As Murillo pointed out (2005) “an effective school is one that achieves the integrated development of each and every one of its pupils greater than might otherwise have been expected, given their performance and the social, economic and cultural situation of the families”.

Then, three features have to be considered (Murillo, 2008):

• The added value offered by the school to its pupils, this being understood as their progress including the taking into account of previous performance and pupils’ sociocultural history.
• Equity, this being understood that improvement should be for all pupils and not merely for some group therein.
• The comprehensive development of pupils, i.e. that progress is not restricted merely to the three `R´s, but it transcends the rest of the affective and social aspects of pupils.

Given all this, what is proposed here is undertaking research on school effectiveness, taking into account, amongst others, the following aspects:

1.                                  I.      Using multilevel statistical models
2.                                II.      Carrying out longitudinal research
3.                               III.      Developing research in which quantitative and qualitative methodology is shared
4.                             IV.      Undertaking research at both compulsory stages of education and post-obligatory ones.

In this respect, and taking into consideration the proposals put forward, the research is described below.

In the Educational System in the Basque Country, all pupils have to sit an external evaluation more than once during their secondary school career. The Diagnostic Evaluation (DE) evaluates all pupils and schools in the second year at Compulsory Secondary Education (14 years). Every year they have to respond to a series of tests in mathematics, Spanish language and Basque language (besides another test which varies every few years). By means of this evaluation, each school knows their situation based on a number of absolute standards with respect to their situation previously and to other schools. With the latter, apart from making these comparisons, the socioeconomic and cultural index (ISEC) of the schools is taken into account (obtained from the situation of the families). Also, on finishing Secondary Education (18 years), those students who wish to enter university have to pass the University Entrance Test (UET). This test, besides complying with this objective of suitability for university entrance, is used as an indicator of prestige for the schools.

In this stage of the research, the specific aims put forward being as follows:

1. To analyse the stability of the effects. This involves determining if the schools are effective in a stable manner or does this effectiveness vary from one year to another. Do the schools that obtain high UET scores do so every year?
2. To analyse the relation of the ISEC and the UET scores.  Does ISEC have an influence on the scores obtained in the UET?
3. To analyse the continuity of school influences over time. In other words, do those schools obtaining high scores in the Diagnostic Evaluation also obtain high UET scores?
4. To analyse the possible differences in grades at Bachelor level and UET level between public sector schools and grant-aided private schools.

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