Cross‐level Relationships within Effective Schools

ABSTRACT

In this paper the focus is placed on cross‐level relationships within effective schools in secondary education in the Netherlands. Three hypotheses have been formulated. The outcomes related to the contingency hypothesis make clear that the managerial capacities of schools in secondary education are of great importance with respect to the effectiveness of schools, especially when a school's position gets under pressure at the local (student) market.

Results show the affirmation of a congruency hypothesis with respect to the extent of production orientation of management and teaching staff, and the overall congruence of school and classroom policy. Results of contextual hypothesis suggest that the average intelligence of the school population exerts no effect on school careers in general or on careers of low/high intelligent pupils in particular. However, a school environment with a relatively low average socio‐economic status is positively associated with the school careers of pupils from families with low socio‐economic status. No positive effects are found regarding school careers in general, or ethnic minority careers in particular, when the number of ethnic minority pupils was increasing.

Notes

¹ The author is co‐ordinator of the research group “Education and Labour” of the social faculty of Erasmus University, Rotterdam, the Netherlands. He recently finished his Ph.D thesis on: “Effective education for ethnic minority pupils”.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

W.H. Adriaan Hofman ¹

1 The author is co‐ordinator of the research group “Education and Labour” of the social faculty of Erasmus University, Rotterdam, the Netherlands. He recently finished his Ph.D thesis on: “Effective education for ethnic minority pupils”.