Returning to an interesting and very relevant book that I referenced as part of my climate study in Colombia: School Management and Effectiveness in Developing Countries by Harber and Davies.
The book opens with a description of the dimensions of context within which schools in the developing world are required to operate. The principal aspects of each dimension is described as follows (and will provide a suitable model for the description of context in relation to Ghana):
Demographic Context
– Increasing birth leading proportional growth in the school population
– High drop out rate and the school schedule does suit the needs of the students
– Rural to Urban migration
Economic Context
– Low expenditure per student
– Fragile economies exposed to global markets
– High levels of debt
– Falling GDP per capita
– Decreasing consumption
– Falling public expenditure
– Structural Adjustment Programme demands
Resource Context
– Overcrowded classrooms
– Few material resources
– Poorly maintained school
– Underpaid and demotivated teachers
Violence Context
– High civilian casualties (dead and wounded)
– Destruction of education property and facilities
– Gangs and guns remain a threat even when the war has ended
Health Context
– Hunger and malnourishment are commonplace
– The poor are more vulnerable to disease
– Climate change and drought are effecting increasing numbers of poor
Cultural Context
– Different set of values
Harber and Davies then turn their attention to the notion of school effectiveness itself and describe the difficult of establishing a consistent set of criteria in relation to the developing world. Through a meta-analysis of school research they conclude that there is no definitive answer, however the following consistent set of factors have been identified:
1) The effect of educational processes on student achievement are larger in developing countries. In effect, the school a pupil attends makes more of a difference to their eventual academic attainment compared to home background than in industrialised nations. This does not mean that background curcumstances are diminished in importance.
2) The factors associated with school effectiveness are probably different from those in industrialised nations
3) The factors differ within countries labelled as developing.
4) Factors generate significant findings for goals of economic growth. Benavot study over 25 years (linking education to GDP) indicated a positive relationship with the number of instructional hours across all subjects but a negative effect on practical education. Furthermore and contrary to popular wisdom, there was no effect associated with maths and a language whilst a positive impact was identified in relation to music and art. Whilst it is important not to jump to conclusions in relation to policy, it provides a warning with regard to an ill-considered allocation of resources to maths, english and vocational courses.
In conclusion, effectiveness can only be understood in relation to a clear set of context related goals (why is education necessary) and a matching assessment mechanism. The significance of the assessment mechanism is that once understood, schools can set themselves up to satisfy those goals alone i.e. good test results, whilst ignoring the broader significance of education. According to Harber and Davies therefore effectiveness management evolves from two interlocking variables; goals and culture. Consequently, effectiveness programmes linked to comparisons based on examination success are doomed to failure on the basis that they ignore all other possible goals of school and student learning. This is particularly the case in the Africa where an traditional style of education runs in parellel to the formal system.