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Are school-based management reforms improving education? This book analyzes the theory and evidence behind decentralized decision-making in schools worldwide. Decentralized Decision-Making in Schools explores the impact of school-based management (SBM) reforms across diverse countries. It examines how empowering principals and teachers, and strengthening parental involvement, affects educational outcomes. The authors review over 20 country experiences, providing insights into the effectiveness of SBM in various contexts. * Discover the key factors for successful SBM implementation. * Understand the impact of SBM on student achievement and attendance. * Learn how to design effective education projects with decentralized authority. This insightful analysis is for education officials, policymakers, and researchers seeking evidence-based strategies for improving school governance and student outcomes.

This article provides a children's rights critique of the concept of 'pupil voice'. The analysis is founded on Article 12 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, which gives children the right to have their views given due weight in all matters affecting them. Drawing on research conducted on behalf of the Northern Ireland Commissioner for Children and Young People, the article assesses some of the barriers to the meaningful and effective implementation of the right within education. It is argued that the phrases which are commonly used as abbreviations for Article 12, such as 'pupil voice', have the potential to diminish its impact as they provide an imperfect summary of the full extent of the obligation. The article proposes a new model, which has four key elements, for conceptualising Article 12-Space, Voice, Audience and Influence.

This paper provides a comparative analysis of school-based management reforms in four Central American countries (EDUCO in El Salvador, PRONADE in Guatemala, PROHECO in Honduras, and Centros Autonomos in Nicaragua). It starts by providing a characterization of the models and then reviews how they have expanded community participation and empowerment and school decisionmaking autonomy. It then continues by analyzing the impact of community and school empowerment on the teaching-learning process, including measures of teacher effort. The paper assesses the impact of the models on several educational outcomes, relating this impact with the teaching-learning environment and community empowerment. Finally, the paper attempts to explain the impact of the reforms by discussing how variations in reform design, country contexts and actors’ assets can explain differences and similarities in result.The key conclusion of the paper is that school-based management models have led generally to greater community empowerment and teacher effort, resulting in: (a) a better use of the existing limited capacity of teachers and schools; (b) higher coverage in rural areas; (c) somewhat better student flows; and (d) learning outcomes at least as high as in traditional schools (while community-managed schools are generally established in the poorest and most isolated rural areas). A second set of key conclusions of the report is that the impact of community based schooling on student flows and learning outcomes could be greatly enhanced by a set of specific actions which largely aim at setting up the conditions for pedagogical improvement, improved management and empowerment at the local level, and sustainability of the models.

The public education systems of many countries have undergone governance reforms involving administrative decentralisation, corporatisation and community 'empowerment'. In this paper, we examine the significance of local participation and partnerships in the context of public school autonomy and their corporatisation. Focusing specifically on the use of school boards in the Independent Public Schools (IPS) initiative in Western Australia, we analyse the interview responses of five IPS principals using Foucauldian notions of governmentality, governance and community. The analysis shows that school boards are conceptualised and mobilised through the narrow technical-rationalist discourses of governance associated with corporatised school autonomy. School boards function as a new form of governmentality that constrains recruitment and participation in school decision-making in ways that depoliticise education. In response to the rise of school autonomy and corporatisation in Australia and elsewhere, we argue for wider local participation on school boards and local engagement with, rather than eschewal of, the politics surrounding education and the public good. [Author abstract]

Adolescents’ political socialization is crucial for their future political participation. Little research has examined this relationship and the importance of citizenship self-efficacy in an Asian context. This study focused on the effectiveness of Korean adolescents’ political socialization and self-efficacy on their expected electoral participation. Data from Korean 8th graders participating in the 2016 International Civic and Citizenship Education Study were examined (N = 2601; Mage = 14.02; 46% female). Political socialization included open classroom discussion, active learning strategies, and formal citizenship education. The result showed that citizenship self-efficacy is the most important predictor for Korean adolescents’ future engagement, but open classroom discussion is not significant. It indicates that citizenship education needs to consider countries’ social and cultural contexts.

Since 2001, Indonesian schools have implemented a mandatory school-based management (SBM) policy for better quality education in general and more particularly for better school improvement and student achievements. The major purpose of this paper is to explore the conditions of school improvements resulted from SBM policy and programs. In view of the fact that there have limited previous studies to make a valid claim on SBM results for better school environment and student achievements, an empirical survey was conducted in both primary and junior high schools of Denpasar district municipality in Bali, Indonesia. In addition to the survey, qualitative research with focus group discussions and in-depth personal interviews were conducted with the active participation of 43 key school stakeholders, including principals, council members, teachers who experienced in operating school councils, and education department authorities. Results of both quantitative and qualitative data analyses affirm that devolving authority to school level decision-makers has resulted in increased participation and commitment, which led to improved teaching–learning environment. This study suggests the significance of sustainable empowerment on the part of school councils as well as leadership in-service training to school principals for an effective implementation of SBM policy and practices in developing countries.

Objectives To investigate differences in students’ career intentions between UK medical schools. Design Cross-sectional, mixed-methods online survey. Setting The primary study included all 44 UK medical schools, with this analysis comprising 42 medical schools. Participants Ten thousand four hundred eighty-six UK medical students. Main outcome measures Career intentions of medical students, focusing on differences between medical schools. Secondary outcomes included variation in medical students’ satisfaction with a prospective career in the NHS, by medical school. Results 2.89% of students intended to leave medicine altogether, with Cambridge Medical School having the highest proportion of such respondents. 32.35% of respondents planned to emigrate for practice, with Ulster medical students being the most likely. Of those intending to emigrate, the University of Central Lancashire saw the highest proportion stating no intentions to return. Cardiff Medical School had the greatest percentage of students intending to assume non-training clinical posts after completing FY2. 35.23% of participating medical students intended to leave the NHS within 2 years of graduating, with Brighton and Sussex holding the highest proportion of these respondents. Only 17.26% were satisfied with the prospect of working in the NHS, with considerable variation nationally; Barts and the London medical students had the highest rates of dissatisfaction. Conclusions This study reveals variability in students’ career sentiment across UK medical schools, emphasising the need for attention to factors influencing these trends. A concerning proportion of students intend to exit the NHS within 2 years of graduating, with substantial variation between institutions. Students’ intentions may be shaped by various factors, including curriculum focus and recruitment practices. It is imperative to re-evaluate these aspects within medical schools, whilst considering the wider national context, to improve student perceptions towards an NHS career. Future research should target underlying causes for these disparities to facilitate improvements to career satisfaction and retention.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to highlight the urgent need for a genuinely effective and attainable citizenship education model in Hong Kong’s schools, which focusses on promoting student participation in school governance. It is an empirical citizenship education management model for school leaders that illustrates the predictive effects of personally responsible, participatory, justice-oriented and patriotic citizenship, necessarily supported by school management practices, school ethos and teacher beliefs. Design/methodology/approach A total of 3,209 students from 51 secondary schools in Hong Kong participated in a quasi-experimental design questionnaire survey. A structural equation model (SEM) was applied to confirm the model. Findings The results of the SEM show that the values and cultural practices held by a school’s teachers drive the implementation of its citizenship education. Moreover, it is well known that organizational values can exert a powerful influence and it is the same within educational structures: management practices in schools have an impact on ethos, teachers’ beliefs and student participation in school governance. Practical implications The paper provides practical proposals for school leaders to create opportunities for student participation in school governance. Originality/value This study builds on existing literature and provides school leaders with a practical model for implementing student participation in school governance.

Sixty doctoral students and 34 faculty members were interviewed in departments identified as having high and low doctoral student completion rates at one institution in the United States in order to examine the cultural contexts and structures that facilitate or hinder doctoral student completion. This paper outlines the differences in understandings of doctoral student attrition by role and by department using attribution theory. Implications for policy, practice, and further research are included.