PRACTICAL EXEMPLES 1.4.:

Topics for Self-evaluation in an Intercultural Project

Serban IOSIFESCU

Head of Department – Institute of Educational Sciences,

Chairman of the Board - National Association of Trainers

in Educational Management from Romania

ROMANIA

The existence of a multicultural or multiethnic environment for a school raise some specific issues that have to be approached in the self-evaluation process and instruments, with topics such as:

  • How the school culture reflects the multicultural / multiethnic environment?
  • How the school development plan approaches these issues?
  • How the teachers are trained to face the possible specific problems?
  • Which are the best ways / programs / components which a school approaches those aspects in?

We tried to introduce those issues in the self-evaluation instrument realized within a project for Roma pupils named “Equal Opportunities for Roma Children through School Development Programs and Parents’ Involvement”, developed by the Center “Education 2000+” from Romania and the Dutch Government through MATRA. The project aims to facilitate the organizational change (through several components / subprograms: School Management, Classroom Management, Intercultural Education, Cross-Curricular Themes, Remedial Education, Reading and Writing Progress Monitoring) and to promote the parents’ involvement – as the key factor for the school performance of the Roma children.

This project doesn’t aims only changes at “instrumental” level but also in attitudes, mentalities, values and beliefs – at school and community levels as well.

The self-evaluation instrument has a structure similar to the Scottish one named: “How Good is Our School – Self Evaluation Using performance Indicators”[1].

So, the instrument has the following structure:

  1. Fields of evaluation: curriculum, management and community relationships.
  2. Topics – for each field.
  3. Performance indicators - for each topic.
  4. The minimum level accepted for each indicator – using qualitative and quantitative descriptors.
  5. The excellence level - the ideal, desirable level for each indicator.
  6. Needed information and sources of information for each indicator.
  7. Evaluation instruments - models and examples.

The steps in using this instrument are:

  1. Selecting the field(s) / topic(s).
  2. Diagnosing the existing situation for each indicator related to the field(s) / topic(s) selected. (using the existing / new instruments).
  3. Judging the level of achievement - using the qualitative and quantitative descriptors.
  4. Identifyingstrengths, weaknesses and targets for action.
  5. Creating a working-group for planning, negotiating and implementing the remedial / developmental measures.
  6. Realizing the remedial / developmental activities.
  7. Re-applying the self-evaluation instrument to identify progress.

The fields, the topics and the performance indicators are the following:

Fields / Topics / Indicators
1. Curriculum / 1.1.Intercultural dimension of the curriculum / 1.1.1.The involvement of teachers in intercultural activities.
1.1.2.The existence of a portfolio concerning the intercultural education.
1.1.3.The involvement of teachers in developing the Guide for Intercultural Curriculum.
1.1.4.The involvement of the community members in intercultural education.
1.2. Cross-curricular Themes / 1.2.1.The existence of the working groups dealing with the cross-curricular themes (with teachers, pupils, parents, and other community members).
1.2.2.The existence (in school) of at least two projects dealing with cross-curricular themes.
1.2.3.The existence of cross-curricular themes inside the curricular offer of the school (both in core-curriculum and in school based curriculum).
1.3. Classroom Management / 1.3.1.The existence of “classroom projects” (with the attached portfolios) for each class level
1.3.2.The involvement of parents and other community members in devising the “classroom projects” and the attached portfolios.
1.4.Reading and Writing Progress Monitoring / 1.4.1.The development of the capacity of receiving a verbal message.
1.4.2.The development of the capacity of decoding a written message.
1.4.3.The development of the capacity of verbal expression.
1.4.4.The development on the capacity of written expression.
1.5.Remedial Education / 1.5.1.The existence of the remedial education programs.
1.5.2.The involvement of teachers in programs dealing with the stimulation of the reading and writing capability.
1.5.3.The existence of a “lecture corner” in each classroom.
2. Management / 2.1The quality of the documents used in planning / forecasting. / 1.1.1.The existence and the shape of the school mission.
1.1.2.The clarity of the educational needs diagnosis – at individual, groups and community levels.
1.1.3.The existence, the structure and the usefulness of the school development project.
1.1.4.The existence and the structure of the operational plans for the current school years.
1.1.5.The presence, inside the school development project, of at least two cross-curricular themes from two different curricular areas.
1.2.Organizational Culture and School Ethos / 1.2.1.The presence and the affirmation of the project values.
1.2.2.The dominant ethos facilitates school involvement in solving the community problems and community involvement in the school life.
3. Community Relationships / 3.1.Pupils and parents involvement in decision making process in the school life. / 3.1.1.The involvement of parents in the decision making process and in the school life.
3.1.2.The real involvement of pupils in the decision making process and in the school life.
3.2.The institutional partnership between school, local authorities and other institutions, organizations, opinion leaders from the local community. / 3.2.1.The collaboration between school and the local authorities in establishing educational priorities, in financial and administrative matters.
3.2.2.The existence of formal partnerships between school and other public institutions and NGOs.
3.2.3.The involvement in the school life of local community leaders and other significant person within the community

For each indicator, we formulate “level descriptors”, mostly in qualitative terms, for the minimum required level and for the level of “excellence”.

The instrument includes, as well, some instruments – questionnaires, interview guides, observation guides etc. –“covering” all indicators. These instruments permit to position the performance of the school unit in relation with the “level descriptors” mentioned above.

We propose you to discuss (having in mind the intercultural environment):

  1. Are those components / programs relevant ?
  2. Are those indicators relevant ?
  3. How to stimulate, through self-evaluation, the involvement of the “stake-holders” in educational programs and activities ?

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