Module
Module 8
UNDERTAKING A NATIONAL DIAGNOSIS
ON SCHOOL SUPERVISION
Some guidelines
Introduction
Expected outcomes
Suggested methodology
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Introduction
This module is significantly different from the previous seven. It does not discuss
the supervision service as such, nor its reform, but rather proposes a framework of
how a diagnosis of that service can be undertaken.
It would be useful that such a diagnosis precede or at least accompany reform
attempts, to present the reasons for undertaking such reform and identify possible
improvements to the present situation. Even outside of a context of reform a
diagnosis can be useful, as it will allow the supervision service to identify its own
strengths and weaknesses. Its intended public could therefore include a variety of
groups: decision-makers; managers of supervision services; supervisory actors
themselves and officials involved in related quality monitoring services.
The diagnosis, which will be discussed here, focuses on school supervision as an
institution. In other words, two alternative approaches have not been covered:
this is not a financial audit and no attempt is made to propose a costeffectiveness analysis;
nor is this a sociological or socio-political evaluation of the role of this
service and of its relationship with the wider social, political and
economic context.
These guidelines are based on those that were used by national teams in several
Asian, African and Latin American countries to prepare their own diagnosis on
school supervision as part of an international IIEP co-ordinated research
programme. It is not the modules intention to present a complete and final
framework, as contexts and realities can differ widely. Its purpose is to offer fairly
detailed guidelines on the themes to be covered and some hints on the
methodology.
Expected outcomes
At the end of this module, the reader should be able to
present a detailed outline for a national diagnosis of the school
supervision system;
prepare a proposal on how to carry out such a diagnosis; and
co-ordinate a research team undertaking such a diagnosis.
Task 1
Draw up a list of those services that, according to the above definition, qualify as supervision
services and will need to be included in the diagnosis.
Background
This section explains the objectives of this diagnosis, who took the initiative for its
preparation, who was involved in it and how it was undertaken.
It also explains the definition of supervision used throughout the document.
Introduction
This introduction may be very brief. Its objective is to give some background
information about the education system that is essential for understanding the
diagnosis of the supervision structures.
In particular, it may contain concise data and comments about the following items:
(1) education structure, level of expansion, financial situation; and (2) quality
issues and improvement policies.
Chapter I
This chapter will present an overview of the supervision structures that, according
to the criteria identified above, will form the main focus of the diagnosis. A broader
perspective will be adopted though in section I.5.
1.
Historical background
A brief indication about the origin of supervision structures in the country: When
were they created? What were the main stages of their development? What were
the most recent reforms, if any?
2.
3.
In this section, more details will be given on the official functions of each of the
services presented in the previous section. Describe in particular if their functions
relate more to supervision and control or to advice. Precise job descriptions could
be added in annex, if available.
This presentation should not only list the official functions of the respective
services, but also indicate the logic in the distribution of responsibilities between
them, highlighting complementarities and possible overlaps.
4.
5.
Classical supervision services within a broader perspective: schoolsite supervision
As mentioned in several preceding modules, there has been a recent tendency in
many countries to devolve some supervision tasks to the school level in order to
make the whole monitoring process more efficient. Some of these strategies rely
on actors in school, others on the community. As examples can be given:
reinforcing the role of the headteacher, setting up school clusters, establishing a
system of master teachers, introducing mechanisms of self-evaluation by the
teachers, reinforcing community supervision, giving more responsibilities to school
management committees, etc.
This sub-section should clearly indicate to what extent this trend can be observed
in your country: present a description and analysis of the school-site control
mechanisms being introduced and, again, indicate the nature of the relationships
between these mechanisms and the classical supervision services.
1.
With regard to the personnel identified as external supervision staff in section I.2,
basic statistical data should be presented and commented upon in relation to the
following:
total numbers of professionals working in the different services;
average number of schools and/or teachers per category of supervisor;
distribution of supervisors by gender;
distribution by age;
distribution by length of service (if available);
distribution by level of education;
distribution by professional origin;
distribution by the extent of exposure to specific pre-service or in-service
training as a supervisor.
These data should be presented for the latest year available, and the relevant year
should be clearly mentioned. Whenever possible, regional breakdowns should be
provided in addition to national data.
Also indicate here whether a statistical database on supervision services exists. If
so, where is it located and which data does it contain?
2.
Critical issues
For each of the issues mentioned hereafter, the corresponding section should
present the official rules, regulations and procedures, and comment on how they
are implemented, the main problems encountered and results obtained.
(a)
Recruitment
Training
What kind of induction and in-service training activities are organized for different
categories of supervisors? How are they organized: type of programmes, duration
and resource persons? Do training programmes exist specifically for supervision
staff or are they combined with training for other categories of personnel? Who is
Professional organizations
Career development
What are the career prospects for different types of supervisors? Promotion
possibilities within the supervision services? Promotion possibilities outside?
Dismissal rules and practices?
(e)
How are supervisors themselves monitored? By whom? What are the criteria used
for evaluating them? Do performance indicators exist? What are they? How are
they applied? What role do they play in promotion? Comment on the main
problems encountered and the results obtained.
(f)
Support
3.
(a)
Salaries
Budget
Do specific budgets exist for support and supervision services? If not, through
which budgets (e.g. general administration, in-service training,) are the different
services financed? If specific budgets exist for supervision, how are they divided
between the different services, offices, regions? How much goes to salaries and
how much to other areas? On the basis of which criteria?
What about the availability of funds to cover various operational expenditures such
as travel costs, special allowances, etc.? What has been the recent evolution? Who
is managing the corresponding budgets? How are they administered?
Chapter III
Working conditions
1.
What are the working conditions in terms of: availability and quality of offices and
basic office equipment? availability of transport facilities? place of residence,
location of office?
What about the availability and quality of service staff (in particular secretaries and
clerks)?
2.
Financial conditions
(a)
Salaries
How and where are supervisors paid their salaries? Are salaries paid regularly and
on time? What about special allowances and financial incentives? Do supervisors
have any additional sources of income, either official or unofficial?
(b)
Budget
Do specific budgets exist for support and supervision services within the regional
and/or district offices? If not, through which budgets (e.g. general administration,
in-service training) are the different services financed?
If specific budgets exist for supervision, how are they divided between the different
services and officers? How much goes to salaries and how much to other areas?
On the basis of which criteria? Who manages the corresponding budgets? How are
they administered?
What about the availability of funds to cover various operational expenditures such
as travel costs or special allowances?
Chapter IV
The purpose of this chapter is for the reader to get a concrete insight in the work
supervisors actually undertake when they are in their office or visiting schools, and
the challenges they experience. It cannot therefore be based simply on official
documents, but needs to build on information collected from supervisors and
teachers in one or more regions of the country.
1.
To what extent are the activities of supervisors being planned? Who is responsible
for this planning? Do they have any weekly, monthly, quarterly or annual work
programmes? Are they being implemented?
On what basis is the work distributed between staff? On the basis of geographical
criteria (e.g. one supervisor/adviser in charge of one district), type of school,
discipline?
What are the norms and regulations defining the workload of different categories
of supervisors? Number of schools and/or teachers to be visited? Frequency of
visits? Percentage of time (e.g. per year, semester or month) to be devoted to
different activities (school visits, report writing, other administrative tasks,
organizing meetings)?
To what extent are these norms and regulations respected? How many schools are
visited, for how long and how regularly? How much time is actually being devoted
to different types of activities? What are the main problems encountered? What
has been the recent evolution? Whenever possible, quantitative information (even
partial) should be used to illustrate the diagnosis.
2.
School visits
Do there exist different types of school visits (e.g. school inspection, teacher
evaluation, visit by invitation)? What are the objectives of each type? Are such
visits undertaken by a single member of staff or by a group? How is such a group
constituted?
How regularly can supervision staff visit schools? How many times per year are
teachers supervised, inspected, assisted? Whenever possible, quantitative
information (even partial) should be used to illustrate the diagnosis. On the basis
of which criteria are schools chosen for visits? Officially and in practice?
Are school visits announced in advance? Are schools / teachers informed of the
visits nature and objectives? How is such a visit prepared? Are objectives clearly
defined? Are previous reports by different staff consulted?
How long does such a school visit last? Who takes part in it? What precisely does
such a school visit entail? How much time is spent on class visits, on discussions
with the headteacher, the teachers, the parents, community organizations, the
students, on perusing official school documents? Which data are collected during
school visits?
3.
Reporting
Which reports have to be officially written after school visits and which reports are
actually written? What are the objectives of the different reports (e.g. propagation
of good practice, sanctioning of teachers, informing higher levels)? What type of
recommendations are made?
Are reports elaborated according to a standardized format?
With whom are they discussed before their finalization (teachers, headteacher,
parents, other education officials)? What influence do such discussions have on
the reports final version?
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How many official copies are made of each report? To whom are they addressed
and disseminated?
4.
Chapter V
Overall assessment
This concluding section should present a general appreciation of the way in which
supervision services function, the role they play in monitoring the quality of
schools, the challenges they encounter and any innovations or reforms taking
place. It could therefore consist of three parts:
1.
This chapter will offer an evaluation of the role supervision structures play in
monitoring and improving the functioning and quality of schools. It should aim at
reflecting the point of view of both supervisory staff and teaching staff
(headteachers and/or teachers).
Questions to be considered in this regard are:
What do supervisors consider to be their most useful and their least
useful tasks? Do they feel they have an impact on what goes on in
schools? If not, why? What changes do they propose to strengthen their
impact on schools?
Are teachers satisfied with the work done by staff of supervision
structures? If not, what would they like to see improved? Which aspects
of supervision work do they appreciate the most, which the least?
2.
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3.
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Suggested methodology
We suggest that the diagnosis be prepared in two broad stages.
In the first stage, the present state of supervision services will be examined at
national level. The objective is to arrive at an overall picture of the structure and
management of these services and a summary of the main problems they
experience, without entering into the details of their daily operation. This phase can
rely mainly, if not exclusively, on a perusal of the available literature, reports,
official documents and statistical data. There will be no need for any original data
collection. Some informal discussions with practising supervision personnel (or
with those who in their career occupied such posts) can be foreseen.
This stage will not be very demanding to undertake, neither in time nor in
expenses. The report, which will conclude this first phase, could consist of three
parts following an introduction:
chapter 1 general overview of the organization of the supervision
service;
chapter 2 management of supervision services: basic facts and crucial
issues; and
a first version of a concluding chapter presenting the main problems
experienced and the innovations taking place (see Outline below).
In the second phase, the actual operation of supervision services should become
the focus. Among the questions to be answered will be:
What is the workload and what are the main activities of supervisors?
How is a school visit actually organized and what are its main
components?
What feedback is given to school visits, both by supervision and school
staff?
What impact does supervision have on the teaching-learning process in
the eyes of the supervisors and of the teachers?
To be able to respond to these issues, more than a simple desk-study will be
needed. The collection of information for this phase will rely mainly on two sources:
interviews with a limited number of supervisors; and group discussions with
headteachers and/or teachers in a few schools. This could be done by examining
the situation in one region or district of the country and by covering some five to
ten schools. Its purpose is not to arrive at a complete picture of supervision in the
whole region under study, but rather to gain an overview of how supervisors
operate and what problems they encounter. If school visits cannot be included
due to financial or time constraints any opportunity should be taken to discuss
with school staff (principals or teachers) to gain their point of view.
Following the second phase, the first phase report can be completed:
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Task 2
Who do you think would be the best placed people to undertake both phases of the research and
who should be the different services or actors involved?
a national team, which counted among its members representatives of the supervision
service, of a national training institute and/or university and of the Ministrys planning
department. Their role was to co-ordinate and oversee the preparation of the diagnosis;
and
a research team consisting of members of staff of the institute and/or university, who
completed the actual fieldwork and prepared draft versions of the report.
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Annexes to be provided
The following annexes could be provided with the diagnosis:
Annex 1
Annex 2
overall structure
Annex 3
Annex 4
Annex 5
Annex 6
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School supervision services exist in nearly all countries; they have played a key role in
the development of the public education system, by monitoring the quality of schools
and by supporting their improvement. However, in many countries, these services are
under increasingly heavy critique, because of their failure to have a positive impact on
quality of teaching and learning. This failure is, in part, the result of a strategic challenge:
the mandate of the service outweighs by far its resources, and is also caused by a series
of poor management and planning decisions.
Against this background, many countries have attempted to reform their supervision
system. These reforms are also inspired by the need to improve educational quality
and by the recent trend towards more school autonomy. Indeed, the ability of schools
to use their greater freedom effectively will depend to a large extent on the support
services on which they can rely, while supervision may be needed to guide them in their
decision-making and to monitor the use they make of their resources. While these
reforms have met with mixed success, their overall analysis allows us to gain profound
insight into what can be achieved in a specific context. This set of training modules takes
the reader through a systematic examination of the issues that a Ministry of Education,
intent on reforming its supervision service, will face.
The public, which will benefit most from these modules, are senior staff within ministries
who are directly involved in the organisation, planning and management of supervision
services, staff of research and training institutions who work on school supervision, and
practising supervisors.
The authors:
Anton de Grauwe is a Programme specialist at the IIEP. Gabriel Carron was until 1999
Senior Programme Coordinator in the same institute. Both coordinated between 1996
and 2004 an extensive research and training program on Reforming school supervision
and support for quality improvement.