Comparing Schools Essay

This distinguish card provides advice on the assembly and reporting of breeding astir(predicate) the death penaltys of Australian initiates. The focus is on the collection of nation on the wholey alike(p) selective discipline. Two purposes ar envisaged social occasion by nurture authorities and g everyplacenments to monitor lizard naturalize death penaltys and, in particular, to mention domesticatedayss that be performing unco hale or unusu eithery mischievously minded(p) their circumstances and character by p arnts/cargongivers and the unexclusive to wanton informed judgements almost, and meaningful comparisons of, enlightens and their offerings.Our advice is based on a review of late(a) Australian and inter study look into and experience in reporting on the performances of rails. This is an area of groomingal practice in which at that place baffle been m any recent break upments, much debate and a out harvest-time body of pertinent research. Ou r work is framed by recent agreements of the Council of Australian Governments (COAG), in particular, at its meeting on 29 November 2008C OAG agree that the new Australian Curriculum, Assessment and coverage dresser will be supplied with the entropy necessary to enable it to publish relevant, studyly- parallel entropy on all develops to control accountability, coach evaluation, collaborative policy using and resource allocation. The Authority will provide the reality with randomness on distributively check in Australia that includes entropy on severally tames performance, including subject testing results and school attainment rate,the indicators relevant to the postulate of the learner company and the schools capacity including the numbers and qualifications of its teaching module and its resources. The matter of this discipline will allow comparison of like schools (that is, schools with similar disciple populations crosswise the nation) and comparison of a school with new(prenominal) schools in their topical anaesthetic community. (COAG Meeting Outcomes) Our work overly has been framed by the recently endorsed MCEETYA Principles for inform entropy on railing (see Section 1. 4).Before summarising our specific recommendations, there are roughly general conclusions that we perk up reached from our review of inter subject field research and experience. The specific recommendations that follow are best chthonianstood in the context of use of these general conclusions Vigilance is essential to checker that across the nation like selective tuition on soulistic schools does non entertain the unintended consequence of foc utilize attention on more or less aspects of the purposes of learning at the expense of other outcomes that are as most-valuable but not as hale measurable.Parents/caregivers and the worldly concern are interested in a long feed of nurture about schools, and across the nation same data s hould be inform in the context of this broader education. Although it has become popular in education dodgings in some other parts of the world to use statistical models to develop measures of school performance and to report these measures publicly in league tables, we retrieve that there are very v reportage and analyse prepare Performances sound technical and educational reasons why school measures of this kind should not be utilise for public reporting and school comparisons. Related to this point, we are not convinced of the pry of reporting adjusted measures of learner outcomes publicly. Measures of savant outcomes should be report without adjustment. To enable the comparison of unadjusted schoolchild outcomes across schools, we believe that a like-schools methodology should be used. This methodology would allow parents/caregivers, the public, and education frames to analyse outcomes for schools in similar circumstances. While point-in-time measures of s avant outcomes often are efficacious, it is difficult to establish the contributions that teachers and schools make to point-in-time outcomes. In general, measures of student gain/ gain across the days of school provide a more useful basis for making judgements about the value that schools are adding. Measures of gain/ harvest-festival are most appropriately based on measurement scales that good deal be used to monitor student progress across the stratums of school. The NAPLAN measurement scales are an example and provide educational data passkey to that in stock(predicate) in most other countries.Consideration should be given to developing national measurement scales for early literacy learning and in some subjects of the national curriculum. Initially reporting should build on the understandings that parents and the public have already highly- current. For example a schools NAPLAN results should be describe in forms that are consistent with current NAPLAN reports for stu dents. Although much work postulate to be done in defining the most appropriate measures, the normal should be to build on the representations of data that are already acquainted(predicate) to people.RecommendationsOur report makes the following specific recommendations student outcome measures across the country alike(p) to(predicate) data should be serene on the literacy and numeracy skills of students in each school, using NAPLAN (Years 3, 5, 7 and 9). subjectly comparable data should be collected on the tertiary entrance results of students in each senior secondary school. These data could be reported as the region of students achieving tertiary entrance ranks of 60 or above, 70 or above, 80 or above, and 90 or above (calculated as a contribution of the students achieving tertiary entrance ranks). Nationally comparable data should be collected on the percentage of students in each senior secondary school complementary Year 12 or equivalent the percentage of students applying to all forms of post-school education and the percentage of students completing VET studies. vi reporting and compare School Performances Nationally comparable data should be collected on the achievements of students in core national curriculum subjects (English, mathematics, science and history), beginning in 2010. National assessments could be developed initially at Year 10. Nationally comparable data should be collected on the early literacy learning of children in each primary school. These assessments will need to be developed and should be administered upon entry to school and used as a baseline for monitoring progress across the first few course of studys of school. somatic and human resources Nationally comparable data should be collected about sources and amounts of patronage received by each school, including all income to the school from State and Commonwealth governments, as well as exposit of fees payable by parents, including those that are mandatory and any voluntary levies that parents are pass judgment to pay. Nationally comparable data should be collected on the numbers and qualifications of teaching staff in each school. Basic data would include academic qualifications, details of pre-service teacher education, and details of any advanced certification (eg, Advanced Skills Teacher Level 3 Teacher). student in incur characteristics Nationally comparable data should be collected on the socio-economic cathode-ray oscilloscopes of students in each school.Data should be based on information collected at the single student train, using at least parental occupation and, possibly, parental education levels, under the concord MCEETYA translations. Nationally comparable data should be collected on the percentage of students in each school of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait islander background under the concur MCEETYA definition. Nationally comparable data should be collected on the percentage of students in each school pl ace as having a language background other than English (LBOTE) under the hold MCEETYA definition. Nationally comparable data should be collected on the geo-location of each school using a 3-category scale metropolitan, provincial, and remote. Nationally comparable data should be collected on the percentage of students in each school with peculiar(prenominal) educational needs. A across the nation concord definition of this category will need to be developed. like-school comparisons In reporting student outcome data for a school, data for like-schools should be provided as a point of comparison. Like-schools will be schools in similar circumstances and approach similar challenges. In determining like-schools, account should be codn of the percentage of students with Indigenous backgrounds, the socio-economic backgrounds of the students in the school, and the percentage of students from language backgrounds other than English. vii Reporting and equivalence School Performances For each school separately, like-schools should be identified as the schools most similar to that school on the above characteristics (rather than pre-defining a restrain number of like-school categories). Work should commence as soon as attainable on the development of an appropriate like-schools methodology. public reporting For the purpose of providing public information about schools, a common national website should be used to provide parents/caregivers and the public with access to rich information about several(prenominal) schools. The national website should provide information about each schools programs, philosophies, values and purposes, provided by the school itself, as well as across the nation comparable data, provided centrally. Nationally comparable student outcome data should, wherever possible, provide information about current levels of attainment (ie, status), gain/growth across the years of school, and melioration in a school over time. The complete d atabase for each state/territory should be made available to the relevant state/territory departments of education and other employing authorities, enabling them to wonder data for their schools and to make judgments about school performances using aggregated data and national summary statistics. We believe that almost all nationally comparable data collected centrally could be reported publicly.The exceptions would arise when the public reporting of data whitethorn have negative and unintended consequences for schools. For example, we flush toilet envisage negative consequences arising from the reporting of the socio-economic backgrounds of students in a school, or of the monetary circumstances of struggling, small schools (both government and non-government). We also believe that data reported publicly should be factual data about a school, and not the results of secondary analyses and interpretations that are open to debate (eg, value-added measures).viii Reporting and exami ne School Performances 1. INTRODUCTION In education, good decision making is facilitated by access to relevant, reliable and timely information. Dependable information is studyd at all levels of educational decision making to point areas of deficiency and special need, to monitor progress towards goals, to evaluate the intensity of special interventions and initiatives, and to make decisions in the best interests of individual learners.The focus of this paper is on the supplying and use of information about individual schools. The starting point is the observation that relevant and reliable information about schools is haved by a shake off of decision makers including parents and caregivers, school principals and school leadinghip teams, system managers and governments, and the general public all of whom require honest information that they tin can use to tap opportunities and outcomes for students.1. 1 Audiences and Purposes Parents and caregivers require valid and reliable information to evaluate the musical note of the education their children are receiving, to make informed decisions in the best interests of individual students, and to become active partners in their childrens learning. They require dependable information about the progress individuals have made (the knowledge, skills and understandings developed through instruction), about teachers plans for future learning, and about what they can do to assist.There is also huge induction that parents and caregivers want information about how their children are performing in comparison with other children of the same age. And, if they are to make judgements about the eccentric of the education their children are receiving, they require information that enables meaningful comparisons across schools. School leaders require reliable information on student and school performances for effective school management.Research into factors underpinning school effectiveness highlights the importance of the school leaders role in establishing an environment in which student learning is accorded a central focus, and goals for betterd performance are developed collaboratively by staff with a commitment to achieving them. School managers require dependable pictures of how well students in a school are performing, both with reckon to school goals for improvement and with respect to past achievements and achievements in other, comparable schools.Governments and system managers require dependable information on the performance and progress of individual schools if they are to exercise their responsibilities for the delivery of type education to all students. utile management depends on an ability to monitor system-wide and school performances over time, to evaluate the effectiveness of special programs and targeted resource allocations, to monitor the impact of policies, and to evaluate the winner of initiatives aimed at traditionally disadvantaged and underachieving sections of the student population.Accurate, reliable information allows system managers to measure progress against past performances, to identify schools and issues requiring special attention, to target resources appropriately, and to trim goals for future improvement. 1 Reporting and Comparing School Performances 1. 2 Forms of breeding Because there are multiple audiences and purposes for information about schools, the forms of information required for effective decision making are divers(prenominal) for different stakeholders.Parents and caregivers require a wide range of information, including information relating to their immediate needs (eg, Is the school easily accessible by public transport? Does it have an after-school(prenominal) program? What fees and/or levies does it charge? ) the ethos of the school (eg, What evidence is there of bully/harassment? What are the espoused values of the school? Do students wear uniforms? What level of discipline is imposed? Who is th e principal? ) their childs belike educational experience (eg, Who will be my childs teacher conterminous year? Will they be in a composite clan?How epic will the class be? Does the school have a literacy intervention program? What extra-curricular activities are provided? ) and the schools educational results (eg, Does the school achieve outstanding Year 12 results? ). School leaders require other forms of information, including information relating to staffing and resources (eg, What resources are available for music next year?How umpteen beginning children have special learning needs? ) the effectiveness of initiatives (eg, Is there any evidence that the extra class time allocated to literacy this year made a difference?) and academic results (eg, How many Year 5 students did not meet the minimum performance standard in read?Have our results improved since last year? Are we still infra the state average? How did last years Year 12 results compare with those of the neighbou ring school? ). System managers and governments require still other forms of information, including information to monitor system-wide trends over time, to evaluate the effectiveness of attempts to raise standards and close gaps, and to identify schools that are performing unusually well or unusually poorly given their circumstances.In general, the schoollevel information required by system managers and governments is slight fine-grained than the information required by parents, teachers and school leaders. frame of reference 1 displays schematically dissimilar forms of information that could be made available about a school, either publicly or to specific audiences (eg, system managers). The forms of evidence represented in Figure 1 are A student outcome measures that a school could shoot to report Most schools report a wide range of information about the achievements of their students to their school communities.This information is reported in school newsletters, topical anes thetic and community newspapers, school websites, and at school events. The information includes details of Year 12 results, analyses of postschool destinations, results in national mathematics and science competitions, language certificates, awards, prizes, extra-curricular achievements, community recognition, and so on. Most schools take every opportunity to celebrate the achievements of their students and to announce these achievements publicly. 2 Reporting and Comparing School Performances Figure 1.Forms of information that could be made available about a school Ba sub- stigmatize of student outcome measures on which it is agreed to collect nationally comparable data Within the correct of student outcome information that great power be reported for a school, there could be a sub-set of outcomes on which it was agreed to collect nationally comparable data.A reason for identifying such a sub-set would be to match some common measures to facilitate school comparisons within a l ocal geographical area, across an entire education system, nationally, or within a group of like schools. Inevitably, nationally comparable data would be collected for only some of the outcomes that schools, parents and communities value.Performances on common literacy and numeracy tests in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 are an example of nationally comparable data soon in this category. C. somatogenic and human resources measures that a school could choose to report Schools provide information in various forms and to various audiences about their bodily and human resources. Information of this kind includes details of staff qualifications and teaching experience, staff turnover rates, school global budgets, computers and other technology, newly constructed facilities, bequests, results of fundraising drives, and so on. roughly of this information may be reported to the school community some may be kept confidential to the school, education system or government departments. D a sub-set of physical and human resources measures on which it is agreed to collect nationally comparable data Within the set of physical and human resources measures reported for a school, there could be a sub-set of measures on which it was agreed to collect nationally comparable data.For example, there have been recent calls for greater consistency and transparency in the reporting of school funding arrangements (Dowling, 2007 2008) and for more consistent national approaches to assessing and recognising teacher quality (Dinham, et al, 2008). 3 Reporting and Comparing School Performances E. student inlet measures that a school could choose to report Most schools have considerable information about their students. For example, they may have information about students language backgrounds, Indigenous status, socio-economic backgrounds, learning difficulties and disabilities.This information usually is reported only within education systems or to governments and is not reported publicly, althou gh schools sometimes provide information to their communities about the range of languages speak by students in the school, the countries from which they come, the percentage of Indigenous students in the school and the schools special Indigenous programs, or the number of severely disenable students and the facilities and support provided for these students. F a sub-set of student intake measures on which it is agreed to collect nationally comparable data.Within the set of student intake characteristics reported for a school, there could be a sub-set of measures on which it was agreed to collect nationally comparable data. Some progress has been made toward nationally consistent definitions and nationally consistent data collections on student background characteristics. G. all other information that a school could choose to make available Beyond information about student outcomes, student backgrounds and their physical and human resources, schools provide a range of other inform ation to the communities they serve. 1.3 Nationally Comparable Data Acknowledging the many purposes and audiences for information about schools, and the various forms that this information can take, the specific focus of this paper is on the collection and reporting of nationally comparable data for the purposes of evaluating and comparing school performances. In other words, the focus is on categories B, D and F in Figure 1. We envisage three broad uses of such data use by parents and caregivers in judging the quality of educational provision and in making informed decisions in the best interests of individual students use by school leaders in monitoring a schools improvement and benchmarking the schools performance against other, comparable schools and use by education systems and governments in identifying schools that are performing unusually well or unusually poorly given their circumstances. As noted above, these three stakeholder groups are likely to have different needs. T he looks in which nationally comparable data are analysed, combined and reported may be different for different purposes.We see the process of reaching agreement on the core data that should be available about a school as a national collaborative process, and see little value in arriving at different conclusions about these data for different parts of the country. 4 Reporting and Comparing School Performances 1. 4 Principles for Reporting The Principles for Reporting Information on Schooling (see pages 6-7) adopted by the Ministerial Council for Education, Employment, Training and jejuneness personal matters (MCCETYA) provide an important point of reference for any proposed collection and use of nationally comparable data on schools.These principles recognise the multiple audiences and purposes for information about schools, the need to collect broad evidence about student and school performances, and the desirability of monitoring intended and unintended consequences of reportin g information on schools. Australian governments have undertaken to ensure that data provided for the purposes of comparing schools are reliable and fair and take into account the contexts in which schools work.Governments also have undertaken not to develop simplistic league tables of school performances. 1. 5 organise of Paper This paper first considers the kinds of nationally comparable data that might be collected about schools for the purposes outlined above. We draw on national and internationalistic research and experience, attempt to anticipate the likely requirements of different audiences, and take into account what measures currently exist and what additional measures might be suitable in the future.Each of the three data categories in Figure 1 is considered in turn student outcome measures physical and human resources measures student intake measures (sections 2-3) (section 4) (section 5) We then consider alternative ways of evaluating and comparing school performan ces. Two broad methodologies are discussed the direct comparison of student outcomes the spin of measures of school performance (section 6) (section 7) Finally, we consider issues in reporting publicly on the performances of schools audiences and purposes for reporting options for public reporting on schools (section 8) (section 9) 5 Reporting and Comparing School Performances MCEETYA PRINCIPLES FOR REPORTING INFORMATION ON cultivation There is a vast amount of information on Australian schooling and individual schools. This includes information about the educational approach of schools, their enrolment profile, staffing, facilities and programs, and the education environment they offer, as well as information on the performance of students, schools and systems. opposite groups, including schools and their students, parents and families, the community and governments, have different information needs. The following principles provide direction on requirements for information on schooling, including the types of information that should be made pronto available to each of the groups noted above. These principles will be supported by an agreed set of national protocols on the access to and use of information on schooling. Good quality information on schooling is important FOR SCHOOLS AND THEIR scholarS.Principle 1 Schools need reliable, rich data on the performance of their students because they have the primary accountability for improving student outcomes. Good quality data supports each school to improve outcomes for all of their students. It supports effective diagnosis of student progress and the design of quality learning programs. It also informs schools approaches to provision of programs, school policies, pursuit and allocation of resources, relationships with parents and partnerships with community and business.Schools should have access to schoolwide data on the performance of their own students that uses a broad set of indicators Data that e nables each school to compare its own performance against all schools and with schools of similar characteristics Data demonstrating improvements of the school over time Data enabling the school to benchmark its own performance against that of the bestperforming schools in their jurisdiction and nationally FOR PARENTS AND FAMILIES.Principle 2 Information about schooling, including data on the performance of individuals, schools and systems, helps parents and families to make informed choices and to engage with their childrens education and the school community.Parents and families should have access to Information about the school of thought and educational approach of schools, and their staffing, facilities, programs and extra-curricular activities that enables parents and families to compare the education environment offered by schools Information about a schools enrolment profile, taking care not to use data on student 1 characteristics in a way that may stigmatise schoo ls or undermine social inclusion. Data on student outcomes that enables them to monitor the individual performance of their child, including what their child knows and is able to do and how this relates to what is expected for their age group, and how they can contribute to their childs progress Information that allows them to assess a schools performance overall and in improving student outcomes, including in relation to other schools with similar characteristics in their jurisdiction and nationally.1 Any use or publication of information relating to a schools enrolment profile should ensure that the secrecy of individual students is protected. For example, where the small size of a school population or of a specific student cohort may enable appointment of individual students, publication of this information should be avoided. 6 Reporting and Comparing School Performances FOR THE COMMUNITY.Principle 3 The community should have access to information that enables an understanding of the decisions taken by governments and the status and performance of schooling in Australia, to ensure schools are accountable for the results they achieve with the public funding they receive, and governments are accountable for the decisions they take. Students are an important part of our society and take up a variety of roles within it after leaving school. The community is thence a direct and indirect consumer of the product of our schools, as well as providing the means of public funding.Information about schools in the public cosmos fulfils the requirement that schools be accountable for the results they achieve with the public funding they receive, including copulation to other like schools it should also give the community a broad picture of school performance and a sense of confidence in our school systems. The community should have access to Information about the philosophy and educational approach of schools, and their staffing, facilities, programs and extra-cur ricular activities that enables the community to compare the education environment offered by schools. Information about individual schools enrolment profile, taking care not to use data on student characteristics in a way that may stigmatise schools or undermine social inclusion National reporting on the performance of all schools with data that allows them to view a schools performance overall and in improving student outcomes, including in relation to other schools with similar characteristics RESPONSIBLE PROVISION OF SCHOOLING INFORMATION Australian Governments will ensure that school-based information is published responsibly so that any public comparisons of schools will be fair, contain completed and verified data, contextual information and a range of indicators to provide a more reliable and complete view of performance (for example, information on income, student body characteristics, the spread of student outcomes and information on the value added by schools) governme nts will not devise simplistic league tables or rankings and will put in place strategies to manage the risk that one-third parties may seek to produce such tables or rankings, and will ensure that privacy will be protected. reports providing information on schooling for parents and families and the community will be developed based on research on what these groups want to know and the most effective ways the information can be presented and communicated. FOR GOVERNMENTS Principle 4 Governments need sound information on school performance to support ongoing improvement for students, schools and systems. Government also need to monitor and evaluate the impacts (intended and unintended) of the use and release of this information to improve its application over time.Good quality information on schooling enables governments to analyse how well schools are performing identify schools with particular needs determine where resources are most needed to lift attainment identify best pra ctice and innovation in high-performing schools that can be mainstreamed and used to support improvements in schools with poorer performance conduct national and international comparisons of approaches and performance develop a substantive evidence base on what works.This will enable future improvements in school performance that support the achievement of the agreed education outcomes of both the Ministerial Council for Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs and the Council of Australian Governments. 7 Reporting and Comparing School Performances 2. STUDENT OUTCOMES Information about the outcomes of a schools efforts is key information for parents and caregivers if they are to judge the quality of educational provision for school leaders to monitor a schools performance and improvement and for education systems and governments to identify schools in need of additional support.However, schools work to promote many different kinds of outcomes for their students. For some schools, an important objective is to improve school attention rates. For others, assisting students to make successful transitions into the workforce is a high priority. Some schools are more focused than others on supporting the social, spiritual and emotional development of students. Still others measure their success in terms of entry rates into highly sought-after university courses. Decisions about the outcomes to be reported publicly for schools are important because they influence judgements about how well individual schools are performing.This is specially true when education systems and governments attempt to construct measures of school performance wayward incentives can arise when the school performance measure has both a large impact upon actors and focuses on an aspect of schooling that does not reflect the true or overall purpose and objectives of schools. Unfortunately, this can be common in school performance measures if the performance measure is too narrowly de fined. (OECD, 2008, 26).