Improving School Effectiveness: The Dynamics of Implementation

Six causal-influence diagrams introduce a model showing the difficulties of implementing school improvement policies in such areas as teacher expectations and student behavior. The first diagram deals with basic dynamics of improvement. Cybernetics of activities to correct student achievement are revealed in a second diagram, which portrays schools as rational institutions. A third diagram focuses on teacher motivation and side effects--workload pressures, for instance--that undermine innovation efforts. Diagram 4 illustrates negative influences on principals' effectiveness, and diagram 5 the press from factors like dealing with staff resistance and obtaining additional resources on their time and energy. A final diagram shows how principals' efforts to secure outside resources can be affected by other demands. In summary, the current work synthesizes improvement literature, describes improvement dynamics in a theoretical format, and provides a basis for activities like building computer simulation policy models. (KS)