Attainment Levels of Comprehensive Primary Schools in Iceland

Abstract

Hansen, F.B. & Bumbarger, C. 1985. Attainment Levels of Comprehensive Primary Schools in Iceland. Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research 29, 73‐88. The major purpose of this exploratory study was to examine the relationship between school attainment (school average scores/ marks) at comprehensive primary schools in Iceland and selected ‘school’ and ‘teacher’ variables. The conceptual framework employed was drawn from the open systems theory. Students were seen as inputs into schools and their scores on the comprehensive primary school examinations as outputs affected by forces that act upon them. The findings indicate that average scores within schools are quite stable, whether high or low. Generally, the ‘school’ variables, ‘Greater Reykjavik’ and ‘coastal areas’, were the best predictors of school average scores whether in the high or the low category.