To consider the concept of ‘’Capacity Building” as a critical lever for achieving high levels of academic performance has become commonplace within the education discourse. However, the meaning ascribed to the concept of capacity building is often not made explicit.

What is the contribution of a nordic capacity building strategy to the creation of coherence between the practice changes of professionals and student learning outcome? Since 2014 the Danish municipal district administrations have implemented a school reform based on inspiration from the Canadian province of Ontario (Levin, 2008), which involves clear goals, the professionalization of teachers and school leaders and knowledge-based initiatives as the way to improved student outcomes. An effort that overall can be characterized as Capacity Building.(Fullan, 2014) The concept of capacity building refers to the capability of the individual or organization to develop professional practices and involves the organizational development of knowledge, skills, and mutual commitment. (Hargreaves & Fullan, 2012)

Internationally the research iscontinuously in the field of capacity building and learning outcomes. Studies show that students' learning outcomes increased if there is consistency between the central level and school stakeholders. Consensus and communicating clear goals and strategies at all levels and expectations of professional abilities is crucial to student learning outcomes. (Anderson, Steffen, Wiese, & King, 2014) Studies indicate that school leaders and teachers must have access to competence development and professional learning communities, focusing on strengthening their capacity to achieve common goals (Mulford, Silins, & Leithwood, 2004). The international studies also show the concept of accountability as essential to high performing school systems and thus the student learning outcomes. (Hargreaves & Fullan, 2012) Several studies with similar findings argue the concept of accountability as a common profession responsibility and a sustained focus on students and teachers learning. (Cosner, 2009; Cosner & Jones, 2016; Fullan & Quinn, 2016; Olivier & Hipp, 2006)

In other words, capacity building is an approach that develops a culture that supports the activities and processes that improve individuals, organizations, communities and society's ability to realize improvements in changeable conditions (Fullan & Quinn, 2016) and the questions and critical reflection on practice at all levels encourages knowledge sharing and learning. Capacity building thus has a clear focus on improvement. (Stringer, 2013)

In Denmark, the municipal district administrations acknowledge the need to build school capacity of the system, including both school leadership, school and teacher/educator level. District administrations are seeking relevant educational research that will assist in prioritization the capacity-building efforts, so school leaders and teachers can develop the school's educational practice effectively.

The study is a single-case, mixed method study (Cohen, Manion, & Morrison, 2011) in a Danish municipal school system. It is based on analyses of policy documents, quantitative data from “Program for Learning Leadership – Evidence-Informed, Achievement-Oriented Development of Schools and Professional Competencies” and focus group interviews with district administration, school leaders and teachers. The primary material for this presentation is focus group interviews, as they can generate large amounts of data in a short time span and at the same time generate data based on the interaction of the group interaction.(Cohen et al., 2011) The operative constructivism of German sociologist Niklas Luhmann forms the methodological basis of this study and provides an analysis of several interrelated organizational systems. Radical Hermeneutics (Rasmussen, 2005), as developed by Jens Rasmussen based on Luhmann’s epistemological position operative constructivism, guide the analysis. The analysis draws on four selected and constructed analytical themes; goal orientation, knowledge-informed collaborative cultures, accountability, learning.

A preliminary analysis of the material emphasizes the importance of a discussion of the concept of Nordic Capacity Building within the Danish compulsory school and the consequences thereof. The concept of capacity building refers to the capability of the individual or organization to develop professional practices and involves the organizational development of knowledge, skills, and mutual commitment. In the Danish compulsory school, the concept of capacity building is interpreted differently according to perspective. However, the defined autonomy imposes even higher demands on both teachers, school leaders’ and district administrations professionalism when the autonomy becomes increasingly defined.

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