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UDC 317.15
SCHOOL LEADERSHIP
BSc, B. Issabekova
Nazarbayev Intellectual School of Chemistry and Biology, Pavlodar, Kazakhstan
Түйін
Бұл мақала қазіргі уақытта өзекті болып отырған мәселе мектептегі көсбасшылыққа
арналады. Көсбасшылық адамның жаңалық бастаушысы, көсбасшы, жаңалық еңгізуші
қабілетін болып табылады. Өкінішке орай, мектептегі көсбасшылық басқаша түсүніледі.
Көбіне лидер, яғни мектеп лидері деп әкімшілікті, мысалы, директор және оның
орынбасаларын түсінеді.
Резюме
Данная статья посвящена теме лидерства в школе, являющейся актуальной проблемой
в наше время. Лидерство определяется как способность вести за собой, внедрять инновации,
быть новатором. К сожалению, лидерство, а именно школьное лидерство, понимают по-
другому. Принято считать, что лидерами могут быть только администрация школы,
например, директор и его заместители.
There are many ideas of what leadership is. Leadership is defined as an ability to
lead, the position or function of a leader, a person who guides or directs a group.
Many people understand the word “leadership” as something related to
administration, management, control or governorship. But, what school leadership is?
People believe that only school administration can be leaders and they relate
leadership to principals and vice-principals of schools. I have read various sources on
school leadership. In my eyes school leadership is a combination of such teachers’
skills as collaboration, self-evaluation, lifelong learning, reflecting on practice,
sharing and helping to each other. At present time, educators think that teachers are
leaders too and can implement some reforms and changes at schools. School
leadership means collaboration of school administration, teachers, students and their
parents. Thus, school leadership makes impact on students and their achievements.
There have been conducted many researches on school leadership and its impact
on students’ achievements. As Professor Viviane M. J. Robinson (2007) puts it, the
search yielded 26 studies, published between 1978 and 2006, that provided evidence
about the links between leadership and students’ outcomes. These studies examined
leadership in school context [1]. I agree with Professor Robinson, that if leaders at
schools work collaboratively, coordinate and evaluate teachers and teaching, they are
more likely than their counterparts in lower performing schools to improve teaching
programs that might be beneficial to students. According to Professor Robinson
(2007), “the more leaders focus their relationships, their work, and their learning on
the core business of teaching and learning, the greater their influence on students’
outcomes” [1].
From my teaching experience, I can say that collaboration and reflection are the
most important skills in our profession. While working together as one team, both
teachers and students can benefit more. I think that school leaders themselves should
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lead the way in developing school leadership. To develop world-class school
leadership, we need the best school leaders to support the rest – both within and
across schools – and develop collaboration between schools and with other agencies.
Such collaboration between schools occurs at NIS in Pavlodar. My colleagues and I
started action research last year. So in order to learn more about this project we
started to work closely with NIS in Uralsk city. I can say that this collaboration with
teachers from Uralsk helps us very much. According to School leadership today, “the
ingredients are there to sustain school leadership into the 21
st
century, to rise to the
challenges we face, learn from the best and build our capacity and capability. There
has never been a better time to be a school leader” [2].
In the terms of successful school leadership Kenneth Leithwood, Alma Harris &
David Hopkins (2008) present seven strong claims:
1. School leadership is second only to classroom teaching as an influence on
pupil learning.
2. Almost all successful leaders draw on the same repertoire of basic leadership
practices.
3. The ways in which leaders apply these basic leadership practices – not the
practices themselves – demonstrate responsiveness to, rather than dictation by, the
contexts in which they work.
4. School leaders improve teaching and learning indirectly and most powerfully
through their influence on staff motivation, commitment and working conditions.
5. School leadership has a greater influence on schools and students when it is
widely distributed.
6. Some patterns of distribution are more effective than others.
7. A small handful of personal traits explains a high proportion of the variation
in leadership effectiveness [3].
I strongly agree with these claims on school leadership. I believe that school
leadership has a great influence on students when it is widely distributed. If all
teachers of a school are leaders then their students will be influenced in a positive
way. When teachers are leaders and can share and distribute their leadership, both
students and schools will benefit more.
Leadership begins with you. To become a true leader you must learn how to
reflect on your practice. First and foremost, leadership means being reflective. School
principals, teachers and their assistants are all leaders and play a critical role in
supporting students. In the words of Steven Weber, “teachers are the backbone and
the heartbeat of the American public school. The role of the professional teacher is
more important than ever. A teacher does not need to wait until their twentieth year
of teaching to become a leader. He or she should feel empowered to lead because of
their teaching certification or graduate degree [4]. I totally agree with Steven Weber
and I think that teachers should develop and use their leadership skills in a classroom
to develop leadership skills beyond. In my opinion, as we are all teachers we must not
be just teachers. We must be more than that. Teachers are leaders who can teach and
inspire students to become leaders too.
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Nowadays there is an issue in the field of leadership preparation. Berg, Carver &
Margin (2014) claim in the Journal of research on leadership education that there is
a lack of research to guide teacher leader preparation program [5]. There are such
programs as three level courses from Cambridge in Kazakhstan to develop teachers’
leadership skills. Due to these courses, teachers go through three levels: basic,
secondary and first level. So at basic level teachers learn about leadership and the
need of its implementation in a classroom. There are many Kazakhstani teachers who
passed these courses. However, very few of them use obtained skills on practice.
Unfortunately, those teachers are not controlled and as a result, they have leadership
skills only on a paper (certificates).
I have watched a video on school leadership and education. There are two
school principals’ stories telling us the difficulties that they face during their work.
They are Dr. Tresa Dunbar of Henry H. Nash Elementary School in Chicago (Pre-K-
8) and Kerry Purcell of Harvard Park Elementary School in Springfield, IL. (Pre-K-
5). The film shows how these leaders keep their focus on improving teaching and
learning amid the competing demands of managing their staffs, as well as the social
and emotional issues surrounding their students and communities. One of the
principals, Tresa Dunbar, discusses instructional leadership, which means focus on
instructions and good teaching. Kerry Purcell has been a principal for 6 years. She
said that the reason of becoming a principal is that she wants to change the world and
she believes that her leadership skills can help teachers to be better ones so that
students can be more successful in a classroom [6]. I absolutely agree with Tresa
Dunbar that teaching is not always about the academic and sometimes it’s more
important to listen to students’ problems and take care of them.
In conclusion, leadership means not only being a good teacher. It is more than
that. Leadership is being reflective, collaborative, caring about students and believing
in their future success.
References:
1. V. Robinson. School leadership and student outcomes: Identifying what works and why.
Winmalee, N.S.W.: Australian Council for Educational Leaders, 2007.
2. National College. School Leadership Today. National College for teaching & leadership.
Retrieved
on
September
12
2014.
From
http://dera.ioe.ac.uk/252/1/download%3Fid%3D21843%26filename%3Dschool-leadership-
today.pdf, 2009.
3. K. Leithwood, A. Harris & D. Hopkins. Seven strong claims about successful school leadership.
School Leadership and Management: Formerly School Organization, 28:1, 27-42, DOI:
10.1080/13632430701800060, 2008.
4.
S.
Weber.
Leadership
matters.
Retrieved
on
September
12
2014.
From
http://edge.ascd.org/blogpost/leadership-matters, 2012.
5. J. Berg, C. Carver & M. Mangin. Teacher Leader Model Standards: Implication for Preparation,
Policy and Practice. Journal of Research on Leadership Education, 9, 196-198, DOI:
10.1177/1942775113507714, 2014.
6. T. Lending (Producer) & D. (Director) Mrazek. The principal story. Documentary on school
leadership & education [Video]. Chicago, USA: Nomadic Pictures’ film. 2009
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UDC 317.15
ANALYSIS OF KAZAKHSTANI STATE POLICY DIRECTED TO INCREASE LOW
STATUS OF TEACHER OCCUPATION
BSc, B. Issabekova, B. Amirova
Nazarbayev Intellectual School of Chemistry and Biology, Pavlodar, Kazakhstan
Түйін
Бұл жұмыс Қазақстандағы мұғалім мәртебесінің төмендігіне орайластырып жазылған.
Мұғалімнің кәсіби мәртебесіне әсер ететін қалыптастырушы факторлар қарастырылған.
Білім беру 2011-2020 жылдарға арналған мемлекеттік бағдарламасында мұғалімнің
мәртебесін көтеру үшін даму жоспары ұсынылған, дегенмен берілген стратегиялар өз
нәтижесін көрсетпеуде.
Резюме
Данная работа посвящена проблеме низкого статуса учителя в Казахстане.
Рассмотрены факторы, влияющие на формирование профессионального статуса
учителя.
Государственная Программа развития образования 2011-2020 предлагает пути
развития и повышения статуса учителя. Однако, предложенные стратегии, не дают
желаемого результата.
Introduction
The Program of Educational Development (PED) was issued in 2011 to reform
educational system of Kazakhstan. There is one special section in PED devoted to
increase teachers’ status and occupational prestige. According to Hoyle, teachers’
prestige is defined as the “public perception of the relative position of an occupation
in a hierarchy of occupations” [1].
The purpose of the report is to analyze current status of teachers, how the
Program initiatives are implemented and what impact the program has on teacher
status in Kazakhstan.
In order to carry out the research, the data for evaluation process were collected
from the following sources:
1. Review of the section on status of teachers in PED in particular Program
policy, procedures and allocated funding;
2. Review of the Report on the program implementation for the period of 2011-
2013.
Description of the policy
Causes of the problem
During the research, low qualification of teachers has been identified as the core
cause of low teacher status. Keuren asserts that “low qualification originates from an
absence of teacher candidate selectivity, poor pre service training, and a problematic
pay structure with low salary levels”. It seems that the problem and its cause move
round in a vicious cycle: the low status of teacher is caused by low teachers’
qualification, and in its turn low qualification causes low status of teaching
profession. For example, referring to Keuren (2011) many candidates select teaching
not because it is their ‘passion” or their “calling” but simply because they lack
occupational alternatives [2].
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The problem of low status is caused by low qualification, which is in turn
caused by three sub causes: poor academic preparation, poor selectivity process and
low payment.
Expected outcomes
According to the “Teacher status” section of PED, by 2020 it is expected that:
- Teacher status will increase;
- 70% of teachers will attend professional development courses;
- Teaching qualification requirements will be enhanced;
- Average teachers’ salary will reach average salary in economics sector [3].
All these projected outcomes will reach a goal of higher teacher status. Teachers
will get a state support and their work will be stimulating. In addition, it will improve
the quality of educational process and change the social attitude of teacher prestige
from unattractive to respectful.
Cycle 1: Cause: low qualification of teachers, subcause: poor academic
preparation
Initially, 3 level courses were designed to improve teachers’ qualification. The
program of these courses was developed by Cambridge University to help
Kazakhstani teachers to be ready for life-long professional development, providing
them support in learning innovative methods that will ensure the effectiveness of
methodical work, necessary knowledge and practical training for the educational
process.
Researchers observed poor outcome of the program due to the fact that program
loses its effectiveness in the terminal stage of implementation when teachers are back
to school. Instead of using all new approaches in their classes teachers continue
preserving conventional teaching style due to some facts. First, there are no available
resources and facilities in school to plan lessons according to the program of 3 level
courses. Second, there is strong power of keeping old traditions within schools such
as rote learning, lecturing, teacher-centered learning. For many schoolteachers it is
merely convenient to keep the same track so there is resistance to new reforms from
school staff. Third, teachers themselves are not eager to devote more time to work
planning lessons using 3 level course elements.
Cycle 2: Cause: low qualification of teachers. Sub cause: poor academic
preparation
Another initiative proposed by program is giving vouchers to teachers for their
professional development.
Introducing voucher system was initiated to raise competiveness among
professional development institutions that provide trainings for teachers. These
institutions were intended to compensate poor academic preparation, which teachers
gained during their university years to increase teachers’ qualification. After taking a
voucher, teachers were supposed to choose among variety of professional
development institutions to improve their qualification. As a result, institutions in
their turn were supposed to compete with each other to attract teachers and funding
by developing effective and relevant programs.
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Although the idea of this initiative was worthwhile, it failed at its
implementation stage. According to the plan of actions between 2011 and 2015 which
is designed to implement State program on education development in Kazakhstan
2011-2020 (the first stage), the funds to implement this initiative were not allocated
at all. Consequently, competition did not take place and the quality of teacher
development did not improve [3].
Cycle 3 Cause: low qualification, subcause: poor selectivity process
Originally, Unified National Testing (UNT) was launched to select the most
suitable applicants for a certain major to get a state grant. Since it is more competitive
to get grant for such majors as engineering, economics, and law, school-leavers with
lower UNT score apply for teaching profession due to the low entrance barrier, which
makes it easier to get educational grant. Such tendency turns this noble profession
into second-rated profession. To resolve this issue, the initiative to increase
enrollment entrance barrier to pedagogical professions was proposed. Currently we
are not able to evaluate the effectiveness of this initiative, as it has not been
implemented yet.
Cycle 4: Cause: low qualification, subcause: poor selectivity process
Compulsory attestation of teachers once in five years was aimed at motivating
teachers to improve their qualification and encouraging them for further
development. Ideally, to get to know teachers’ qualification and professional skills it
is necessary to check not only portfolio but also visit demo lesson of these teachers,
as it is almost impossible to evaluate teacher’s qualification without observing
him/her as a practitioner. It makes this initiative incomplete distorting the original
essence of initiative.
Analyzing the implementation of this initiative, we concluded that there is
misunderstanding of the idea of attestation process. Teachers do not accept attestation
as a step for professional development simplifying it to merely filling folders with
unnecessary papers. Moreover, the deficit of teachers will not allow this initiative to
be strictly implemented. In case of unsatisfactory attestation results, who will
substitute dismissed teachers? For example, teachers in Pavlodar region passed the
test on the major discipline; they were supposed to get 60 points out of 100.
However, 114 examined teachers out of 915 could not reach even 60% barrier [4].
Cycle 5: Cause: low qualification, subcause: low payment
The initiative to raise teachers’ salary through performance-based payment was
proposed by PED. This initiative was designed as a system of incentives for teachers
to achieve good results. For example, the better results teacher and her/his students
achieve, the higher salary will get. Performance-based payment will increase
competitive spirit among teachers to achieve higher results as their co-workers and
will provide an example of teachers who work hard and receive good salary.
Moreover, teachers will be looking for the ways to develop themselves and their
qualification. This initiative is considered to be potentially effective, because teachers
will strive to earn more points by demonstrating good results of their work. This
performance-based payment will motivate teachers to continue working hard and as a
result increase their salary.
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Conclusion
Our research findings are:
1. The main cause of low teacher status is low qualification of teachers.
2. There are 3 subcauses of teacher low status: poor academic preparation, poor
selectivity process and low payment.
3. A number of certain initiatives were introduced in PED to increase teacher
status. The idea behind the initiative was good and initiatives can be assessed as
effective ones.
4. Despite the all initiatives implementation teacher status remains unchanged.
To sum the effectiveness of all initiatives up, the research group concluded that
all these initiatives do not have impact on teacher status due to the fact that most of
them fail on the stage of implementation. There is no coherent interconnection among
all stakeholders to implement proposed initiatives. To evolve quality development
there should be constant constructive criticism and feedback analysis at each stage.
The process of implementation should be conducted on a basis of continuous
monitoring, analysis and reactive set of measure
References:
1. E. Hoyle. Teaching prestige, status and esteem. Educational Management and Administration,
29(2), 2001.
2. C. Keuren. Influencing the status of teaching in Central Asia. Information Age Publishing. 2011
3. N. Nazarbayev. State Program of Education Development of the Republic of Kazakhstan for
2011-2020. 2010
4. More than three thousands of teachers improved their qualification (2012, September 3)
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UDC 37
SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENT ADDRESSES TEACHER PERFORMANCE
IN THE CLASSROOM
MSc in TESOL, T. Letyaikina
Unviersity Miras, Shymkent, Kazakhstan
Түйін
Студенттердің білімін және дағдыларын суммативтік бағалау оқу процесінің
құрылымы мен тапсырмалардың пішімін жобалайды. Студенттердің лексикалық-
грамматикалық білімін бағалау барысында оқу процесі тапсырманың өзгертілетін түрлерін
және аударма жұмысына жаттығулар енгізеді. Егер соңғы мәтін мазмұнды түсіну
тапсырмасын енгізсе немесе ауызша тілдесу/ интервью болса, онда оқу процесі интерактивті
әдістерді енгізеді.
Резюме
Суммативное оценивание знаний и навыков студентов предполагает структуру
учебного процесса и формат заданий. При оценивании лексико-грамматических знаний
студентов учебный процесс включает трансформационные задания и упражнения на
перевод. В случае если финальный тест включает задания на понимание содержания текста
или устного общения/интервью, то учебный процесс будет включать интерактивные методы
обучения.
This is the summative assessment that defines the teaching process since the
instructions, format of tasks and exercises are designated the way the final assessment
is going to be done. If final assessment is targeted at checking language aspects all
the classroom activities will involve grammar and vocabulary exercises only. Even a
text will be studied around the language it presents both lexis and structures but not
reading/listening skills.
Summative assessment is viewed as evaluation of students' achievement at the
end of the term, semester, or a year. And formal tests are mostly applied. However,
the results of such tests should not be considered in isolation. A complete view of the
teaching/learning process could be reflected in final assessment since summative
assessment is treated as product-oriented and vividly demonstrates the results
achieved by students and methods or teaching style utilized in the classroom.
Bachman [1, 6-7] defined assessment as “a process of collecting information
about something that we are interested in, according to procedures that are systematic
and substantially grounded”. The result of an assessment procedure can be a score or
a verbal description. Formal testing is technically associated with definite timing and
settled procedures as defined by Brown [2] and provides definite score on the issues
teachers set for assessment. Whichever test or testing system we choose Hughes [3;
8] outlines the following principles that should be followed on a test:
- consistently provides accurate measures of precisely the abilities in which we
are interested;
- has a beneficial effect on teaching / learning.
Formal assessments are systematically planned and designed to get information
about students’ achievement in predetermined times. Brown [2] defines all kinds of
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