The degree to which effective schools research is being implemented in a rural Tennessee county : as seen by principals and teachers

Past research has identified a set of characteristics that are generally found in schools where students achieve beyond expectations. This study examined the schools in a typical Tennessee county to determine the extent that such effective schools characteristics were reflected.

The Connecticut School Effectiveness Questionnaire was administered to 213 teachers and principals at fourteen schools. These schools were typical in that the number of students on free lunch approximated the state average as did student test scores. A portion of the teachers and the principal at each school also were asked to respond to follow-up questions. School characteristics were identified to determine relationships between the characteristics and the effective schools categories.

The response of the faculties to items dealing with seven effective schools categories genreally were positive. The areas of Frequent Monitoring of Student Progress, Clear School Mission, and Safe and Orderly Environment were the highest rated categories; while High Expectations and Home-School Relations were consistently the lowest rated effective schools categories. There was a significant relationship found between the area of Instructional Leadership and the experience and recency of education of the principals. The experience of the principal and the number of years since the principal had attended college were negatively related to the score of his school on the Instructional Leadership category. High school teachers were consistently less positive to the effective schools items than were elementary and middle school teachers. Also, teachers were less positive than were principals toward these items.