building a boy friendly school
TRANSCRIPT
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BUILDING A BOY FRIENDLY SCHOOL
The Educational Needs of Boys and the Implications of School Culture
A Case Study
MARK A MERRY
B.Ed., M.Ed.St.
A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements of the degree of
Doctor of Education
School of Educational Studies
Faculty of Education
Latrobe University
Bundoora, Victoria 3086
Australia
December 2008
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Table of Contents
Statement of Authorship……………………………………………………….……5
Acknowledgements…………………………………………………………………..6
Abstract…………………………………………………………………………….…...7
Chapter One: The Problem with Boys.........................................................…...9
1.1 A growing awareness that male students are falling behind…………………….....9
1.2 Reasons for the inequity in outcomes between boys and girls………….….........11
1.3 The implications of the failure of boys’ education……………………………….…15
1.4 The wider costs of alienation from the educational process………………….......16
1.5 Marcellin College strategic plan: A case study………………………………….....18
1.6 The school wide approach…………………………………………………………...21
1.7 The significance of leadership…………………………………………………….....23
1.8 Structure of the Thesis …………………………………………………….….24
Chapter Two: Boys in schools: A case for intervention in the education of
boys..............................................................................................................…...26
2.1 Boys in education: A tale of underperformance…...............................................26
2.2 Learning styles and teaching methodology……………………………….….….…26
2.3 Motivation and organisation…………………………………………………...…..…28
2.4 School culture and connectedness…………………………………………..….…..32
2.5 Government research and responses to the underperformance of
boys……………………………………………………………………………………..34
2.6 The purpose of this research…………………………………………………..…….38
2.7 Marcellin College as a microcosm of boys’ education………………………….…39
2.8 Marcellin College: Perceptions of performance and the need for
change………………………………………………………………………...………..42
2.9 The cultural approach to the needs of boys………………………………………..49
2.10 Strategic planning as a tool of school reform……………………………….……...51
2.11 Law and order………………………………………………………..........................51
2.12 Belonging and connectedness…………………………………………………..…..54
2.13 Consistency and standards…………………………………………………….….…57
2.14 Teaching pedagogy and learning…………………………………………………...59
2.15 The phenomenon, its origins, significance and responses..................................65
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Chapter Three: Methodology and
Method……………………………………..............................................................67
3.1 Introduction……………………………………………………………………………..67
3.2 Methodology rationale………………………………………………………………...67
3.3 Research methods…………………………………………………………………….68
3.4 Participants……………………………………………………………………………..71
3.5 Methodology…………………………………………………………………………...72
3.6 Strategic Plan interventions to improve academic performance…………………72
3.7 Instrumentation…………………………………………………………………..........77
3.8 Validity and reliability considerations………………………………………………..79
Chapter Four: Results of the Case Study…………………………..………….84
4.1 Some early indicators of performance improvement in the VCE………………...84
4.2 Student destinations as an indicator of improvement……………………………..90
4.3 Teacher and student perceptions………………………………….........................93
4.4 Perceptions of drivers of change…………………………………………………….93
4.5 The findings of the surveys…………………………………………………………..93
4.6 Points of agreement and disagreement…………………………………………….99
4.7 Further surveying: Evaluating the strategic plan………………………………….101
4.8 The high performing schools programme………………………………………....102
4.9 The AISV parent satisfaction survey……………………………………………….104
4.10 The Marcellin staff well being survey………………………………………………104
4.11 Discussion…………………………………………………………….......................105
4.12 A rationale for a leadership driven, strategic approach to school
improvement………………………………………………………………………….107
4.13 The implications of cultural change upon the school
environment…………………………………………………………..………………109
4.14 A comment on the strategic plan…………………………………………………...112
4.15 Rationale for this approach…………………………………………...…………….113
4.16 Potential limitations for this approach…………………………….………………..114
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Chapter Five: A post intervention reflection on building a boy friendly
school…………………………………………………………………………………116
5.1 A discussion on building learning capacity in boys’ schools…………………….116
5.2 Specific recommendations arising from this experience………………………...116
5.3 Global thinking………………………………………………………………………..116
5.4 Relationships matter………………………………………………….....................116
5.5 The importance of data……………………………………………………………...117
5.6 The relative effectiveness of compliance measures……………………………..119
5.7 Valuing learning: Recognition of student learning………………………………..119
5.8 Valuing teaching: Managing teacher angst……………………………..………...120
5.9 The Centrality of Teaching………………………………………………………….121
5.10 The significance and limitations of school leadership……………………………122
5.11 The hierarchy of needs……………………………………………………………...123
5.12 Maslow’s hierarchy can be described in this way………………………………..124
5.13 Analysis……………………………………………………………………………….125
5.14 What advice can we give? A reflection on the process………..........................126
5.15 Use data and use it wisely………………………………………………………….127
5.16 Consult and be seen to consult…………………………………………………….128
5.17 Find the right mix of macro and micro reform…………………………………….129
5.18 Concentrate on the main game…………………………………………………….130
5.19 Address the relational subtext………………………………………………………132
5.20 Get the balance between compulsion and encouragement right……...............133
5.21 Share the ownership and promote self actualisation…………………………….134
5.22 Celebrate……………………………………………………………………………...135
5.23 Clearly establish what makes good practice……………………………………...136
5.24 Conclusions…………………………………………………………………………..136
List of Tables
Table One Marcellin College Discipline Guidelines…………………………..…53
Table Two Descriptors for Magnitudes of Effect Sizes & Assigned Ranges....82
Table Three Effect Estimates for Differences between Teachers & Students…83
Table Four VCE Median Study Scores 1998 – 2007……………………………85
Table Five Percentage of ENTER scores over 40………………………………86
Table Six Percentage of ENTER Scores below 30……………………………86
Table Seven Post School Destinations 2003 – 2008……………………………..91
Table Eight Comparative Results for teachers and year 11 Students…………94
Bibliography……………………………………………………………………..…..138
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Statement of Authorship
Except where reference is made in the text of the thesis, this thesis contains no
material published elsewhere or extracted in whole or part from a thesis for any
other degree or diploma.
No other person’s work has been used without due acknowledgement in the
main text of the thesis.
This thesis has not been submitted for the award of any degree or diploma in any
other tertiary institution.
All research procedures reported in this thesis are in accordance with the Faculty
Human Ethics Committee, La Trobe University.
Signature:
Date: December 3rd, 2008
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Acknowledgements
I thank foremost my supervisor Dr Ramon Lewis whose wisdom, forbearance,
common sense and humour were instrumental in the process of completing this
project. Ray’s guidance as supervisor has been characterised by a deep passion
for education accompanied by a sound practical sense. These attributes have
sustained me in my studies.
I thank my parents Pat and Terry who began me on my long journey in education
and instilled in me a life long love of learning. I am deeply indebted to Manuela,
Alister and Simon who have supported me all these years in my work and in my
study. They have shared the many sacrifices in terms of the time and effort
required away from home.
Finally I thank the students, staff and parents of Marcellin College in Bulleen.
This study has documented the school’s journey over a period of eight years
from 2001 to 2008. Without the support of the school community, this paper
would not have been possible.
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Abstract
In 2001 Marcellin College in Melbourne commenced a series of strategic plans to
address perceived deficiencies in the academic performance of the students.
There was a clear imperative to lift Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE)
results at the Year 12 level which had been below the state average in the two
main indicators: general performance and high scores. This situation was in line
with the experience of a number of boys’ schools and was consistent with the
findings of a wide body of research suggesting that boys were underperforming
in a range of indicators at school. The process of strategic intervention
undertaken by the school was documented in this case study.
Over the course of the next eight years, Marcellin introduced 21 specific
interventions to address the learning programme. These interventions spanned
the whole range of school life from how the members of the community related to
each other, to the structure of the school day, pedagogy, use of data and the
provision of opportunities for the students. This study compared VCE results
over this period of time finding significant improvements between 2002 and
2008. In addition the study identified the post school careers pathways of the
Year 12 students and found a significant shift of students from entering technical
and vocational education and the workplace to further academic studies in the
university sector.
As part of the study, teachers and students at the school were surveyed as to
their perceptions of the various interventions. What worked and what did not?
Based upon their responses, it is possible to determine what elements had an
impact upon the school in improving the overall school performance in VCE and
the subsequent shift in career aspiration.
This research has considerable significance for educators and particularly those
who teach boys. This paper identifies perceived needs from the literature and
proposes a number of practical interventions arising from the research. Those
interventions are implemented and tested in the context of a large secondary
boys’ school. The findings of this paper will provide other schools with a practical
way of using research and data to effect change in the school. Arising from this
research are insights into the perceptions of the participants as to the relative
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effectiveness of initiatives to address learning culture. Schools are practical
places which are at times a little too removed from the realm of research,
literature and theory. There is a danger here that the best thinking in terms of
pedagogy and school leadership is not being read and translated into practice.
This research provides a model for the nexus between theory and practice and
demonstrates one way in which perceived deficiencies in boys’ education may
be addressed.
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Chapter One: The Problem with Boys
1.1 A Growing Awareness that Male Students are falling behind
When did being a boy stop being fun and start becoming a condition? Boys are
not performing as well as their female counterparts in schools across a range of
indicators and in a range of contexts. Problems with skill acquisition, motivation,
literacy, behaviour, retention rates and careers pathways has led to a growing
concern in educational and governmental circles that boys are being left behind.
These phenomena are experienced in both co educational and boys’ only
contexts and constitute a significant issue for educators and parents. The
education of boys in Australia has been described as being in crisis (Skelton
2001). The 2003 Federal Parliamentary inquiry into the education of boys, Boys:
Getting it Right in the words of the then Education Minister, Brendan Nelson
“makes sobering reading.”
Some of the issues identified in the Boys Getting it Right document included
lower literacy rates, failure to achieve reading benchmarks, over representation
in the lower quartile and over representation in disciplinary matters. These are all
indicators of a failure in performance by boys and a failure of boys’ education.
The Minister in his foreword responded to the indicators arising from the
literature by expressing concern at the gender related failure of boys to reach
educational benchmarks.
A cursory look at the average Australian classroom will provide enough
anecdotal evidence to support those sensitive political antennae. In general
boys are more likely to be outside the principal’s office than girls; more likely to
struggle with their work, are noisier, more off task and distinctly harder to handle.
Allied to this is a phenomenon identified in the literature whereby boys are
handled differently than girls for disciplinary matters. As boys tend to be louder
and more physical in the classroom environment, their behaviours are more
likely to be construed as disruptive and the responses to them more likely to be
punitive (Skelton, 2001; Francis 2000). The tendency towards physicality in the
classroom and the schoolyard does not sit well in an environment which requires
order, attention and compliance. This combination of tendencies towards off task
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behaviour and preconceptions by teachers that boys are more prone to
misbehaviour leading to a stronger response by the teacher is resulting in a
disproportionate representation of boys in serious misdemeanours (Francis,
2000).
Of course there are many exceptions to the rather grim findings reported above,
but the trend is strong enough to excite comment in school staffrooms and a
sense of urgency in the various Federal and State education departments. This
sense of urgency has led to Federal Government funding of the Boys’
Lighthouse Schools’ Project, an initiative to develop and disseminate best
practice in the education of boys. The project identified a range of behaviours
which serve to impede the academic progress of boys and proposes a number of
interventions to counter these. The study to be reported in this thesis focuses
upon 21 distinct initiatives by one school to attempt to ‘build a boy friendly
school’ and gauges the perceived effectiveness of these interventions. These
include an evaluation of the relationship between teacher and students, a review
of pedagogy and issues surrounding perceptions of masculinity. The wider
implications of the ‘uneasy fit’ between many boys and their schooling are readily
apparent. Disengagement from early age with learning can lead to
discouragement, under achievement, misconduct and an early separation from
the education process. This in turn has lifetime implications for males and the
long term evolution of education as a predominantly feminine pursuit. This
premise itself has become a political issue as a perceived ‘feminist agenda’ in
schools in terms of policy, affirmative action and teaching methodology are cited
as disadvantaging boys in schools (Sommers 2000).
A number of studies reject the notion that there is a crisis in boys’ education
(Rivers & Barnett, 2006; Froese-Germain, 2006; Mead, 2006; Martino & Kehler,
2006). They cite various reasons for the concern about boys ranging from
suggestions of a post feminist backlash to media alarmism and a misreading of
the data about school achievement. The studies of perceived deficiencies in the
education of boys has led to objections from some who assert that the language,
findings and motivations of the work into boys’ education such as Boys: Getting it
Right reflects a backlash against feminist constructs of education and the
improvement in recent years in the effectiveness of schooling for girls. There is a
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protest here of the ‘either or’ approach to education whereby boys are
experiencing disadvantage in relation to girls and perhaps in response to the
‘feminisation’ of the education process (Keddie & Mills 2007). Whilst Mead in
particular is sceptical of the ‘boys’ education agenda’, she does acknowledge:
“In particular, the disproportionate number of boys being
identified with learning and emotional disabilities,
suspended from school, and dropping out suggests that
what our schools are doing doesn’t work very well for
boys.” (Mead, 2006, p 18)
This discussion moves into the complicated realm of gender politics. Indeed for
this educational issue to be dealt with as a treatise on feminism and gender
would be a disservice to the needs expressed in the data and the specific
imperatives of this study. This discussion falls outside the purposes of this study
to the extent that clearly the school in question was underperforming
academically and this context of a boys’ school avoids the unenviable
philosophical discussions of gender politics. The case study itself concentrates
more on practical attempts at finding solutions in the specific context of a boys’
school rather than a need to argue the philosophical case.
1.2 Reasons for the inequity in outcomes between boys and girls
It is clear that boys on average are not performing at school as well as their
female classmates. This phenomenon is consistent for students across the
various educational sectors and at each age group (O’Doherty, 1994). The
underperformance of boys has led to government enquiries at the State and
Federal levels and a growth in research providing reasons for why boys are not
achieving in the same way as girls. Therefore, the relatively poorer showing of
boys across a range of readily accessible data has led to mounting parental
concern and a decided uneasiness in school staff rooms.
It is suggested that traditional schooling is more geared to the preferences of
girls than boys. Research suggests that boys are at a considerable disadvantage
due to a range of factors pertaining to their skills and preferences, the nature of
schools and schooling, family and biological factors (O’Doherty, 1994). There is
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significant evidence to suggest that boys’ preferred learning styles are not as
suited to classroom delivery as those of girls. Their preference for hands-on and
‘do rather than hear’ learning is constrained by the reality of the classroom which
is still heavily geared towards verbal instruction. Problems with language and
literacy exacerbate this issue with instruction style playing to the boys’
weaknesses rather than their strengths. Boys are also less likely to have the
skills to succeed in collaborative or group learning than girls, a mode of delivery
popular in the primary classroom (Askew & Ross 1988). This is the same primary
classroom where early experiences of success are crucial for the boy if he is to
develop positive approaches towards school and schooling (Honigfeld & Dunn,
2003).
Boys tend to have greater problems with motivation and organisation. These two
attributes are rarely explicitly taught in schools, rather they are ‘picked up’ along
the way. If not sufficiently motivated and organised, the boys’ off task behaviour
can lead them into a history of misconduct (Lewis, 1997). The dynamic of boys in
the classroom is often less favourable to learning than with girls. A fear of failure
and competitiveness in the room creates a climate of ‘risk avoidance’ which can
lead to an unwillingness to engage and try to understand the work.
Boys tend to put greater store in the relationship with the teacher than do girls.
Boys will be less likely to engage in their studies if they believe that the
relationship with the teacher is not based upon clearly identifiable teacher
attributes such as a genuine regard for the students, approachability and
friendliness (Martin, 2003; Lingard et al 2002). The best of teachers can have
these attributes put to the test by some of the behaviours identified above. The
cycle of discouragement and lack of motivation continues as the teacher is
forced to respond to off task behaviour. The response itself justifies the student’s
view of schooling and continues to put a brake on progress. This phenomenon is
repeatedly played out in boys’ schools where students with appropriate
capabilities are unwilling to try in the classroom and instead channel their
behaviour into work avoidance measures such as passivity or disruption. In turn
the teacher will often be forced to adopt the role of enforcer; a dynamic which
further discourages the development of the working environment. Boys tend to
be reluctant to be seen as working hard and are prepared to accept failure
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through lack of application over the potential for failure after putting in the effort.
The failure is therefore not a measure of their abilities but rather a measure of
their interest in the work. This is a much safer proposition for the boy who will not
lose face when the choice is his to fail rather than failure is visited upon him
through his own perceived inadequacies (Martin 2003).
A key factor for boys’ disengagement is falling literacy performance amongst
boys. The tendency for the curriculum of all subjects to rely upon literacy skills
means that there is a decline in performance even in the traditionally strong
areas of mathematics and the sciences (Moir & Jessel 1988; Biddulph 1997).
Biological and neurological factors have been cited as affecting boys’ literacy at
school age. The different developmental paths of the brain for boys and girls
suggest a greater receptiveness by girls to language acquisition and their brains’
ability to process verbal and written communication. There is no clear biological
evidence that boys’ hearing is less developed than girls; but rather girls are more
receptive to the message as it is being taught. Their ability to process verbal
information is more developed at school age (Biddulph 1997). This suggests that
pedagogy may be geared more towards how girls learn than boys. Girls are
more receptive to complex verbal instruction at an earlier age than boys. School
curricula are increasingly reliant upon complex language (Moir & Jessel 1988;
Biddulph 1997). At the senior levels, even in mathematics, an area where boys
used to excel, there is reliance upon complex questions which need to be
interpreted before attempting to problem solve. Mathematics questions are
usually presented as complex questions rather than simple equations. Long,
detailed and complex verbal or written instructions are the measure for
mathematical ability.
Other research considers four issues of significance for boys at school: narrow
and stereotypical subject choice; unruly and risk-taking behaviours; poor literacy
achievement; and low school retention rates. However, it demonstrates that
these issues predominantly affect boys who are unprotected by economic and
social privilege (Gilbert & Gilbert 2001). There is therefore more scope for boys
in a middle class demographic to improve their opportunities with the appropriate
school interventions and fewer reasons to excuse school underperformance
based on broader gender and social factors specific to boys. In other words,
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whilst there are data to suggest that boys in general experience relative
disadvantages in the education process, there is no excuse for well resourced
schools with advantaged demographics to resign themselves to
underachievement. In the absence of many of the factors outside of the school
which contribute to disadvantage; there is a need for the school to consider its
own practices in terms of interpersonal relationships and pedagogy.
“The influence and role of teacher knowledge, values and
pedagogies, combined with the influence of school
environment in terms of developing professional learning
communities, emerge as important influences in terms of
their impact on the educational outcomes of all students”
(Lingard et al, 2002 p 9).
The ready availability of data mapping the relative achievements of boys and
girls has coincided with another trend in education policy. The past ten years
have seen a growth in accountability in education prompted by both Federal and
State Government initiatives aimed at improving outcomes in schools. This trend
toward accountability has generated a culture of measurement where academic
results, retention rates, literacy and numeracy levels and access to careers after
school have placed schools under greater governmental and public scrutiny than
ever before (Australian Association of Social Workers, November 2000, p. 5).
Indeed such data are published in the tabloid press each year for public access
and deliberation. Strong differences exist in the VCE results with girls generally
outperforming boys and Marcellin College more specifically being eclipsed by
neighbouring schools (Rowe et al, 2008). Value judgments have been made
about schools and school sectors based upon these data. Individual schools are
becoming far more accountable to government agencies, families and public
perception. It is within this climate that the relative underperformance of boys
across a range of indicators has prompted concern by both government and
educational bodies. The obvious discrepancies between the performance of girls
and boys leads to questions about equity in government circles and some alarm
amongst parents of boys and their schooling.
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1.3 The implications of the failure of boys’ education
The nature of the problem with boys in schools is readily apparent. It may be that
boys are often unsuited for schools and schools are unsuitable for boys. The
evidence points to the need for schools to further consider this uneasy fit and
determine how the curriculum and the way it is delivered can better cater for the
needs of boys. There is an imperative arising from the research to respond to
clear trends in the underperformance of boys. Such issues as skill acquisition,
learning styles, motivation and organisation, relationships, choices and
responsibilities and the nature of masculinity all come into play here. The
research is pointing to clearly defined phenomena and proposes concrete
solutions to the plight of boys in schools. There is an imperative for educators to
respond. Nowhere is that imperative greater than those involved in boys’
education. Single sex boys’ schools are meant to provide a specialist education
for boys, geared to the needs of boys. If the boys’ school is failing to meet the
needs of the boys so clearly defined in the literature, and if in consequence, that
school is underperforming across a range of indicators, then there is a clear
imperative to act. In addition, a boys’ school context to some extent avoids the
complicated arguments around gender equity in terms of programmes and
interventions discussed earlier. There are implications here for the school, for the
teacher and for the student in how they each respond to the need to address
academic outcomes.
For the school there is a need to address boys’ educational issues across the
curriculum by providing resources for a broader curriculum, offering choices and
stressing ‘hands on’ opportunities. There needs to be considerable work done on
professional development so that teachers are equipped with the knowledge of
individual learning styles and the skills to cater for them. Issues of student
harassment, misconduct and off task behaviour need to be challenged and there
needs to be appropriate recognition of a range of achievements essential to
fostering a culture of encouragement. There needs to be opportunities in the
curriculum to teach study and organisational skills as well as the opportunity to
develop key literacy skills. There is a need for clearly defined expectations and
consistency across the curriculum so that students are provided with clear and
unambiguous guidance. There should be some involvement of students in
decision making so that the element of choice is introduced into the curriculum.
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The relevancy of the curriculum is a key factor in motivation and there needs be
an explicit link with student experiences and careers choices.
For the teacher there are clear imperatives in terms of pedagogy, teaching
manner and pastoral care. Awareness of the diversity of learning styles brings
with it the responsibility to cater for the receiver in the delivery. Teachers today
have far greater access to empirical data about their students. The teacher can
access information about competency, learning styles and the relative
development of the students in their class. With access to such data; it would be
remiss of the teacher not to respond in some way to the needs of the students.
The content needs to be relevant to the student so that opportunity for intrinsic
motivation can be developed rather than an over reliance upon imposed order.
Lessons need to be interesting rather than boring and repetitive and the
teacher’s manner is most effective when it is encouraging, appropriately relaxed
and warm in its regard for the students. The culture in the school of
encouragement in relationships coupled with clear and high expectations should
be mirrored in each and every classroom. The teacher needs to be aware of the
importance of their relationships with their students, not as a by product of the
teaching process but rather as central to the process of teaching and learning.
This has implications for pastoral care programmes and individual classroom
management practices.
For the student there is a need to seriously reflect upon issues surrounding
masculinity such as unhealthy competition and a culture which is averse to risk
taking and one which is prepared to accept avoidance of work rather than the
possibility of failure at the task (Martin, 2003). There is a need to broaden the
parameters of success to allow diversity from, but not exclusive of, the sporting
field. What lessons can be learned from sport where boys seem willing to take
risks every day? Why is it considered to be appropriate to aim for goals on the
sporting fields and miss but not in the classroom?
1.4 The wider costs of alienation from the educational process
The under performance of boys relative to girls in schools has broader
implications for education in Australia than misconduct and disengagement in the
classroom. Whilst the issue is initially an educational one, the implications of
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school underperformance and alienation from education can have wider and
longer term effects. Indeed the effects for the individual and for society at large
are long term and perhaps generational. In terms of the individual, the lack of
appropriate credentials and formal education or underperformance leading to
‘aiming low’ in work aspirations affects the individual’s career choices and
subsequent working life. This is a high price to pay for a relatively short period of
disengagement during schooling. There is a correlation between disengagement
at school and disengagement from society in general (Cresswell et al, 2002).
Education is but one of society’s institutions. There can be future disengagement
from employment and law and order and the subsequent access to social
networks which flow from these. There has been a great deal of discussion in the
public domain regarding the perceived problems with young males, alcohol and
violence. The nexus between disengagement from school and broader
disengagement from society and its institutions is readily identifiable and the
detrimental effects cannot be underestimated. Post school implications for youth
and long term unemployment, as well as broader social disadvantage in many
Western democracies can be attributed in part to poor school performance and
premature dislocation from schooling (Kercher 1988; Gottfredson & Herschi
1990).
Healthy democracies thrive when there are high levels of active participation in
the political process. This participation is predicated on an engaged and
educated body politic. The disproportionate number of boys leaving school early
due to alienation or disengagement from the educational process denies the
community the full extent of an educated electorate as high participation rates in
the democratic process are essential to good governance (Bessant 2004).
Disenfranchisement can lead to further social costs such as loss to the political
process in terms of participation as well as a range of other costs surrounding
the economy and issues of law and order.
These problems if unaddressed have the potential to only get worse. The
economy in the ‘information age’ is predicated more and more upon complex
interactions requiring considerable expertise. The demand for unskilled labour in
Western nations has declined as global forces have pushed these activities ‘off
shore’ and have replaced them with the need for a highly skilled and credentialed
18
workforce. The market for unskilled employment with limited credentials has
declined markedly. Government policy towards school retention rates has
reflected the need for students to stay on into Year 12 but government policy has
not been able to arrest a decline in retention rates in recent years. After a growth
in school retention during the early 1990’s, rates in Australia have begun to
decline. At its peak in 1992 the national rate of retention to Year 12 was
approximately 77 per cent. By 1995 the rate had fallen to 72 per cent (Lamb
1988, Lewis & Koshy 1999). The question should be asked: What happens to
early school leavers in such an economy? The possibility of ‘structural
unemployment’ where we have the numbers but not the skills to supply the
workforce has led to an expansion of the skilled migration programme in
Australia and the skills shortage. The dynamic of importing skilled labour in the
context of local structural unemployment has the potential for considerable social
tension.
Important too is the over representation of young men in criminal behaviours and
incarceration rates in Australia and overseas (O’Doherty, 1994). Education is
one of the important elements in avoiding the growth of a youth underclass in
Australia; under or unemployed, dispossessed and disconnected, resorting to
antisocial or criminal activities. There is evidence in the research literature that
delinquency is associated with poor educational achievement, particularly poor
literacy (Putnins 1999). It seems anomalous that a society spends considerable
resources on law enforcement to counter issues surrounding dislocation and
disaffection when the answer might lie in more appropriate education and
teaching pedagogy.
It is apparent that many boys are not reaching their full potential at school due to
the range of factors discussed above. This has implications for the well being of
the student but also for the long term wellbeing for the young man entering the
workforce and family life. The emerging recognition of this issue has major
implications for educators and particularly those who work in boys’ education.
1.5 Marcellin College strategic Plan: a Case Study
Marcellin College was faced with a growing crisis of credibility. Marcellin, a
Catholic secondary school for boys in the eastern suburbs of Melbourne has long
enjoyed a reputation for pastoral care and sporting prowess. Unfortunately that
19
reputation was being gradually undermined by the Victorian Certificate of
Education (VCE) results which have been consistently below the state average.
There appeared to be no ready explanation for this as the students were of
slightly higher than average ability when measured against the rest of the state
and came from relatively advantaged socio economic backgrounds. The
academic results, although being only one aspect of the educational experience,
were a very public and easily quantifiable measure of underachievement.
This study therefore was a timely opportunity to both apply educational theory to
practice and also address the perceived needs of the school as identified by
parents and teachers. Responding to concerns expressed around such issues as
conduct, work ethic and outcomes, the college undertook an ambitious strategic
planning process to redefine the culture of the school. The strategic plan has
drawn upon the research as to why boys are underachieving and has
implemented a range of measures affecting every aspect of the operation of the
school. The term Building a Boy Friendly School refers to the implementation of
a range of policies and processes designed to appeal to the specific needs of
boys in education. The study has mapped this process with a view to
determining if it is possible to apply the theory to successfully address the needs
of boys in practice. The various initiatives have been designed to create a culture
more conducive to boys and their learning. This initiative would involve a ‘global
approach’ across the school, affecting every aspect of school life. The variables
affecting the performance of boys are so diverse that they require broad ranging
solutions.
“Improving the educational outcomes of boys requires a
whole school approach based on a common vision and a
coherent, integrated set of programmes across the broad
range of activity noted in this report (i.e. pedagogy,
curriculum and assessment; literacy and communication
skills; student engagement and motivation; behaviour
management programmes; and positive role models for
students.)”
(Australian Federal Government 2003 p. 4)
20
It is within this context that Marcellin College embarked upon an ambitious
strategic plan to address learning in the school; to respond to the findings in the
literature, to respond to the increasingly obvious needs of the boys and where
this case study was born.
“Boys’ education is an issue of concern within schools in
Australia as evidenced by a significant body of
research…It is also an issue that schools can do
something to address. This requires the school to gather
and analyse its own student achievement and other data
(e.g. attendance, behaviour incidents, student opinion
survey data) on a gender basis and identify the needs of
specific boys and students ‘at risk’….The school then can
develop, implement and continue to evaluate and amend
appropriate strategies and targets tailored to the unique
and specific needs of the students.”
(Australian Federal Government 2003, p. 4)
This case study will look at the nature of boys’ underperformance in a local
context. It reviews the literature on why boys under perform and the various
proposals to address the problem. No school can afford to be seen to be
underachieving in such a climate. This study will focus on how Marcellin
attempted to address these concerns by introducing 21 interventions to address
academic underperformance; describes each of these interventions and seeks
opinion from students and teachers as to their relative effectiveness. It identifies
the 21 interventions derived from theory and assesses if these interventions are
perceived to have had a positive influence upon learning outcomes. Teachers
and students are surveyed post intervention for their assessment of the school
performance and the extent to which it is meeting their expectations as a place of
learning. The level of community satisfaction with the operation of the school
coupled with significant changes in learning outcomes will give an indication as
to what extent the ‘new culture’ of the school is meeting the needs of the
stakeholders. What do teachers and students believe were the reasons for
improvements in the school’s performance in VCE studies? Which of the 21
interventions described have been instrumental in achieving changes to
21
academic outcomes? What are the perceived limitations of the approach the
college has taken to improve academic performance? What advice might be
given to other schools following this experience?
The study has clear implications on a range of levels. Specifically, it addresses
the issue of educational theory and its applicability in the practical context. The
research on boys has been done. Now how do educators, schools and individual
teachers respond to these revelations? Secondly, it poses the possibility that
there may be such a thing as a ‘boy friendly school’ where the way things are
done is more attuned to the needs of boys. In Marcellin’s case and indeed in
teaching boys in general, if they are not reaching their potential and there are
systemic, procedural and pedagogical reasons for this then there are compelling
reasons to do something about it. The attempt at ‘cultural change’ if it
successfully addresses the issue of the quality of the school experience for boys
is readily applicable in different contexts. This study is an opportunity to map the
link between theory, response and outcome. Finally, it makes a value judgment
as to the relative merits of the 21 interventions. Which ones do the teachers and
the students support?
1.6 The School wide approach
School wide programmes to address structure, policies and procedures can have
a significant effect upon school improvement across a range of indicators. The
literature also suggests that individual teacher practices in the classroom can
have a significant affect upon learning outcomes for boys (Martin, 2003). This
research will demonstrate how school wide interventions can help to create the
cultural environment conducive to boys’ learning through the promotion of a ‘boy
friendly school’. The decisions made regarding structures, policies and
procedures reflect both the findings of the wider research and the more
indigenous needs identified at Marcellin. The major school based determinate of
student outcomes is the quality of the pedagogy. There is however, a significant
role to be played by those leading schools to promote a culture of school
improvement (Murphy & Hallinger 1988; Laroque & Coleman 1990). The
Leadership Team at Marcellin including the Principal and the senior managers
had a role to play in analyzing the findings and responding to them.
22
The Meeting the Challenge report identifies ten guiding principles in promoting
success for boys. These are core ‘propositions’ for the development of
programmes to improve schooling for boys.
1. Collect evidence and undertake ongoing inquiry on the issue, recognising
that schools can do something about it.
2. Adopt a flexible, whole school approach with a person and team
responsible
3. Ensure good teaching for boys, and all students in all classes.
4. Be clear about the kinds of support particular boys require.
5. Cater for different learning styles preferred by boys.
6. Recognise that gender matters and stereotypes should be challenged.
7. Develop positive relationships as they are critical to success.
8. Provide opportunities for boys to benefit from positive role models from
within and beyond the school.
9. Focus on literacy in particular.
10. Use information and communication technologies (ICTs) as a valuable
tool.
(Australian Federal Government, 2003)
These recommendations do much to inform educators about the way forward in
implementing meaningful and effective measures to better address the needs of
boys in education. The Victorian Government’s Office of Policy Research and
Innovation published a paper in December of 2007 titled: Value Added Measures
for School Improvement. In this paper they identified movements both overseas
and in Australia for schools to better evaluate their own performances.
The ‘value added’ model saw the importance of the following elements:
Strategic planning
Establishing goals and measuring improvement
Reporting on specific goals and setting new targets
(Victorian Government, OPRI 2007, p 11)
This approach would serve to demystify school performance by identifying key
and core values and measuring the extent to which the school was achieving
them. This seemed an appropriate model for Marcellin to adopt. The school wide
23
approach was also chosen in response to the findings on the role of leadership in
improving learning outcomes.
1.7 The significance of leadership
It has long been accepted that leadership in schools is important to the
educational process. “Good leadership is critical to school improvement. Few
would dispute this assertion.” (Russell et al 2004 p1). Recent studies however
have shown the true significance of educational leadership in the process. The
leadership of the school is second only to the quality of the teaching as a school
based influence on learning outcomes (Leithwood et al 2004; Leithwood & Jantzi
1990).
Leadership in schools is significant in that:
Leadership sets directions by charting a clear course that everyone
understands; establishing high expectations and using data to track
progress and performance
It develops people in providing teachers and others in the system with the
necessary support, training and tools to succeed.
It provides the range of conditions and incentives to fully support rather
than inhibit teaching and learning. (Leithwood et al 2004).
There is considerable literature available regarding the importance of leadership
and the impact of various styles of leadership (Hallinger & Hick 1996). Mulford
suggested that: “…a great deal of the school’s success depends on its leaders
and the model(s) of leadership that are implemented in the school. Its success
also depends on which areas of school life the educational leader chooses to
focus the time and attention of the school leadership team.” (Mulford 2008, p70).
An approach therefore led by the leadership of the school to address issues
surrounding teaching and learning in the classroom, and more globally around
the relationships in the school which provide the environment for this to take
place was deemed to be the most effective method in addressing the need to
improve learning outcomes. The case study involves a strategic plan led by the
school leadership to improve relationships at the school amongst staff and
students, provide greater accountability in terms of academic rigour and address
24
issues surrounding the quality of teaching and learning. The leadership of the
school therefore determined to implement the 21 interventions in tandem with
this study which evaluates their perceived effectiveness and broader applicability
to other schools.
1.8 Structure of the Thesis
Chapter Two of this study examines the widespread literature surrounding the
under performance of boys in school and the implications of this issue. The
findings are wide ranging and have long term implications from employment to
issues of mental health. It examines the various government responses to the
data and makes the case for intervention at the school level through a policy
driven mechanism for change to better meet the needs of boys. This chapter
provides the context where Marcellin College’s strategic plan to enhance
learning is described; the rationale for such a plan, the rationale behind each of
the interventions, a description of the process and a commentary on the
implications for change all appear in this chapter.
Chapter Three outlines the methodology used to determine the effectiveness of
the 21 practical interventions to address the perceived needs of the boys. A
survey of teachers and a sample of students are used to ascertain their views on
the effectiveness of initiatives to improve VCE results. The paper draws upon
external data gathered by the school to augment the data from this research. A
wider survey of parents, teachers and students is conducted to ascertain the
extent the school is meeting the needs of families who choose Marcellin to
educate their sons’. The results of the survey on the 21 interventions are
examined and a comparison between the perceptions of teachers and students
is made. What do teachers think? What do the students think? How do they
compare in terms of their perceptions of cause and effect?
Chapter Four presents the results of the research into the perceptions of
teachers and students as to the effectiveness of each of the interventions and
the extent to which the school is meeting the needs of the community in terms of
providing an effective education for the boys and improving the educational
experiences of the boys. The concerns raised in the initial research of 2000
during the strategic planning stage indicated problems with conduct, motivation
25
and learning. What do teachers and students think of the various initiatives
undertaken? Have the range of interventions led to a positive view of the
initiatives by the stakeholders? The chapter provides data as to the perceived
effectiveness of the intervention in meeting the needs of the school community.
Following the needs analysis of the Strategic Plan it explores if the interventions
successfully addressed some of the issues surrounding learning, student
conduct and engagement in the life of the school.
Chapter Five provides an interpretation of the data in terms of the wider
implications of this case study. The purpose of the case study was to attempt to
apply the wealth of recommendations from the literature in the practical setting.
The studies suggest that a ‘whole school approach’ is the most appropriate and
effective way of addressing the needs of boys. To what extent is such an
approach possible, and what are the problems in attempting what amounts to
major cultural change? What are the implications of such an approach? What are
the limitations? Is it possible to manipulate the school setting to create such a
thing as a ’boy friendly school’?
In summary, the title of this thesis: Building a Boys Friendly School: the
Educational needs of Boys and the Effect of School Culture reflects the approach
taken by Marcellin College as a response to the literature. The literature
highlights the importance of the quality of classroom pedagogy but does so in the
context of the overall culture of the school. School leaders have a significant role
to play in developing a culture whereby learning is more likely to take place. This
study and the strategic plan which it examines reflect the adoption of the view
that change needs to be global to achieve a significant difference in outcomes. It
is for this reason that the plan undertakes a cultural shift in the way teachers and
students relate to each other, the sense and level of accountability in the school,
the beliefs of the school community in terms of ability and standards and a
review of what is taught and how. First however it is important to know how these
assumptions regarding change and improvement were reached. For this we turn
to the significant body of literature emerging identifying the needs of boys in
schools, why they have arisen and importantly what to do about them.
26
Chapter Two: Boys in schools: a case for intervention in
the education of boys
2.1 Boys in education: A tale of underperformance
As reported in Chapter One, an investigation into the education of boys indicates
gender differences which affect educational outcomes in terms of engagement,
motivation and achievement. The nature of this inequality in outcomes is readily
apparent across a range of indicators leading to further studies to assess the
phenomenon and considerable activity amongst government departments and
educators to respond to these findings. Chapter One identified the concerns
arising regarding the relative underperformance of boys. This chapter looks more
closely at the literature to determine the possible contributors to this situation.
There is wide consensus that there is no single reason for the phenomenon of
boys’ underperformance when compared with girls’. Contributing factors include
differences in literacy and numeracy acquisition, curriculum delivery and
preferred learning styles, biological differences, interests and motivation and a
perceived conflict between images of masculinity and learning (Buckingham,
1999).
2.2 Learning Styles and teaching methodology
There is a correlation between gender and preferred learning styles. This
relationship suggests that boys have a greater preference for ‘hands on’
approaches to learning than females. Career wise testing at Marcellin over the
past eight years supports these findings in that there is a measurable preference
in the student population as tested during Year 10 for practical or ‘hands- on
learning’ found that there are significant gender differences in key learning
styles. These included:
Boys were more likely to be kinaesthetic learners than girls
Girls tended to be more self motivated than boys
Boys were in greater need of higher levels of parent and teacher
motivation
Girls were more able to process verbal information
The boys would benefit more from learning with peers in the right context
(Honigfeld and Dunn, 2003)
27
The study stressed the need for teachers to be aware of these trends and the
various learning styles in the classroom and cater for them accordingly. These
findings suggested that girls are less needy and better equipped in the context of
the traditional classroom and therefore enjoy a potential advantage over the
boys. The predominant teaching methodology remains verbal instruction, a
system of delivery which tends to favour girls. In essence teachers may be
delivering the curriculum in a form advantageous to girls and prejudicial to many
boys.
Boys appear to be hampered by insufficient skills in processing verbal data. They
are also less likely to see the intrinsic value of learning and need to see
relevance if they are to fully engage in their studies (Barton 1997). Girls were
perceived as being more receptive to what is being taught due to cultural factors
such as family influences but also importantly pedagogical factors to do with
receptiveness to the prevailing teaching methodologies. This poses the question:
Why do boys’ schools persist with verbal instruction as a major form of
pedagogy? It is not sound pedagogy to deliver the curriculum in a medium which
is less likely to achieve learning.
The concern regarding boys’ relative underperformance is not confined to
Australian shores. Barton (1997) looked at the comparative performance of boys
and girls in language classes in the United Kingdom. In 1994, girls surpassed
boys in all areas of study in the United Kingdom GCSE results. He identified a
range of issues including parental influence and other role models, peer
pressure, teacher expectations and lesson content. Whilst much of this study
concentrated upon the early family influences upon boys’ skill acquisition and
preferences, it identified teaching methodology and relevance of the curriculum
as contributing factors. Rowe & Rowe (2006) identified auditory processing
issues and language acquisition as being gender influenced and there are strong
relationships between these issues and disruptive behaviours. Further studies
have also identified gender differences in learning preferences. Askew and Ross
(1988) explored the unique learning styles of boys, identifying their aversion to
collaborative work as opposed to natural tendencies towards competitiveness.
The nature of the interaction between boys is more likely to be competitive rather
than cooperative. Girls it seems are more willing to cooperate in their studies to
28
achieve results as opposed to boys who have a tendency to compete if they can
win or withdraw from the field as a failure avoidance mechanism. The
involvement of boys in ‘power plays’ leads to an over focus upon behavioural
issues rather than learning. The implications of this are clear in that boys tended
not to be comfortable with either group work or verbal instruction. Gillies (2002)
studied the efficacy of training upon levels of cooperation in collaborative
learning tasks. To ensure true collaborative learning, something that boys in
particular found difficult, it is important to provide early training in the skills
provided. Matthews and Kesner (2003) found that collaborative learning
exercises favour some students over others and that more research is needed
into this dynamic. The effect of this is that some students are marginalised by
this methodology. The implications of this are clear. Schools should either
explicitly train boys in the dominant teaching methodologies or conversely decide
to teach and learn in other ways, ways which will play to strengths rather than
weaknesses. Gurian and Henley (2001) suggest that the ultimate classroom is
one where administrators and parents support teachers who are committed to
gender based education.
2.3 Motivation and Organisation
Preferred learning styles are not the single school based factor in the mismatch
between boys and girls. There are clear differences in levels of motivation and
organisation. Girls have fewer motivational problems which mean that they are
better equipped to be independent learners making the most of opportunities
which may pass by their less receptive male counterparts. Martin (2003)
analysed the gender differences which occur in relation to motivation. He
attempted to discover the factors that boys see as necessary for ensuring that
they are motivated to complete their work. His study concluded that there is a
gender difference in regard to motivation and that girls tend to value school more
highly than boys. They see the value in organisation and motivation, though
exhibiting greater anxiety towards their studies. Boys on the other hand scored
more highly on what he described as ‘self handicapping behaviour’. These are
behaviours which impede academic performance irrespective of the ability of the
student.
29
His research suggested that boys see value in the following for ensuring
motivation:
Good relationships between teachers and students
The teacher’s enjoyment of teaching
Providing boys with choices
Making school work interesting
(Martin, 2003)
His study indicated therefore that the level of motivation of boys is more
conditional on external factors. This conditional motivation will not come about if
individual teachers and schools do not do more to create the type of environment
necessary for boys to engage in their learning. In a study on boys’ attitudes
towards school and schooling, Slade and Trent (2000) interviewed a large
number of boys across a range of government and independent schools around
Australia. They identified relational factors as significant in the disaffection felt by
many boys about their schooling.
“In brief the boys think that adolescent years are most
significant…and in their general view that declining rates
of achievement and retention are inevitable because the
adult world is ‘not listening’ and not generally interested in
their view, their well being, and for many, their educational
needs and outcomes.”
(Slade & Trent, 2000, p 1)
This study emphasised the importance of the teachers and their relationships
with the students as the primal factor for the boys in their perceptions of the
worth of their schooling. The issue and importance of trust between the students
and the teachers is an overriding response from the boys in the study. Indeed
the incidence of whom they describe as ‘bad teachers’ looms large in their
responses. Teachers would understand more if ‘they would just listen to you.”
(Slade & Trent, 2000, p 8). The boys are quite clear as to their definitions of what
constitutes a good and bad teacher. A good teacher: listens, respects, is relaxed,
is flexible, explains, doesn’t humiliate, doesn’t write slabs, lets you talk, doesn’t
favour girls, doesn’t keep picking on people, doesn’t mark you down, gives you a
30
chance to muck up and doesn’t keep telling you you’re no good. “They be good
to you, you be good to them…that’s it.” (Slade & Trent, 2000, p 14).
Martin (2003) suggested that these preconditions for motivation and engagement
are not as crucial for girls to learn. This study tends to endorse the more
anecdotal view that boys are more ‘high maintenance’ in the classroom than
girls. They are less receptive, less motivated and more conditional in their
preparedness to work than their female counterparts.
The formal curriculum therefore may tend to be the ‘main game’ in the teaching
of girls. For boys, it is possible that this is but one narrative in the classroom;
running parallel or in conflict with the relational narrative. It may be that there is a
tendency for girls to be taught in the classroom due to their greater
receptiveness to the lesson and for boys to be managed due to their lower
responsiveness to the instruction. Motivational levels are also influenced by
early experiences. Boys need to achieve in their early schooling if they are to set
the pattern for lasting achievement. Place (1997) reviewed research into boys in
education and suggested a series of strategies for improved outcomes. He
identified the need for early academic success to ensure continued strong
performance.
From the outset the boys are generally less receptive to learning and therefore
more likely to engage in off task behaviours from an early age. This poses the
question: Do primary school teachers view the conduct of their students as an
educational issue or just the phenomenon of ‘naughty boys’? If the later is true,
teachers may be missing the point. By responding to off task behaviours as
management issues, they may be missing the opportunity for skill development
which would obviate these very behaviours. One example of this: Boys in
particular need assistance with organisation to perform at their best including
emphasis upon strong revision strategies. The early primary schooling years, so
crucial to skill development are also crucial for boys’ perceptions of success and
the development of motivation. A study in the United Kingdom titled Boys and
English looked at the key skill of reading and found that as early as the age of
seven boys are on average doing worse than girls. This is an alarmingly early
stage of the educational career of a student for a measurable disadvantage to
31
develop based upon gender. These studies have implications for the primary
classroom where early skill development and the potential for discouragement
with long term consequences for performance are in juxtaposition.
Unfortunately, some of the dynamics between boys in the classroom give rise to
discouragement rather than motivation. Blair (2000) conducted a case study in
one Year 8 classroom and noted the affect of ‘put downs’ upon members in the
class. He suggested that teachers need to be aware of this dynamic as the
interaction is particularly prevalent amongst boys. Blair stressed the need to both
provide greater opportunities for the quieter boys and discourage the adverse
comments. Again, Alloway, et al (2003) explored the dynamics of boys’
responses to oral performance in English. This case study of two Year 10
classrooms showed that boys with a strong peer group enjoyed the oral classes
whereas the quieter boys disliked the tasks. This identifies the ‘marginalising
effect’ that this methodology has upon some students. The nature of this
discouragement though surreptitious is very powerful resulting in some boys
disengaging from learning. The creation of a ‘winners and losers’ dynamic in the
classroom is a darker manifestation of the tendency of boys to compete.
The difference in skill levels between boys and girls, exacerbated by motivational
issues for boys, is further aggravated by a greater tendency towards behavioural
problems in the classroom by boys brought on by inappropriate perceptions of
masculinity. Many boys feel that they have to be tough (West, 1996). This role is
often played out in the classroom at the expense of learning. This dynamic is
also mirrored in popular culture with the Bart and Lisa Simpson cartoon
stereotypes of male and female students.
The issues of choice, motivation and commitment to studies are very important
here, particularly linked with the issues surrounding relevancy. Appropriate
choices of subjects, high expectations for work produced and a clear linkage
between these studies and the ‘real world’ are not variables which happen by
chance. Careful subject selection, reasonable but challenging expectations and
appropriate meaning in the curriculum all require coordination and planning if
they are to have an impact upon motivation. Harris (1998) looked at the reasons
for boys’ underperformance and proposed a range of possible solutions. He
32
stressed the need to offer greater choices in terms of subject selection and
suggested that clearer guidelines in terms of expectations are essential. He also
identified the need to foster greater social communication skills in boys. This ties
in with the earlier discussion on learning style preferences and boys’ tendencies
away from group work and cooperation. He suggested that boys are less likely to
see the intrinsic value of particular subjects if they are not linked to ‘real world’
imperatives. The world of academia therefore just does not rate against more
practical skills which are deemed to be useful. This has implications beyond how
things are taught to what is taught and why; how the curriculum is tailored for the
student and how it is linked in a meaningful way to life outside of the classroom.
For learning to be valued it has to be valuable. This means that it must be
deemed to be useful in some way to life outside of school.
2.4 School Culture and Connectedness
The literature suggests that a great deal of store needs to be placed upon the
relationship between the teacher and male students. There is a need to reassess
the way teachers interact with boys, being cognisant of the dynamic of the peer
group and the need to broaden their outlook beyond narrow definitions of
success. This has implications in terms of the ‘culture of boys’ in the school
setting and the influence this will have upon learning. Keddie (2003) conducted a
case study in a Year 5 class in Tasmania. This involved looking at masculinity in
the peer setting and the importance of these early years in determining
masculine stereotypes. He suggested that current teaching methods and
approaches towards boys in the school setting may be reinforcing narrow views
of masculinity. This study has implications regarding the effectiveness and
appropriateness of role models. Are there enough positive expectations of boys
in terms of academic prowess? Where are the role models in the world of
academia? Who are their heroes and are they able to emulate them? Australian
culture in particular would be hard pressed to identify its pantheon of non
sporting heroes. The image of masculinity presented to boys and perpetuated by
them is very narrow.
“Too often boys’ problems in behaviour are seen as
innate, or based on biology. But the apparent simplicity of
masculinity is beset by problems of presentation and
33
interpretation. Masculinity is presented as uncomplicated
in the Hollywood movies; yet we saw that the actors
themselves had difficulties when they had to act
masculine. Perhaps this misses the real point. Masculinity
itself might be the drama- one in which men can never
stop acting.”
(West, 1999, p. 12)
Are schools projecting a legitimate and relevant model of manhood? The issue of
connectedness is important here. The premise that boys are influenced to a
greater extent by the relationship with the teacher than girls means that schools
need to think carefully about the formal and informal opportunities for appropriate
relationships to be fostered (Australian Association of Social Workers, November
2000). Case studies of a number of schools find that teachers generally identify
relationships between teacher and students as being of significant importance in
the education of boys.
“All the teachers interviewed reiterated the importance of
developing relationships with the boys as a key to
improving the educational outcomes for boys.”
(Lingard et al 2002 p. 47)
The teachers therefore know inherently of the need for appropriate role models
in the school for young boys. Interestingly the primary years of schooling are
almost devoid of male teachers as Primary teaching is heavily staffed by women.
Whilst there is obviously a role for appropriate female role models in the lives of
male students, this should not be; but often is at the expense of sufficient
numbers of appropriate male role models in early schooling. Martino and Kehler
(2006) are sceptical of the calls for more male teachers in Primary classrooms as
an unnecessary critique of female teachers. They do acknowledge the wide call
for male role models in education for boys but do not characterise this as a
deficiency of female teachers in the Primary Schools
.
34
2.5 Government research and responses to the underperformance of
boys
The combination of discouragement, difficulties with skill acquisition, motivational
and behavioural issues and alienation from learning and their teachers are all
powerful factors in boys’ underperformance. The phenomenon of male
underachievement has been so pronounced that it has led to a number of
government enquiries to find out what was going wrong with boys in schools.
The ACT Department of Education, Youth and Family Services commissioned
Andrew Martin to provide a report on boys in education. In Improving the
Educational Outcomes of Boys, he found that motivation is crucial in achieving
educational outcomes and to enjoyment in learning. Martin (2003) developed a
scale to measure students’ motivation in what he termed: “motivation boosters’
and ‘motivation guzzlers’. Boosters included: self belief, value of schooling,
learning focus, planning, study management, and persistence. Guzzlers
included: anxiety, uncertain control, failure avoidance and self sabotage. His
findings show that from Years 7-9 girls scored higher on learning focus, planning
and study management, but also higher on anxiety. Year 7 boys scored
significantly higher on failure avoidance. In other words they tended not to
attempt a task if they believed that there is a good chance of trying and failing.
This phenomenon continues into later schooling with boys tending to select
‘easier subjects’ and avoiding anything to do with the English language (West,
2003; O’Doherty, 1994). Unfortunately it is difficult to avoid the language
component in the higher year levels across the curriculum.
“Where boys can avoid doing English, they often do; and
when they can’t they often fail. Only certain subjects are
real subjects for boys.”
(Teese et al. 1995, p. 108-109)
In Australia the subject that shows the greatest gender differences is English:
girls’ results are 25% higher than boys’ (McGraw, 1996 p. 109).
Martin’s report followed up on the quantitative data with interviews involving
focus groups of students. He found that boys are at their best when they find
teachers to be friendly and genuinely interested and interesting in their teaching.
They appreciate classes which are fun and relevant to what they believe to be
35
important. They also appreciate ‘hands-on’ opportunities and variety and choice
in what is taught and how it is learnt. Conversely, classes are often perceived to
be boring and repetitious.
In the report, teachers cite specific strategies for engaging boys:
Making learning practical and hands on
Providing rewards and positive feedback
Allowing opportunities to make choices and the resultant consequences
Addressing problems with literacy
Creating appropriate opportunities for peer mentoring and role modelling
Martin (2003)
Whilst teachers were readily able to identify the optimum climate for the teaching
of boys in theory; in practice their best intents may be undone by behaviours
which require policing rather than teaching. Martin’s research identified a number
of strategies which schools can undertake to better address the needs of boys.
These included pedagogical reform such as an integrated approach across the
curriculum, professional development of teachers in addressing issues of
methodology, involving students in the development of programmes, celebration
of academic excellence and creating a positive academic culture. In addition he
focused on the relationships between teacher and student stressing the need for
teachers to adopt styles which are likely to enhance motivation. These include a
good balance between discipline and fun and having tolerance and a genuine
regard for the students.
There has been considerable activity both at the State and Federal levels
concerning educational outcomes. The performance of boys relative to their
female counterparts in schools has attracted particular political attention. In
Guiding Principles for Success in Educating Boys, the report to the Federal
Government states:
“Improving the educational outcomes of boys requires a
whole school approach based on a common vision and a
coherent, integrated set of programmes across the broad
range of activity noted in this report (i.e. pedagogy,
curriculum and assessment; literacy and communication
36
skills; student engagement and motivation; behavior
management programmes and positive role models for
students)…This approach should be integrated with
existing school improvement strategies and should
engage the broader school community.” (2003)
In 1994, the New South Wales Minister of Education received a report into the
education of boys by the NSW Government Advisory Committee on Education,
Training and Tourism (O’Doherty 1994) The Inquiry into Boys’ Education,
Challenges and Opportunities provided an understanding of the issues
surrounding boys’ education and offered a number of recommendations to
remedy the perceived problems. The recommendations were wide ranging
involving not just how boys are taught but also an assessment on the needs of
boys in terms of the whole schooling experience. In essence the issues
surrounded the approaches taken to educate boys and the capacity of boys to be
educated and how these two dynamics played out.
“The report lists many examples which give cause for concern
about boys’ education. These include lower retention to Year
12 and poorer academic outcomes compared to girls. Boys are
over represented in programs for students with learning
problems, particularly problems with literacy. Students
identified as having behavior problems are overwhelmingly
boys.”
(O’Doherty, 1994, p. 3)
Under the heading ‘Performance’ the report identified a range of indicators
whereby male students were underperforming compared with girls in the NSW
government school sector. These indicators are mirrored in other school sectors.
They included:
An overrepresentation of boys in special education programmes: 65% of
students in special education classes are boys
A greater percentage of boys than girls leave school early without
completing their HSC
37
Boys achieve lower literacy scores than girls in Years 3 & 6 and are
outperformed in HSC English
Boys perform slightly better in numeracy testing but tend to enroll in the
easier mathematics classes at the senior level than do the girls
Girls have outperformed boys in terms of TER scores since their
introduction in 1991
The above findings are exacerbated by socio economic factors
(O’Doherty, 1994, p. 12-13)
The report went on to identify differences in participation rates with boys tending
to choose the easier subjects or moving into Technical and Further Education
(TAFE) or other less academic alternative options prior to the HSC. The findings
of the committee in terms of student conduct were equally significant. Issues
such as a tendency to be uncommunicative, disengaged from the learning
process, a failure of leadership in terms of boys’ abilities and inclinations, higher
incidences of misbehavior and anti-intellectualism were all identified as key
inhibitors to learning.
“Boys do not want to be seen to excel except on the
sporting field. They fear ridicule and often are the victims
of bullying if they stand out academically or in non
traditional areas such as music, dance and drama.
Students at a number of High Schools visited reported that
boys do not like to be praised; it is not cool to achieve.”
(O’Doherty, 1994, p. 16)
The report continued to identify the wider issues surrounding boys including the
higher incidence of crime by male offenders, the higher incidence of youth
suicide and a greater tendency to an insecure future than young women.
The study titled: Improving the Educational Outcomes for Boys (Martin, 2002)
was submitted to the ACT Department of Education, Youth and Family Services.
The report released in December 2002 involved an extensive literature review, a
survey measuring motivation of students in ACT government High Schools;
interviews with student focus groups; interviews with teachers and consultations
38
with researchers. The research indicated a number of factors impacting upon
learning in the classroom. In addition it too identified school wide factors that can
affect learning outcomes. The report noted strategies which promote and
endorse the academic life of students and provide opportunities to enhance
learning for individual students. These factors include a school wide focus on
learning, effective teaching, monitoring of individual students’ progress, the
active involvement of students, the use of a variety of teaching methods and
effective role modeling by both teachers and students (Hill and Rowe, 1996).
Having said this, the next section will identify the reasons for this particular case
study. This case study is in essence a response to the literature by one particular
school aiming to improve educational outcomes for the boys at the school.
2.6 The purpose of this research
The school wide approach undertaken at Marcellin required a comparison of the
Victorian Certificate of Education results and the post school destinations of the
students prior to the interventions of the strategic plan. A comparison of these
two indicators following the school wide intervention would then indicate if there
has been measurable movement in terms of school effectiveness. By comparing
outcomes across two key indicators to the baseline findings in 2000, the
research will determine if after eight years of school wide intervention, there has
been a significant or measurable shift in the learning climate of the school. Whilst
cultural change can take many years to come into effect, early indicators will
provide some insight into the possibilities of school improvement and addressing
the needs of boys through a school wide approach. The literature identifies a
school wide approach as the most likely intervention to achieve significant
changes in outcomes:
“Research shows that school level action can strongly
support teacher and class level action to enhance the
educational outcomes of all students. Students can benefit
from schools effectively modeling principles of gender
equity, addressing an anti academic culture, building a
proactive and optimistic school culture, valuing student
input into school policy and procedures, celebrating
academic excellence and personal bests, developing a
39
staff structure and mix that sends appropriate messages
to students and developing school wide pedagogical
leadership roles to support strategies in the classroom.”
(Martin, 2002, p. 52)
The needs and the means to address these needs have been identified in the
research. The imperative to respond to these needs was clear. A good deal of
anecdotal information surrounding the perceived problems with boys has been in
schools for a long time now. My own experience as Deputy Principal of a large
coeducational secondary school was that approximately 90% of the serious
disciplinary matters referred to me in the school involved boys. This was in a
school population where the boys made up fewer than half of the student
numbers. The problems in terms of discipline seemed to be matched in the area
of curriculum where boys were under represented in subject prizes and girls
were more prominent in school productions and student leadership. These
observations were borne out in studies suggesting the long held view that boys
were underperforming at school (West, 2003).
This case study was designed to determine if by responding to the
recommendations on boys’ education the college could raise educational
outcomes for the boys and meet parental and student expectations in terms of
the education provided. In this way it can be determined if it is possible to effect
cultural change in a school which is perceived to be underperforming in key
areas in line with the broader male student population. Is the school able to
position itself to better meet the needs of the boys? By looking at the expressed
needs of the school in initial research undertaken in the 2000 strategic plan,
entering into a range of interventions arising from the literature on boys and
measuring key indicators of improvement, we are able to determine to what
extent it is possible to manufacture better opportunities for boys at the school
wide level by strategic intervention by the school leadership.
2.7 Marcellin College as a microcosm of boys’ education
At the beginning of 2001 I was appointed Principal of Marcellin College in
Bulleen, a prominent Catholic Secondary School for Boys located in the eastern
suburbs of Melbourne. The school of over 1200 students from Years 7-12 and
40
140 teachers is well resourced, ideally located in terms of enrolments and well
placed to address the needs of Catholic families in the eastern suburbs in the
education of their sons. The school was founded in 1950 by the Marist Brothers,
a teaching Order originating in France in the early 19th century. The Order itself
was founded by St Marcellin Champagnat, a French priest who saw in the chaos
of the French revolution, the need to provide an education founded on Christian
principles for rural children in the impoverished southern provinces of France.
The work of the brothers was a missionary one and the Order moved overseas
into the Asia Pacific and Australasia. Their work in Australia is centered on over
fifty schools established at different times in each of the states and territories (In
the Footsteps of Marcellin Champagnat, 1998).
As the new Principal of Marcellin College and as only the second lay principal in
the history of the College I was charged with both the responsibility for the
educational programme and as importantly the overriding philosophies
underpinning Catholic and particularly Marist education. Key to the mission is the
need to meet the needs of the students, both those who are academically
inclined and those in need of additional support. Indeed the philosophy of the
college emphasizes the need to show preferential treatment to those most in
need in the community which the school serves. Identifying and addressing the
specific learning needs of the students is therefore a priority.
“We know that we have received a great gift in the person
of Marcellin and in his educational institutions and those of
Marist educational institutions since him. We want to be
faithful to this heritage in a dynamic way. In our day the
cries of young people are no less urgent than they were in
Marcellin’s time. They call for fresh responses. It is this
desire to tap into our roots, to rediscover there the passion
and the vision for our mission for today’s younger
generation that motivates…”
(In the Footsteps of Marcellin Champagnat, 1998, p. 13)
At my first staff meeting at the commencement of 2001, the new college strategic
plan titled: Beyond 2000 was launched addressing the forward planning required
41
for the next three to four years. The strategic plan was the synthesis of research
undertaken into the needs of the college during 2000. It was this strategic plan
coupled with more global findings from widespread research into boys’ education
that led to both the nature of my leadership in the school and the subject of this
research. Lingard and Ladwig (2001) identify the lack of a clear focus on learning
at the school wide level as a significant adverse factor in the learning culture of
the school. These findings tended to be reflected in the research into the culture
of learning at Marcellin. The role of school leaders as ‘determinants of the
learning health’ of the school should not be underestimated. The role of the
principal in the enhancement of learning across the school is as imperative as
the role of the teacher in the individual classroom.
The Marcellin College Strategic Plan, commissioned by my predecessor and
entrusted to me to implement was based upon research conducted at the college
on the specific needs of the boys at Marcellin. The research involved qualitative
data gained through data collection from students, teachers and parents along
with quantitative data provided through the analysis of key indicators such as
academic performance and destinations after leaving school. After all, the VCE is
not an end in itself. Whilst the actual work of the teacher finishes at the end of
the year, the purpose of the Year 12 is linked to what the boys do with it. The
research provided a specific case study of how boys were responding to their
educational environment in terms of academic and behavioral performance.
These data along with comprehensive work being done in research both here in
Australia and overseas provided clear indicators both to the issues surrounding
boys in the school and the way forward in terms of improving their performance.
The responsibility upon the leadership of the college was clear. Entering into my
first year as the educational leader of the college, I was equipped both with
widespread literature on boys’ education and with specific data on how boys
were responding to Marcellin in particular. The strategic plan formed the basis of
the interventions which were begun at the start of 2001 and continue to this day.
“The role of the leader is to ensure that all organizational
members ‘…understand the interconnectedness of their
roles in relation to the larger systems of learning in which
they operate.” (Langford & Cleary, 1998, p 135)
42
As the person responsible for the implementation of the strategic plan, the
principal is charged with creating the opportunities in the school whereby
learning can occur (Leithwood et al, 2004, Mulford, 2008). The leader initiates
and supports excellence by implementing specific strategies. The
strategist/leader is responsible for long term planning arising from the collection
of data and appropriate response which has wide ranging implications across the
institution. School wide programmes to address structure, policies and
procedures can have a significant affect upon school improvement across a
range of indicators. Just as the literature suggests that individual teacher
practices in the classroom can have a significant affect upon learning outcomes
for boys, this research will examine the extent to which school wide interventions
can help to create the cultural environment conducive to boys’ learning. In effect,
the research question is: To what extent are the 21 interventions chosen at
Marcellin able to address the perceived deficiencies in learning outcomes? Is it
possible to promote a ‘boy friendly school’? The decisions made regarding
structures, policies and procedures should reflect both the needs identified in the
wider research and the more indigenous needs of the boys identified at
Marcellin.
2.8 Marcellin College: perceptions of performance and the need for
change
As explained, the Marcellin College Strategic Plan titled: Beyond 2000, Building
a Learning Community was developed in response to the school community’s
need to address perceived deficiencies in the educational performance of the
school. The research primarily involved qualitative data gained from a number of
interviews of sample groups of students, teachers and parents. In addition,
quantitative data were gathered in relation to specific indicators such as
academic results, post school destinations attendance and instances of
behavioral problems. The final report presented at the beginning of 2001
provided an insight into the educational health of the college. In addition to the
report, I, as the new principal of the school undertook to meet with each of the
140 teachers on staff as well as selected groups of students to determine directly
their perceptions of the quality of learning and learning relationships at the
school. The school like any institution had to be understood as a cultural entity.
To do so provides a guide to the appropriate response to the issue. To effect
43
cultural change, the strategic plan would need to manipulate cultural factors. The
first premise in understanding improvement in service delivery in schools is the
realization that institutions are cultural entities. As such, change may only be
effected through an understanding of the organizational culture of the institution.
Culture is defined as:
“…a pattern of beliefs and expectations shared by the organization’s members
that produces norms that powerfully shape the behavior of the individuals and
groups in the organization” (Shwartz & Davis, 1981, p.33). To measure success
and to effect change involves operating at the cultural level. This ‘subjective side
of organizational life’ is a powerful determinator of the method of service delivery
and the ability of the organization to adapt (Meyerson, 1991, p.256).
So what aspects of the ‘Marcellin Culture’ were in need of change? Marcellin
could be described as an advantaged school in a number of ways. The school is
well resourced with extensive facilities, a hard working and committed staff and
to some extent a selected entry based upon religious affiliation and geography.
The enrolment policy of the college determines that students are generally drawn
from a number of locally based Catholic primary schools where there is a
generally shared ethos and understanding of the nature of education and a
general consensus surrounding values and beliefs. As the enrolment policy is
based largely upon geographic and demographic considerations, the student
body is drawn from predominantly comfortable economic backgrounds.
The Federal Government measure of the economic background of parent
populations is designed to assist in the level of government funding allocated to
each school. The SES indicator provides an insight into parental background in
terms of financial resources and ability to contribute to the cost of the student’s
education. Marcellin has an SES rating of 115 which places its parent population
as one of the most advantaged economically in the Catholic sector.
(Catholic Education Office, 2004)
Culturally the college population is predominantly Anglo Saxon with strong Italian
influences but largely with students born in Australia with English as the
language spoken most often at home. Therefore, the boys at Marcellin come
44
from financially secure homes, where English is the first language. They come to
a school which is well resourced compared to other schools in the Catholic
sector, the government sector and indeed many independent schools.
(Marcellin College Census Data, 2007)
The findings of the Beyond 2000 report therefore seem on the surface to be quite
puzzling. The report assessed the school’s performance in the Victorian
Certificate of Education and identified a number of other factors suggesting
underperformance. The college has underperformed at the VCE compared to
‘like schools’ for a number of years. The average expected VCE standard across
the state for secondary schools is for an average Median study score of 30
across the range of subjects. For the previous eight years, the average for
Marcellin had been 29. In terms of attaining excellence in the VCE, all schools
across the state are expected to achieve an average of eight percent of students
achieving a study score of 40 or over. The average for Marcellin for the same
period had been 5. The significance of these figures is reinforced when
compared with ‘like schools’. Whilst it is recognized that boys fare less well than
girls in the VCE, when compared to other Catholic Boys’ Schools with a similar
demographic and measured by SES, Marcellin was significantly
underperforming. The most disturbing indicator was the expected percentage of
‘excellent’ scores over 40 where two similar Catholic boys’ schools in the eastern
suburbs were more than doubling the Marcellin percentage.
A further indicator which illustrates the problem is that students at Marcellin are
tested for literacy and numeracy as they enter the school in Year 7. All students
undergo Career wise testing during Year 10 which also gives an indicator of
‘latent ability’. They are again tested in Year 12 with the General Achievement
Test (GAT) which provides data as to their potential ability as opposed to their
demonstrated ability in the VCE. In all indicators, the students coming to
Marcellin were ranked higher than students across the state. A reliable
comparative indicator of ability was the data from the statewide AIMS tests.
In 2007 they indicated that results for Marcellin boys in Year 7 were:
Reading: 97.4% of boys exceeded the national benchmark
Writing: 96.9% above the national benchmark
45
Numeracy: 96.9% above the national benchmark
(AIM Data Service 2007)
Therefore, the students were slightly more able than the state average, but
traditionally have achieved less well than the state average in the VCE and
considerably less well than their counterparts in Catholic boys’ schools with
similar SES. Suffice to say that as these data became increasingly accessed by
parents and the wider community through such media as ‘league tables’, serious
questions begin to be raised regarding the academic programme of the school.
The second indicator which was identified both in the research and in direct
observations during 2001 was the issue of non engagement by a significant
number of students in the wider life of the school. This was evidenced by
absenteeism from classes and in particular from wider school functions such as
Founder’s Day Events and Athletic and Swimming Carnivals. Whilst there was a
consistent core majority of students who attended and participated in these
activities, there was a significant number who did not. The number was large
enough to dissuade effective intervention to ensure attendance and compliance
to school expectations. This problem with enforcement exacerbated the original
problem.
The third indicator of underperformance was in regard to work ethic particularly
in the ‘middle years’ of schooling, that being Years 8, 9 and 10. Whilst in general,
the wider school population was deemed to be on ‘amicable terms’ with their
teachers, there were concerns raised in the report regarding work ethic in
general and work submission in particular. The rate of non submission of work in
the middle school was put as high as one third. That being, a third of the class
might not submit the required work by the published due date. This was
attributed in the report and in subsequent discussions with teachers to an
insufficient work ethic on behalf of the boys and an indisposition toward
academic vigor (Ryan, 2000). This was often attributed vaguely to ‘cultural
factors’ although it is difficult to defend the argument that external factors
regarding learning were the cause. The boys came from over forty primary
schools in the area whose students also attended other secondary schools which
perform more credibly in the VCE. Their counterparts in other schools were on
46
average doing better than they were. The second reason given for this by some
experienced members of the teaching staff was that the boys did not try to do
well in their work due to a fear of not performing. It was deemed preferable to not
try and fail rather than try and risk underperforming. This is borne out in the wider
research in terms of boys’ underperformance (Martin 2002). His studies
attributed a good deal of underperformance, particularly by male students as a
means of failure avoidance. If one does not try then there is little investment in
the success or failure of the enterprise. To try and not succeed is the worst case
scenario for many students and lack of effort is deemed to be preferable.
The fourth indicator arose from data collected regarding post school careers
pathways. Data provided by VTAC indicated relatively low numbers of students
receiving offers for places in the university sector. The numbers were low
considering Marcellin was ostensibly a comprehensive school with a focus on the
Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE) which was a generally accepted
pathway into the tertiary sector. (Pathways DATA)
The fifth indicator of underperformance was a little more difficult to quantify. This
indicator was identified by both students and parents. The phenomenon can only
be described as an ‘anti intellectualism’ prevalent amongst the students and
indeed amongst some of the faculty itself. The perception amongst the boys was
that it was ‘not cool’ to be too clever. This was borne out by a climate amongst
the more able students of ‘surreptitious success’ and ‘hiding one’s light under a
bushel’. The approach amongst the students of doing just enough to get by is
borne out in an analysis of results which suggest a flattening off of scores at the
top end. In terms of the school, the rewards for sporting success were clearly
manifested in the array of trophies and pennants dispensed with suitable gravity
at College Assemblies and noted in detail on college honor boards. The absence
of similar recognition of the prowess of the academically able was palpable. In
my interviews with staff, there was a commonly used oxymoron that we ‘were not
an academic school’.
An overriding sentiment expressed by staff was one of a sense of powerlessness
in that a great deal of hard work was being done by teachers but that there
seemed to be little accountability for students who did not engage in the learning
47
process or for those who were actively engaging in misconduct both inside and
outside of the classroom.
The Strategic Plan Review Committee tabled a report into the ‘learning health’ of
the college. The key inhibitors to the learning culture identified included:
large class sizes
Lack of motivation in students
An anti-learning culture and difficulties in creating a learning environment
A fear of failure and subsequent failure to attempt
Inadequate facilities for practical subjects
Poor student discipline and lack of accountability
A conservative curriculum, content rather than skills based
Low academic expectations therefore low academic standards
An over emphasis upon sporting achievement and little celebration of
academic life
Resistance to change
Subject based rather than student focused pedagogy
Limited opportunities for professional discourse
Little staff accountability or opportunity for appraisal
A lack of a clearly articulated vision for the college
(Ryan, 2000, p. 4-7)
None of the above findings can be attributed solely to the local school
environment. Indeed the description above mirrors the findings of the research
into the educational health of boys quite well. A similar assessment of boys in the
classroom in other contexts and other places reveal a similar dynamic, although
there are differences in degree. This did not however minimize the need for
action at the school level to address the needs of the boys at the school. The
response needed to be at the school level and the findings of the literature
suggested that a school wide approach was appropriate to bring about positive
change. Here was a school, well resourced, populated by a relatively privileged
student demographic; but underperforming academically compared to other
schools, including less advantaged ones. What are the factors which helped to
48
foster the problem and what are the interventions which were designed to
address it?
As explained above, many of the findings of the strategic planners were
consistent with the wider literature on boys’ education. In particular, motivational
issues arising from fear of failure, lack of extrinsic and intrinsic rewards for
success, teaching and learning styles, and issues surrounding literacy which
were all evident at Marcellin are deemed contributory factors for boys in the
wider sphere. The fact that Marcellin was underperforming in key indicators
compared to other schools but also compared to ‘like schools’ where gender and
demographics were the same suggests that there were further issues needing to
be addressed. These were described earlier as ‘cultural issues’ whereby the
specific dynamics of the school community were not conducive to effective
learning for boys. These ‘cultural considerations’ seemed to revolve around
perceptions of the students’ capacity to learn, both their own and their teachers.
In addition there was an insufficient valuing of both the learning process and the
outcomes (Ryan 2000). These issues along with the global concerns regarding
boys in schools were to form the basis of the school wide structural, policy and
process changes to take effect over the ensuing years. The new culture would
have to be one of continuous improvement whereby the service the school was
to provide was more akin to what the student required. Put in terms of Quality
Management principles in education, the service provider needed to access the
nature of the clientele and plan for provision of that service accordingly. For the
leadership of the school, this would involve a major reassessment of the
allocation of resources, the method of delivery and the imaging of the ‘product’.
“Quality Management can broadly be described as the
process of developing organizational systems for long term
change towards a culture of continuous improvement.”
(Berry, 1997, p.97)
The data had been collected and the literature was providing the insights into
those things that needed to be done. Whilst the research into boys’ education
has major implications for pedagogy in the individual classroom, the overall
structure and practice needed to be addressed first. This is the role of leadership
49
in the school. To create the climate whereby systems change was possible.
Macro reform was to precede micro reform.
“ Leaders in successful quality settings have been able to
conceptualize the theory in ways that translate into
practice, steer the change process and guide the people in
determining not only how to perform their jobs, but even
more importantly, what their jobs should be.”
(Siegal & Byrne, 1994, p.52)
2.9 The ‘cultural approach’ to the needs of boys
Based upon the findings of the literature and the needs identified in the strategic
plan, the Leadership Team set upon a course of systems review and systems
change. These initiatives ranged from the general structure of the college, the
ways in which the school related to the students, the ways that their work was
being valued and the ways in which the students were held accountable to that
work. This phase of ‘building a boy friendly school’ preceded the initiatives to
help foster the further development of boy friendly classrooms.
The specific interventions were as wide ranging as:
Lowering the class sizes in the core subjects at Years 7-10 from 31 to 26
students so that teachers are given better opportunities to work with
smaller groups
The Work Submission Policy which establishes clear expectations of all
students regarding submission dates and quality of work and keeps
parents informed of problems in study performance
The Student Progress Committee which intervenes with those individuals
who are not progressing due to under-engagement in their studies
The new process for subject selection which better monitors subject
choices for the VCE so that students are choosing subjects more wisely
based upon interests and abilities
The institution of Academic Colors which celebrate the efforts and
achievements of the students in their studies
50
The institution of extension classes in Year 12 in addition to the study
skills classes to help students learn how to learn
An increased emphasis upon professional development of staff and the
institution of staff appraisals so that we are reflecting upon our own work
practices and affirming good practice
The commencement of a major building programme in the areas of Visual
Arts and Technology to celebrate and foster the students’ evident
interests and skills in these two areas
Imparting a vision to the students that they have the capacity to aspire to
personal excellence in their studies.
Further developing teaching methodology in a bid to better engage the
students (Ryan, 2000)
The cultural dimension of change appears to be the greatest challenge in terms
of the complexity in affecting cultural factors and the subsequent time frame
required to do so. Ryan (2000) identified a wealth of strengths which could be
attributed to the existing culture of the college. These included a hard working
and dedicated faculty, good levels of parental support and a reasonably happy
student population. The imperative of developing a more robust learning culture
was the clear finding of the report and the major direction of the subsequent
strategic plan. This imperative was given added impetus with the more ready
access to statistical data indicating academic underperformance at the VCE
level. The unofficial position of the college in terms of results was that: “We don’t
discuss results’. Unfortunately, that position was becoming increasingly
unsustainable in the face of ‘league tables’, where parental expectation and the
reality were clearly not being reconciled. Indeed, the findings of the review and
the clear evidence of the VCE data were a compelling reason to move with some
haste to finding solutions.
The cultural dimension began to be addressed with the Beyond 2000 Strategic
Plan, Creating an Authentic Learning Community. The focus was clearly on
widespread intervention across a range of areas. The plan itself called for a
reinvigoration of the approach taken to learning and teaching. The move of the
school from a paradigm whereby the sense of achievement based upon student
pastoral care and sporting prowess was to be challenged by an assessment of
51
academic credentials was one fraught with challenges. Questions of identity,
success and failure and the legitimacy of the teaching and learning programme
are all very uncomfortable ones.
2.10 Strategic Planning as a tool of school reform
To respond to the needs identified in the strategic plan and the imperatives of the
literature, the college took a staged approach to introduce a culture loosely
referred to as ‘the Learning Community’. This staged approach involved a
progression from the global issues of student conduct and expectations;
engagement and a sense of belonging through to specific initiatives around
enhancing teaching and learning. The plan emphasised creating the right
relationships or cultural conditions as a basis for the later work surrounding
teaching and learning. The plan addressed issues of resources and the diversity
of the curriculum. This involved both physical resources as well as those
allocated to professional development, more effective assessment and testing
and the monitoring of individual student progress. Once the global issues were
attended to there was a move to focus upon individual teacher pedagogy.
2.11 Law and Order
A key understanding of boys in schools is that expectations need to be
established and enforced consistently in order to create an orderly environment.
Stadler (2004) in her paper at the Boys’ Education Conference in Sydney 2004
identified the need to establish clear, unambiguous expectations of conduct,
enforced without anger and with a view to gaining cooperation as a management
tool rather than compliance. Clear and consistent school wide expectations of
conduct remove the ‘personality factors’ from the potentially difficult area of
discipline. Concerns regarding student accountability identified in the earlier
Marcellin review were exacerbated by the perception that discipline was
enforced inconsistently leading to an unsettling effect upon students and a lack
of confidence by some teaching staff. In response to this, in Term 1 of 2001 a
new discipline code was introduced outlining the various instances of
misconduct, the level at which it would be dealt with and the member of staff
responsible for its enforcement.
52
This discipline code is renegotiated with the students at the end of each year and
appears in college publications on the college website and in each of the
classrooms. Students were to refer to a “level infringement’ and knew in advance
the likely response to the behaviours identified. Teachers were to adhere to the
code which was to be enforced consistently across the school thus removing the
‘personalities’ from the equation. The purpose of this was to have discipline be
perceived as a matter of policy rather than whim. The process of consultation at
the end of each year was meant to serve to reeducate the students to the
contents of the code and allow issues of conduct to be discussed between
pastoral teachers and their students in their pastoral groups. The code defined
expectations in areas previously seen as inconsistently applied, for example the
wearing of the uniform and attendance at school. Over the eight years since the
Guidelines were first introduced, the students and staff have been consulted at
the end of each year as to the composition of each of the levels. The original
document below has grown in complexity over the years as it has been
constantly reviewed to encompass a wider range of misconduct. .
The Marcellin College Discipline Code
All stages of the process beyond Level 1 need to be documented for file.
Repeated Offences even of a minor nature may move to a higher Level.
Teachers and students need to be aware of the Level at which an offence
is being treated.
The descriptors are neither exhaustive nor prescriptive but should be used
as a guideline, remembering that individual circumstance must be taken
into account when dealing with instances of misconduct.
A range of Suggested Responses may be used at a given Level.
Consistency across the school is important.
53
Table One: Marcellin College Discipline Guidelines
Levels Examples Of Behaviours. Suggested
Responses
Level 5
Serious criminal offence Trafficking in illicit substances. Sustained failure to comply with College
Rules. Threats or actual Violence toward a
staff member Major theft or willful destruction of
property. A breach of Contract of Conduct
Principal ,Vice Principal, House Coordinator and Pastoral Leader:
Negotiated Transfer Referral to Police Suspension from school.
Level 4
Possession of illicit substances / material.
Threats or actual physical violence Theft or destruction of property Sustained failure to comply with
directions.
Vice Principal ,House Co and Pastoral Leader:
Suspension from school Isolation from Class Contract of Conduct for
re entry to class. Community Service Counseling
Level 3
Smoking in Uniform Possession of Offensive Material Inappropriate challenging of a teacher’s
authority. Conduct in the public domain that
brings the College into disrepute. Sustained failure to comply with
directions. 3 x Detention in the Term. Vandalism Absent from school without permission.
Vice Principal ,House Co, Pastoral Teacher:
Saturday Morning Detention
Interview with parents. Written or verbal
apology. Internal Suspension. Community Service. Referral to YLC. Counseling
Level 2
Sustained failure to complete set tasks. Uniform Infringement in a public place. Racist language. Sustained failure to comply with
reasonable directions. Sustained intimidation b/w students
House Coordinator, Pastoral Leader and reporting Teacher.
After School Detention. Telephone contact with
parents. Verbal or Written
Apology. Incident Report to
student file. Interview with Year Level
Coordinator. Daily contracts for
students Counseling
Level 1
Off task behaviour in class. Uniform Infringement in the school
grounds. Littering. Disrupting the Learning Environment Non completion of class work and
homework Intimidation b/w students Spitting Offensive language Failure to follow teacher direction.
Teacher: Verbal correction or
warning. Relocation of student to
another part of the room or yard.
Lunchtime Detention. Interview with student at
Recess/Lunch. Disrupting the Learning
Environment Form Pro forma Letter home
re: outcomes. Written or verbal
apology. Temporary relocation to
another class.
54
2.12 Belonging and Connectedness
The October, 2002 Report into Boys’ Education by the House of Representatives
found:
“The relationship that a teacher establishes with students
is important for all students although the need for the
teacher to establish a connection with individual students
is more important for boys, and particularly critical for
difficult boys. There is widespread agreement among good
teachers on the necessity of establishing a good
relationship with boys and the adage that ‘boys learn
teachers not subjects’. It is equally true that good teachers
primarily teach students, not content. Both are consistent
with the views of boys themselves.” (2002)
The Marist philosophy of the school had always placed great emphasis upon the
pastoral care of the students. This was effectively reinforced through the
vertically based pastoral groups where students joined a small group of 24
students at Year 7 and stayed with the group and the Pastoral Leader until the
end of Year 12. This did much to foster the relationships in the group and
develop an effective working relationship between the pastoral carer and the
boys over a number of years. The benefits of this model were not fully optimized
due to the key student management personnel being arranged on a year level
basis. Thus the chief disciplinarians were only able to establish a working
relationship with students for a year before the students moved on. Following a
review in 2001, the college instituted a full vertical system based upon the House
model. House Coordinators were appointed to lead the teams of Pastoral
Leaders and join them in forming the longer term relationship with the students
over their six years at the school. The key relationships were therefore longer
term and the interactions with the students on a more regular and meaningful
level. The importance of relationships cannot be overstated particularly in the
case of male students who often perceive the worth of their school experience
through their assessment of their relationships with their teachers.
55
“Amongst the most consistently cited factors were: a
good relationship between student and teacher, the
teacher’s enjoyment of teaching and working with young
people, the teacher striking a good balance between
asserting authority and being relaxed and tolerant…”
(Martin, 2002, p.13)
This relational imperative for boys was described earlier as the conditional nature
of their learning. This is the tendency for boys to measure the worth of their
schooling by the health of their relationships with their teacher. The role of House
Coordinator, which superseded the Year Level Coordinator’s role, placed far
greater emphasis upon building pastoral relationships. Where the Year Level
Coordinator was primarily a disciplinarian, the House Coordinator is a leader in
the wider sense. In addition to the significant benefits arising from good working
relationships, the House Coordinators are better able to track the progress of
students over time and those accountabilities are more appropriately enforced.
Over the past eight years, there has emerged with each House a particular
House identity whereby there is greater connection between the students and
the mission of the House. Prior to the introduction of the House system,
attendance and participation in sporting carnivals and other College celebrations
had been problematic. Would the extra emphasis on belonging improve
participation in these areas? The engagement of the boys in the life of the school
is a key indicator of the success of the school in catering to the needs of the
boys.
The role of the House Coordinator is also more clearly defined as a leadership
role in the college allowing for greater dispersal of leadership and engagement of
staff in the leadership of the school. A major factor in the engagement of the
students in the classroom and in the wider school is the quality of the
relationships that exist between students and their teachers. In addition, the
sense of connectedness to the school is influenced by the quality of the
relationships that exist between the students themselves. The Beyond 2000
Strategic Plan (Ryan, 2000) clearly identified the issue of student conduct in
terms of their interaction with their teachers as a problem. Whilst there has been
a long tradition of engagement in the school through the Pastoral Leaders, the
56
major discipline figures in the school did not have the same opportunity to build
long term relationships with the students as they did. This disconnection between
the Year Level Coordinators and the wider benefits of the vertical pastoral
system led to a perception that the Coordinators’ role was one of discipline
alone. Indeed there was a belief amongst the coordinators that they were being
used too readily for teachers to pass their discipline matters to someone else.
The Pastoral Leaders knew the students well due to the long term nature of the
relationship, but there was a disconnection with the role of the Year Level
Coordinator which did not sit comfortably in the system. The introduction of the
full House Based structure with the Year Level Coordinators being replaced by
House Coordinators produced interesting results. There is little doubt from the
data collected in the Towards 2008 Review that the new House system has
produced great benefits. These include:
Greater job satisfaction for the Coordinators
Better monitoring of students’ conduct and support by the Coordinators
The development of House identity and belonging amongst the students
evidenced by greater attendance and participation at House activities and
carnivals
Greater opportunities for student leadership through the enhancing of the
role of House Captains and Vice Captains
Recognition by the staff that the system is more efficient and likely to
provide students with better guidance and the monitoring of individual
students in terms of conduct.
(Ryan, 2004, pp 5-6)
The new House system’s aim was to connect students to the educational and
community building programmes such as the college co-curricular programme.
This programme involves sporting commitments on Saturday mornings in the
Associated Grammar Schools of Victoria competitions as well as non sporting
activities such as debating, toastmasters, music and drama. Again, this
programme is a valuable asset in connecting the students to the college.
Relationships between staff and students are enhanced by this opportunity for
them to interact outside of the classroom. In his paper to the Boys’ Education
Conference in 2004, titled: Boys and Competitive Sport in Schools, Rodgers
57
wrote: “Teachers as coaches working within a strong culture of values in a
school can use competitive sport to raise self esteem, promote resilience, and
provide boys with positive life learning experiences.” There is evidence that boys
who are task orientated may have their self esteem enhanced by participation in
sport. The many qualities schools wish to promote in their students, qualities
such as respect, contribution, team work, mastery of skills, may all be found on
the sporting fields (White, Duda & Kellar, 1998).
Whilst the sporting programme has existed for some time, the heightened
expectations regarding participation arising from the House system was
designed to lead to a value adding of the benefits arising from competition. By
appealing to a ‘safe’ area of endeavor such as the traditional love of sport by
boys, along with the non sporting co-curricular pursuits for those who do not like
sport, the college aimed to ‘capture’ student interest and therefore increase the
likelihood of ‘connection’ with the school and engagement with their teachers in a
positive sense. Whilst teachers recognized the potential benefit of the co-
curricular programme, some resented the ‘added impost’ upon them in terms of
their own work commitments. They enjoyed the boys’ company; saw the
potential benefits which this brings but ultimately would prefer their own free
time. This early emphasis of the strategic plan to concentrate upon the relational
was a deliberate attempt to target the key nexus of relationships and
engagement in the learning process.
2.13 Consistency and Standards
The problem of poor work ethic is a complex one. Issues surrounding fear of
failure, lack of motivation and lack of engagement require a variety of
interventions to change student mindset. Greater accountability towards the
submission and quality of student work across the school was promoted through
a raft of policies designed to create a greater sense of accountability for
students. These policies are made practical by the use of an on line database
developed at the school in 2003 to track student progress. The first of these is
the Work Submission Policy which requires all students to submit work by the
due date. Failure to do so leads to a consistent process of renegotiating
submission dates and automatic contact being made with Pastoral Leaders,
House Coordinators and parents. In the early stages of this policy it was
58
predicted that a large volume of letters would be generated due to failure to
submit work by the due date. After some time in operation, the frequency of non
work submission was predicted to drop.
To ensure the quality of the work, the Student Progress Policy introduced in
2003 was designed to identify those students not achieving in their studies
without suitable cause. After the mid year reports, all students in the college are
now reviewed by House to determine if they are progressing appropriately in
their studies. Those students with an insufficient work ethic are referred to the
Student Progress Committee which then case manages them until the end of the
year. The committee involves students and parents in a series of interviews and
may even require students to undertake additional work prior to them being
recommended for promotion to the next year level. The immediacy of this system
was designed to introduce clearer, more consistent boundaries around work
submission and greater accountability.
The third policy designed to enhance student accountability in their studies is the
Subject Selection Policy. Prior to the implementation of this policy in 2003,
students were largely able to select their subjects at Year 11 and 12 with little or
no restrictions placed upon them. The new policy required all students to have
their subject choices endorsed by their current subject teacher and they must
discuss their overall programme with their Pastoral Leader prior to submission of
their choices. The process required a good deal more consideration and is
designed to allow for more suitable choices to be made. The more considered
approach to subject selection was to allow students to make more meaningful
choices. The attempt to find a ‘better fit’ between students and their subjects was
designed to make learning more accessible in terms of ability and more
meaningful in terms of interest. At the end of this process the student would need
to demonstrate that he had achieved a sufficient level of competency before he
could graduate to the next year level. The graduation itself took the form of a
formal Graduation Ceremony at the end of the year. This in concert with the
building programme to expand the resources for technology and the arts was a
key plank in offering a broader; more diverse and more targeted curriculum for
the boys. The improved facilities would serve a dual purpose: to demonstrate to
students and their teachers that their area of the curriculum was valued by the
59
school. When taken in context, each policy: Work Submission, Student Progress,
Subject Selection and Graduation are designed to inject a greater sense of
accountability and monitoring of the students’ passage through the school. The
automatic nature of progression and the sense that one does not have to work
until the realities of Year 12 have been a considerable problem in the past. The
newfound accountabilities built into the new system were designed to address
this. In addition the approach to individually monitor the progress of each student
in the school was meant to lead to more timely intervention and a greater level of
support and collaboration with parents.
The range of policies designed to monitor student learning and engender greater
accountability is designed to inject a sense of urgency into their studies.
Teachers require greater adherence to deadlines and submission dates across
the school with the greatest improvement needed in the middle school. The
requirements of the VCE have always provided consistency in terms of work
submission, and the Year 7 students had tended to submit work on time. The
need in Years 8, 9 & 10 has been most pressing. A focus group of parents
surveyed in March of 2002 reinforced the view there needed to be a greater
sense of urgency amongst students in the areas to be addressed in the new
Work Submission Policy. They indicated the need to inform parents swiftly of
problems with work and that there was a need for timely communication when
students were not committed to their studies. (Parent Forum, March 2002) This
and the tighter procedures surrounding subject selection were designed to foster
a greater adherence to work requirements. There is no clear empirical evidence
yet as to whether the provisions for the submission of work will affect the actual
quality of the work.
2.14 Teaching Pedagogy and Learning
Accountability addresses one part of the issue of student engagement in their
studies. Perhaps more important are the opportunities that need to be created to
celebrate that engagement. As stated previously, the sporting prowess of the
college had enjoyed appropriate recognition for a number of years. Not
surprisingly the college has done very well in terms of sport. In 2002 a new
series of awards was introduced across the school to recognize both academic
life and service contributions to the community. The first of these were Academic
60
Colors to be worn on the blazer pocket to recognize those students who have
shown excellence and/or endeavor across a range of their subjects. This
initiative was at first met by some staff members with considerable skepticism as
they believed that the students would be too embarrassed to wear them. There is
no discrimination between Achievement and Endeavour in the awarding of
colors, thus all students regardless of ability have access to them.
“Many schools receive good results with a policy of small
rewards which build to major awards and recognition by
the school at Presentation Day or on Assembly. These
merit awards are often used to good effect to encourage
non traditional modes of behavior, and to break down
stereotypes. They can be given according to the
circumstances of the particular child.”
(O’Doherty, 1994, p.30)
To ensure a steady stream of recognition of students, awards for learning
“Altissima Awards” and for service “House Awards” are given at regular House
assemblies throughout the year. This ongoing recognition can form part of the
students’ resumes which build over their time at the college. These awards
coupled with recognition of subject ‘dux’ at the beginning of each year are
designed to put academic life more fully on the agenda. The service awards are
meant to recognize a range of contributions by the boys and are often targeted to
encourage students who would in other ways receive little recognition. The
academic awards by valuing both Excellence and Endeavour in equal parts
broadens the range of opportunity and are meant to allow for greater access for
a greater number of students.
“There also needs to be whole school recognition and
celebration of academic development, skill and knowledge
building and personal academic bests. This must include
not only students who excel in exams and assignments
but also those who make significant improvements and
reach personal bests.” (Martin, 2002, p.50)
61
As stated earlier, boys often have a preference for ‘hands on’ methods of
learning. Indeed even the more academically inclined students tend to favor this
type of approach. These findings have had implications for the allocation of
resources across the college. In 2004 class sizes from Years 7-10 were reduced
from 31 to 26. Whilst class size alone is not the significant determinator of
student performance, the fewer students in the class was designed to allow the
teachers to trial different modes of teaching in class. In addition, the college
building programme commenced in 2004 has shown a preference for those
subjects which are practically based. There was an equitable approach to the
allocation of resources to the curriculum with traditional classes having their
sizes reduced and the practical classes having significant upgrading of their
facilities.
The strategic review in 2000 identified the limitations faced by the Visual Arts,
Technology and Integrated technology departments in the school. A range of
subjects including a laptop computer programme from Years 7-9 were in
operation in the school but student access to practical classes was limited by
resource factors. There was evidence in the statistical data of student
performance that students had been performing better in the Technology and Art
areas in the VCE at Marcellin compared to other subjects. This suggested a
need to further support those areas of the curriculum which catered to the
preferred learning styles of the student body. Responding to these findings the
college capital works programme was revised to include the construction of a
new School for Visual Arts, completed during Term 2 in 2004, a new Technology
Centre which was completed in May 2005 and a new gymnasium completed in
October 2007. In terms of IT, considerable resources were injected into the
hardware resources such as complete coverage of the college with a wireless
network allowing access to the intranet at all times and in all places as well as
the rollout of interactive whiteboards in classrooms. Additional contractors were
engaged to work with Learning Coordinators to construct an interactive
curriculum from Years 7-9 on line.
The emphasis upon the practical subjects was predicted to enhance the learning
experience of students by targeting their preferred learning styles. These
projects recognize the importance of the ‘hands on’ experience in boys’
62
education. Student interest in both the visual arts and technology is expected to
grow accordingly. In addition teaching teams which were established in each
department were charged to develop more innovative teaching and learning
activities meant to foster discussion amongst teachers of greater innovation in
the classroom.
“Boys commonly respond more positively to learning
experiences that have a practical focus and physical or
hands on dimension; they see as relevant and having a
real world connection; use thinking skills focused on
actual problems; challenge them by requiring higher
order and conceptual thinking; have clear instructions
and structured sessions in manageable chunks; enable
them to work with others as well as individually; provide
for a range of ways in which work can be presented such
as through IT …”
(Commonwealth Government, 2003 .p4)
The college notebook computer programme which had languished through lack
of sufficient resources was to receive an injection of funding and personnel to
provide greater student access to on line curriculum. The notebook computer
classes are meant to be rich learning environments whereby students are
encouraged to work in different ways. In addition, all departments have been
assessing how they might integrate more engaging methodology in more
traditional subjects. This is essential in maintaining diversity in the curriculum
rather than moving the school to being predominantly technical studies in nature.
The Vice Principal for Learning predicted that the move from the traditional
textbook in Year 8 Geography to an interactive on line Unit on Antarctica will be:
“A real coup in terms of the boys’ interests and what they get out of the course.
The body of knowledge has not changed but the skills the boys use and their
level of engagement in the study should be vastly increased.” “The college
undertook to build the skills capacity of the students through the introduction of
programmes focusing on how to do things. These included the new practice
examinations regime as well as the study skills programmes and the extension
classes in the senior school. All of the above movements in resources were
63
designed to address the perception that classes were boring and that some
teaching was poor. The perception of the curriculum as boring was borne out in
the Marcellin school based studies (Group 8, 2007) and the broader research
into why boys drop out of school (Slade & Trent, 2000).
In terms of the new system of awards, the institution of Academic Colors, the
Altissima and House Service Awards were integrated to become a part of the
general life of the college. The only critical feedback received has been from the
Sports master who expressed his concern at a staff meeting this year that sport
might be undervalued! The academic and service awards are there to appeal to
the boys’ need for ongoing and timely recognition for their efforts. This motivator
along with more timely notification and collaboration between the teacher,
student and parents and a fear of the consequences of the Student Progress
Committee composes a combination of ‘carrot and stick’ designed to modify
student behaviour.
The strategic plan review (Ryan, 2000) identified a number of key findings
regarding issues of staff wellbeing, innovation in the classroom, the nature of the
curriculum and the level of professional and pedagogical discourse in the school.
The demographic of the staff had been reasonably static for some time giving
rise to concerns regarding the extent to which there was evaluation of what,
when, how and why things were being taught. At one memorable Teaching and
Learning Team Meeting in 2001 the principal asked the Learning Coordinators
(Heads of Department) how they knew if a teacher in their department was
teaching well. After a significant pause, the Head of Performing Arts ventured:
“How would you know…?”
In keeping with the broad nature of the strategic intervention; initiatives for the
students were mirrored by addressing the needs of the teachers. There was no
formal mechanism for teacher appraisal in the College. A school wide system of
teacher appraisal was introduced in 2003. It is linked to recommendations
regarding the professional development plan for the individual teacher and the
Annual Review Meeting with the Principal whereby issues of teacher pedagogy,
professional development, boys’ education and student performance are
canvassed. In addition, teachers are encouraged (not mandated at this stage) to
64
survey their students as to their perceptions as to how well the classroom is
functioning. This feedback is to assist teachers with modifying their pedagogy
according to the needs of the students. Appraisal coupled with a timetabled
meeting schedule for subject teachers to meet and update units of work is
designed to create more reflection, dialogue and support between teachers
teaching the same subjects.
The sense that more time and effort is required of teachers is echoed in the
discussion of perceptions of pastoral teacher workload mentioned above. Again,
school improvement, improvement in working conditions such as classrooms,
and greater opportunities to meet and discuss pedagogy are all acknowledged.
The problem is that there is a sense of grievance in that these good things come
at the expense of teacher workload and teacher stress. Wallace (1999) identifies
this dynamic in his paper titled: Professional School Cultures: Coping with the
Chaos of Teacher Collaboration. His findings validate the collaborative approach
to teaching and the opportunities for teachers to develop a shared rather than
individualistic approach to their work. He notes the tension inherent in expecting
more of teachers than the focus solely on their own work. The ‘whole school
approach’ whilst effective, can promote tensions of its own:
“On the one hand, restructuring is said to involve
teachers taking collective action to focus on school
improvement. On the other hand, restructuring brings
with it increased responsibilities for teachers- often
accompanied by diminished resources (Smyth 1995,
Townsend 1996) …Paradoxically, increased
administrative workload and greater accountability means
that teachers often have less rather than more time to
spend in close and meaningful collaboration with
colleagues….The collegiality which emerges as a result
of restructuring is often an administrative contrivance
rather than a true professional collaborative culture.
(Hargreave & Dawe, 1990; 1999)
65
Finally, the valuing of the learning process has involved a sustained and
vigorous promotion of the school as a place of learning. Whilst valuing the
traditional strengths of the school, namely the spiritual life, the pastoral care and
the sporting programme, all of which contribute to the students’ well being and
sense of connectedness to the school, it is imperative to introduce the culture of
the learner. The groundwork for a healthy connectedness to Marcellin was
certainly present with high morale amongst the students. This needed to be
focused more squarely upon teaching and learning so that this currency was
more focused upon academics.
As argued earlier, the underlying issues of poor work ethic, lack of accountability
and low academic expectation and performance needed to be addressed by both
strengthening the existing framework and re imaging the institution to include a
value on learning. The baseline data was gathered in 2000. To determine
whether there has been any further movement the data would need to be
revisited. After considerable structural and procedural change, had the school
moved in the direction anticipated? Certainly an eight year time frame is not a
long one when dealing with institutional change but there might be evidence
even at this early stage of movement forward. There was a need to revisit the
indicators canvassed in the previous study. The range of interventions outlined in
this chapter was devised, stemming from the recommendations surrounding
boys’ education. These interventions were trialled at Marcellin with a view to
seeing if academic outcomes could be improved. During the course of the study,
VCE results and post school destinations were monitored to assess if there was
any significant changes. If so, why did this happen? What of the various
interventions did the participants believe have significant affect?
2.15 The phenomenon, its origins, significance and responses
Schools are not getting the best out of boys. True, there are many exceptions to
this rule but across a wide range of indictors, boys are falling behind girls in this
crucial stage of their development. There are problems with skill acquisition,
motivation, school retention, conduct and achievement. Some of the reasons
cited for this include the ‘feminisation’ of education, teaching methodology,
gender preferences and gender world view. Commentators warn of major
66
implications of this phenomenon including early abandonment of education and a
greater tendency to crime.
“It is imperative that this is addressed, for the sake of the
boys themselves and for society more broadly. If boys are
not achieving as well as they should, their years of school
are less enjoyable and less rewarding and they face
greater risk of unemployment, under-fulfilment and social
problems in their post school years. Society also loses
because of the under-utilisation of their abilities.”
(Barron, 2007, p 7)
Having identified the problem, a number of interventions have been identified to
better provide for boys in schools. Indeed the literature suggests an imperative to
respond by addressing the very nature of schooling and the methods adopted to
teach boys. The significance for those teaching boys and particularly for those in
boys’ schools is quite clear. To continue to teach in a way that is patently not
working and to sustain a system which reproduces underperformance is not
sustainable. It is within this context that this case study and the parallel Marcellin
College strategic plan were born. The grand scheme would involve an
understanding of the problem, an identification of the possibilities for intervention,
a broad ranging response aimed at maximum impact and finally an assessment
of what worked and what didn’t. If this approach could make a significant
difference then there is applicability to other schools and systems. Rather than
lament the demise of boys in education; is it possible at the school and the
classroom level to reverse the trend? This in essence is the purpose of this
study.
67
Chapter Three: Methodology and Method.
3.1 Introduction
The focus of this study and its significance has been discussed in Chapter One.
This study investigates the reasons why boys under perform in their schooling
and examines ways in which a whole school approach can address
improvements in learning outcomes for boys. Marcellin College in Bulleen,
Victoria would provide the case study to test this approach. The related literature
regarding challenges in boys’ education has been canvassed in Chapter Two. In
addition there is a description of the particular case study, the context of the
interventions and the purpose of each of these interventions. Chapter Three of
this paper deals with the positivist methodology of the research. It provides an
overview of the research methodology, the rationale for choosing this particular
methodology and the challenges and limitations on the approach taken. It seeks
to explain the assumptions made regarding boys’ education, the choices of the
interventions and the assessment as to their relative merits by the participants in
the case study. In addition, it also outlines an explanation for using closed and
open-ended questions in the study. But before proceeding it is appropriate to
outline the two research paradigms that have dominated educational research.
3.2 Methodology Rationale
“All social scientists are ‘observers’ of human society,
although observation takes very different forms depending
on the research methods that are employed.”
(Friedman & Steinberg, 1989, p 78)
A paradigm is a particular way of looking at the world. In the sphere of social
research there have been two dominant research paradigms; these are
interpretative and positivist paradigms. There has been a great philosophical
divide between qualitative (interpretive) and quantitative (positivistic)
methodologies as they are distinctly different methods of observation, enquiry
and measurement (Guba and Lincoln, 1994). A research paradigm provides a
theoretical framework to the research. Additionally, a paradigm suggests a
philosophical position underpinning the research. This philosophical position
guides the researcher and the task set before them. This is why the question of
68
methodology is very important. The question of methodology in educational
research determines not only how the research proceeds but also how the data
are collected and analysed (Booth et al, 1995).
The researcher imposes meaning and order on the phenomenon being studied.
Qualitative research endeavours to understand reality from a specific context,
and, therefore, the resulting knowledge is as perceived and constructed by the
observer. On the other hand, quantitative researchers argue that reality is
objective and therefore it can be asserted that they pursue facts rather than
perceptions. The primary objective of positivist researchers is to establish the
statistical truth of a social phenomenon. The positivists’ assumption about the
nature of reality is that reality is out there; it is a single reality, knowable and
measurable (Mertons, 2005; Johnson and Onwuegbuzie, 2004). What this
means is that the quantitative research theory of knowledge is predicated on
deductive reasoning and establishing causal relations between and within
phenomena being studied. It is argued that educational researchers in this
school of thought “should eliminate their biases, remain emotionally detached
and uninvolved with the objects of study, and test or empirically justify their
stated hypotheses.” (Johnson and Onwuegbuzie, 2004, p. 14).
3.3 Research Methods
This paper involves a quantitative study in the positivist paradigm (Mertons,
2005). The study utilized a survey consisting of closed and open-ended
questions. This is because the study attempts to identify participants’ perceptions
of the effectiveness of various already established interventions. The specific
questions were augmented by the opportunity for participants to provide further
feedback. There were conscious reasons why the methodology chosen for this
research was a positivist, mixed method approach (Tesch, 1990). These can be
identified as follows:
1. The case study involved a response to a perceived need in boys’ education in
the broader social domain and at Marcellin College in particular. The
interventions undertaken were deemed to be necessary to address a real
educational issue. The interventions were chosen as a response to the findings
in the literature proposing a number of solutions to the dilemmas facing boys in
69
the classroom. As such, a number of assumptions were made both by the
college and in this research as to what would best address the needs of the
boys. Rather than seek opinion as to the most effective means of intervention,
both the study and the school determined in advance the range of interventions
and then sought opinion from the participants as to their perceived effectiveness.
This post intervention opinion was gained both through a survey of staff and
students and some interviewing to seek clarification asking them to indicate to
what extent the interventions had been influential in improving academic results.
Further data were gained in the survey by inviting respondents to provide any
additional comments. In effect the study proposes a range of solutions to the
‘boy dilemma’, measures if academic performance has improved in the VCE and
post school destination data results then asks respondents to comment on each
of the interventions to determine to what extent they individually and collectively
were responsible.
The reason this approach was taken was threefold. First, there is considerable
literature available regarding the context of the study. The literature review
shows that the performance of boys in schooling has been extensively
researched in recent years and a range of findings have been made as to
appropriate interventions to address perceived shortcomings. Rather than seek
opinion from the participants as to what to do; both the school and the research
selected the interventions based upon the wealth of data available. The study
arises out of a decided world view informed by the literature. In addition, as this
case study involves a real situation, there was not the opportunity to pause
before acting. Marcellin needed to respond swiftly to perceptions of
underperformance which were damaging its academic credibility. The research,
response and evaluation approach was deemed to be the most appropriate. The
findings of the study will have considerable value for schools wishing to intervene
at the school level to improve outcomes. This study provides a range of these
interventions assesses the level of improvement then seeks participant opinion
as to how and why this improvement might have occurred.
Secondly, positivist research begins with an initial research problem and the
questions asked in the survey approach arise from the researcher’s
understandings based upon the review of the literature. The most important
70
considerations in the choice of methodology; and in this case a positivist
approach have been shown to be the topic to be studied and the practical and
theoretical considerations of the study context (Haralambos and Holborn 1990).
In this case a survey approach which presupposes the importance of certain
interventions was deemed the best way to elicit attitudes about the dynamic of
change. Therefore a number of assumptions were made in this case as to the
nature of the reality faced by the research. The survey was piloted on a smaller
sample of teachers and students prior to the wider surveying being undertaken.
The survey approach coupled with some interviews to ‘flesh out the responses’
allows for broad canvassing of opinion across the breadth of the study. In the
school context it provides a valuable insight into the opinion of the participants
gained in a relatively simple fashion and with the ability for ease of evaluation
(Crabtree & Miller, 1992).
Finally, the alternative qualitative approach had a number of limitations in the
context of this study. There is some argument to suggest that my unique access
to the school community would facilitate a qualitative ‘participant observation’
approach to the research. The ability to collect data from a number of levels and
interactions was certainly an attractive proposition. This approach however, was
discarded due to some important factors. There was a danger that the case
study and my own role as principal were dangerously close enough without
adding the complication of active, participant and observer. The ‘blurring of the
lines’ had the potential of influencing the responses received and my own
interpretation of what I was recording. The danger is that the observer will see
what they want to see. In addition, the principal of Marcellin College was likely to
excite some reaction if he were to begin direct observation of participants in a bid
to discern why learning outcomes were not being achieved and how they might
be better addressed. “Unlike the experimenter, who deliberately manipulates a
setting in order to test for results, participant observers usually try to be as
unobtrusive as possible, sometimes concealing their identity altogether.”
(Friedman & Steinberg, 1989, p 79).This approach was unlikely in this case.
The positivist approach undertaken had the advantage of distancing me from the
data collection. There is dispassion about a survey conducted in my absence
and with the responses subject to statistical analysis. There was an objective
71
nature to the process which might have been compromised by my more active
participation as observer, data gatherer and cipher (Miles & Huberman 1994,
Patton, 1990). Even in the event of engaging an independent researcher to
conduct interviews and compile qualitative data; there would have been
questions raised by teachers about confidentiality and bias. On a purely logistical
level, the quantitative approach was more manageable in the midst of the
implementation of the strategic plan, my administrative and leadership role at the
college and the need to collect data and interpret what was happening all at the
same time.
In essence, the choice of the positivist approach was based upon pragmatic
considerations. The imperative of the need to act to improve the learning
outcomes of the school coupled with the compelling background research led to
a number of assumptions being made as to what action needed to be taken. My
position and the dual nature of my role in the process required a distancing of me
from the immediate observation, gathering and interpretation of data. Time
constraints and the need for immediate data collection and interpretation made
the survey approach the most workable.
“The method of participant research is not for everyone.
It is a method that asks a great deal of the researcher
and offers no promise in return. Such research can
consume a great deal of time and energy.”
(Crabtree & Miller, 1992, p 68).
Whilst there is great merit in qualitative methodologies, particularly in the sphere
of educational research; there were very good reasons why the more traditional
quantitative approach was taken in the context of this particular study (Crawford
& Cornett 2000).
3.4 Participants
The participants in this study were teachers at Marcellin College engaged in
teaching students from Years 7 to Year 12 and all Year 11 students in 2005.
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3.5 Methodology
During the course of this process all teaching staff were invited to complete a
survey questionnaire asking them to indicate their opinions as to what extent
each of the interventions had contributed to changes in VCE results. The same
survey was distributed to all Year 11 students in 2005 to provide student opinion
as to the effectiveness of each of the interventions. A total of 42 teachers and
136 Year 11 students provided the data for the study. It must be noted that there
is likely some bias in the sampling although it is difficult to determine its nature.
The existence of systematic bias in sampling can be explained by the fact that
the data input by the teachers were those teachers who submitted the completed
surveys. It may be argued that teachers who chose to complete the
questionnaire may be in some way systematically different from those who did
not then data may be biased. For example, they may be more informed about
the issues or feel more strongly about the issue of student academic
performance. In terms of the students, all Year 11 students present on the day of
the survey completed the questionnaire.
3.6 Strategic Plan Interventions to Improve Academic Performance
The college strategic plan saw the introduction of 21 specific interventions to
improve academic performance. The 21 interventions and their date of
implementation are as follows:
1. Work Submission Policy 2003:
A standard policy was enacted across the whole school whereby parents are
automatically notified if a student fails to submit a work requirement by the due
date. There is also a set procedure for the late submission of work. This was
meant to address a chronic and widespread failure to submit work by the due
dates particularly in the middle school. This policy was meant to provide clearer,
more consistent expectations to the students regarding their work submission.
2. Student progress Policy 2003:
All students in the school are reviewed based upon their performance at the end
of semester one. If they are underperforming across a range of subjects with no
legitimate reason (e.g. learning difficulties or pastoral reasons) they are referred
to the Student Progress Committee for monitoring and guidance for the
73
remainder of the year. The process involves ongoing counselling, meetings with
students and their parents and additional work tasks to address deficiencies in
their studies. This was designed to make students more accountable to their
studies.
3. Student Management Guidelines 2002:
To improve student management practices and ensure greater consistency
across the school, a standardised set of guidelines was negotiated with staff and
students for handling discipline matters. The guidelines provide five levels of
misconduct and recommend five levels of intervention. This was meant to clarify
the relationships between students and their teachers and to provide a more
equitable application of the school rules.
4. Subject Selection process 2003:
A formalised process for subject selection was introduced to replace open choice
by the students. The new process involves research by the student regarding
tertiary studies and career paths and requires recommendations by subject
teachers before students can choose that subject to a higher level. There are
now some restrictions on entry to subjects at the next level. This process was
designed to promote better choices and greater engagement in studies.
5. Reduction in class sizes 2004:
The average class sizes for core classes at Marcellin were cut from 31 to 26 at
the beginning of 2004. Whilst there is no specific evidence to suggest that
smaller classes improve academic results per se, this was done to offset
additional expectations placed upon teaching staff and could be deemed to be a
‘political’ decision. The perception being that the school was allowing more
individualised learning and addressing workload issues for the teachers. In
effect: “Giving something back”.
6. Improvements in facilities 2003-2006:
There has been considerable improvement in facilities with the completion of a
Visual Arts Centre (2004) Technology Centre (2005) junior school classroom
block (2005) Gymnasium (2007) This was meant to herald greater recognition of
74
these areas of the curriculum and ‘de facto’ those teachers delivering that
curriculum.
7. Teacher appraisal 2003:
A system of teacher appraisal was introduced for the first time at the college with
one third of the staff being appraised by colleagues each three years. This
appraisal was tied in to their professional learning plans. The appraisal process
fosters the evaluation of teaching methodology and hopefully the review of
current practices with a view to improving them.
8. October practice exams 2002:
Practice exams were introduced for students studying VCE Units 3 and 4. These
are held in October just prior to the final exams and replicate the exam
experience in terms of procedures and format.
9. Exams for Years 9-12 2002:
A formalised format for exams at the end of each semester was introduced
replacing an informal testing regime. These both contribute to student results
and prepare them for the VCE exam experience. These two initiatives were
meant to provide valuable study experience and highlight the importance of this
form of assessment.
10. Altissima Awards 2003:
A series of academic awards were developed which reward academic excellence
and endeavour in each subject in the school from Years 7-11. These awards are
presented at House assemblies during the year.
11. Academic Colours 2002:
Colours for academic achievement and endeavour were introduced for the first
time to augment the existing system of colours for co curricular involvements.
The colours are awarded each year and are worn on the college blazer.
12. House Graduation Evenings 2002:
At the end of each year the efforts of the students are celebrated at House
Graduation evenings in the presence of students, parents and teachers.
75
Students who graduate receive a certificate with their academic successes
recorded. These three initiatives were meant to highlight the value of academic
life and to provide an extrinsic motivator for the students to work.
13. Extension classes for Year 12s 2003:
Additional classes were organised for those students who wish extra help or
extension in Year 12. The classes conducted for English and mathematics are
attended on a voluntary basis.
14. Elevate study skills programme 2003:
All year 12 students attend study skills programmes offered by University
undergraduates. These sessions concentrate on motivation and effective use of
study time. These two are further examples of providing additional resources to
the delivery of the curriculum.
15. Leadership Emphasis on learning 2003:
The focus of the Leadership Team at Assemblies, in publications and in staff
meetings has been on learning and improving outcomes. This has been by way
of raising awareness amongst the school community. This reflects the findings in
the literature of the importance of leadership as a school based influence on
learning outcomes.
16. Subject teacher meetings 2003:
There was a move away from department meetings based on administrative
matters to cluster meetings of teachers teaching the same subjects at a given
year level. The aim was to coordinate efforts in raising student skill and to share
innovation and resources such as updating course writing. This was another
attempt to address the quality of the pedagogy.
17. Structured movement time between classes 2004:
To avoid the chronic problem of lateness to class, the daily timetable was
reorganised to included structured travel time between classes. Sanctions for
lateness to class were then enforced consistently across the school.
76
18. Introduction of VCAL 2005:
A vocational based programme was introduced at years 11 and 12 for those
students who want to enter the workforce. This provides an alternate pathway to
the VCE where beforehand there was only one option for study beyond Year 10.
This is a further tailoring of the curriculum to provide greater and more accurate
choices to make studies more relevant and accessible for the students.
19. The new House system 2002:
The school was reorganised on a House basis with students being under the
care of a House Coordinator for their six years at the college. House spirit was
promoted to further engage students in the life of the college. The early
implementation of this initiative reflects the importance placed upon relationships
in the literature.
20. Analysis of VCE results 2003:
Each year the college now analyses VCE results per class and for each teacher.
The results are checked against the cohorts’ ability levels determined in the
Common Assessment Task (CAT). There is a process of consultation between
the subject teacher and their Learning Coordinator as well as an analysis of
individual responses to questions on the paper. The intention was to provide the
teacher with further data to improve their delivery of the curriculum. These too
reflected the need to assess and review the quality of curriculum delivery.
21. 75 minute periods 2005:
The school moved from 6 x 50 minute periods in a day to 4 x 75 minute periods.
This would cut down on time wasted for student travel and minimise the
disruptions during the day. Teachers devised ways of varying their teaching to
cater for the longer period length.
The 21 interventions can be broadly divided into four categories. The categories
themselves arise from the literature in terms of important factors in the education
of boys. The categories together with the questionnaire items related to them
follow.
77
1. Accountability
Those measures designed to make students more accountable to their studies
by introducing external checks upon the learning process such as examinations
and monitoring of progress.
Items: 1 2 3 4 8 9 17 (Refer to questionnaire below)
2. Enhancing teaching
The measures designed to improve opportunities for effective teaching. These
included improved conditions for teachers, better facilities and resources and
professional learning.
Items: 5 6 7 13 14 16 18 20 21
3. Relationships
The measures designed to improve relationships in the school including the
provision of recognition and encouragement
Items: 10 11 12 19
4. Leadership
The influence of leadership upon the process
Item: 15
3.7 Instrumentation
A two-part questionnaire was distributed to the teaching staff and all Year 11
students for completion; the respondents indicated their perceptions of the
effectiveness of each of the 21 interventions undertaken in the Marcellin College
Strategic Plan to enhance learning outcomes. The questionnaire format was
thus:
Marcellin College
Strategic Plan Survey VCE results for Marcellin have improved for the past three years on previous levels. The Beyond 2000 Strategic Plan was aimed at improving learning opportunities and outcomes in the college. This survey identifies 21 initiatives that have been implemented through the strategic plan. Would you please complete the survey indicating to what extent each of these initiatives have had or may have influence on academic achievement at
78
Marcellin? Your responses will assist in determining the perceived effectiveness of each. SECTION A Please circle the response which most accurately reflects your opinion of the effectiveness of each initiative in influencing academic achievement: 1. No Influence 2. Little Influence 3. Not Sure 4. Influential 5. Strongly Influential 1. Work Submission Policy 1 2 3 4 5 Parents are notified by mail if work is not submitted on time 2. Student Progress Policy 1 2 3 4 5 Students not working are referred to the committee for review 3. Student Management Guidelines 1 2 3 4 5 The five level discipline codes establishing expectations of conduct 4. Subject Selection Process 1 2 3 4 5 Student choices must be endorsed based on performance and commitment 5. Reduction in Class Sizes 1 2 3 4 5 Years 7-10 core classes reduced from 31 to 26 students 6. Improvement in Facilities 1 2 3 4 5 New facilities for Art, technology, Graphics, Media and Junior Classes 7. Teacher Appraisal 1 2 3 4 5 Teachers are appraised in terms of their work every three years 8. October Practice Exams 1 2 3 4 5 Practice exams are held in October to prepare for the finals 9. Exams Years 9-12 1 2 3 4 5 More formalized exam format mid year and end of year 10. Altissima Awards 1 2 3 4 5 Subject Awards given for endeavor and achievement throughout the year 11. Academic Colours 1 2 3 4 5 Subject Award Winners are granted Colours for the Blazer 12. House Graduation Evenings 1 2 3 4 5 Academic celebration ceremony and awarding of certificates
79
13. Extension Classes for Year 12 1 2 3 4 5 Year 12 students attend additional classes in Math’s and English 14. Elevate Study Skills Programme 1 2 3 4 5 Graduates work with year 11 students in small groups on study skills 15. Leadership Emphasis on Learning 1 2 3 4 5 The messages given by school leadership about academic standards 16. Subject teacher meetings 1 2 3 4 5 Teachers meet in small groups to plan and discuss their class work 17. Structured movement time between classes1 2 3 4 5 An initiative to encourage classes to start on time and minimize disruption 18. Introduction of VCAL 1 2 3 4 5 Vocational alternative to the VCE 19. New House System 1 2 3 4 5 A new model for pastoral care and discipline based on House Coordinators 20. Analysis of VCE Results 1 2 3 4 5 Data analysis on each VCE class to determine progress 21. 75 Minute Lessons 1 2 3 4 5 The move to longer lessons to enhance teaching and learning SECTION B
Do you have any other general comments or observations regarding the
initiatives of the strategic plan and/or perceived improvements in the academic
life of the college? What other things would benefit or motivate students to learn?
Thank you for taking the time to complete this survey, it is very much
appreciated.
3.8 Validity and Reliability Considerations
The issue of reliability and validity or authenticity of the data is important in
educational research. A researcher in the positivist paradigm is required to
address issues of internal validity, external validity, and reliability (Guba and
Lincoln, 1989; Denzin and Lincoln, 1994). While internal validity is concerned
with the extent to which findings can be interpreted accurately, external validity is
vital for interpreting and generalising the results of the research to a larger
population. Similarly, reliability is concerned with the consistency of measures to
80
produce similar results over repeated measurements (Gay, 1992; Picciano,
2004).
A number of measures were introduced to ensure the veracity of the responses.
Whilst the surveys were distributed to all staff and Year 11 students, responses
were strictly anonymous and confidential. For staff, the surveys were distributed
in their mail boxes to be returned on completion to the office mailbox. This
ensured confidentiality and promoted frankness and accuracy of responses. For
the students, the surveys were conducted during a particular lesson on a given
day with completed surveys collected from the front of the classrooms at the end
of the lesson. The surveys themselves were conducted on behalf of the college
as part of an appraisal of the college strategic plan and as part of this research.
All respondents were informed both verbally and in writing of the dual nature of
the data gathering. I had to be careful to ensure that my role as principal of the
college did not unduly influence this process. Therefore, the context of the
survey as part of both the college appraisal and my own research was very
clearly established prior to conducting the survey and the anonymous nature of
the process was both established and protected. In addition, the Council of the
College approved the research and the use of all data collected as part of the
research.
The small numbers of interviews conducted were done by other staff members to
ascertain their opinions as to the reasons for the school’s success in raising
results. The measure of academic improvement was taken from improvements in
VCE results and post school destination data. The data were gained from the
Victorian Curriculum Assessments Authority with results for Marcellin from 1996
– 2007. The Median study scores were compared to the data on the ability of
each cohort gained from GAT results over these years and the college’s own
testing of student literacy and numeracy. The second major indicator was the
post secondary school destinations data compiled from 2003 by the Victorian
Government.
The initial investigation of the research sought to look at the group of teachers
and students as a whole. However, student perspectives and teacher
perspectives varied and were not consistent across innovations. A principal
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components analysis showed a complex factor structure: wide differences within
and between both students and teachers suggested that judgments on each
initiative were made on different criteria so treating the results as being a
consequence of a common perspective was inappropriate. An investigation of
the research data looked at the size of the difference between teacher and
student means for each initiative separately, but expressed each difference in a
standard form based on the spread of scores for each group on that initiative.
In general (in any distribution of scores), for each mean the scores scatter
around the mean score of those scores. For example, ten scores of 7, 7, 8, 8, 8,
8, 8, 8, 9, and 9 have a mean of 8 and a standard deviation of 0.667. Similarly,
ten scores of 4, 4, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 6, and 6 have a mean of 5 and a standard
deviation of 0.667. The difference between the means is 3 raw score units but
4.5 standard scores (= 3 divided by the standard deviation of 0.667). This is a big
difference: the scores of one distribution have no overlap with the other
distribution.
If the scores had a different pattern, for example, group A had 5, 6, 6, 7, 7, 7, 7,
8, 8, and 9 and group B had 2, 3, 3, 4, 4, 4, 4, 5, 5, and 6, the difference between
the means is still 3 raw score units but nearly 2.6 standard scores (= 3 divided by
the standard deviation of 1.155). Relative to the other scores, this is a smaller
difference: the scores of one distribution have some overlap with the other
distribution.
If the overlap between the scores was greater, for example, group A had 5, 5, 6,
6, 7, 7, 8, 8, 9, and 9 and group B had 2, 2, 3, 3, 4, 4, 5, 5, 6, and 6, the
difference between the means is still 3 raw score units but nearly 1.5 standard
scores (= 3 divided by the standard deviation of 1.491). Relative to the other
scores, this is a smaller difference: the scores of one distribution have more
overlap with the other distribution. So a difference of 3 raw score points should
be interpreted relative to the extent of overlap of the two distributions.
When the magnitudes of differences are expressed as effect sizes in standard
deviation units we can use Cohen’s descriptors as a common language to
describe these magnitudes. Effect sizes are described as “very small”, “small”,
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“medium” or “large”. This also uses the idea of overlap of the distribution of
scores of groups for illustrative purposes. For example, for two normal
populations with equal variability and equally numerous, an effect size of 0
indicates 100% overlap or 0% non-overlap. An effect size of 0.2 indicates 14.7%
non-overlap (the component of the combined distribution not shared by the two
populations). The corresponding non-overlap values for effect sizes of 0.5 and
0.8 are 33% and 47.4%.] The differences are not always in the same direction
(Cohen, 1969).
This design enabled me to determine the relative significance of each of the
interventions and to see the differences between the responses of the students
and their teachers. Effect sizes are indicated in Table One below.
Table Two: Descriptors for Magnitudes of Effect Sizes and Assigned Ranges
Effect Size Magnitude
Cohen’s Descriptor and
Cohen’s Example
Assigned
Range
< 0.2
Very small*
0.00 to 0.14
0.2
Small difference between the heights of 15 year old and 16 year old girls in the US
0.15 to 0.44
0.5
Medium (‘large enough to be visible to the naked eye’) difference between the heights of 14 year old and 18 year old girls
0.45 to 0.74
0.8
Large (‘grossly perceptible and therefore large’) difference between the heights of 13 year old and 18 year old girls or the difference in IQ between holders of the Ph.D. degree and ‘typical college freshmen’
0.75 or more
* Note that “very small” is a descriptor devised by Izard (2004) for magnitudes
less than “small”. The results may be presented in tables like the following Table
Two. The information in the table is from the comparison of the teacher and
student perspectives on the first innovation shown and interpreted on the next
pages.
83
Table Three: Effect Size Estimates for Differences between Teachers
and Students on Work Submission Policy (Innovation 1)
Innovation 1 Contrast Teachers Students N 42 136 Mean 4.19 3.07 Mean Difference 1.12 Standard Dev. 0.79 1.37 Pooled Std. Dev. 1.26 Effect Size (Std error) Descriptor
0.88 (0.18) Large
Table Two shows the differences in the ratings (by teachers and students) for the
21 innovations separately. (It was not possible to scale the responses because
respondents appeared to be using different criteria (or multiple criteria) to rate
the innovations.)
The methodology uses the actual ranks provided by the respondents, assigns a
1 for a rating of 1, a 2 for a rating of 2, and so on, in order to obtain a mean
rating. The mean score for teachers on innovation 1 is shown in the first group 1
column (4.19). There were 42 teachers, and the spread of their ratings around
the average of 4.19 is shown by the standard deviation (SD) in the third group 1
column. By contrast, the 136 students responding to the same innovation (in the
group 2 columns) had a mean of 3.074 (much less than 4.19: a mean difference
of 1.12) and a standard deviation of 1.373 (greater spread than for teachers).
The raw difference of 1.12 (shown in the Mean Difference column) is interpreted
with respect to the pooled standard deviation. In simple terms, the difference
between the two groups is divided by the pooled standard deviation to obtain the
standardized effect size. (This answers the question, ‘How big a difference is
this?’.)
The purposes of the surveys therefore are to determine teacher and student
opinion regarding the effectiveness of each of the 21 interventions. What do they
believe worked or did not work to improve the VCE result? Where do they
agree? Where do they differ? This will give some indication as to the whether or
not they are perceived to be effective.
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Chapter Four: Results of the Case Study
Chapter One identifies concerns regarding the relative underperformance of
boys in education across a range of indicators. This ‘underperformance’ was
linked to early school leaving and a range of social disadvantages in later life for
males. Chapter Two includes a review of the literature surrounding boys’
education both in Australia and overseas. This highlights broad concerns
regarding boys in schools both academically and in terms of their behaviour.
That Chapter also describes a case study conducted at Marcellin College in
Melbourne which follows the progress of the college’s strategic plan to address
the learning outcomes of the boys. The study identifies the 21 elements of the
strategic plan implemented to improve results in the Victorian Certificate of
Education. Chapter Three describes a survey conducted of members of the
school community to canvass their opinions as to the effectiveness of the 21
interventions to improve academic outcomes. This Chapter identifies early
indicators of academic improvement in the school and outlines the findings of the
survey to assess teacher and student and perceptions of why this has come
about. In addition this Chapter draws upon further data collection from consultant
groups engaged by the college to determine the range of impacts of the strategic
plan. What positive outcomes have emerged and what limitations has there been
for this approach?
4.1 Some early indicators of performance improvement in the VCE
There have been improvements in the Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE)
results over the course of the intervention. The VCE Median Study Scores in
Table Three show a significant improvement in the overall performance of the
students with particular movement in the ‘bottom end’ of results. Median study
scores are used to determine the relative performance of each school with the
maximum study score for each subject being 50. The Median of all scores for
each school is calculated and published in the public domain as schools’ data. It
is expected across the broad range of schools offering the VCE that the
statewide Median would be 30. Schools performing above this figure are deemed
to be performing above the state Median and therefore performing well. There
have been improvements at Marcellin since the introduction of the strategic plan
with a consistent Median study score of 31 for the past three years and most
recently in 2007 a high of 32. In addition, the top end results continued to
85
improve albeit slowly. Whilst the bottom end results have improved, they too
have stabilised at an improved but not continuously improving level.
As shown in Table Three, from 2001 to 2007, VCE results at Marcellin saw a
climb in the Median study score from an eight year plateau of 29 to a new high in
2007 of 32. As the Median study score for the state is 30, Marcellin had moved
from a trend of underperformance to one of above average performance since
the intervention of the strategic plan. The second measure of the VCE is the
percentage of student study scores over 40. This in effect is the ‘high end’
indicator of student performance. In this case they were considerably below with
the state average being 8% and the average for Marcellin not moving above 5%
(See Table Four). Here too there was movement with the high end indicator for
Marcellin moving to 10% in 2007. The third and final indicator is the percentage
of study scores below 30 which can be found in Table Five. This in effect is ‘the
tail’ of VCE results where the lower performing students are measured. There
has been a significant lift in this cohort since 2003 suggesting that the greatest
improvement in Marcellin VCE results has been at this ‘bottom end’.
Table Four: Marcellin College Victorian Certificate of Education Median
Study Scores 1998 – 2007
28
29
30
31
32
1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007
Year
Median Study Score
86
Table Five: Marcellin College % of Enter Scores above 40
1998 – 2007
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007
Year
40 PLU
S
Table Six: Marcellin College % of Enter Scores below 30
1998 - 2006
(Source: VCE Data Service)
(Note figures for 2007 unavailable)
A number of interventions were deemed to have contributed to the dramatic
improvement in the Median study score (including a major improvement at the
bottom end) and the percentage of study scores at 40 and above. These include
a range of measures across the breadth of school life. The wide range of
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
Year
% o
f E
NT
ER
S b
elo
w 3
0
87
interventions introduced arising from the identified needs in the Beyond 2000
Strategic Plan and the Towards 2008 Strategic Plan Review. These interventions
have been in the areas of:
Building and enhancing relationships
Monitoring of Student learning: Accountabilities and encouragement
The allocation of resources to better target learning
The appraisal and leadership of staff
The building and promotion of a learning culture
Under these general headings it is possible to map the perceived progress of the
school through the surveying of students and staff. Parents and various other
stakeholders such as the College Council and school based committees were
canvassed in later independent testing commissioned by the college. There are
specific indicators such as early results data and engagement in the learning
process which will assist in the assessment of whether there has been school
improvement and in particular whether the school is better catering for the needs
of boys.
School wide Interventions
Work submission and Student Progress Policies
Altissima Awards, Academic Colors and Graduation Ceremonies
Individual targeting and intervention with off task students
The development of an affirming and positive House Culture
A heightened awareness of the importance of pursuing academic
endeavor and excellence
Interventions specific to VCE
More stringent subject selection procedures for entry into the VCE
Provision of the Units 1 & 2 option for Religion and Society
Stricter protocols surrounding examinations
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Timetable changes allowing for greater face to face teaching time and
better arrangements for private study
The timely Year 12 Parent Teacher evening to focus on the student’s
progress
Extension classes for both Mathematics and English
The Elevate Study Skills Programme
October Practice exams as a means of revision and final preparation
We need to derive both the correct conclusions and the maximum benefit from
these results for this will determine where future resources and energies will be
applied to sustain the improvement agenda. There are potentially two
conclusions which could be drawn from these improved results.
Scenario One: “It was a fluke!”
The 2004 and 2007 results were an aberration. These classes were exceptional
in ability which sets them apart from their predecessors and their successors.
This phenomenon was a happy circumstance related to the students rather than
any other external factor. School performance will revert back to the ‘natural
level’ of results prior to 2003.
Why this is the wrong message:
This both underestimates and undervalues the efforts of the teachers to
impart a sense of urgency to the students in their studies and the
additional time and effort taken to ensure their success. Both have been
deemed to be key elements of individual classroom improvement.
The trend for improvement has been across five years with a 50%
improvement at the ‘top end’ from 2002-2003 and again from 2003-2004
and a 29-30-31-32 improvement in Median study scores for the same
period.
GAT results and Career wise testing indicate no substantial difference in
skill level with the 2004 and 2007 cohorts and previous years
There have been previous groups deemed to be cooperative but who
have not achieved VCE results corresponding to 2003 - 2007
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2004 was the first time the school had achieved results commensurate
with the other Catholic Boys’ Colleges and 2007 surpassed these other
schools dispelling previous notions of their ‘natural level’
Scenario One is at best passive and at worst dismissive of the real impact
made by school wide policy, the influence of the Department, House and
individual teacher practice
Scenario Two: A sustained future for the Learning Community
The unprecedented improvements to the school wide academic performance
over the past five years can be attributed directly to the many initiatives
undertaken at the school wide, departmental, House and classroom levels
identified above. There is no going back as the expectations of students,
teachers and parents are justified by improvements in performance and general
levels of accountability and work ethic. All of the above have contributed to the
approach the Year 12 students took to their studies last year rather than being
independent variables. The performance of the Year 12 class of 2007 surpassed
that of 2004; the reasons for this could be:
Longer exposure to the philosophy and practices arising from the strategic
plan in terms of the promotion of personal excellence and work ethic
Greater stringency in the subject selection process than in the previous
year
More selective entry into Units 3 & 4 Religion and Society than in the
previous year
Greater confidence and surety in the school’s abilities to intervene both to
encourage on task behavior and make students more accountable to their
studies
Following considerable intervention to address academic standards, student
performance in the VCE, all key indicators of academic standards in the VCE
rose. The Median study score for 2007 was 32 was the best result since records
were kept in this form in 1998. Another measure is the ENTER (The Tertiary
Entrance Rank) which is the student’s aggregate score for his studies. In 2004
the average ENTER score of 72 climbed by 10 points from 62 and one in five
students achieved an ENTER of 90 or above, the range deemed to be ‘excellent’
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or ‘high achieving’. To understand the magnitude of this change it is helpful to
look at relative results. There are eighteen Catholic Boys’ schools in Victoria. In
2002, Marcellin was ranked 13th in terms of relative performance. In 2007 this
had climbed to 4th behind St Kevin’s, Xavier and Mazenod. Importantly in the
context of this discussion; for the first time since the introduction of the Victorian
Certificate of Education and the recording of results in this format, Marcellin
outperformed the neighboring Catholic girls’ colleges thus dispelling any sense
that boys must by their very nature, under perform in the classroom compared to
girls. This was in the context of the efforts of all the schools to improve learning
outcomes through their own strategic plans. There has been a marked
improvement in many schools across the sector and indeed particularly in those
schools used to benchmark against Marcellin. Marcellin therefore had done more
than maintain its relative position against other schools and has; to use a
sporting parlance: “Moved up the leader board.” (Victorian Curriculum
Assessment Authority Data Service 2007)
4.2 Student Destinations as an indicator of improvement
A further analysis was taken of student destinations post school. These data
provide information about the offers made to the alumni class in terms of
university entrance and entrance into vocational or technical studies at Technical
and Further Education (TAFE) colleges. This information is used by government
agencies as a further indicator of school performance and like the VCE “League
Tables’ are published in the media to provide a further measure of performance
in the public domain. Importantly in the context of this study they give an
indication of two things. First, the eligibility of students to enrol in courses based
upon achievement (measured by their Tertiary Entrance Rank (TER) Score) and
secondly the aspirations of the students to undertake further study in the tertiary
sector. These data would provide an insight into any changes in eligibility and
aspiration in the Marcellin Year 12 graduating class.
The data in Table Six are provided by the VTAC “On Track Programme” which
commenced in 2003. The purpose of the “On Track’ Data was to provide schools
and the wider community with some feedback about the relative effectiveness of
schools in providing careers pathways for students. The data give some insight
into the demographics of the school and to what extent the students were
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moving into a meaningful pathway after Year 12. These results reflect a decided
shift in the destinations of Marcellin students after they complete Year 12. They
offer some significant insight into changes in the school.
Table Seven: Marcellin College Post School Destinations 2003 - 2008
Year
Cohort
Number
Tertiary
Applicants
University
Offers %
TAFE
Offers %
2003 161
90
50
48
2004 185
91
50
46
2005 166
95
64
39
2006 176
148
61
35
2007 192
169
62
37
2008 167
145
76
25
Specifically:
In the early days of the strategic plan a relatively small number of students
actually applied for tertiary positions. In the Years 2003-2005 the numbers
applying for tertiary places were consistently in the low nineties. This
included university applications and TAFE applications. A substantial
number of students in these cohorts would evidently seek direct entry into
the workforce with a Year 12 qualification.
In 2003 and 2004 almost half of those seeking tertiary places did so in the
TAFE sector. This is a relatively heavy weighting of students opting for
technical and vocational studies.
A shift began in the 2005 to 2006 statistics. First, in 2005, although the
number of students seeking a tertiary place had not changed significantly
from the previous years the percentage receiving offers in the university
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sector lifted from around half to over sixty percent with a commensurate
drop in the TAFE offers from the high forties to 39 %.
The most profound change occurred at the beginning of 2006 when from
a cohort of 176 students 148 were offered tertiary places; of which 61%
were university places. This is a major shift from earlier years when
approximately half of the cohort aspired to tertiary studies.
This trend continued into 2008 where of 167 students; 145 were offered
tertiary places. The biggest significance of this year was that 76% of these
places were in the university sector. This is an extraordinary change from
those earlier years.
Put simply, in 2003 one in four students in the Year 12 class at Marcellin were
offered places at university. In 2007, this figure had shifted to three out of four.
This shift reflects both an improvement in academic results allowing greater
access to university and importantly a greater number of students applying to go
to university reflecting a shift in aspiration.
The “On Track” data like the VCE ‘league tables’ is published annually in the
print media and must appear in the individual schools’ Annual Report which is
also a public document. Prospective parents use both forms of data to make
value judgments about the academic credentials of the school and the type of
school in terms of future pathways. The relevance of these data to parental
choices cannot be overstated. The changes to VCE results and post school
pathways combined during the life of the strategic plan means that parents who
have aspirations for their sons’ to attend university are more likely to consider
Marcellin as the vehicle for this career path. Logically, it could be argued
therefore that more aspirational parents with more capable students are
choosing the college based upon these results. There is an element of the self
fulfilling prophecy here. Good results and greater access to university entrance
invites more capable students to consider the school which in turn adds to the
capacity of the school to perform well in the future. This is the proverbial ‘upward
spiral’. So what does the community believe happened and to what extent has
there been a successful addressing of the need to improve academic outcomes?
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4.3 Teacher and student perceptions
The survey was conducted of teachers and Year 11 students to ascertain what
they believe have contributed to improvements in VCE results over the life of the
strategic plan. The experience at Marcellin would provide guidance to other
schools wishing to improve academic outcomes for boys. The findings of the
research can be described in two parts. What reasons can be given for such
improvement? What conclusions can we draw about how to improve educational
outcomes in boys’ schools?
4.4 Perceptions of Drivers of Change
There has been recognition in the school that there has been improvement in the
academic performance, The question remains: Which of the interventions are
deemed to be the cause? Students and teachers have indicated their opinion as
to the reasons for the movement in results. These responses allowed for a
ranking of each of the individual interventions by both groups. It was possible
then to identify those which were perceived as highly influential by students and
teachers and to what extent they agreed on these.
4.5 The Findings of the Surveys
The results of the survey may be found in Table Seven. In general terms the
teachers were more definite in their responses than the students. They attributed
significant influences to the range of interventions. The students on the other
hand were more muted in their responses. It is possible that this reflects less of
an awareness of the machinations of the strategic plan than their teachers.
Whilst the college has been quite explicit with the students regarding the moves
to effect academic improvement; it is reasonable to suggest that the teachers’
awareness would be greater.
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Table Seven: Comparative results for Teachers and Year 11 Students
DATA ENTRY RAW
DIFFERENCE
Strategic Plan
Intervention Teachers Students
pooled standard deviatio
n
Mean D
ifference
Effect S
ize
Mean n SD mean n SD 1 Work Submission Policy 4.19 42 0.794 3.074 136 1.373 1.26 1.12 0.88 2 Student Progress Policy 4.048 42 0.95 3.059 136 1.325 1.25 0.99 0.79
3 Student Management 3.81 42 0.823 2.985 136 1.248 1.16 0.82 0.71 4 Subject selection process 3.857 42 0.833 3.57 135 1.444 1.33 0.29 0.22
5 Reduction in class sizes 4.429 42 0.695 4.111 135 1.429 1.29 0.32 0.25 6 Improved facilities 4.31 42 0.771 1.45 136 1.45 1.32 2.86 2.16
7 Teacher appraisal 3.286 42 0.983 1.291 135 1.291 1.23 1.99 1.63
8 October Exams 4.095 42 0.781 3.941 136 1.406 1.29 0.15 0.12 9 Yr 9-12 Exams 4.238 42 0.569 3.993 135 1.377 1.24 0.25 0.20 10 Altissima Awards 3.857 42 0.71 3.478 136 1.532 1.39 0.38 0.27 11 Academic Colours 3.833 42 0.814 3.404 136 1.564 1.43 0.43 0.30 12 Graduation Evenings 3.619 42 0.899 2.652 135 1.362 1.27 0.97 0.76 13 Extension Classes 3.976 42 0.672 3.719 135 1.357 1.23 0.26 0.21 14 Study skills programme 3.81 42 0.698 3.169 136 1.34 1.22 0.64 0.52 15 Leadership Emphasis 3.928 42 0.768 2.89 136 1.237 1.15 1.04 0.91 16 Subject meetings 3.929 42 0.91 3.221 136 1.292 1.21 0.71 0.58 17 teacher v students 3.786 42 1.013 2.978 135 1.289 1.23 0.81 0.66
18 VCAL 4.143 42 0.742 3.415 135 1.548 1.40 0.73 0.52 19 New House System 3.81 42 0.763 3.133 135 1.402 1.28 0.68 0.53 20 VCE Result Analysis 3.619 42 0.722 3.713 136 1.248 1.15 -0.09 -0.08 21 75 Minute periods 4.024 41 1.121 3.963 136 1.417 1.35 0.06 0.05
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Of the 21 initiatives identified, teachers rank (based on the means) as their top
ten responses:
1. Reduction in class sizes
1. Improvements in facilities
2. Exams at Year 9-12
3. Work Submission Policy
4. Introduction of VCAL
5. October Practice Exams
6. Student Progress Policy
7. 75 Minute lessons
8. Extension Classes
9. Subject teacher meetings
Of the 21 interventions identified, students rank as their top ten responses:
1. Reduction in class sizes
2. Year 9-12 exams
3. 75 minute periods
4. October Practice Exams
5. Extension Classes
6. Analysis of VCE results
7. Subject Selection Process
8. Altissima Awards
9. Introduction of VCAL
10. Academic Colours
There is some consistency in responses between Year 11 students and their
teachers in their judgement of what has been successful in influencing the
upward movement in results. It is interesting to note that the teacher responses,
although more definite than the students’ rank similar types of interventions
highly. The teacher scores are consistently higher but the ranking is similar.
Both groups rated the reduction of class sizes as their highest placed
intervention. This is interesting in that there is little in the literature to suggest that
a class of 26 is substantially more effective in achieving its learning outcomes
than a class of 31. Even so this was obviously a major issue in the school
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community for both students and their teachers. The decision to reduce class
sizes was deemed by the Leadership Team at the time to be a political rather
than an educational one. In the face of the literature which suggested that class
size was not a major factor, the leadership of the college decided that there
needed to be a major concession to the teaching staff and the broader school
community to demonstrate their resolve to concentrate upon learning. The
symbolic significance of this move rather than any guaranteed improvement in
outcomes was the prime motivation. If the school was asking teachers to shift in
their thinking and work practices; then it was important to address the issue of
workload for teachers and individual opportunity for students. The perception of
greater teacher accessibility for individuals in the classroom and this major
concession to teachers to give them more time and opportunity to be innovative
was an end in itself. It seems that the message was received by the community.
There is an argument here that decisions made by schools to improve learning
are not necessarily tied to specific learning factors. This decision was made to
create an environment whereby other initiatives would be more acceptable to the
participants. In essence, the decision to reduce class sizes, whilst not significant
in improving outcomes; made all parties more receptive to the improvement
agenda. Whilst the literature does not support class sizes as a significant factor,
the reduction served the purpose of making the parties more receptive to the
changes to come.
In the same vein as the class size improvement; teachers rated the improvement
in facilities very highly. The students themselves rated the improvement in
facilities lower. The building plan across the school improved facilities in a broad
range of subjects including the Arts, Technology, Physical Education and general
purpose classrooms. Could this be a favouring of initiatives by teachers which
directly affect teacher working conditions over other initiatives? This initiative
drew the greatest discrepancy between teacher and student responses. In the
context of student work practices; it could be argued that there are other factors
more important; yet the teachers chose the two which directly affects their work
conditions. Could it be that teachers are operating out of an industrial paradigm
when it comes to the issue of student performance? The school needed to
improve their work conditions: class sizes and resources to see improvements in
results.
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It is interesting to note that both groups ranked areas which promoted
compulsion or extrinsic motivation highly whilst ranking initiatives designed to
encourage or reward better learning practices at a lower level. Extrinsic
interventions included such things as examinations and greater monitoring of
work submission. The institution of examinations at all year levels and the
policies designed to make students more accountable to their studies rated
highly for both groups. Teachers in particular identified compliance initiatives
highly. The more global policies affecting student work practices featured
prominently in their thinking.
Significantly, they identify extrinsic factors as having the most influence upon
the academic improvement. These initiatives are those introduced by the school
as ‘macro reforms’ to address learning. Class sizes, improved facilities and
exams are all highly publicised and school wide initiatives which impose a
learning environment upon the students and their teachers. Interestingly,
students and teachers rank rewards, affirmations and acknowledgement; those
factors which might affect individual practice by the students in terms of
motivation and behaviour as less significant factors. Indeed, House Graduation
Evenings which are devised as a celebration of student endeavour and a spur to
individual student practice are ranked low by both groups.
Teachers rank teacher appraisal, the process whereby teaching practice is
examined as a low factor behind improved outcomes; indeed it is listed last on
the list of influences indicating very little link in their minds between the
processes introduced to enhance their teaching and the actual performance of
the students. This is an interesting result considering the research linking
teaching practice as the most significant factor in student performance (Murphy &
Hallinger 1988; Laroque & Coleman 1990). It is also significant in the light of the
considerable resources in time and money spent by schools on teacher
professional learning. The appraisal system is very time consuming; yet the
teachers don’t seem to value it much. Is this a reflection on the process of
appraisal or a comment on teacher views as to the importance of teacher
practice and student learning outcomes? When taken with the relatively low
influence ascribed to teacher subject meetings this indicates potentially less
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importance given to teacher practice in the process by the teachers than school
wide structural initiatives. There seems to be a low recognition of the role of the
teacher by the teachers in terms of affecting student learning outcomes. Why are
they underplaying their role (or responsibility) here?
What are these results telling us? The low recognition by teachers of the
measure addressing teacher practices could be a result of different things. It may
be that they rate the actual teacher appraisal system poorly in that it does not
serve its purpose to improve teacher practice. On the other hand; the ranking
may reflect the attitudes expressed by teachers at the school earlier suggesting
that the issue of student underperformance is a student problem. Remember:
“Our boys are not very academic.” Rather than stress the importance of teacher
practice in securing these results, they place much higher value on student
improvement as a factor of student behaviour. It was the students all along! They
just had to be pushed harder! Of course it could be a combination of both factors.
It is interesting to note that teachers might underplay the role of teachers in
student performance to distance the issue of underperformance from them. Even
though the high ratings for work conditions mentioned above are teacher issues;
there does not seem to be clear recognition of the central role of the teaching
here. One can’t claim the successes and be shy of claiming the failure…
The lower recognition of the teachers of the initiatives to reward and encourage
is interesting. These initiatives were as well publicised in the school community
as the compliance initiatives yet teachers are not identifying them as highly as
other significant factors. Is this a reflection on teacher thinking in terms of
motivation? Is the ‘stick’ deemed to be more effective than the ‘carrot’? The Year
11 boys included the Altissima Awards and Academic Colours in their ‘Top 10”
suggesting that they see a positive response to encouragement initiatives. If this
is the dynamic; it has implications for individual teacher practice in the
classrooms. The boys placed greater value on at least two forms of
encouragements than their teachers; who seemed to be clearer on their
preference for compliance. Neither teachers nor students link the behaviour
management guidelines with improvements in learning.
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4.6 Points of agreement and disagreement
Using the Cohen scale (Izzard 2004) we are able to determine the degree to
which the teachers and the students agreed as to the effectiveness of each
measure. There were a number of points of agreement where the effect size
between the two pools of responses was quite low.
Teachers and students were in general agreement about the following initiatives:
Analysis of VCE Data
75 minute periods
October Practice Exams
Year 9-12 Exams
Extension classes
A good deal of discussion has taken place at the college during the course of the
strategic plan regarding results. The ‘default position’ of the school used to be
that: “We don’t talk about results.” This was perceived to be concentrating upon
too narrow a focus rather than the overall well being of the students. In addition,
to focus on results was to inadvertently marginalise those students who were
less capable. The by product of this was to avoid an empirical analysis of
performance with a view to improving that performance. When results became
part of the discussion there was considerable disquiet on behalf of a number of
the teachers. They have since been prominent in the discourse by teachers and
with the students themselves. Results have been analysed by class to determine
the relative performance of individual classes. The students have used them in
their own unique way. They have engaged in a competition with previous year
levels to attain the highest VCE results at the school. This competitiveness is
universally recognised by the students as a form of motivation to do well.
The change to period length is supported by both students and teachers. The
consensus is that classes are more productive because there are fewer
interruptions and topics may be covered in more depth. This is universally
perceived as a sound move to improve the learning in the school. The proposed
move was viewed with some disquiet by teachers who believed that it would fly in
the face of the research which suggested there were problems with boys’
attention spans. A move from 45 minutes to 75 minutes would surely exacerbate
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this. On the contrary, this initiative has promoted the need to more fully plan the
lesson to incorporate a variety of activities. Rather than one long 75 minute
activity; the lessons have become an opportunity to offer a number of different
activities. There is therefore general recognition that this has led to some
improvement in how lessons are conducted.
The new exams regime gains recognition from both groups. The opportunity to
practice exam techniques from Year 9 onwards has been deemed very
successful. The link between exams and results is far more tangible for teachers
and particularly students than other factors which might be considered as
broadly cultural. An interesting note; the extension classes show closeness in
results for teachers and students. Even so; the students viewed them more
favourably than the teachers in terms of where they were ranked.
The two groups disagreed on the following:
Improvement in facilities
Teacher appraisal
Leadership emphasis on learning
The work submission policy
The student progress policy
As mentioned above, the teachers rank the improvement in facilities very highly,
yet this did not register with the students. It may be that the teachers are looking
at work conditions as a major factor in learning opportunities whilst the students
are not making the link between resources and outcomes. It is reasonable to
suggest that this would be a tenuous link from the students’ perspective. In the
same way, teacher appraisal and the machinations of the Leadership Team
would be a more immediate consideration for teachers rather than students. The
appraisal system was ranked relatively low by the teachers suggesting that it was
not considered as a prime factor in outcomes. For the students; it was not a
factor at all. The emphasis by the Leadership Team on learning seems not to
have permeated past the doors of the staffroom much. Either that, or students
are aware of the emphasis of the Leadership Team but do not attribute
improvement in results directly to it. This is interesting in light of the findings that
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school leadership is second only to the teaching amongst the school based
factors affecting outcomes.
The Work Submission and Student Progress policies were both favoured by the
teachers but less so by the students. All teachers are aware of these policies as
they are actively involved in their implementation. It is they who register details of
failure to submit work and they who either recommend students for promotion or
withhold that recommendation. There is; therefore universal recognition of the
rationale for these policies and how these policies work. Amongst the students
however, the policy will only really impact upon the minority who fail to submit
work and those who face the prospect of not being promoted. Teachers seem to
make the link between accountability towards work submission and work quality
and final outcomes. The students don’t seem to see this as strongly. This has
implications for how the policies are implemented. A good deal of time, effort and
resources go into the two processes. To be fully effective; the student recognition
needs to be similar to that of the teachers.
4.7 Further Surveying: Evaluating the Strategic Plan
In the context of this case study there was an opportunity to gather data from
external sources to provide further information as to the dynamics at work in the
school. The research survey detailing the 21 interventions provided good
information as to student and teacher opinion. Here was a unique opportunity to
gather additional information which was commissioned by the school itself.
Therefore the unusual step of including additional data is taken here. It is meant
as background or supportive data for the research survey.
In a bid to better understand the dynamics at work, the college undertook an
additional series of surveys to capture parent, student and teacher opinion of the
school and its health as a learning institution. The first was a research by ‘Group
Eight” an educational consultancy who conducted research into student, parent
and teacher perceptions in 2006 under the auspices of The High Performing
Schools’ Program; an initiative with the Catholic Education Office. The second
was a survey of parents to determine to what extent Marcellin is meeting their
expectations in terms of the education of their sons’ conducted by the
Association of Independent Schools of Victoria (AISV)) and the third was a
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survey of teachers conducted by the college on their perceptions of staff well
being at the end of 2007. The three bodies of research conducted as a review of
the college strategic plan provide this study with valuable data which may give
insights into the successes and shortcomings of the approach taken to ‘build a
boy friendly school’.
4.8 The High Performing Schools’ Program
The surveys conducted by Group 8 were designed to canvass student, teacher
and parent opinion about a range of factors impacting on learning. The research
identified a range of factors which promote learning engagement. If these factors
were addressed at a significant level then student engagement should follow.
They were asked to rank the factors in order of importance and to indicate to
what extent the college is meeting these criteria for an effective school. The
findings of the Group Eight surveys provide some interesting insights into what
people believe is important for Marcellin and to what extent the school is meeting
these.
Interestingly the students indicated that the most important factors centred on
relational matters i.e. how teachers related to students; their level of respect for
students; their approachability and their friendliness. Issues of safety,
acceptance and fairness were all high on the students’ priorities (The High
Performing Schools’ Program, 2006). In these domains, Marcellin was described
as performing well though there was room for improvement in each of these
areas to promote greater student engagement. The Marcellin Strategic Plan and
this case study placed prominent early emphasis upon relationships through
addressing early issues of ‘law and order’ and connectedness through the new
House system. These early initiatives which at the time were not necessarily
perceived to be linked to learning outcomes were subsequently vindicated by the
2006 research whereby the researchers identified them as key factors in learning
and the students held them as high priorities. The emphasis by the students on
‘teacher demeanour’ bears out the literature which places such emphasis upon
the teacher and their relationship with the students, particularly when those
students are boys.
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The student feedback identified significant concerns about how students related
to each other, suggesting that they needed to be more respectful in their
interactions (The High performing Schools Program, 2006). This domain was the
most significantly depressed of all those identified by the students, suggesting
that it may be an issue which may impact upon their broader school life and their
studies. This is an important development. The high importance placed in the
strategic plan on relationships due to the importance of the relationships in the
literature was a key element in the way the plan unfolded. This very much
shaped the chronology of events in terms of what the school tackled first. The
subsequent finding in the Group 8 data that the relationship between the boys
themselves remains a significant issue is important information. The perception
of lack of respect between the boys may well constitute a continuing brake upon
the progress towards academic improvement. In addition, the boys ‘marked the
teachers down’ on whether they made the work interesting or not. This may be
significant in that a strategic plan which takes a macro approach to change by
manipulating school wide policies and practices may not have had significant
enough impact in the individual classroom when it comes to teaching and
learning practices. This will be discussed in more depth later.
Parents were surveyed in a similar way and their responses were also heavily
weighted to the role of the teacher. In general, the parent responses were more
favourable than both the student and teacher responses suggesting that the
parents were influenced more by external factors such as the ‘public face of the
college’. The survey revealed significant levels of parental support for the school.
The most important factors determined by the parents again revolved around the
quality of the teacher in terms of relationships and their teaching methodology.
One other factor was rated highly by the parents; that being the perceived safety
of the school which was rated highly.
Teacher responses were generally positive if a little more muted than the parents
and the students. Two areas of significant concern were the questions relating to
time and workloads and that of recognition by the school for teachers in their
work. The teachers marked the school down significantly in these areas
suggesting that this may raise concerns regarding support for further initiatives
and the ’top down’ nature of the strategic plan... more of this later.
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4.9 The AISV Parent satisfaction Survey
Previous research has found that parental satisfaction is strongly associated with
school effectiveness and school achievement (Salisbury et al, 1997). The aim of
the AISV survey conducted on behalf of a number of independent schools in
Melbourne in 2007 was to provide feedback to the individual schools as to the
level of parental satisfaction of their school in comparison with parents in other
independent schools. The findings for Marcellin were very positive with the
parent satisfaction mean scores higher in each of the nine domains measured in
comparison with the AISV reference mean.
The nine domains included:
The curriculum and academic programme
Quality of teaching
Learning outcomes
Pastoral care
Discipline and safety
Parent involvement
Resources
Year 7 Transition
The religious education programme
This survey is consistent with the findings of the earlier Group 8 data which
reflects high levels of parental support for the school (AISV, 2007).
4.10 The Marcellin Staff Well Being Survey
At the end of 2007, the Marcellin Staff Pastoral Care Team conducted a survey
of all staff which addressed issues of well being as part of their brief to monitor
the pastoral care of staff. The data obtained provide reflections upon staff
opinion as to their workplace conditions and how they rate the school in terms of
relationships, workload, recognition of staff and other human resource issues.
Whilst the survey findings were generally positive; there did appear significant
concerns around three issues. The first being the workload of staff, second
recognition of staff in their work and third the levels of consultation of staff in
decision making affecting the school (Marcellin College, 2007). These three
issues which appear to be consistent with the findings in the earlier Group 8
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survey of teachers will be discussed later in terms of the ‘unintended
consequences’ of the ‘whole school approach’ to school improvements.
4.11 Discussion
The college remains committed to open entry in terms of ability. Indeed the
Marist principles of education impel the school to show preference for the
disadvantaged. Therefore the consistent nature of improvement across the
whole cohort rather than for just the academic students is particularly pleasing.
The concept of ‘personal excellence’ is inclusive and allows for the development
of a suitable work ethic and the provision of opportunities for all students. The
excellent improvements evidenced in the 2003-2007 period are the early stages
of an awakening of a ‘culture of learning’. This is manifested in the 2008 Year 12
class whereby the pervading sentiment is: “We will do better than that!” This
competitive reaction is the most basic expression of self belief and is a long way
from the former description of Marcellin as “not an academic school’. This
development seems to be playing itself out in the post school destination data.
Eight years on from the school review in 2000, Marcellin College is in many ways
a very different place. The strategic plan review conducted this year has
produced a range of data which provide some clear indications as to how the
progress has been received by the school community.
First and foremost there have been clear indicators of improvement in the
general cultural health of the community. Issues surrounding overt student
misconduct have been addressed leading to greater accountability and
enforceability of school expectations amongst the students. A number have
complained that the school has: ‘got too tight’ but this is more than matched by
fewer instances of off task or disruptive behavior and less likelihood of
misunderstanding expectations. Instances of truancy, uniform infringement and
the allegation that students regularly re offend have markedly decreased. The
opinion of parents expressed in a series of Parent Forums conducted at the
school bear out these findings. There is a perception amongst the parents
recorded from these focus groups and through the surveys listed above that
discipline is appropriate and expectations are both more clearly defined and
regularly enforced. The College Council too in a series of discussions has
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indicated that issues of order have been addressed. In terms of boys, there is
clearly a better pastoral and disciplinary management through firm, clear and
consistent expectations imparted through the discipline code and the new House
structure. Boys like to know where they stand.
Secondly, accountability to studies as indicated previously has improved with
greater diligence in terms of the submission of work. Teachers indicate that the
smaller classes are more ‘user friendly’ and that there is a greater sense of
accountability by the students in terms of their studies. This is borne out in the
teacher responses to the survey. A question remains here as to whether this is
perception or reality. For the purposes of the leadership of the school; the
perception is enough. It provided some traction for the plan to move forward. At
the senior school this is evidenced by better and more focused attendance at
practice exams and preparedness by Year 12 students to engage in extension
classes after school. The first but admittedly early indications of actual progress
in terms of academic performance came at the end of the 2003 school year
where for the first time since the VCE was measured in the current format,
Marcellin’s results improved slightly but significantly in the final exams. For the
first time, the cohort achieved a Median study score of 30 (the state average)
and 6% of study scores over 40, a one percentage point increase. Whilst these
scores were still below the desirable, the movement was clearly modestly
upward with expectations expressed by Year 12 teachers at the time later groups
were in a more favorable position than the previous year’s group. This intuition
proved in fact to be the case. The rise and fall of the VCE results over a short
time frame is not the most accurate assessment of progress, but the encouraging
signs from the more junior classes who have entered the college under the
existing thrust for academic rigor supports the ‘morale booster’ at the senior
level.
The greater opportunities for professional discourse brought about by the
institution of subject meetings, professional development and staff appraisal has
done much to heighten the expectations of the teaching staff and commonality
across the curriculum in terms of expectations and pedagogy. This dialogue has
given rise to greater requirements in terms of common teaching and assessment
leading to the institution of Year 9 exams during 2003. The ongoing review of
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curriculum content and methodology has begun somewhat modestly the process
of defining what, when, how and why they teach what they teach. This has been
particularly helpful in the areas of the online curriculum and the addressing of
literacy skills by the English Faculty and the discussions on methodology across
all departments. It is interesting to note that Teacher Leaders report more
favorably of these meetings than do the general faculty. The additional meetings
are often dismissed as additional work for staff. This is reflected in the survey
findings where staff is critical of the perceived additional workloads.
4.12 A Rationale for a Leadership Driven, Strategic Approach to School
Improvement
Chapters One and Two determined that there is a weight of evidence to suggest
that boys are underperforming in schools. Chapter Two also identified the
context of Marcellin College in Melbourne which had underperformed
significantly in VCE results over the past decade. There was clearly an
imperative to address the issue of academic performance by the leadership of
the college. This in turn would prove a worthy research topic to determine how
schools might improve learning outcomes for boys. The question remains
however; why was the approach taken by the school to adopt a leadership
driven, strategic plan to effect this change? What were the main elements of this
approach and what evidence suggests that this is an appropriate method of
achieving the desired outcomes?
To address these questions we need to revisit the decisions made by the
Leadership Team based upon those factors which influence learning outcomes.
Clearly, the ability levels of the students and their own family backgrounds are
the most significant factor in learning outcomes. The correlation between ability
and achievement is very high (Hattie, 2004). The school was unable to
manipulate this dynamic due to its long established enrolment policy whereby
entry into the school is largely determined by the need to provide places for
Catholic boys in the local parishes. There would be neither the opportunity nor
the desirability for the school to tailor entrance based upon academic ability. To
attempt to control the cohort into Year 7 based upon academic ability would be to
deny the purpose of the Catholic school to educate the local Catholic community
and the purpose of Marist education to be inclusive and offer a broad education
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catering for as many as possible. In the absence of this option to ‘boost’ the
ability of the cohort, the school needed to look at other factors. In other words,
the school would need to ‘work with the material and tools at hand”.
As mentioned earlier; there was an imperative for rapid change due to the public
nature of the school’s performance. Therefore there needed to be provision for
both long term goals and short term gains. The approach needed to be broad
based; not relying upon one key factor such as teacher pedagogy (significant as
it is) because gains in this area would take time. There needed to be some ‘early
runs on the board’ and there also needed to be some inducements for staff that
would bear a large part of the responsibility for improved learning outcomes. For
this reason; there were immediate moves to reduce class sizes across the school
even though class size does not figure significantly of itself in learning outcomes.
This could be seen as a ‘political’ decision to encourage teachers to ‘buy into’ the
improvement agenda. Class sizes, despite their relative insignificance in terms of
academic outcomes loom large in teachers’ minds in terms of workload. The
demands which would be placed upon them by the strategic plan would be offset
by this initial gesture. In the same way; the rapid building programme would be a
signal to teachers and students that the college valued these learning areas and
by extension valued learning.
The plan on the surface appeared to target issues unrelated to the specifics of
teaching and learning. The early concentration on issues surrounding law and
order and ‘belonging’ under the new pastoral system seemed unrelated to VCE
results. Yet there is sufficient research to suggest that the quality of the
underlying relationships which exist in the school has a direct bearing upon the
climate in which effective learning takes place. Rather than have pastoral care
and student well being seen as an adjunct to learning outcomes; they ought to
be viewed as part of the main game (Glasser, 1997) .The strategic plan enabled
the Leadership Team of the college to intervene in a broad range of areas to
pursue the learning agenda. The significance of leadership is second only to the
quality of teaching in terms of those things that the school can do to improve
learning (Mulford, 2008 Waters et al, 2007 Leithwood et al, 2004). Here was a
way in which the leadership of the school could define a coherent strategy and
bring the most influence to bear. The role of school leaders therefore is to create
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the climate or culture whereby effective learning can take place in the classroom.
The twenty one interventions were an attempt to do this.
4.13 The implications of cultural change upon the school environment
Whilst there have been measurable and anecdotal improvements in the learning
and ‘law and order’ aspects of the college, not all of the findings have been
positive improvements. The eventual nature of the intervention to effect cultural
change was driven by two factors. The appointment of the new principal in 2001
and secondly the urgency surrounding the perceived shortcomings of the
college. The imperatives of the review and the ‘clear and present danger’ of the
college’s academic performance led to a conscious decision by the leadership to
introduce rapid and interventionist approaches to the situation. This approach
has led to disquiet in teacher circles based on three criticisms:
First, the pace of change is too swift with consequences in terms of teacher
workload and a perception that too much is happening too quickly. This has
implications for staff morale and in the long term levels of compliance by staff
members to the various policy initiatives undertaken.
Secondly, the initiatives undertaken are too often adopted through a ‘top down’
approach which does not allow for adequate consultation of staff members in
initiatives which directly affect their work. Indeed, many of the initiatives have
originated not through the strategic plan but rather as policy directions devised at
the Leadership Team level. This situation in the longer term can give rise to
allegations of undervaluing of staff and subsequent feelings of resentment.
A third area worth noting is that there is still need for greater engagement of the
students in decisions affecting them and their learning. Whilst the new House
system has allowed for greater student involvement in decision making and wider
leadership opportunities, there is room for further dialogue in terms of teaching
and learning. The student surveys of how well classes work are a beginning, but
to ensure further student engagement and ‘ownership’ of the learning process, a
lot more thought needs to go into this area.
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The first two criticisms have some merit in that the pace of reform has led to a
reasonably directive approach by the leadership of the school. Interestingly, the
two areas of concern raised with the current leadership approach were also
identified in the previous review in 2000, undertaken before this ambitious
programme was begun. It is testament to the dedication and professionalism of
the staff that despite these concerns, they have continued to implement change,
adopt the policies and practices brought forward and raise the expectations they
have of their students. In addition, the patent evidence and recognition that
school enhancement is happening offsets the disquiet by some about the
method adopted for this to happen. One cannot prevail upon this forever. In the
long term such an approach has its limitations in that cooperation can become
more grudging over time and the level of resentment may reach a point where it
is counterproductive to adopt this approach. This is borne out in the surveying of
staff which consistently marks the school down in terms of teacher workload and
recognition of staff.
A criticism of the new system by some members of staff is that the expectations
of Pastoral Leaders in terms of duties and workloads have increased
unreasonably. This perception is evident in the feedback received in the review
of the new pastoral structure as part of the strategic plan review and is also
apparent in the Group 8 data and the Staff Pastoral Care Team survey. What is
of interest is that all of the expectations of Pastoral Teachers appeared in their
original role descriptions under the previous pastoral structure. The difference
appears to be that under the new system, the expectations of their role have
been increasingly enforced by the coordinators. There is a link here between the
previous dissatisfaction of the coordinators in terms of their perceptions of doing
‘all the work” with the new reality where their job satisfaction has improved while
their pastoral leaders may feel overburdened. The previous role of Year level
Coordinator was so student focused that their role in terms of accountability of
their staff were at best unclear and at worst non existent. The new reality of staff
leadership built into the House Coordinators’ role has had implications for the
House Coordinator in terms of their skill and the Pastoral Leader in terms of their
understandings of the ‘chain of command’. The strategic plan has therefore been
heavily reliant upon compulsion for both students and teachers. It seems that
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accountability measures are more recognizable by students and teachers than
those designed to encourage, except perhaps for the reduction in class sizes.
In my view the approach has been entirely appropriate to date in that radical
action needed to be taken in the face of some passive resistance to any change
agenda and lack of recognition that a problem even existed. Teachers who had
adopted ‘protected practices’ towards their work have been moved forward by
this more directive approach to change. In the long term, it would prove
counterproductive for those who under normal circumstances could be counted
upon to be allies in the process. Once the mechanisms for ‘social and cultural’
change have been fully implemented and become self sustaining, there will be a
further imperative to ensure appropriate engagement of staff and students in the
process of innovation as much as the product of it. Herein lays the next great
challenge for the college. The leadership view has been to stop the boat sinking
before holding discussions with the crew about the best approach to sailing the
ship.
The past eight years have been a fascinating experience in identifying needs and
managing change. The needs analysis arose from both the indigenous data and
the wider data targeting the needs of boys. The data provided a theoretical
framework in which to begin developing concrete initiatives to address a school
wide intervention. The focus of this paper has not been on the classroom, though
a range of initiatives have impacted upon pedagogy and methodology. The
paper has instead looked at how the whole school may experience change
through macro reform. The role of the individual teacher is central to catering for
the needs of boys in the classroom. Important too is the role of the school leader
in modeling and valuing learning, establishing systems, practice, policies,
structures and expectations that cater for the needs of boys. My sense is that the
fruits of this experiment will be fully realized in another few years, measured by
good morale amongst staff and students, appropriate industry in classes,
engagement by all in the learning and community life of the school and a healthy
‘bottom line’ in terms of academic results.
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4.14 A comment on the strategic plan
The strategic plan has been partially successful in achieving relatively swift
improvements in academic results. In some ways however, it is inherently
flawed. The plan is heavily reliant upon ‘macro reform’ across the school. Indeed
the 21 initiatives identified in the plan are very much influenced by structural
changes rather than overtly addressing the key factor in student performance;
that being individual teacher practice. Of the 21 initiatives identified only a
handful: subject teacher meetings, teacher appraisal and potentially 75 minute
periods speak to the issue of teacher methodology and practice. These in turn
were rated less highly than the more global interventions seeking to change
student behaviour. The vast majority of interventions are those imposed by the
strategic plan across the school. Those identified as most significant by teachers
and students are these ‘big ticket items’. The second observation is that the
interventions designed to promote student encouragement and motivations in the
learning process are not identified as relatively major factors in improvements in
learning.
The second limitation in the approach has been the lack of significant
interventions to promote intrinsic motivation amongst the students. This has led
to an approach characterized by imposition or compulsion rather than any
encouragement in behavioral or attitudinal changes in the students themselves.
The failure to address the twin issues of individual teacher practice and individual
student attitude towards learning and a concentration on compliance and
compulsion has promoted an interesting shift in the academic life of the school.
This could be an explanation for the pleasing but limited improvement in results.
Compliance brings some change in behaviour on behalf of the students
particularly in the mid to low ranges. Work will certainly be submitted in an
environment of compliance but will it necessarily represent learning excellence?
The results show improvement to a point but they are neither significantly
excellent nor are they reflective of continuous improvement and growth.
Excellence and continuous growth would both be indicators of a sustained
change in attitude and behaviour. There is no evidence that this has as yet
happened or will happen.
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4.15 Rationale for this approach
The strategic plan was devised as a rapid and whole school approach to an
immediate problem. It was therefore heavily weighted towards achieving rapid
improvements through a policy driven approach. This approach delivered short
term and visible changes to academic outcomes but did not fully address the key
and overriding importance of student and teacher attitude and behaviour. There
was a strong element of compliance and coercion about the plan from the outset.
Initiatives were aimed at changing student behaviour by making them more
accountable to their work and making the learning experience more rigorous
through the imposition of exams and accountabilities around promotion and
subject selection. The plan did not adequately address student attitude. Indeed
the initiative devised to tackle student attitude, the study skills programme
conducted through the Elevate initiative was insufficient to significantly address
the issue of student motivation. The systems of awards and graduations likewise
were not fully effective in encouraging changes in student behaviors. There is an
element of having to work to ‘meet the minimum requirements’ rather than a
concerted and sustained change in attitude and behaviour. This is a longer and
more complex dynamic which did not feature as highly due to the immediacy of
the problem and the need for a ‘quick fix’.
In the same way teacher practice is a dynamic which requires considerable
energy to influence. A major omission in the strategic plan has been the lack of
significance attached to individual teacher practice particularly when it comes to
the level of engagement by the students in the classroom. This area was partially
addressed by the institution of teacher appraisal and teacher subject meetings,
neither of which was rated relatively highly by the participants. Teachers tended
to distance themselves in the surveying from responsibility for student outcomes.
Measures introduced to make the students more accountable were applauded.
Improvements in teaching conditions were recognised. Yet any initiative which
focused upon the actual teaching was rated down. Ironically, if one owns some
of the responsibility for the improvement, then this is an acknowledgement of the
role of the teacher in the earlier performance of the students. Could this be
getting too ‘close to the bone’? Remember too that the students are still rating
some classes as ‘boring’. Pedagogy remains an issue which needs to be further
addressed.
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4.16 Potential limitations of this approach
There are some potential difficulties with the methodology used in this context.
The empirical data in this study are the actual VCE results being used as a
measure of successful outcomes and post school destination data. These data
are readily available and can be used to demonstrate the relative success of the
college in achieving one of its core outcomes, that being academic performance.
These data were chosen largely due to the ease of access of the data and the
indisputable nature of the results. This should not suggest that the only measure
of success in the educational mission of the college or for boys in general rests
only on academic results. To do so would deny the broader and more holistic
purposes of education and deny the undoubtedly excellent benefits inherent in
education. The use of VCE results and the ‘On Track Data’ reflects a reality that
it is an accessible and credible indicator of outcome rather than the only one.
After considerable deliberation, I resolved to base the measure of improvement
upon VCE results and student destination as they are key measures for schools
and indeed a very public indicator of relative success. The process would be a
straightforward one. Interventions would be enacted and the effect of these
interventions would be gauged by any variation in what had been a very constant
result. There are a range of other anecdotal indicators of improvement such as
the general demeanour of the boys, the enhanced reputation of the school in the
community and the fewer instances of misconduct. The actual frequency is
difficult to measure as too is attributing cause and effect to these indicators. It is
almost impossible to control the variables around these factors so the study was
confined to the more easily measurable.
The second potential difficulty is that value judgements are made upon each of
the interventions by a sample of the participants; both students and teachers.
This is by definition a subjective process which relies on opinion rather than a
direct relationship being established between the individual intervention and the
educational outcomes. There is no evidence of direct cause and effect.
Respondents are asked to place a value upon each of the 21 interventions
because there is no capacity to make a direct link. Whilst this feedback will be
demonstrated to be of value for the purposes of the research it is not empirical or
definitive. This approach cannot definitively state that this or that intervention
was the cause of change, this can only be opined. There is no clear way in the
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context of this research to directly link cause and effect. How does one isolate a
particular initiative and link it to the particular enforcement? In the absence of a
laboratory like environment, this can’t be done.
A third potential limitation to this approach is that the respondents to the survey
may not fully appreciate the significance of each of the interventions identified.
Teachers and Year 11 students were selected to participate in this survey as
they were party to the process over the years of the intervention. Younger
students for example would have insufficient knowledge of the school prior to the
interventions and insufficient knowledge of the interventions themselves. This
however does not fully mitigate the potential for respondents to be unclear as to
the significance of each of the initiatives nor does it ensure that there is an equal
understanding or access to knowledge about the process of intervention and
change. There are therefore limitations to relying upon subjective opinion or
perception when attempting to obtain an objective measure of the phenomenon.
The positivist approach presupposes an understanding of the dynamics involved
in this case study. It presupposes or assumes a number of factors. Firstly, the
reasons for underachievement at the school were attributed to the paradigm
arising from the research and secondly that the interventions truly addressed the
issues raised in the literature. There is of course a possibility that the academic
underperformance in this context was caused by other unknown factors and/or
improvements in results could be attributed to other factors unrelated to the
specific interventions. Is some other dynamic working here? Whilst these are
possibilities, I would suggest that they are unlikely. The consistent and long term
stability in results prior to this study would suggest that there has been and there
would be unlikely to be any variation in outcomes in the absence of the specific
interventions. The significant change in results is unlikely to have been
coincidental. In addition, there had been no significant variations to the school
programme over and above the specific interventions of the strategic plan / case
study. There had been no significant staff changes, changes to cohort ability
levels or other uncharted initiatives in the school. Whilst the case study does
make these assumptions, it was deemed reasonable in the circumstances to do
so.
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Chapter Five: A post intervention reflection on building
a boy friendly school
5.1 A discussion on building learning capacity in boys’ schools
The Marcellin College strategic plan spanning the past eight years and the
accompanying research conducted have provided some valuable insight into the
process whereby a school can undertake to improve academic outcomes. The
intended and unintended consequences of the various initiatives under the plan
can do much to inform how schools respond to initiatives and what limitations
can arise from this particular approach. This chapter will attempt to identify both
the advantages arising from the approach and also the limitations it can impose
upon the school. In addition, it will propose some specific advice to schools
seeking to address academic outcomes in this way as well as propose some
general observations about the dynamics at work in the boys’ school setting.
5.2 Specific Recommendations arising from this experience
I will confine any advice arising from this paper to the context of boys’ secondary
education. The past eight years have taught much about the intersection of
theory and practice in boys’ education. There are clear findings in the literature
canvassed in the first two chapters of this paper; but how do they translate in
their practical application? It seems unevenly. Here are the findings:
5.3 Global thinking
There is no one single answer to the tale of underperformance in boys’ schools.
This is why the problem needs to be approached from a number of angles. The
Marcellin approach began by addressing a range of issues which were not
readily recognizable as relating to learning outcomes, yet clearly they were. The
early concentration upon issues of relationships and ‘law and order’ as well as
the new House system set the scene for what was to come.
5.4 Relationships matter
The literature on boys was clearly pointing to the importance of the relationship
between the teacher and the students and the students themselves. The
students at Marcellin repeatedly identified interpersonal issues as important
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factors in their perception of classroom effectiveness. This coupled with the
parents’ views on effective teaching being the quality of relationships points to
the need to concentrate upon this important element. The strength of the
responses dealing with relationships at Marcellin coupled with the importance
placed upon them in the literature is compelling. All schools do attempt to create
this pastoral and relational environment between teacher and student. This study
reinforces the fact that pastoral care rather than being an adjunct to the learning
is indeed central to it. In addition, a positive climate in the classroom can break
down unhealthy competition and subsequent failure avoidance. It needs to be
acceptable to try and fail. The imperative upon the teachers in creating this
environment in each and every classroom is crucial in the boys’ school where
discouragement is borne of a failure to adequately address teacher -student and
student- student relationships. In the Marcellin context; these relationships were
enhanced by the new House system and greater certainty around behaviour
management issues. The direct link between these initiatives and improvements
in learning should be acknowledged. Having said this, there is evidence to
suggest that the strategic plan (which by virtue of the literature) focused so
heavily upon relationships did not fully mitigate this as a factor. Group 8 data are
compelling in the message that students believe that the relationships between
themselves could be better. That ‘culture of disrespect’ has clear implications in
the classroom as it may well be feeding this fear of taking risks. Clearly, more
needs to be done in this area. Importantly, whilst relationships were repeatedly
identified in the external data as significant; they were not linked by students or
teachers in the survey with academic outcomes. Schools seem to treat pastoral
care and learning as two important but separate issues. Clearly this is not the
case in the literature.
5.5 The Importance of Data
The gathering of initial data is hugely important. These data from a range of
different sources serve to focus the energies and the thinking of the school in
responding to the needs of the boys. This study has seen time and again how
data can sharpen the school’s initiatives from a generalist approach to one
whereby specific elements may be addressed. Here are some examples of how
data has driven the process:
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Testing of student literacy and numeracy levels dispelled long held beliefs
that the students were lacking in ability and therefore where incapable of
achieving higher academic results. This long held belief that Marcellin
students were ‘not academic’ had led to some self fulfilling prophecies
with benchmarks set too low and curriculum pitched inappropriately.
Specific data supplied to teachers about their abilities shifted the
emphasis away from capacity to motivation, thus sharpening the response
of teachers to the dynamic in the classroom. This information led the way
to a heightening of expectations by the teachers and indeed by the
students themselves.
A literature review of boys’ education led to a number of key strategies for
the strategic plan. In the absence of this understanding; schools can make
a number of assumptions about why things happen and don’t happen. In
this case, a good deal of time and energy can be expended on chasing
assumptions. It would be anomalous in the light of the wealth of research
about boys for boys’ school not to canvass the writings on why boys are
failing. Yet many practitioners operate in the absence of this body of work.
This is true of the whole school and true of individual teachers in their
classrooms.
Surveys conducted through the life of this research gave clear indications
as to student, teacher and parent opinion. The surveying at Marcellin
served to give feedback to the strategic plan but also feedback to
teachers which validated the plan. This is important to the process
whereby those charged with enacting change are given appropriate
feedback to validate their work.
Analysis of VCE results data was essential to this study and to the efforts
of the school to improve academically. The data available from the
Victoria Curriculum and Assessments Board provided a breakdown of
results by class and by student. It also allowed analysis of individual
results in comparison to Graded Assessment Task (GAT) data which
measures student ability. Proper use of these data provide specific
information about each of the Year 12 cohorts and dispels any
suggestions that improvements are based on external factors which are
not variables controlled by the school. There is room for the further use of
data to effect change beyond what was done in the strategic plan. The
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school used data to change direction and implement new initiatives. In the
same way, teachers need to use data in their own individual practice.
The surveying process has been crucial to the integrity of the strategic
plan for school improvement. In the absence of surveying, the leadership
of the school over time can fall back into the paradigm of guesswork and
making assumptions about what is going on. The Marcellin approach has
been to continuously canvass the opinion of students, parents and
teachers to better understand what is going on and to modify the
approach accordingly.
5.6 The relative effectiveness of compliance measures
Teachers and students recognise compliance measures as effective influences
upon performance. Indeed the compliance measures at Marcellin which included
exams and protocols around work submission and promotion were deemed as
highly important by the teachers. This is in line with the need for high
expectations for boys and the need for clear, consistent guidelines around
learning. These measures have been central to the improvements at Marcellin.
The limitation of compliance measures is that they are extrinsic motivators which
do little to address the issues of intrinsic motivation and the actual quality of the
work. Indeed the system of compliance removes the responsibility of the work
from the student to the teacher. It may impress the parents that the school
monitors and communicates well but limits the full benefits of the teaching and
learning. Compliance initiatives are important to establish high and consistent
standards of work. In the absence of these measures the students can exist in a
culture of underperformance and ‘minimum standards’. By themselves, they are
limited. This brings us to the question: “Who owns the problem?” If teachers have
to ‘own’ the learning as well as the teaching; in the absence of student
responsibility, the students will never fully be actualised in their studies. In
addition, if teachers rely upon the school authorities to impose school wide order;
what does this say about the teacher’s role in creating an engaging classroom?
5.7 Valuing Learning: Recognition of student learning
The Marcellin plan provided for a range of awards and encouragements to value
learning. The Altissima Awards, Academic Colours and Graduation Evenings
were all designed to mirror the highly publicized and successful sporting awards
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regime at the college. The ‘carrot’ approach was not as widely recognized by the
participants in the survey as the ‘stick’ mentioned above. The students tended to
favour the academic colours in their ranking of initiatives over the teachers but
both groups ranked compliance initiatives over these. It is important therefore for
the school to establish credible recognition of academic performance. It may be
that the significance of these initiatives will grow over time. It also may be that
teachers need to look at their own values in terms of motivation. Do they more
generally favour compulsion over encouragement? If so; are there implications
here for teacher practice in creating a climate of encouragement.
5.8 Valuing teaching: Managing teacher angst
The imperative for change led to a reasonably directive and ‘top down’ approach
by the school leadership to achieve swift results. The upshot of this was the
belief that change was both too fast and too demanding upon teachers. This and
the allegation that the process lacked consultation was partially offset by the
strategic planning process which involved consultation and the symbolically
important initiatives of lowering class sizes and improving teaching facilities. Both
were alluded to fairly regularly by members of the Leadership Team in the face of
concerns expressed by staff that the process was an imposition on staff and that
teachers were not adequately recognized for their work. Even so; the surveys of
staff on two separate occasions consistently identified teacher workload and lack
of recognition as significant factors. Any attempt by a school to manage rapid
change needs to be cognizant of these two factors. Wallace (1999) identifies the
paradoxical dynamic of collaboration and institutional change.
“Teachers often find themselves spending more
time on planning for restructuring – policy issues
and rescheduling – than on reaping the benefits of
restructuring such as improvements in teaching
and learning.”
(Wallace, 1999 p 81)
In response to this, the new Marcellin strategic plan will focus upon an audit of
the school calendar and curriculum and an exploration of how to appropriately
recognize teachers for their work. This will hopefully provide a ‘safety valve’ for
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teacher dissent in that the leadership of the school will respond to these two
chief areas of concern. If the school is too heavily focused upon the student; it
may well inadvertently undermine one of the key pillars of improvement, the role
of the teacher.
5.9 The Centrality of teaching
The main school based factor associated with improved learning outcomes is the
quality of the pedagogy. In other words the effectiveness of the teacher is the
area in which there will be the most gains. The school attempted to address this
in two ways: the indirect method and the direct method. The former proved more
effective than the latter. The indirect method involved creating a school wide
climate whereby there would be more effective teaching and learning. Attention
to school wide policies which created a better overall climate for the school was
central to the thinking behind the study and also to the implementation of the
strategic plan. There is no doubt that a more orderly school with improved
relationships and clearer expectations had a significant impact upon the overall
teaching and learning climate. In addition the changes to lesson duration and
improvements in facilities set up the opportunity for better teaching and learning.
This was recognized by the participants in the surveys as too were the relative
importance of these areas. These things did not necessarily change the practice
in each of the classrooms.
“We should focus on the greatest source of variance
that can make the difference - the teacher. …Teachers
can and usually do have positive effects. We need to
direct attention at higher expectations that students can
meet appropriate challenges- and these occur once the
classroom door is closed and not by reorganizing which
or how many students are behind these doors, by
promoting different topics for those teachers to teach,
or by bringing in more sticks to ensure that they are
following policy.”
(Hattie 2004, p 24)
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The direct method involved creating opportunities for teachers to meet more
frequently to discuss their teaching and teacher appraisal to discuss specific
practice. Neither of these initiatives was ranked as highly by the teachers as
other initiatives. Students in the Group 8 survey suggested that whilst they got on
well with their teachers, classes were still deemed to be boring. Based on this, it
is my view that the measures to ensure improved teaching in the classroom were
not as effective as they needed to be. The teacher meetings and appraisal
sessions were deemed by some to be exacerbating the problem of teacher
workload rather than helpful measures to assist in the teaching process. This in
essence is one of the costs of the methodology of the strategic plan. In the
absence of a full teacher ownership of the process; initiatives to improve the lot
of the student and by inference the teacher, will be perceived as an imposition
rather than a help. The relative importance of teaching pedagogy to improved
outcomes for boys requires a more effective approach than was apparent in this
study. The ‘macro approach’ favoured by this study did not sufficiently allow for
ensuring that individual teaching practice improved. In recognition of this, the
new strategic plan at Marcellin will be allowing for teacher peer observation and
feedback as well as the capacity for students to provide on line feedback to their
teachers about their lessons. This direct feedback will provide guidance for
teachers in improving the delivery of their lessons. This was discussed earlier
under the importance of data. This element is particularly important in the light of
the beliefs expressed by teachers that issues surrounding academic outcomes
are centered on the student or upon school wide industrial or work conditions
considerations. There needs to be more recognition of the importance of the
teaching and more ownership by the teacher of the issue. There is a greater role
for the strategic plan for this to come about.
5.10 The significance and limitations of school leadership
The importance of leadership has been discussed above. The leadership at
Marcellin has been central to the implementation of the strategic plan. This has
meant that the ideas, initiative and the implementation of initiatives have rested
heavily upon the Leadership Team. Herein are both strength and an inherent
weakness in the process. The strength is that the Leadership Team is able to act
quickly with sufficient flexibility to address the needs of the school. This has
allowed the plan to be implemented relatively quickly and for the school to
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achieve reasonably rapid improvements. The problem is one of ownership. A ‘top
down’ plan has the potential to mean a lot to those at the top and progressively
mean less as it moves down the chain. In this case the leadership was immersed
in the plan with less and less impact felt as it is implemented through the school.
For example, staff and students would have been unclear as to the elements of
the plan and how they impacted upon learning. There is an element here of
doing without meaning. This is a potential limitation of the approach which will
become increasingly meaningless over time. For the improvement agenda to be
really taken up; the participants need to know what is happening and why. There
is a need for the leadership to more properly engage stakeholders in the
planning process and to allow them to ‘buy in’ to the agenda. In this case, this
was only partially successful evidenced by the issues surrounding teacher
attitude and student recognition of the role of leadership discussed above.
5.11 The Hierarchy of Needs
To find a model which has been helpful in understanding the dynamic in schools
and the dynamic at work at Marcellin; I have turned to Maslow. Maslow’s
hierarchy of needs introduced in the 1960’s identified different levels of
operations in human motivation. In many ways the approach taken by the
strategic plan has been predicated upon the idea that individuals and groups
operate at different psychological levels and that we need to recognize these
different levels if we are to successfully understand and respond to human
behaviour. Maslow took this idea and created his now famous hierarchy of
needs. Beyond the details of air, water, food, and sex, he laid out five broader
layers: the physiological needs, the needs for safety and security, the needs for
love and belonging, the needs for esteem, and the need to actualize the self, in
that order.
The strategic plan placed a good deal of emphasis on issues of law and order,
student conduct and generally relationships in the school. The first substantial
initiative in the plan involved the introduction of the new House system which
was meant to engender a better sense of belonging and connectedness amongst
students and their teachers. At the time there were questions raised as to the
relevance of such a move in the context of improving academic outcomes. If the
‘main game’ was to be an improvement in VCE results, why was time being
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spent on these restructures and ‘side issues’ such as student management and
conduct?. The contention here is that the ’higher order’ imperatives of academic
life can only be really addressed if the ‘lower order;’ needs of belonging, safety,
recognition and stability are addressed.
5.12 Maslow’s hierarchy can be described in this way:
1. The physiological needs. These include the needs we have for air, water,
foods and other minerals and vitamins. They are the need to maintain our
physical beings.
2. The safety and security needs. When the physiological needs are largely
met, this second layer of needs comes into play. We will become increasingly
interested in finding safe circumstances, stability and protection. We might
develop a need for structure, for order, boundaries and limits.
In the absence of these we become concerned, not with needs like hunger and
thirst, but with your fears and anxieties. In the school context, particularly in a
large school, there is a need for security; to feel safe and free of the fear of
bullying or harassment.
3. The love and belonging needs. When physiological needs and safety
needs are met, a third layer emerges. We begin to feel the need for friends and
other meaningful relationships. This is the first inkling of the essential nature of
community where as predominantly social beings we need to feel connected and
a sense of belonging. In the absence of this we can become increasing
susceptible to loneliness and social anxieties. In the school this is manifested in
the need for acceptance in the classroom, in the school yard and on sporting and
other teams.
4. The esteem needs. Maslow noted two versions of esteem needs, a lower
and a higher order. The lower is the need for the respect of others, the need for
attention, status, recognition, reputation, appreciation and our sense of dignity.
The higher form involves the need for self-respect, including such feelings as
confidence, competence, achievement, mastery, independence, and freedom.
The difference between the two is that the former is predicated upon the respect
and recognition of others; the latter upon self respect and self worth.
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5. Self-actualization. To be truly self-actualizing, we need to have our lower
needs largely taken care of. If we are cold and hungry, and unable to obtain
food; if we are unsafe, and have to be continuously on guard; if we are isolated
and unaccepted by those around us we have to satisfy those needs first. If we
have a low sense of self-esteem, we have to be defensive or over compensate
by the use of inappropriate behaviours. When lower needs are unmet, we can’t
fully devote ourselves to fulfilling our potential. The self actualized person is one
who is aware of not only their own fullest potential, but the fullest potential of
human beings at large (Maslow 1970).
5.13 Analysis
In terms of students, there is a need to address issues of safety, law and order,
belonging and connectedness and recognition of achievement before venturing
into the realms of learning as an intrinsic pursuit. The idea that these more basic
needs should be largely met before there can be a successful intervention at the
higher levels drives the thinking behind the strategic plan for students. The
Marcellin Strategic Plans were heavily geared towards the relational aspects of
the school in the early stages. The early major initiatives were the institution of
the school wide discipline code and the new House system. These appeared
unrelated to the specifics of academic standards. They in a sense helped to
create the environment whereby the higher order issues could be tackled.
The model also provides some insight into the dynamics affecting teachers. The
findings regarding teacher perceptions of workload and recognition mentioned in
“Handling teacher Angst’ fit somewhat into this model. There is a ‘subtext’
beneath the workings of the strategic plan which is influential upon the outcomes
of the plan itself. The demands of rapid change have the potential to instill
disquiet amongst the teaching staff. In turn; their efforts may be perceived to be
undervalued. The interpersonal subtext may well be subverting the intellectual.
This ‘subtext’ was an unintended consequence of the rapid deployment of the
plan and the commensurate need for a directive approach to the implementation
of the 21 initiatives. This factor was not adequately identified and addressed
during the implementation stages of the plan. This is unfortunate as the potential
for the process to be ‘derailed’ by teacher disenfranchisement and
disengagement is quite real.
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The benefits of ‘action research’ are that the interventions may be tested along
the way and if need be modified to suit the environment of the study. This was
certainly true in this case study. The 21 initiatives were not born in their entirety
of a prescient and dispassionate analysis of the needs of the school and
implemented in a systematic and planned way. A number of them emerged as
the process was underway and were in response to needs as they emerged. In
the same way; the demands of implementation were an imperative which
outweighed other procedural factors. With hindsight this was a flaw in the plan;
not a mortal one, but a flaw nonetheless.
5.14 What advice can we give? A reflection on the process...
The experiences at Marcellin offer an opportunity to provide some insight into the
dynamics of change and change management. This experience has certainly
taught us a good deal about strategic planning and school improvement. The
story of the Marcellin strategic plan is overwhelmingly a success story, but a
number of elements along the way contributed to difficulties arising that could
have been avoided as well as initiatives undertaken which could have been more
effective. I turn to a rather unlikely source to give guidance in this area. General
Gordon Sullivan of the United States Army and Michael Harper the former
Director of Army Policy Planning wrote an interesting treatise in 1996 titled: Hope
is Not a Method: What Business Leaders Can Learn From the United States
Army. In this paper they discussed their observations of the dynamics of change
and change management learnt over many years in effecting change in one of
the United States’ largest institutions. They wrote:
“The paradox of action is the fact that working harder
and harder to do what you do better and better will not
lead to success. Action however intense is pointless
unless it is focused upon the future. Action without
strategic direction merely drives an organization
deeper into a hole”.
(Harper and Sullivan 1996 p1)
Change is a difficult dynamic to manage in any institution and this is true of
schools. It may be that participants in the organisation would prefer to be expert
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in a flawed paradigm than a novice in a new one even if the new one is deemed
better. In the case of teachers; they are primarily practitioners. As such their
energies are largely in delivering the curriculum and engaging in professional
relationships with students, parents and colleagues. The huge investment which
goes into establishing their approach is not lightly cast aside for another which is
introduced for even the best of reasons. It takes a good deal of leadership to
convince teachers to move from what has worked in the past to an uncertain
future. What follows therefore is advice to those adopting this approach to
school improvement and specifically improvements in outcomes for boys.
5.15 Use data and use it wisely
Where Marcellin got it right was in the collection of data to determine the needs
of the boys and the needs of the school. The literature review on boys’ education
provided valuable insight into the challenges facing boys at school. Rather than
attempting to grasp the issues through anecdotal observation, the planners
adopted a measured approach, looking at the broad range of issues affecting
boys. The interventions were targeted and could be legitimized in the context of
the literature. Rather than whim; they were a response to research findings.
Secondly, the original strategic plan emerged from a considerable process of
consultation with staff, students and parents. This is where the issues around the
deficiencies in learning emerged. This process allowed a broad population in the
school community to understand both the issues and the proposed solutions. In
addition, the data collected and given to teachers regarding the boys’ abilities as
well as comparative data about VCE results and the results of other schools was
likely to awaken in the teaching staff a better understanding of the issues. No
longer could the issue be explained as one of ability or lack of it.
Where they got it wrong was the degree in which data was used to validate the
strategic plan. The rationale behind the 21 specific interventions was well known
to the members of the Leadership Team who were immersed in the
implementation of the plan. This rationale was less well known to the teachers
and even less to the students and the parents. Therefore, whilst the wider school
population was aware of the general issues, they were not fully briefed as to the
rationale for each of the interventions. The consequence of this was twofold.
There was a sense that the leadership was imposing their own agenda onto the
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school and second; some bewilderment amongst the wider community about the
reasons for the decisions made. This could have been avoided relatively simply
by broadening the implementation decisions beyond the Leadership Team just
as the development of the original plan was. The other consideration around
data was that data collection tended to be global about issues surrounding boys’
education in general and about preferred teaching and learning methodologies.
There was not but should have been more specific feedback to the individual
teacher about his/her own classroom practice. The appraisal system patently did
not do this.
Recommendations:
Gather as much of the literature about boys’ education in general and
gather as much data specific to the school as possible. This would include
current research, profiles of the students themselves in terms of abilities
and preferred learning styles.
In addition, individual teachers need specific, critical and honest feedback.
The school ought to introduce direct feedback to the teacher regarding
their teaching pedagogy, style and general effectiveness. This has been
trialed at Marcellin and they are moving now into a phase where students
will provide this feedback directly to the teacher online. The structured
nature of the questionnaire obviates against abuse of this opportunity;
indeed teachers have reported that the feedback is generally constructive
and more positive than expected. Once in possession of this student
feedback, the teacher meets with a mentor to discuss its implications for
further teaching. In addition, the Annual Review Meetings will refer to this
process in an attempt to better concentrate upon the specific needs of the
teacher to improve his or her practice.
5.16 Consult and be seen to consult
The initial phase of consultation worked well. This identified the concerns that
teachers, parents and students had about teaching and learning at the school.
Indeed, this consultation allowed a certain degree of goodwill and forbearance
for the early stages of the strategic plan. The ongoing surveys of students,
teachers and parents also kept the issues to the fore and helped to keep both
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the planners and the school community focused on the issues of learning and
school improvement.
Where consultation broke down was in the longer term implementation stage.
The approach became fixed upon the destination rather than the journey. By
becoming results orientated there is a chance that the process will unravel. This
did not happen in this case, but there were tensions introduced into the process
which could have largely been avoided by closer attention to the players as well
as the game. The ownership of this programme needs to be broader and more
sustainable than purely leadership driven which concentrates responsibility too
narrowly. “Schools need an effective and excellent head teacher but they also
need a team of first class leaders if they are to implement transformational,
innovative ideas for raising standards.” (Russell et al 2004, p 3). Leaders are
needed at all levels and in all parts of the school (Harris & Lambert 2003).
Recommendations:
The process would benefit from a ‘standing or steering committee’
approach whereby other staff, students and parents are invited to be a
part of the implementation. This has the added benefit of lending greater
legitimacy and integrity in the process in the eyes of the broader
community.
There should be regular reporting back to the school community, linking
initiatives undertaken more closely with the needs identified. These
meetings should also enshrine the opportunity for feedback to the steering
committee to help adjust the plan where needed in terms of emphasis and
timing. This would engender a greater sense of responsibility, autonomy
and ownership amongst the wider community. It would also make
discussions about teaching quality much more acceptable as part of the
general discourse in the staffroom.
5.17 Find the right mix of macro and micro reform
A great deal of work was done at the macro level to maneuver the school in a
different direction. This broad policy approach did much to steer the school
towards a greater focus on learning and provided the success evidenced in the
improvement in academic results and university entrance. The strategic plan in
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many ways made the school a more academic place but did it have the same
effect on each and every classroom? The responses of the students regarding
the nature of their classes suggests not. Again, the school wide approach;
appropriate to aiming for the greatest impact, would have benefited by greater
attention to the specifics at the ground level. If we accept that the most important
school based determinate of learning outcomes is the individual teacher; then
much more needed to be done to shape that teacher; this is a significant
challenge which was addressed by such initiatives as teacher subject meetings
but these did not show a real impact.
Recommendations:
As well as the ‘big picture’ items, there needed to be more done at ground
level. Learning Coordinators need to be brought more into the fray here.
Working at department and even peer to peer level, there needs to be
more open dialogue and coaching in terms of practice. In the new
strategic plan, learning Coordinators are being trained as teacher coaches
with the opportunity and the skills to observe colleagues and provide
feedback and support. In addition, the college is introducing a regime of
peer observation and feedback to promote best practice.
The extension of this is the development of meaningful peer partnerships
whereby teachers are teamed up to work together in the areas of course
writing, professional learning and peer appraisal. This would promote the
idea that change brought about by the plan is tactical as well as strategic
5.18 Concentrate on the ‘main game’
The original plan recognized the significance of individual teacher pedagogy by
establishing such initiatives as the teacher appraisal process, the teacher team
meetings and the change to 75 minute periods designed to give greater
opportunities for innovation in the classroom. Whilst the teacher appraisal system
experienced minor success and the teacher meetings were greeted with mixed
feelings; in many cases the longer periods created greater opportunities for
varying the curriculum. Clearly not enough was done to address this issue fully.
With greater autonomy amongst the teachers and a better understanding of the
implementation of the plan, there is more likelihood that the opportunities for
teachers to spend time on teacher innovation will be better received.
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The importance of teaching needs to be more clearly recognised by the teachers
themselves. Clearly teachers are aware of the literature identifying teaching as
the most important school based component of effective learning outcomes. In
the surveys however, they attributed the academic results to other factors. The
school’s provision of resources, the workload of teachers and the capacities and
motivation of the students were all cited…not their own practice or their reflection
on their teaching. This is a major obstacle to improvement when the most
important element provided by the school is not acknowledged by them.
Recommendations:
More thought needs to be given to the use of the extended class times so
that lessons are more fruitful. One way to do this is for teachers at the
department level to audit their curriculum not only in terms of content but
also for methodology. If there are optimum ways in which certain units are
delivered, why then aren’t they identified as exemplar lessons to be
delivered across the department rather than be seen as an individual
teacher’s success story? Too often, teachers work in isolation, both good
and poor practice is therefore confined to the vagaries of the individual
teacher and preserved by the closed door of the classroom.
The great success story of the Marcellin strategic plan has been the rapid
and extensive improvements in the technical and practical subjects
brought about by the college building programme. This needs to be
translated more broadly into the theory or traditional academic classes.
Schools need to roll out appropriate technologies for all classes. This has
started at Marcellin with the provision of interactive whiteboards, online
curricula and greater attention to environmental factors in the classrooms
such as lighting and climate control.
Schools need to have the best teachers and teaching possible. Apart from
wise recruitment, the other variable is the effective training of existing
staff. The school would therefore benefit from professional learning plans
tailored for individual teachers. These should be linked to the Annual
Review Meetings with staff and designed to address the specific needs of
the teacher. Deficiencies in pedagogy or classroom management or
curriculum knowledge could therefore be addressed on an individual basis
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rather than the usual approach of schools with professional learning
where ‘one size fits all’
5.19 Address the relational subtext
The Marcellin plan rightly prioritized relationships as critical to improving learning
outcomes. Where they got it right was an improvement in the pastoral care
system which further enriched the relationships between students and their
teachers. The research however found that there was a considerable relational
subtext which remains ‘in play’ with the potential to stall further improvements in
the learning culture of the school. These local findings are commensurate with
broader research which identifies bullying in schools as a significant problem. At
Marcellin; the boys believe that they don’t respect each other enough. This can
act to make boys cautious in the classroom and exacerbate the issue of lack of
risk taking. Students believe bullying continues because schools do not handle
the problem effectively. This issue is a significant one in schools which ought to
be addressed for its own sake as well as being a consideration for its effect upon
learning outcomes. Schools need to be better at addressing the issue of student
relationships. This is especially in the boys’ schools context where relationships
play a large part in determining academic performance. In the same way, the
strategic plan would have benefited from further attention to the ‘relational sub
text’ of the teaching staff. Unless well managed, the agenda of the school can
shift from the students to the teachers as they and their leadership grapples with
issues of ‘staff morale and well being’. A broad and rapid change agenda has the
potential to generate ‘collateral damage’ which if unaddressed has the potential
to become the preeminent agenda in the staffroom, replacing teaching and
learning as the focus. This dynamic is in no one’s interests.
Recommendations:
The potential for bullying to occur needs to be addressed ‘head on’.
Schools can establish an online survey where students can provide
anonymous information regarding bullying in the school. I have seen this
done in one school. Each term, the students are invited to access the site
and identify when, where, why and how bullying occurs and who the
offenders and victims are. This information is then used to identify
patterns of behaviour, provide responsive supervision and programmes
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and even consult with perpetrators and their victims. This tool is very
powerful as a deterrent and as a response.
Teachers need to actively create an environment in the classroom where
risks can be taken. It ought to be acceptable to venture an opinion or an
answer and be wrong. Education is born of trial and error. It ought to be
an accepted part of the educative process to make mistakes.
Schools ought to explore restorative practices as a mode of managing
student behaviour. The Marcellin model while consistent, clear and
efficient would benefit from a more consequence based approach rather
than rely on deterrence and punishment. All three of the above
recommendations are being considered in the new Marcellin strategic
plan.
Schools would benefit from greater collaboration between leadership and
the staff to go along with the greater accountabilities. Greater attention to
the process of reform will lead to greater acceptance of the reform
agenda.
5.20 Get the balance between compulsion and encouragement right
The Marcellin approach saw the importance of both accountability measures and
rewards to change the behaviour of the students. Surveying suggests greater
recognition of the accountability measures than the system of encouragements.
There was and is a real place for the accountability measures, but there needs to
be a similar profile for the other. The accountability measures were a great
success and ought to be incorporated in any school’s plan. The rewards regime
at Marcellin needs to be enhanced.
Recommendations:
Schools would benefit from a similar range of accountability measures
identified at Marcellin. These include the work submission, student
progress, and subject selection and graduation policies. To facilitate this,
schools need to articulate these policies clearly and identify how they
relate to each other.
The awards system in schools needs to be well publicized and relevant to
the students and parents. One suggestion is to involve students in
determining the nature of the prizes and awards and the criteria applied
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for their selection. In addition, the awards need greater prominence in the
life of the school. This can be achieved through college publications.
Awards need to be granted frequently and linked to specific, achievable
outcomes.
The system of global school wide awards could be mirrored in the
classrooms with teachers identifying work based upon both quality and
endeavor criteria.
5.21 Share the ownership and promote self actualization
As stated above, the ownership of the strategic plan implementation rested
largely with the College Leadership team. The teachers to a large extent owned
the responsibility for the students’ performance through the accountability laden
approach to improvement. The students to a lesser extent owned the
responsibility for their learning. This dynamic was the catalyst for improvement
but has limitations in the long term for sustained improvement and the
development of self actualized teachers and learners. Learning should not be
‘done to people’ it needs to be a self generated process. Schools wanting to
adopt a strategic planning approach to academic improvement need to be aware
of the educative imperatives as well as the drive for improvement.
Recommendations:
Start early. The culture of the school as a learning community starts in the
early years. Responsibility, self motivation and ownership of one’s
learning begin in the early years. Therefore, the lower year levels should
concentrate less on content and more on process and skills. The study
skills and motivational programmes introduced for the senior students in
the Marcellin plan need to begin in Year 7.
More research needs to be done on what motivates boys. Generally
speaking schools should seek to involve the students more in curriculum
decisions; what is taught and how it is taught. These decisions can be in
line with the demands of the curriculum but they will be far more
meaningful if the students are part of the discussion.
Teachers need to be able to own their own teaching. There is a common
belief in schools that teachers are at the whim of curriculum decisions and
in this case the ‘improvement agenda’. If they are to share responsibility
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for the status of the teaching and learning; they need to also have
ownership of the discussion. Teachers need the opportunity to be part of
the discussion if they are to be part of the solution.
5.22 Celebrate
Marcellin instituted the approach of celebrating the achievements of the school in
terms of academic improvement. This has to some extent acknowledged the
work of teachers and students in achieving better academic performance. This
has enthused some students to compete with former year levels to ‘rewrite the
record’ for the school’s success. There remains however, a real issue amongst
the teaching staff of a sense of lack of recognition for their work. These findings
have emerged consistently in surveys conducted of the staff. Teachers don’t
mind working hard but they find it difficult to reconcile working hard without
purpose or without recognition. This is a major challenge for schools.
Recommendations:
Schools need to find appropriate ways to celebrate the efforts of the boys
in their studies and to do so which promotes intrinsic motivation in the
students. Awarding prizes is a twin edged sword. It promotes recognition
but it also validates work in the eyes of the prize giver rather than the
intrinsic worth of the work in the eyes of the receiver. Recognition can
come in many forms. A successful formula would be to acknowledge
process in equal parts to product. This has the added value of
acknowledging the efforts of all the boys rather than promote winning and
therefore losing in the learning process.
Schools need to find appropriate ways to recognize good teaching
practice. Already in Victoria, some schools are trialing performance based
pay, a controversial measure for similar reasons as the above. It may be
that the teachers can have some input into what constitutes effective
acknowledgement. Here again is the importance of data gathering.
More can be done to link school performance with a meaningful
understanding of the purpose of it all. There is a role here for the alumni of
the school who have credibility in the eyes of the students and who can
speak with authority on the importance of endeavor in post school life. In
the same way there is a need for schools to draw on the broader
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community to make that meaningful link between the classroom and life
after school.
5.23 Clearly establish what makes good practice
There needs to be a consensus reached as to what makes a good teacher, what
makes for good pedagogy and what makes a good school.
“A world class school has:
A clear vision, underpinned by a set of values which will guide its policies,
procedures and practices
A strong focus on the student outcomes to improve both the curriculum
and teaching practices
A professional learning community which adopts knowledge based
practices based on continuous self evaluation in pursuit of excellence
A strong alliance of stakeholders
School management which is open, transparent and publicly accountable
for its educational achievements and proper use of funds.”
(Townsend 2004, p1)
Such a consensus needs to be reached by all the stakeholders: students,
teachers and parents to be truly effective. Schools would be well advised to
establish these ground rules from the outset of seeking to improve to bring all of
the variables for improvement together.
5.24 Conclusions
The Marcellin College Strategic Plans 2001-2008 effected significant changes to
the way the school operated and the nature of teaching and learning in the
school. In a broader way the plans had a significant impact upon the very culture
of the school. This paper has sought to demonstrate the importance of the
cultural aspect of schooling to the more specific issue of academic outcomes.
The “Maslow Model’ of hierarchy of needs fits neatly with this view. The
approach at Marcellin has recognized that teaching and learning do not happen
in isolation, rather, teachers and students enter the classroom within the context
of a broader school culture. If this culture is not predisposed towards learning
then the efforts of the teacher and the well disposed students are brought
undone. The literature and an understanding of school dynamics led the school
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to the view that to improve learning outcomes required an improvement to the
school culture. The approach was therefore broad, diverse and multi faceted.
The approach saw a manipulation of many aspects of school life in a bid to
create the climate whereby better learning would take place. An approach which
to the dispassionate observer might appear only loosely related to the specifics
of VCE scores.
The study also provided a model of adapting research and data to a practical
application. The initiatives of the strategic planning process arose from research
into boys’ education and the imperatives of the plan were identified by the
indigenous research at the school about the boys and about the teaching and
learning programme. This approach has considerable applicability to other
school settings. Importantly for the school there have been two important
outcomes. First and foremost the school is now operating at a very credible
academic level. VCE results have eclipsed like schools and have established
Marcellin as a leading school in the provision of boys’ education. Secondly, the
journey along the way has taught more about process, cause and effect and the
need to continually revisit not only what is taught but how it is taught. The last
eight years have hopefully refined the approach so that future initiatives are
implemented more effectively.
The reality is that school improvement ought to be viewed as a continuous
process which has implications for method as much as content. A climate of
continuous improvement requires a number of predisposed elements. These
include a clear mandate for change, in this case brought about by the needs
analysis of the strategic plan. It also needs the relationships between the various
participants in the process to be effective. This has proven in this case to need
some ‘deft handling’ by the agents of change. It is acknowledged that more
attention could have been paid to this part of the agenda. Improvement in
process is as important in this case as the improvement in product.
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