Andersson, Kristin; Blossing, Ulf

doi:10.1080/20004508.2016.1275177

Cited by 12 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 27 publications

(21 reference statements)

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“…Relying on this paradigm, most studies include mainly positive cases because they take for granted that "the antipodes of effectivenessenhancing factors are associated with school failure" (Scheerens, 2015, p. 19). In order to generate a theoretical understanding of the mechanisms behind school success, it is essential to make comparisons between successful and failing schools (Jarl et al, 2017).…”

Section: The Importance Of Including "Negative" Examplesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Case selection was based on statistical analysis, making use of the fact that in Sweden, the registry data are stored with a personal identification number (for a detailed description of the case selection process, see Jarl et al, 2017). The database used includes information about Swedish primary schools, such as student numbers, grade levels, and geographic location.…”

Section: Case Selectionsample Of Schoolsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Organizational characteristics of successful and failing schools: a theoretical framework for explaining variation in student achievement

Jarl

Andersson

Blossing

2021

School Effectiveness and School Improvement

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Why do some schools bring forth high achievement levels, whereas others do not? To understand the mechanisms behind school success, one must examine schools as organizations and the social relations and interactions among their members. By integrating the literature on educational effectiveness and sociological institutionalism, this article presents a study of four successful and four failing schools in Sweden regarding the impact of schools' internal organization on student achievement. The results demonstrate that the two types of schools have distinct organizational characteristics, which show significant stability over time. Linking organizational characteristics and student outcomes, we argue that (a) the varying social reality of teachers and principals among the two types of schools fosters different types of actions and beliefs among teachers and principals, which (b) causes different learning environments for students that subsequently lead to variations in their learning trajectories.

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Section: The Importance Of Including "Negative" Examplesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Case Selectionsample Of Schoolsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Organizational characteristics of successful and failing schools: a theoretical framework for explaining variation in student achievement

Jarl

Andersson

Blossing

2021

School Effectiveness and School Improvement

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“…That is, a principal’s role is at stake – taking the role of an engaged broker with a theoretical grounding and with professional tools and perspectives to understand and develop practice or taking a more marginalized role. Jarl et al (2017) show that continuing leadership practices are connected to successful schools and discontinuous leadership practices are connected to unsuccessful schools.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…Vennebo and Aas (2020) argue that principals need to see a local problem from a sociocultural and historical perspective rather than relying on first impressions. Jarl et al (2017) show how successful schools are connected to continuing leadership practices, whereas unsuccessful schools experience discontinuous leadership practices. However, Brauckmann et al (2020) question whether leadership actions are culturally or structurally determined, or whether contextual conditions work as facilitators or obstacles.…”

Section: Professional Learning Of Principals In Programmes and Practicementioning

confidence: 99%

Participation in the Swedish national principal training programme: How does it intertwine with principals’ practice?

Jerdborg¹

2021

Educational Management Administration & Leadership

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Blending principal education programmes and leadership practice has become a common feature in the education of school principals. However, the need for further research in how programme participants experience learning within an overall structure of a programme has been highlighted since the same programmes are experienced differently. This empirical study used a practice-based approach to explore how participation in the Swedish National Principal Training Programme intertwines with principals’ work in practice. A situated perspective was used, interviewing and observing principals in both their educational and their workplace practice. In addition, teachers were interviewed at their school. This study revealed processes of continuous learning, which connects practice to what was learned in the Principal Programme. These processes mend and bridge old practices with new practices and therefore facilitate change. The principal also becomes a broker, rendering legitimacy in practice. The analyses, however, also reveal processes of interrupted learning, which disconnects working in practice from the participation in the Principals’ Programme, leading to discontinuous processes and exits. Increasing consciousness of the value of working with bridging and brokering would support principals’ professional learning and function as a foundation for leadership development.

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“…The focus is set on the special group of resilient schools that successfully compensate for the socioeconomic disadvantage of their students. In comparing successful and failing schools, theoretical understandings of the mechanism behind school success can be developed (Jarl et al 2017). Following this line of reasoning, this study defines and compares different groups of schools, one of which is a group of resilient schools.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Does the material well-being at schools successfully compensate for socioeconomic disadvantages? Analysis of resilient schools in Sweden

Siebecke

Jarl

2022

Large-scale Assess Educ

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Background A variety of studies point to a deterioration of educational equity in Sweden and increasing school segregation with respect to achievement and socioeconomic composition. Some schools are resilient to socioeconomic disadvantages in their student body and demonstrate high levels of achievement. However, little attention has been given to these resilient schools. Material well-being, as one important dimension of student well-being, comprises the student’s home background and school resources. The relationship between home background and achievement is well-established but less literature includes school-level factors of material well-being. In comparing the material well-being at resilient, non-resilient, and more advantaged schools, this study aims at detecting possible patterns that may provide crucial information as to why some schools succeed better in compensating for disadvantages. Methods Using Swedish data from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) from 2000 to 2018, the shares of resilient, non-resilient, and more advantaged school groups with different achievement levels were identified by using aggregated achievement and socioeconomic background measures. Making use of a well-being framework specifically designed for PISA data, the school groups were compared regarding their material well-being as measured by the perceived shortage of material resources and teachers, the percentage of teachers fully certified, the availability of computers, and extracurricular activities. This comparison of school groups was computed using the nonparametric Kruskal-Wallis test and a Bonferroni-adjusted pairwise comparison. Results The shares of resilient schools decreased considerably from 14% in 2000 to 3% in 2015. Yet, the comparison of the material well-being at resilient and other school groups led to mostly non-significant results. Overall, disadvantaged schools reported higher teacher shortages than advantaged schools, which indicates the need for a more compensatory allocation of (human) resources. Conclusions The study concluded that the landscape of resilient schools is under continuous change. As no patterns of significant differences between resilient and other school groups were found, the study shows no indication that the material well-being at school compensates for disadvantages in a school’s student body. The findings call for further research regarding changes in the presence of resilient schools and their possible relationship with school material well-being.

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Success or failure? Presenting a case selection strategy for studies of school improvement

Cited by 12 publications

References 27 publications

Organizational characteristics of successful and failing schools: a theoretical framework for explaining variation in student achievement

Organizational characteristics of successful and failing schools: a theoretical framework for explaining variation in student achievement

Participation in the Swedish national principal training programme: How does it intertwine with principals’ practice?

Does the material well-being at schools successfully compensate for socioeconomic disadvantages? Analysis of resilient schools in Sweden

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