Effectiveness of individually guided education schools as measured by teacher opinion and the School Improvement Inventory

摘要

The purpose of this study was threefold. First, to determine the extent of implementation of Individually Guided Education outcomes in selected school districts with both IGE and non-IGE schools. Second, to determine the opinion of teachers concerning Individually Guided Education outcomes in school districts with both IGE and non-IGE schools. And third, to provide building administrators with valid and reliable information relative to school improvement;Results revealed a significant overall main effect of IGE schools in the use of outcomes labeled School Decisions, School Organizations, and Curriculum and Teaching. This showed that in each of these subscales, respondents in IGE schools indicated a significantly higher degree of implementation than the non-IGE respondents. Significant differences resulting from the interaction of IGE with district were revealed in the areas labeled Curriculum and Teaching, School Decisions, School Organization, and Student Responsibility. The same pattern of results indicating the IGE effect in District 1 and District 2 and a reverse IGE effect for District 3 generally held for all schools;The IGE schools\u27 teachers perceived the items clustered within the area labeled School Decisions as more effective practices for schools than did the non-IGE schools\u27 teachers. However, it would appear that only in District 2 were IGE school respondents\u27 perceptions more positive than non-IGE respondents, which was consistent with degree of implementation. Both the main effect of IGE and the interaction of IGE with district were significant in the respondents\u27 perceptions of the IGE outcomes labeled School Organization. In essence, the perception data paralleled the conclusions from the degress of implementation data;In summary, District 2 evidenced the strongest IGE effect in terms of IGE implementation and teacher perceptions. District 1 also indicated an IGE effect but not as strong as District 2. In District 3, the IGE effect was not only weaker than the other two districts, but also reversed. Responses of IGE and non-IGE teachers regarding leadership expectations, perceptions of administrator\u27s effectiveness, and school climate were not significantly different. Telephone interviews with IGE principals indicated that the IGE label did not have a clear and consistent meaning.