Growing sustainable rural schools in South Africa - PowerPoint Presentation

Slide1

Growing sustainable rural schools in South Africa

UKFIET Sept 2015Craig PaxtonSlide2

The Five Essential Supports

- Bryk et al. (2010) & Sebring (2013)Slide3

Five essential supports

Ambitious instruction

(classes are challenging and engaging)

Learning climate

(the school is safe, demanding and supportive)

Instructional leadership

(the principal works with teachers to promote professional growth and school success)

Professional capacity

(teachers collaborate to promote professional growth and school success)

Family and community ties

(the entire staff involves families and communities to advance student learning) -

http://ccsr.uchicago.edu/surveysSlide4

South African ContextSlide5

Rural Eastern Cape

Indicator

South Africa

Rural EC

Unemployment rate

29.8%

80.0%

HIV rate

29.5%

29.0%

Average income (per person per day)

USD7.56

USD2.68

Secondary level education

40.7%

11.0%

Bachelor’s Pass Rate with

maths

and science (2013)

15%*

2%Slide6

Aims

To test the applicability of the Five Essential Supports in a rural, developing country context.

I

n particular:

Internal coherence of the measures

Connections

to improvement

Systemic

nature

Essentiality

Additional factorsSlide7

Aims

To test the applicability of the Five Essential Supports in a rural, developing country context.

I

n particular:

Internal coherence of the measures

Connections

to improvement

Systemic nature

Essentiality

Additional factorsSlide8

The 5Es: Systemic & Essential

Slide9

The 5Es: Systemic & Essential

Slide10

Additional factors:

Systemic Material Support Slide11

Additional factors

: Structuralclass size and languageSlide12

Additional factors

: rural resourcesSlide13

Additional factors

: Rural space, place and timeSlide14

Eastern Cape ‘Pilot’

25 schools – 5 senior, 20 junior secondary

Surveys of students, teachers and principals (one year only)

Compared with performance on national tests 2009-2013 at Grade 9 and Grade 12 levels

Observation

s at each school, mainly for triangulation

Case study f

ollow

up at select sites with select teachers and school leadersSlide15

Connections to performance

(Core: High Performing Maths)Slide16

Connections to performance

(Core: Low performing Maths)Slide17

Connections to performance

(From Bryk et al.)Slide18

Connections to performance

(All: High performing Maths)Slide19

Connections to performance

(All: Low performing Maths)Slide20

Connections to performance

(From Bryk et al.)Slide21

Systemic nature

(Maths performance)Slide22

Systemic nature

(English performance)Slide23

System of supports

(From Bryk et al.)Slide24

Additional factors

(High Performing Maths)Slide25

Additional factors

– Summary

Overall: less compelling evidence than organisational factors, with some exceptions:

Class size:

Strong schools (low class size) f

our times more likely to be High-P maths than weak schools (high class size)

Five times more likely to be High-P English

Language use:

Schools where students and teachers preferred not to use English were between three and five times more likely to be low performing in maths and English

Electricity in the home:

Schools that had a high proportion of students with electricity at home were 2-3 times more likely to be high performing in maths and English

Schools with low prop. extremely likely to be low performing in EnglishSlide26

Some limitations

A small number of schools

A relatively homogenous sample in the broader context of SA

Improvement vs performance

Issues with school performance data for younger gradesSlide27

Some promise, but…

Framework transfer – a seamless process?

Annual National Assessments – purposes and politics

Sustainability = building strength in the 5Es, but can we get the hut off the ground?Slide28

Acknowledgements

University of Cape Town - School of Education

- Prof. Pam Christie

- Dr. Heather

Jacklin

The

Sasol

Inzalo

Foundation

Slide29

References

Balfour, R.J. 2008. Troubling Contexts: Toward a Generative Theory of Rurality as Education Research.

Journal of rural and community development.

3(3):100.

Bloch

, G. 2008.

Fixing education is a 30-year task.

[Online]. Available:

http://www.iol.co.za/news/south-africa/fixing-education-is-a-30-year-task-1.392870?ot=inmsa.ArticlePrintPageLayout.ot

[2012, 06/29].

Bourdieu

, P. 1977.

Outline of a Theory of Practice.

Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Bryk

, A.S. 2010. Organizing schools for improvement.

Phi delta

kappan

.

91(7):23.

Fleisch

, B. 2008.

Primary education in crisis: Why South African schoolchildren underachieve in

reading

and mathematics.

Heneveld

, W. 1996.

Schools count.

World Bank.

Langhan

, D, with

Kariem

, N, and

Velensky

, K. 2012. Under-performing schools need district

officials

who can enable them to meaningfully

fulfil

policy expectations.

Sebring

, P. 2013.

The Five Essential Supports for School Improvement,

Conference Presentation, International Congress of School Effectiveness and

Improvement

Statistics

South Africa. 2012. Census 2011 Statistical Release.

Zithulele

Birth Follow Up Study (forthcoming)

http

://www.avert.org/south-africa-hiv-aids-statistics.htm

http

://www.sahistory.org.za/topic/names-provinces-and-their-capital-cities-mapSlide30

Problem Statement

‘Half of all black learners drop out. By any measure, 60-80% of our schools are dysfunctional, achieving poor education outcomes. It is largely black, rural and poor learners who suffer.’

– Graeme Bloch, South African Educationalist

(2008)Slide31

Problem Statement (II)

The failings of the South African education system are well documented. This study, however, examines the less explored questions of ‘

why

’ and ‘

how’

, particularly in reference to

comparatively under-researched rural schools

.Slide32

South African ContextSlide33

Research Question

Why is improvement so challenging in rural schools in the Eastern Cape, and, in cases where there is evidence of improvement, how does this improvement occur?Slide34
Slide35

Low Magnification –

Organisational

Level

High Magnification – Individual LevelSlide36

Location of study

School effectiveness

School improvementSlide37

Contextual factors

Community context

rural resources

deep disadvantage (

Bryk

et al, 2010)

constraints of space, place and time (

Balfour, Mitchell and

Moletsane

, 2008)

Structural factors

class size

language (

Fleisch

, 2008)

System factorsMaterial support – learning materials, professional development, adequate facilities (

Heneveld & Craig, 1996)Distraction (

Langhan, 2012)Slide38
Slide39

Bourdieu’s

habitus

‘systems

of durable, transposable dispositions, structured structures predisposed to function as structuring structures’ – Bourdieu (1977:72)

A way of seeing the world

Shaped by experiences and education, especially early in life

Unconsciously shapes the range of options or choices considered ‘reasonable’

Is not deterministic, but may help to explain the persistent ‘stagnation’ we see in schoolsSlide40

Conceptual FrameworkSlide41

Q1: Improvement or Stagnation?

Question 1a: What evidence is there of improvement or stagnation?

NSC, ANA results (

maths

and science focus)

Grade 9 and 12 (5 year historical)

Question 1b: How does this evidence of improvement ‘map’ onto the conceptual framework?

Comprehensive surveys of students, principals and teachers at 30 schools

Improvement data mapped against survey dataSlide42

Survey examples (T)

Questions about school-community partnerships

Question 35: Relationships with

tribal/community authority

.

How often do the following take place?

Never

Once or twice a year

Once or twice a month

Almost every week

1 Community

meetings led by local leaders

(headmen, chiefs, wardens etc.).

2 Someone from your school has consulted with local leaders about a

problem your school is facing

.

3 Someone from your household has consulted with local leaders about a

personal problem

they are facing.

 Slide43

Survey examples (P)

Questions about school-community partnerships

Question 35: Relationships with

tribal/community authority

.

How often do the following take place?

Never

Once or twice a year

Once or twice a month

Almost every week

1 Community

meetings led by local leaders

(headmen, chiefs, wardens etc.).

2 Someone from your school has consulted with local leaders about a

problem your school is facing

.

3 Someone from your household has consulted with local leaders about a

personal problem

they are facing.

 Slide44

Survey examples (S)

Questions about school-community partnerships

Question 35: Relationships with

tribal/community authority

.

How often do the following take place?

Never

Once or twice a year

Once or twice a month

Almost every week

1 Community

meetings led by local leaders

(headmen, chiefs, wardens etc.).

2 Someone from your school has consulted with local leaders about a

problem your school is facing

.

3 Someone from your household has consulted with local leaders about a

personal problem

they are facing.

 Slide45

Q2: Habitus?

Question 2a: What constitutes the predominant organisational and individual habitus?

Survey data guides and informs

Comparative case studies at three schools

Interviews and observations

Question 2b: What are the effects of the habitus?Slide46

Q3: Enablement?

Question 3a: In cases where there is evidence of improvement, what enabled this to happen?

Survey data guides and informs

Comparative case studies at three schools

Interviews and observations

Question 3b: What levers could be used by policymakers and change agents to promote this ‘enabling’ to happen in individuals and schools?Slide47

Early ‘results’