School Self-Evaluation and Inspection for Improving U.S. Schools

Posted by on November 25, 2013

School assessment for school improvement
School Self-Evaluation and Inspection for Improving U.S. Schools

A new report from the National Education Policy Center (NEPC) describes a system of school self-evaluation in use in parts of Western Europe, and its potential for and putative obstacles to its implementation in this country. Current U.S. test-based accountability models hold schools and teachers accountable for student outcomes with scant attention to school-improvement processes. Broadly described, the European two-part system begins with a school self-evaluation and is followed by an outside inspection (SSE/I). Such programs exist in England, Wales, Northern Ireland, and the Netherlands. The researchers suggest that SSE/I’s underlying purposes and principles, in particular its focus on quality improvement, can inform redesign and improvement of the U.S. approach. The authors recommend the U.S. employ external reviews of schools with a focus on providing guidance and support rather than punitive sanctions; set rigorous standards for external reviewers to ensure they are qualified; define school quality beyond standardized test scores, including comprehensive criteria by which to define teaching quality; in designing review and assessment systems, include the perspectives of multiple stakeholders — administrators, teachers, students, parents, community leaders, and researchers; and redirect state financial resources to adequately support external review systems. More

http://nepc.colorado.edu/newsletter/2013/11/school-self-evaluation