Educational Leadership at Municipality Level

The purpose of this study is to explore the roles and responsibilities that national education legislation in Iceland imposes on municipalities in terms of leadership. A qualitative content analysis was applied to explore the relevant national legislation—that is, education acts, regulations, and curriculum guides—and identify themes by looking for specific words that are characteristic in leadership practices. The findings reveal that policy ends concerning educational leadership of municipalities are somewhat tacit in current national legislation. Yet, the roles and responsibilities that the state delegates to municipalities comprise leadership functions that are distributed in nature and, to a large extent, harmonize with desired leadership practices as emphasized in the literature. Legislation emphasizes comprehensive education, but also in-cludes signs of technocratic homogenization. In the discussion of our findings, we argue that the educational system is quite dependent on the political emphasis at each given time, making it difficult for both munic-ipalities and the state to facilitate a cohesive leadership emphasis. We suggest that closer attention to the local level, and a recognition of it as an important unit and agency for educational development, is of sig-nificant importance. These observations will be followed by a further investigation into the actual practice of leadership at the local level

Use and impact of external evaluation feedback in schools

Funding Information: None. Publisher Copyright: © 2022 The AuthorsPast findings concerning whether and how feedback from external evaluations benefit the improvement of schools are inconsistent and sometimes even conflicting, which highlights the contextual nature of such evaluations and underscores the importance of exploring them in diverse contexts. Considering that broad international debate, we investigated the use and impact of feedback from external evaluations in compulsory schools in Iceland, particularly as perceived by principals and teachers in six such schools. A qualitative research design was adopted to examine changes in the schools made during a 4–6-year period following external evaluations by conducting interviews with principals and teachers, along with a document analysis of evaluation reports, improvement plans and progress reports. The findings reveal that feedback from external evaluations has been used for instrumental, conceptual, persuasive and reinforcement-oriented purposes in the schools, albeit to varying degrees. According to the principals and teachers, the improvement actions presented in the schools’ improvement plans were generally implemented or continue to be implemented in some way, and the changes made have mostly been sustained.Peer reviewe

Challenges, contradictions and continuity in creating a five-year teacher education programme in Iceland

In 2008, new legislation was passed in Iceland on teacher education, requiring a master’s degree as a prerequisite for teaching certification for all school levels from preschools to upper secondary schools. In the same year the Iceland University of Education merged with the University of Iceland. This article maps the revision of the teacher education (TE) programme for compulsory school teaching at the University of Iceland from these extensive changes, 2008 until 2017. During this period, the University also dealt with the consequences of the economical downfall of 2008 and serious decline in attendance in the TE programme. The study is based on an analysis of various documents, including reports, memoranda, minutes, legislative documents, course catalogues, and a survey among graduated students. We discuss the challenges that arose in creating a high-quality TE programme for a too small group of students, contradictions that were encountered when trying to bring together different and often contradicting interests of stakeholders, and the continuity of previous practices and trends.Peer Reviewe

Knowledge partnerships between schools and universities: modelling the process of connection and relations

The purpose of this paper is to throw light on sustained research–practice collaborations (called ‘schemes’ here) aimed at improving educational outcomes. The empirical work combines a survey of thirteen school–university knowledge-exchange schemes in six European countries, with four case studies drawn from these. Three theoretical models of knowledge use are employed to aid analysis of these cases. It is suggested that a judicious mix of the three perspectives helps in understanding what makes such collaborations successful. Stages in the cyclical process of improving practice through use of research are described, beginning with frank analysis of pre-existing ways of thinking and culminating in the challenge of altering established practice.The authors were brought together through the EIPPEE network (Evidence Informed Policy and Practice in Education in Europe) supported by the European Commission.Peer Reviewe

The economic collapse and school practice in Reykjavik

Í þessari rannsókn voru könnuð áhrif efnahagshrunsins á Íslandi árið 2008 á skóla í Reykjavík. Gagnaöflun fór fram á árunum 2013 og 2014. Tekin voru viðtöl við einstaklinga og í rýnihópum. Rætt var við fulltrúa hjá Reykjavíkurborg og í menntaog menningarmálaráðuneyti, skólastjórnendur, kennara, foreldra og nemendur í völdum leik-, grunn- og framhaldsskólum. Niðurstöður benda til þess að tekist hafi að vernda kjarnann í skólastarfinu fyrir niðurskurði en þó í meira mæli í grunnskólum en í leik- og framhaldsskólum. Niðurskurðurinn olli því ekki skólakreppu í þeim skilningi að grunngildum skólanna væri ógnað. Öðru máli kann þó að gegna um leikskólana sem urðu fyrir þyngri áföllum en skólarnir á hinum skólastigunum. Þótt ekki kæmi til skólakreppu í framangreindum skilningi þá hafði niðurskurður margvísleg áhrif á skólastarfið. Stjórnunarstöðum fækkaði umtalsvert, einkum millistjórnendum, forfallakennsla var unnin af skólastjórnendum, annað starfsfólk var ráðið í hlutastörf og framlög til tómstundastarfs og náms- og starfsráðgjafar skert. Yfirvinna starfsfólks var ekki leyfð, minna fé var veitt til samstarfs, bekkir urðu fjölmennari og dregið úr fjárveitingum til kaupa á efniviði og námsgögnum og til viðhalds tækja og húsa. Loks voru skólar á leik- og grunnskólastigi sameinaðir. Fram kom að sú aðgerð hefði aukið mjög á þá erfiðleika sem af niðurskurðinum hlaust. Ekki voru nefnd dæmi um að fólk missti vinnuna þótt talsvert væri um uppsagnir, starfsmönnum var þá boðin vinna að nýju en stundum í skertu starfshlutfalli. Þótt viðmælendur teldu að ekki kæmi til frekari niðurskurðar sögðust þeir ekki vongóðir um bjartari tíma framundan. Að mörgu leyti voru áherslur hagsmunaaðila skóla í samræmi við ráðleggingar fræðimanna um fagleg viðbrögð við efnahags- þrenginum. Sú áhersla sem lögð var á að vernda nám og kennslu og standa vörð um velferð nemenda eru dæmi um slík viðbrögð. Á hinn bóginn komu upp mál þar sem bæði starfsmenn skóla og foreldrar kvörtuðu yfir þeim skorti á samráði sem yfirvöld hefðu viðhaft við ákvarðanir um mikilvæg málefni skólanna. Rannsóknin var unnin af fimm fræðimönnum Rannsóknarstofu í menntastjórnun, nýsköpun og matsfræði við Menntavísindasvið Háskóla Íslands.This paper explores the impact of the economic collapse in 2008 on schools in one Icelandic municipality, Reykjavík, the capital of Iceland. Earlier, a similar study was conducted by the same research team in two Icelandic municipalities, one in an agricultural area, and one in a fishing and service community. Information about staff and school costs was gathered for the years of 2013 and 2014. Interviews with individuals and in focus groups were carried out with represenatives at the ministry of culture and education, the Local Education Authorities in Reykjavík, school administrators, teachers, other staff, parents and pupils of six selected schools: two preschools, two primary and lowersecondary schools and two upper-secondary schools. Information about staff and school costs was also gathered. The research was qualitative in nature, primarily based on interviews and documentary data. Interviews were conducted with individuals and in focus groups with representatives of the municipalities and the state, school administrators, teachers, parents and pupils of selected pre-, primary-, and upper-secondary schools. The research sought answers to the following questions: How did educational authorities and school professionals respond to budget cut requirements? Did the reductions cause a school crisis and did they have different consequences depending on the school level? The findings suggest that the core functions of the schools, teaching and learning, were to a large extent protected as stipulated by school authorities. Reduction in expenditure, therefore, did not cause a school crisis in the sense, that the basic values of the schools were threatened. This, however, may not apply to the preschools and the schools at the upper secondary level, which were harder hit by the cut-backs than the other school levels. Even if the schools were able to protect the core school activities, finanicial cutbacks had serious implications for the schools. Various cutbacks were made at all school levels; administrative positions, especially at the middle levels, were cut considerably, principals served as substitute teachers, classes became bigger, no overtime was paid, extracurricular activities and specialist work, such as counseling, and maintenance of equipment and buildings were all cut. Finally, at the preschool level, and primary and lower-secondary school levels, schools were amalgamated. Interviewees in these schools agreed that the merges had been an additional challenge to deal with while trying to come to terms with reduced funding. Findings, moreover, indicate, that while all school members were affected by the bad economy, school principals at all school levels carried the heaviest burdens. While interviewees agreed that further cutbacks were unlikely, they did not envision better times ahead. In many ways school stakeholders, within and outside of the schools, responded to the cutbacks in a manner recommended by experts on school crisis, such as by protecting the core activities of teaching and learning. There were, however, instances when school personnell and parents complained, that school authorities had failed to consult them on relevant matters. The discussion highlights the impact of values on policy and decision making in general, but in times of austerity in particular. The research was carried out by five academics at the School of Education, University of Iceland and sponsored by the by the Center for Research on School Administration, Innovation and Evaluation at the School of Education, University of Iceland and carried out by five of its members.Rannsóknarstofa í menntastjórnun, nýsköpun og matsfræðiPublisher's Prin

Deep learning-based algorithm accurately classifies sleep stages in preadolescent children with sleep-disordered breathing symptoms and age-matched controls

Funding Information: This study was funded by Nordforsk (NordSleep, no. 90458) via Business Finland (no. 5133/31/2018) and via the Icelandic Centre for Research, the Icelandic Research Fund (no. 174067), the Landspitali University Hospital Science Fund 2019 (no. 893831), the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme (grant no. 965417), the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) of Australia (project nos. 2001729 and 2007001), the Academy of Finland (project no. 323536), the Research Committee of the Kuopio University Hospital Catchment Area for the State Research Funding (project nos. 5041794 and 5041803), and the Finnish Anti-Tuberculosis Association and the Research Foundation of the Pulmonary Diseases. The birth cohort study was funded by the European Commission: (a) under the 6th Framework Program (FOOD-CT-2005-514000) within the collaborative research initiative “EuroPrevall” and (b) under the 7th Framework Program (FP7-KBBE-2012-6; grant agreement no. 312147) within the collaborative project “iFAAM.” Additional funds were received by the Icelandic birth cohort center from Landspitali University Hospital Science Fund, and GlaxoSmithKline Iceland. The funders were not involved in the study design, collection, analysis, interpretation of data, the writing of this article or the decision to submit it for publication. Publisher Copyright: Copyright © 2023 Somaskandhan, Leppänen, Terrill, Sigurdardottir, Arnardottir, Ólafsdóttir, Serwatko, Sigurðardóttir, Clausen, Töyräs and Korkalainen.INTRODUCTION: Visual sleep scoring has several shortcomings, including inter-scorer inconsistency, which may adversely affect diagnostic decision-making. Although automatic sleep staging in adults has been extensively studied, it is uncertain whether such sophisticated algorithms generalize well to different pediatric age groups due to distinctive EEG characteristics. The preadolescent age group (10-13-year-olds) is relatively understudied, and thus, we aimed to develop an automatic deep learning-based sleep stage classifier specifically targeting this cohort. METHODS: A dataset (n = 115) containing polysomnographic recordings of Icelandic preadolescent children with sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) symptoms, and age and sex-matched controls was utilized. We developed a combined convolutional and long short-term memory neural network architecture relying on electroencephalography (F4-M1), electrooculography (E1-M2), and chin electromyography signals. Performance relative to human scoring was further evaluated by analyzing intra- and inter-rater agreements in a subset (n = 10) of data with repeat scoring from two manual scorers. RESULTS: The deep learning-based model achieved an overall cross-validated accuracy of 84.1% (Cohen's kappa κ = 0.78). There was no meaningful performance difference between SDB-symptomatic (n = 53) and control subgroups (n = 52) [83.9% (κ = 0.78) vs. 84.2% (κ = 0.78)]. The inter-rater reliability between manual scorers was 84.6% (κ = 0.78), and the automatic method reached similar agreements with scorers, 83.4% (κ = 0.76) and 82.7% (κ = 0.75). CONCLUSION: The developed algorithm achieved high classification accuracy and substantial agreements with two manual scorers; the performance metrics compared favorably with typical inter-rater reliability between manual scorers and performance reported in previous studies. These suggest that our algorithm may facilitate less labor-intensive and reliable automatic sleep scoring in preadolescent children.Peer reviewe

Open-plan schools in Iceland and pedagogical culture

School buildings that are designed according to an open-plan approach have gained popularity in Iceland over the last two decades, both at the elementary and secondary level. Sigurðardóttir and Hjartarson (2011) claim this to be a radical shift in school design moving away from traditional school design, with classrooms of similar size along a corridor, towards open-plan schools or schools with a cluster of classrooms. The intention is to enhance individualised learning, teacher collaboration and team-teaching and provide increased transparency and flexibility for different group sizes and learning styles. This trend is briefly described in this chapter in two sections: first, how and why this development started around the turn of the 21st century, and second, if and how pedagogical culture and practices might be different in open-plan classrooms than in traditional ones. Open-plan classrooms are defined as large learning spaces where two or more teachers are responsible for a group of students (could be up to 100); while a traditional classroom refers to a closed classroom where one teacher takes care of a group of students, normally around 20 to 25. The discussion is mainly based on thorough investigation in 20 schools at the elementary and lower secondary levels in Iceland (Óskarsdóttir, 2014), the results of which have been presented in several publications.Edite

After PISA. A few guidelines on implementation of educational improvements

Niðurstöður PISA 2018 verða gerðar opinberar í byrjun desember 2019. Af því tilefni má búast við víðtækri umræðu í samfélaginu um menntamál og um gæði íslenska menntakerfisins. Þessari grein er ætlað að vera innlegg í þá umræðu og þá einkum um æskileg viðbrögð eða aðgerðir til að bæta menntun íslenskra barna og ungmenna. Dregin er saman nýleg þekking um farsælar menntaumbætur og reynt að varpa ljósi á hvaða hagnýtu þýðingu hún kann að hafa fyrir umbótastarf hér á landi. Á grunni þeirrar þekkingar eru sett fram sjö leiðarstef sem gagnlegt er að hafa til hliðsjónar við innleiðingu umbótastarfs, þau eru: Nám og kennsla í brennidepli; aðstæðubundnar aðgerðir; samstarfsmiðuð nálgun og samvirkni; fagleg forysta, þekking og hæfni; menntarannsóknir; fjölskyldur og samfélag; og jöfnuður á öllum stigum kerfisins. Til nánari útskýringar er sett fram eitt dæmi um umbætur sem byggja á þessum leiðarstefjum.The results of PISA 2018 will be published in early December 2019. Based on experience, extensive discussions are expected regarding the quality or even lack of quality in the Icelandic school system. The purpose of this article is to contribute to these discussions, particularly in regard to what might constitute suitable reactions or future actions to improve the quality of education for Iceland’s children and young people. Recent research on the characteristics of successful educational improvements is summarised, and attempts are made to shed light on what practical implications these may have for the implementation of educational improvements. Based on this knowledge, seven guidelines are outlined for those planning and leading educational improvements at the levels of system, school and classroom. These should not be seen as a list of actions to be taken, but rather as tips to guide the implementation of each and every improvement project undertaken. The guidelines are presented with respect for the complex reality of schools and the educational system, and they focus on coherence, a collaborative approach, and professional learning as keys to increasing the quality of education (e.g., Fullan & Quinn, 2016; Fullan & Hargreaves, 2016; Hopkins et al., 2014; Robinson, 2018). The guidelines are as follows: All decisions should have a clear focus on teaching and learning, including policy, projects, and professional learning activities. The work that takes place in communication between students and teachers, whether in classrooms or in departments, must be nurtured because that is where the actual implementation of reforms takes place. At all stages in a change process, questions should be posed about the effect such changes will have on children. Actions taken in each situation should be based on measurements at each location and directed towards a targeted group of students. Change requires much investment of energy, time, and resources, and therefore actions need to be targeted and based on reliable data. Averaged measures are not necessarily an appropriate or useful basis for decision making, as they may lead to generalisations. The results of research, tests, or other data should be reviewed by those in the relevant situation, and decisions should be made by them. Given Robinson’s (2018) suggestions, authorities need to be careful when making recommendations for changes. Coherence and a collaborative approach should characterise all improvement efforts. Coherence and shared understanding are best achieved through active collaboration and dialogue on policies and actions. This should be considered, e.g., in decision making, goal setting, assignment, and process making. Building capacity for continuous improvement is achieved through focus on professional learning and leadership by those working in the system, especially teachers and leaders. But this also applies to those who work at other levels such as in school offices, teacher education, the Institute of Education, the teachers’ union, and in other organizations and institutions responsible for the quality of education. All improvement projects, both large and small, require strong professional leadership that is distributed and not merely centralised. Evidence informed policy, practice, and professional learning and researchfocused professionalism are key concepts. This includes, for example, strengthening the research community to undertake more extensive studies and form collaborations between educational researchers and practitioners. Parents should be acknowledged as active collaborators and those who have the strongest influence on educational achievement and the well-being of their children. This is not merely about schools, but also about society, welfare services, leisure, and business. Among other things, families need to be strengthened as to the role of parenting. Special care should be taken with children and families in vulnerable situations. Last but not least, a clear equity stance should be taken in policy and practice at all levels, for example in policies at national and local levels and in practice at school and classroom levels. JustEd (2018) suggestions are useful in this matter. A sound education does not rely on the actions or efforts of individuals; it is a collective endeavour relying on dialogue and collaboration between teachers, leaders, authorities, and others in the educational system. Teachers and school leaders should be seen as active participants in decision making, not merely as those who implement pre-determined plans. One of the most important challenges in the Icelandic educational system is to build trust and strengthen professionalism at all levels.Ritstýrð grei

Handtaskan : frá nauðsyn yfir í stöðutákn

Í ritgerð þessari er farið yfir uppruna og sögu handtöskunnar til að reyna að gera því skil hvernig hún varð að þeim ómissandi aukahlut og stöðutákni sem hún er í dag. Er saga hennar rakin aftur til fyrstu heimilda þess að maðurinn fór að nota poka og pyngjur til að bera eigur sínar í, yfir í vasapoka og svo þaðan yfir í handtöskur og hvernig breytingar á klæðaburði hafa haft áhrif á þessa þróun. Litið er á hvers vegna handtöskur urðu frekar fylgihlutur fyrir konur en karla og hvernig sú þróun hefur allar götur síðan varpað ákveðnum dulúðarblæ á handtöskur. Einnig er skoðað hvernig þróun handtöskunnar hefur samtvinnast breyttum lifnaðarháttum svo sem með tilkomu lestarkerfis og auknum ferðalögum. Hvernig þörf manneskjunar til að skilgreina þjóðfélagsstöðu sína hefur gert handtöskur að stöðutákni. Handtaskan er einnig skoðuð út frá sjónarhorni kvenréttindabaráttunnar sem ýmist leit á handtöskur sem táknræna birtingarmynd um kúgun kvenna eða tákn um frelsi. Þá eru þeim eiginleikum sem gera handtöskuna að góðri söluvöru gerð skil. Síðan er fyrirbærið ittaskan skoðað og reynt að átta sig á því hvers vegna konur eru tilbúnar að borga svimandi háar upphæðir og jafnvel selja sig í vændi til að eignast slíkar töskur

Educational Leadership at Municipality Level: Defined Roles and Responsibilities in Legislation

The purpose of this study is to explore the roles and responsibilities that national education legislation in Iceland imposes on municipalities in terms of leadership. A qualitative content analysis was applied to explore the relevant national legislation—that is, education acts, regulations, and curriculum guides—and identify themes by looking for specific words that are characteristic in leadership practices. The findings reveal that policy ends concerning educational leadership of municipalities are somewhat tacit in current national legislation. Yet, the roles and responsibilities that the state delegates to municipalities comprise leadership functions that are distributed in nature and, to a large extent, harmonize with desired leadership practices as emphasized in the literature. Legislation emphasizes comprehensive education, but also in-cludes signs of technocratic homogenization. In the discussion of our findings, we argue that the educational system is quite dependent on the political emphasis at each given time, making it difficult for both munic-ipalities and the state to facilitate a cohesive leadership emphasis. We suggest that closer attention to the local level, and a recognition of it as an important unit and agency for educational development, is of sig-nificant importance. These observations will be followed by a further investigation into the actual practice of leadership at the local level