Session Information
32 SES 14 A, Enacting Policies: How Does Leadership Influence Student Learning in Distinguished Contexts
Symposium
Contribution
The Austrian school system has historically been a two-tier model, which verifiably generated educational injustice and lead to a high level of educational inheritance. The lack of educational mobility and equity due to structural barriers, a high degree of parent choice and selective deep structures in Austria’s public school system has been well established (OECD, 2014; Böheim-Galehr & Engleitner, 2014; Bruneforth et al., 2012). Both, national and regional governments have started counteracting this educational inheritance by experimenting with systemic approaches including system leadership. As a result, a new understanding of school leadership is emerging, which will form the focus of this paper. To prototype a more comprehensive lower secondary school system, a model region was launched by the provincial government of Tyrol (“Modellregion Bildung Zillertal”) in autumn 2014, which focuses on the development of the mid-level school leadership (provincial district level) with both strong awareness of the contextualisation of the different schools, their history, identity and culture and the local context in which the individual school is embedded and the transformational nature of the process. In order to make effective and sustainable leadership decisions for positive school and regional development, fundamental principles and a solid knowledge base have to be established. Such principles should include awareness of contextual variables (Ball et al., 2012) that shape the teaching environment and therefor enhance student learning. Additionally, leaders should be aware of the school’s traditions and identity: parents and students attracted to the school, the resources (staffing, buildings, budget, technology and infrastructure) and the professional culture (values, teacher commitments etc.). Further, new awareness of and openness to stakeholders poses a challenge. This paper presents how the interplay of organizational practices coincide with contextual variables by using Ball’s and Leithwood’s contextual dimensions (Ball et al., 2012; 21; Leithwood et al., 2004, 10) as a theoretical framework. Based on findings from the research project Modellregion Bildung Zillertal” this paper analysis the different ways of policies enacting in a quite homogeneous district.
References
Ball, S.; Maguire, M. & Braun, A. (2012). How Schools do Policy. Policy Enactment in Secondary Schools. London: Routledge. Böheim-Galehr, G. & Engleitner, J. (Hrsg.) (2014). Schule der 10- bis 14-Jährigen in Vorarlberg. Entwicklungen, Bildungshaltungen und Bildungserwartungen. Projektbericht Band 1. Innsbruck: StudienVerlag. Bruneforth, M., Weber, C. & Bacher, J. (2012). „Chancengleichheit und garantiertes Bildungsminimum in Österreich“. In: Herzog-Punzenberger, B. (Hrsg.) (2012). Nationaler Bildungsbericht 2012 Band 2. Wien: BIFIE. S. 189-227. Leithwood K.; Seashore Louis, K. & Anderson , S. (2004). Review of research. How leadership influences student learning. University of Minnesota: Center for Applied Research and Educational Improvement.
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