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The walls speak: The interplay of quality facilities, school climate, and student achievement
Abstract
Purpose
– A growing body of research connecting the quality of school facilities to student performance accompanies recent efforts to improve the state of the educational infrastructure in the USA. Less is known about the mechanisms of these relationships. This paper seeks to examine the proposition that part of the explanation may be the mediating influence of school climate.
Design/methodology/approach
– Teachers from 80 Virginia middle schools were surveyed employing measures including the School Climate Index, a seven‐item quality of school facilities scale, as well as three resource support items. Data on student SES and achievement were also gathered. Bivariate correlational analysis was used to explore the relationships between the quality of facilities, resource support, school climate, student SES, and student achievement. In addition, multiple regression was used to test school climate as a mediating variable between the quality of facilities and student achievement.
Findings
– Results confirmed a link between the quality of school facilities and student achievement in English and mathematics. As well, quality facilities were significantly positively related to three school climate variables. Finally, results confirmed the hypothesis that school climate plays a mediating role in the relationship between facility quality and student achievement.
Originality/value
– As we face fundamental issues of equity across schools and districts, leaders struggle to convince taxpayers of the need to invest in replacing and/or renovating inadequate facilities. Deeper understandings of the complicated interplay between the physical and social environments of school, and how these dynamics influence student outcomes, may help educators build a compelling case.
... Despite the existence of substantial academic literature which highlighted that student engagement is essential for students' success, the factors that influence engagement remain poorly understood ( Konold, Cornell, Jia & Malone, 2018 ). According to the prior researches, classroom environment ( Mehta et al., 2013 ;Yang et al., 2017 ) and university facilities ( Lavy & Nixon, 2017 ;Picus et al., 2005 ;Uline & Tschannen -Moran, 2008 ) are vital for improving students' engagement. Other researchers outlined that classroom environment can fosters higher levels of student engagement, while other scholars have linked engagement to improved academic performance ( Finn & Zimmer, 2012 ;Tsay et al., 2020 ). ...
... Technological infrastructure, including Internet access and online library resources have also been regarded as key aspects of university facilities ( Dwivedi et al., 2020 ). According to the available literature, students' levels of engagement ( Almarghani & Mijatovic, 2017 ;Gunuc et al., 2022 ) and student performance ( Picus et al., 2005 ;Lavy & Nixon, 2017 ;Uline & Tschannen -Moran, 2008 ) can be positively affected by university facilities. It is obvious that students' opinions of university facilities have a big impact on both prospective students' admissions choices and the university's reputation as a whole. ...
... The statistical results suggest that university facilities significantly influences student engagement and academic performance. Earlier researches provided additional support for the relationship between these constructs ( Gunuc et al., 2022 ;Mijatovic, 2017 ;Uline & Tschannen -Moran, 2008 ). This outcome is also in line with Lavy and Nixon's (2017) findings, who confirmed that university facilities are crucial for nurturing academic performance. ...
The objective of this research was to determine the impact of classroom environment, teacher competency, information and communication technology (ICT) resources, and university facilities on academic performance and student engagement at higher education institutions (HEIs). This paper also aimed to contribute to the literature by verifying the mediating effect of student engagement between the selected factors and academic performance. A survey tool was used to gather the data from 314 students in United Arab Emirates. During the phase of data analysis, AMOS Version 21 was utilized to test the proposed hypotheses and validate the research tool. The results supported the notion that teacher competency and ICT resources have positive effects on both academic performance and student engagement. Furthermore, classroom environment and university facilities were found as significant predictors of both academic performance and engagement. Finally, the results showed that student engagement mediates the relationship between the stated factors and academic performance.
... Öğretmenleri etkileyen değişkenlerin okullar ve öğrenci başarısı üzerinde önemli yordayıcılıkları bulunmaktadır. Okul iklimi (Dulay & Karadağ, 2017;Uline & Tschannen-Moran, 2008) ve liderlik (Seashore vd., 2010) bu anlamda ele alınan popüler örgütsel değişkenlerin bazılarıdır. Ancak bireysel özellikler öğretmenlerin yetilerini, tutumlarını dolayısıyla öğretmenlerin biçimlendirdikleri örgütsel unsurları etkisi altına alabilmektedir. ...
Değişim çeşitli kurumlar ve çalışanlar için olduğu gibi okullar ve öğretmenler için de özel bir anlam taşımaktadır. Etkili bir değişim için öğretmenlerin okullarındaki değişim ihtiyaçlarını belirleme yetilerinin anlaşılması gereklidir. Geçmiş araştırmalar okullarda değişim ihtiyaçlarının belirlenmesi konusunda okul müdürlerinin yeterliklerine ve çeşitli örgütsel değişkenlere odaklanmıştır. Buna karşın öğretmenlerin okuldaki değişim ihtiyaçlarını belirleme yetileri yeterince ele alınmamıştır. Üstelik öğretmen cinsiyetinin ve kıdeminin bu yeti üzerindeki yansımaları da açıklamaya ihtiyaç duymaktadır. Bu nedenle mevcut çalışmada öğretmenlerin okuldaki değişim ihtiyaçlarını belirleme yetileri ile cinsiyet ve kıdem değişkenlerinin bu yeti üzerindeki yordayıcılığı araştırılmıştır. Çalışmanın verileri Trabzon ilinin Sürmene ilçesinde görev yapan 232 öğretmenden elde edilmiştir. Verilerin analizi ikili lojistik regresyon ile yapılmıştır. Bulgular öğretmenlerin okuldaki değişim ihtiyacını belirleme becerileri konusunda kendilerini yeterli algıladıklarını ortaya koymaktadır. Öte yandan öğretmenler teknolojik ve sosyal değişimi takip etmekte birtakım sorunlar yaşamaktadır. Sonuçlar cinsiyet ve kıdem değişkenlerinin öğretmenlerin okuldaki değişim ihtiyacını belirleme yeterliklerini yordamadığını göstermektedir. Sonuçlara dayalı olarak araştırmacılara ve politika yapıcılara bazı önerilerde bulunulmuştur. Change has a special meaning for schools and teachers, as it does for various organizations and employees. Effective change requires understanding teachers' ability to identify change needs in their schools. Past research has focused on the competencies of school principals and various organizational variables in identifying the need for change in schools. However, teachers' ability to identify school needs for change has not been adequately addressed. Moreover, the reflections of teacher gender and seniority on this ability also need explanation. For this reason, in the present study, teachers' ability to identify change needs in schools and the predictive power of gender and seniority variables on this ability were investigated. The study data were obtained from 232 teachers working in Sürmene district of Trabzon province. Data were analyzed using binary logistic regression. The findings reveal that teachers perceive themselves as competent in identifying the need for change in schools. On the other hand, teachers have some problems in keeping up with technological and social change. The results show that gender and seniority variables do not predict teachers' competencies in identifying
Por meio deste estudo, apresenta-se revisão sistemática da literatura sobre as características socioeconômicas e de infraestrutura relacionadas ao desempenho escolar dos alunos de educação básica ao redor do mundo, estabelecendo discussões conceituais e críticas em torno dessas relações. Foram realizadas duas revisões sistemáticas da literatura para o mesmo estudo com cada contexto específico, definindo planejamento e condução da revisão. Embora a influência dos dois contextos no desempenho acadêmico do aluno varie, resultados sugerem que os contextos possuem um papel importante no desempenho do aluno. Dessa forma, pretende-se contribuir para o progresso do conhecimento em estudos referentes à gestão educacional e a tomada de decisão nas políticas públicas de educação básica.
Sekolah dengan fasilitas yang baik akan mendorong proses pembelajaran dan sekolah dengan fasilitas yang berkualitas rendah dapat menghambat pencapaian siswa. Analisis data yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini adalah regresi linear sederhana. Populasi penelitian ini adalah seluruh guru matematika SMA di Kota Pekanbaru, Riau yang berjumlah 156 orang dan tersebar dalam 39 sekolah. Sampel penelitian berjumlah 33 orang. Teknik pengambilan sampel dilakukan dengan 2 prosedur. Prosedur pertama, sekolah dikelompokkan menjadi 4 kategori berdasarkan nilai Ujian Sekolah. Prosedur kedua, sekolah dikelompokkan berdasarkan kecamatan agar dapat merepresentasikan seluruh guru matematika SMA yang ada di Kota Pekanbaru. Berdasarkan hasil penelitian, diperoleh value sebesar 0,008. Hal ini berarti bahwa terdapat pengaruh antara kompetensi pedagogik guru matematika SMA se-Kota Pekanbaru terhadap fasilitas sekolah.
O presente estudo examina a infraestrutura, dividida nas dimensões escolas, professor e apoio pedagógico, didática, acesso à internet e atividades especiais, das escolas do ensino médio público paranaenses através dos microdados do Censo Escolar de 2021. Sendo que as que apresentaram melhores níveis foram as dimensões escola, em que se verifica a existência de Água Potável, Alimentação e Acessibilidade e na Estrutura dos professores, em comparação às outras características em análise. Por outro lado, a presença de infraestrutura para atendimentos especiais aos alunos foi a que apresentou a menor média. Também, constatou-se a presença de heterogeneidade nas infraestruturas escolares, através da análise da infraestrutura escolar dos Núcleos Regionais de Educação do estado do Paraná.
Bu araştırmanın amacı, sosyoekonomik düzeyi düşük olan bölgelerdeki okullarda görev yapan okul müdürlerinin okul geliştirme konusundaki deneyimlerini anlamak ve okul düzeyinde değişimi gerçekleştirme konusundaki bakış açılarını ortaya çıkarmaktır. Çalışma grubu, 2020-2021 eğitim-öğretim yılında ilkokul, ortaokul ve liselerde görev yapan 25 okul müdüründen oluşmaktadır. Nitel araştırma yöntemlerinden anlatı araştırması deseni kullanılmış; araştırmanın verileri yarı yapılandırılmış görüşme formuyla toplanmıştır. Ayrıca araştırmada veri kaynağı olarak okul gelişim raporları, fotoğraflar, dergiler, stratejik planlar, videolar ve
notlar gibi dokümanlardan yararlanılmıştır. Katılımcılar, iyi insan
yetiştirme idealini, fiziksel gelişimi sağlamayı, kurumsal ilerleme kat
etmeyi, devamsızlığı önlemeyi, akademik başarıyı arttırmayı okul
geliştirme hedefleri olarak vurgulamışlardır. Okul müdürlerinin, fiziksel kapasite, öğrenci davranışları ve çıktıları, okul yönetimi ve okul etkinlikleri konusunda başarılı değişimler gerçekleştirdikleri
anlaşılmıştır. Maddi yetersizlikler, bürokratik engeller ve takım ruhunun oluşturulamaması okul geliştirme çalışmalarını güçleştirmiştir. Okul çevresinin sosyo-ekonomik özellikleri, velilerin desteğini ve öğrencilerle ilgili çalışmaları olumsuz etkilemiştir.
This paper presents the findings of an empirical assessment of human resources management features required for the effective maintenance of higher education institutions (HEIs) buildings in South Africa. This was done to improve the maintenance management of HEI buildings in the country for better performance of buildings. The study adopted a post-positivism philosophical perspective using a quantitative research approach with questionnaires as the instrument for data collection. The questionnaire survey was distributed to the users of academic buildings and head of maintenance departments in six HEIs in Gauteng, South Africa. Data collected was analysed using mean item score, Kruskal-Wallis H-test, and confirmatory factor analysis. The study found that the availability of skilled and experienced personnel, adequate staffing of the maintenance department, effective occupational health and safety practices of maintenance staff, and top management support for training are key to the effective maintenance of HEIs buildings. This study offers a theoretical contribution to the existing discourse on the maintenance of educational buildings by exploring the human resources management dimension – an aspect that has gained little attention in recent times.
First study of how daylighting in elementary school classrooms is associated with improved test scores. Includes analysis from over 9000 student records in three school districts.
Researchers and reformers have suggested that school climate is an important aspect of effective schools; however, the notion of climate is defined in a myriad of ways, is frequently nebulous, and is often merely a slogan for better schools. The current analysis uses a health metaphor to conceptualize and measure important aspects of school climate and then examines relationships between school health and student achievement in reading, writing, and mathematics in a sample of middle schools. As predicted, dimensions of organizational health were significantly related to student achievement even when the socioeconomic status of the school was controlled.
Although the is little disagreement conquering the belief that principals have an impact on the lives of teachers and students, both the nature and degree of this effect continues to be open to debate. The relationship is complex and not easily subject to empirical verification. This article reviews the empirical literature on the relationship between the principal's role and school effectiveness during the period from 1980 to 1995. We specifically focus on the conceptual underpinnings of several theoretical models to study the role, the relationship between models and methods of investigation, an4 consequently, to what has been learned about the nature of the principal impact. We conclude by framing a possible research agenda for the next generation of studies on the effects of school administration.
The theory-driven Organizational Health Inventory (OHI) was compared to the empirically derived Organizational Climate Description Questionnaire (OCDQ-RS) in predicting student achievement and teachers' commitment to the school. After controlling for the socioeconomic status of the 58 secondary schools in the sample, only academic emphasis, a subtest of the OHI, made a significant contribution to student achievement. While both instruments predicted commitment, the OHI explained more of the variance. The findings suggest that, at best, the influence of the principal is indirect on school achievement but direct on commitment. Further application of both the OHI and OCDQ-RS is recommended.
The present study investigates the relationships among a variety of school-level climate variables and mean school achievement in a random, sample of Michigan elementary schools. School-level SES, racial composition and climate were each highly related to mean school achievement; only a small proportion of the between-school variance in achievement is explained by SES and racial composition after the effect of school climate is removed. The climate variable we have called Student Sense of Academic Futility had the largest correlation with achievement. An observational study of four schools with similar SES and racial composition but different achievement tended to support the more analytical findings and suggest the processes by which climate affects achievement.
School climate has been studied with a multitude of variables, methodologies, theories, and models, resulting in a not easily defined body of research. This analysis of the school climate literature, based on over 200 references, uses an organizational theory taxonomy to organize the diverse body of research and to draw conclusions about common findings. The history of school climate research is reviewed, noting the influence of climate instruments developed to study climate in settings other than the total school building, such as business, college, and classroom settings. The difficulty of defining school climate is reflected in the diversity of climate typologies that have evolved, despite their often common roots. The debate about school climate is tied to differences among researchers in theory base, variables to study (and their hypothesized interrelationships), unit of measurement choices, and the validity of subjective and qualitative data (based on participant or observer perception). Some common conclusions about school climate (considered as an independent, intervening, or dependent variable) do emerge in the literature. The paper concludes with a summary of the methodological issues common to school climate studies and suggestions for dealing with the concomitant problems