W Hofman

Variation in effectiveness between private and public schools: the impact of school and family networks

Abstract Building upon the assumption that cohesion between different levels of the school is essential to the schools’ effectiveness, the hypothesis is tested that a close kinship between school and parental community causes a positive effect on student outcomes in primary schools. Recent theories regarding the effects of ‘functional communities’ on academic achievement mainly focus on the characteristics of the parental community that surrounds a school. Recognizing, however, that schools differ regarding their responsiveness to the role of parents and other actors around the school, our expectation is that a definition of functional community which comprises interactions between characteristics of the parental network around the school and the governance structure of the school offers a better explanation of variation in student achievement. Based on a national sample of 90 schools for primary education in the Netherlands, our analysis shows that the differences in math achievement for public and priva...

Comparing key dimensions of schooling: towards a typology of European school systems

‘Institutional context’ has come to play an important role in the explanation of differences in ‘effectiveness’ between schools. But what is meant by such a concept differs from system to system. In this study we typify education systems based on indicators of institutional contexts such as: the financial base of public‐private education/schools, differences in their governance structure, locus of control, and the degrees of freedom of (parental) school choice available in countries. We develop configurations of education systems based on these institutional context characteristics and establish the relationships between quality and equity of West European education systems and certain institutional characteristics.

Predicting first-year achievement by pedagogy and skill development in the first weeks at university

Central in this study is the relationship between the pedagogical approach and generic skill development in the first 10 weeks at university, students’ perception of the fit between secondary and university education and first-year achievement. Information regarding the pedagogical approach and generic skill development was gathered through questionnaires, interviews and analyses of syllabus information. Students’ perception of the fit was examined with a questionnaire, and their achievement scores were obtained from the university administration. A conceptual model was tested by means of structural equations modelling, and showed a good fit with the data. Results showed that the pedagogical approach affects first-year achievement directly and indirectly, through skill development and the perceived fit. Attention for basic skills and collaboration skills showed positive effects on achievement, whereas the effects of higher-order skills were adverse.

How first year students perceive the fit between secondary and university education: the effect of teaching approaches

This study focuses on the effect of teaching approach in the first period in the first year of university on the perceived fit between secondary and university education and achievement. Teaching approaches were examined through interviews with 24 university teachers and analysis of prospectus information within seven undergraduate programs. Qualitative analysis resulted in three different categories to teaching: an approach that is mostly student‐centered, an approach that is combination of student‐ and teacher‐centered teaching, and an approach that is mostly teacher‐centered. The perceived fit was examined through a questionnaire, among 688 first‐year students in the seven undergraduate programs. Structural equations modeling showed that as teaching approach is more student‐centered, students are more satisfied with the fit between secondary and university education, which has a positive effect on achievement in the first year. Theoretical and practical implications of the results are discussed.

The relationship between perceived competence and earned credits in competence-based higher education

We explored how two types of study outcomes, perceived competence and earned credits, are interrelated, and influenced by self-regulation, motivation (intrinsic value and expectancy of procrastination) and deep approach to learning. The relationships between these variables were analysed in a sample of 894 first-year Dutch university students, using linear structural modelling. Results show that learning process factors play other roles in explaining perceived competence than in explaining earned credits. Perceived competence and earned credits, as two sides of the same coin in competence-based education, are only weakly related. Furthermore, this study shows that it is most likely that perceived competence affects earned credits, but a model in which earned credits affects perceived competence as possible causal relationship was also accepted, although the relationship remains weak. The practical implication of this study is that, as long as perceived competence and the number of credits are not related, competence-based higher education will not obtain optimal efficiency. For participants and researchers in higher education, it remains important to be aware that different learning goals may evoke different study behaviours in students, and the challenge for higher education is to align these goals.

Directing students to profound open-book test preparation: The relationship between deep learning and open-book test time

Background: Considering the growing amount of medical knowledge and the focus of medical education on acquiring competences, using open-book tests seems inevitable. A possible disadvantage of these tests is that students underestimate test preparation. Aims: We examined whether students who used a deep learning approach needed less open-book test time, and how students performed on open-book questions asked in a closed-book setting. Method: Second- (N = 491) and third-year students (N = 325) prepared half of the subject matter to be tested closed-book and half to be tested open-book. In agreement with the Board of Examiners, some questions in the closed-book test concerned open-book subject matter, and vice versa. Data were gathered about test time, deep learning and preparation time. Repeated measurement analysis, t-tests and partial correlations were used to analyse the data. Results: We found a negative relationship between deep learning and open-book test time for second-year students. Students scored the lowest on closed-book questions about open-book subject matter. Conclusions: Reduction of the available test time might force students to prepare longer and deeper for open-book tests. Further research is needed to identify variables that influence open-book test time and to determine how restrictive this time should be.

Impact of accreditation on public and private universities: a comparative study

Based on two cycles of assessments for accreditation, this study assesses the differential impacts of accreditation on public and private universities in Ghana. Analysis of the evaluator reports indicates no statistically significant difference–improvement or deterioration–between the two cycles of evaluations for both types of institutions. A test comparing the two-cycle aggregated assessment scores between the two categories of universities, however, indicated a significant difference, with the public universities achieving better scores (improvements). Drawing on the evaluators’ reports and the opinions expressed by academics from both categories of institutions, the conclusion was that isomorphic pressures, largely faced by the private universities, accounted for their implementation of suggestions for improvement by the evaluators.

Impact of Accreditation on Improvement of Operational Inputs after Two Cycles of Assessments in some Ghanaian Universities

Abstract The study assesses the influence of accreditation, after two cycles of evaluation on some selected Ghanaian universities. This was done by examining the changes that had occurred in specified indicators, mainly because of the implementation of suggestions for improvement made by the previous cycle’s evaluators. The study employed quantitative research methods in analysing the changes (for better or for worse) that had occurred in the selected indicators from one cycle of assessments to the other and as observed in the reports of the evaluators. The results showed varying degrees of improvements in the selected indicators at the subsequent assessments over the previous ones.

Explaining Academic Success in Engineering Degree Programs

Background In Dutch engineering education, female students outperform male students. Using an interactionalist framework, this study explores factors that contribute to this gender-based difference. Purpose This study aims to answer two questions: Do female and male students differ in background characteristics, engagement factors, and academic success? Are differences in the relationships among background characteristics, engagement factors, and academic success gender-specific? Design/method Data on male and female engineering undergraduate students from five Dutch universities were subjected to linear structural modeling to compare potential gender differences in the relationships among the focal variables. Two structural models were considered. Results Female students spent more time on independent study, reported more social integration, completed more credits, and were more likely to stay in engineering than were male students. Academic integration and intention to persist were important for completion of credits for both genders. Social integration was only important for men’s academic success. Females seemed to benefit less from good preparation through active learning during secondary education, and the effect of a high grade point average on math was negative for females but positive for males. Conclusions Interactionalist concepts can explain academic success, but the relationships among concepts vary by gender. Males’ intentions to persist in engineering are an outcome of engagement processes during the first year, whereas females’ intentions to persist in engineering are manifest at the start of the first year.

Quality and Equity of European Education

Internationally an increase in attention for institutional related aspects of schooling is observed. Most research has taken place in individual countries. A thorough international comparison of specific institutional effects of schooling could merit important policy implications for individual countries and be useful in that they provide some indication of how the country is performing in comparison to other countries with similar social, economic and educational circumstances (Bishop and Wossmann, 2001; Willms & Somers, 2001). Although a lot has been published about the quality of countries’ education systems it is still not very clear how much is in fact explained by institutional characteristics. Furthermore, multilevel between-country studies focusing on institutional features of education systems are scarce. The objective of this Chapter is to analyse the relative impact of parameters of institutional contexts on quality and equity of schooling systems in general. This bears relevance because students in some education systems do not have the same educational opportunities than in others and this inequality could well be related to variation in institutional contexts. Research should make clear what produces such variations and what factors are related to more equal opportunities for pupils. Another reason is that international comparison of education systems shows that institutional factors seem to explain substantial cross-country variation in student performance (Bishop and Wossmann, 2001). Furthermore, these researchers argue that privately-governed schools are more likely to posses “incentive creating” institutional characteristics and that competition from privately-managed schools within the country’s education system seems to be associated with positive effects on the total quality of the education system.