New public management as a global education policy : its adoption and re-contextualization in a Southern European setting

In the education sector, new public management (NPM) has crystallized in policies such as school autonomy, professionalization of school principals, standardized evaluation and teachers' accountability, and it has been widely disseminated by international organizations, such as the OECD, which enjoy a great prestige when it comes to frame education reforms in European countries. This article analyses the way NPM has been constructed as a global education policy, and its adoption and re-contextualization into the Spanish education context. This article shows that the reasons for adopting NPM are not so different from those prevailing in other countries where these policies have been implemented before. Counter-intuitively, although NPM is a reform programme traditionally initiated by conservative governments, in the Spanish education field, as also happened in other Central and Northern European countries, it has been adopted and regulated with social democratic governments. In all these countries, social democrats have tended to embrace NPM as an attempt to address the legitimacy crisis of the welfare state and of public services in particular. Nonetheless, in Spain, the NPM reforms have been re-contextualized and regulated in very uneven and paradoxical ways. For a combination of political, institutional and economic reasons, the final form adopted by the NPM approach is far from the model advocated by the international community and is deeply contradictory. Our arguments are based on intensive fieldwork that include, on the one hand, interviews with key education policy-makers and stakeholders and, on the other, document analysis of policy briefings, press releases and legal documents

Políticas de lucha contra el abandono escolar en España : hacia la definición de un modelo teóricometodológico

El objetivo del presente artículo es presentar un modelo de análisis que sirva para sistematizar, analizar y comparar las políticas aplicadas para hacer frente al abandono escolar. La motivación de realizar dicha sistematización surge después de comprobar la falta de un corpus sólido que permita realizar un estado de la cuestión exhaustivo de los distintos programas y políticas educativas para combatir el abandono escolar. Para ello se elabora una matriz en base al enfoque teórico-metodológico de la evaluación realista de Pawson, que permita establecer los mecanismos explicativos que se esconden bajo la lógica de los programas y que explican sus diferentes impactos en base a las particularidades de los contextos en que se llevan a cabo. Por lo tanto, se trata de un punto de partida para realizar posteriores análisis en profundidad de programas educativos específicos para realizar posteriores análisis en profundidad de programas educativos específicos para luchar contra el abandono escolar

Ability as legitimation of tracking : teachers' representations of students in vocational and academic tracks

Acord transformatiu CRUE-CSICThe division of educational systems into different tracks-academic and vocational-represents one of the key elements in explaining social stratification and inequalities. Previous research identifies teachers' expectations as a critical factor to understand the relationship between tracking and social inequality. This paper discusses how ability is represented in teachers' discourses and whether and to what extent it works as a legitimation of systemic forms of tracking. Using in-depth interviews with 35 secondary school tutors, we analyse how teachers draw on the concept of ability to explain students' unequal transitions from a lower comprehensive to an upper tracked education system in Barcelona (Spain). The results indicate three main elements: a highly naturalistic conception of students' abilities among teachers; a remarkably dichotomised conception of theoretical and practical abilities that match with the academic and vocational tracks; and a direct association between types of student and types of track based on different types of ability at a cognitive, behavioural and personal level. Overall, the analysis contributes to opening the 'black box' of the notion of ability as represented by teachers and to identifying what we call the 'mechanisms of misrecognition' which serve to naturalise, legitimise and reproduce a highly segmented post-16 school system

El habitus institucional : una herramienta teórica y metodológica para el estudio de la cultura escolar

Este artículo se ha desarrollado en el marco del proyecto I+D+i «ABJOVES. El abandono escolar prematuro en España. Un análisis de las decisiones, motivaciones y estrategias educativas de los jóvenes» (Ref. CSO 2012-31575).El objetivo de este artículo es avanzar en el debate académico sobre los efectos que genera la cultura escolar sobre las oportunidades educativas de los estudiantes. Para ello, el articulo defiende la importancia del habitus institucional como herramienta teórica y metodològica para avanzar en el estudio de la cultura escolar y abrir la caja negra dentro de la cual se ha tendido a mantener el concepto. Con esta finalidad, se lleva a cabo un análisis sistemático del concepto a partir de sus tres dimensiones claves: el estatus educativo, las prácticas organizativas y el orden expresivo de los centros. Así mismo, se realiza un análisis en profundidad de cómo se despliega el habitus institucional en dos institutos públicos de la Ciudad de Barcelona. Los resultados del análisis muestran la utilidad teórica y metodológica del concepto y ponen de manifiesto los efectos que genera el habitus institucional en términos de equidad y oportunidades educativas.The Institutional habitus: a methodological and Theoretical Tool to Analyse The School Culture». The aim of the paper is to proceed with the academic debate around the effect of school culture on students' educational opportunities. In order to do so, the paper defends the importance of Institutional Habitus as a theoretical and methodological tool that enables to unpack what is behind the concept of school culture. With this aim, a systematic analysis on the concept of Institutional Habitus is carried out from [its three main dimensions: educational status, organizational practices and expresive order. Besides, the paper includes an in-depth analysis on how Institutional Habitus is displayed in two públic secondary schools in the city of Barcelona. The results of the analysis point out not only the relevance of the concept of Institutional Habitus but also its impact in terms of equity and educational opportunities

The politics of educational success: a realist evaluation of early school leaving policies in Catalonia (Spain)

The objective of the article is to examine what is 'taken for granted' in the policies designed to combat Early School Leaving (ESL) in Catalonia, identifying their implicit ontologies, causal assumptions and logics of action. In order to do so, the realist evaluation is applied. Specifically, this methodology has been applied to compare the discourses, priorities and policies of two key agents in defining and implementing policies to combat ESL in Catalonia: the Catalan Department for Education (Regional Government body) and the Barcelona Education Consortium (Local Government body). In each case, systematic documentary analysis has been conducted as well as in-depth interviews with educational experts and policymakers. The results of the analysis allows opening up the black box of the political priorities defined by this two political agents, identifying two highly controversial logics to understand educational success and to consequently address ESL

Can educational engagement prevent Early School Leaving? Unpacking the school's effect on educational success

There is growing evidence that school engagement, or more specifically disengagement, is a key indicator for predicting Early School Leaving. The aim of this article is to explore the impact of secondary schools in student (dis)engagement and subsequent opportunities to succeed in school. Drawing on data from a qualitative study in five secondary schools in Barcelona, the article discusses the role of school context in inhibiting or facilitating school engagement by exploring compositional effects, organisational and pedagogical practices, and teachers' expectations. To do so a twofold perspective is adopted: firstly, we look at the main school features and their impact on students' educational opportunities; and secondly, a systematic analysis of the dimensions of school engagement (behavioural, emotional and cognitive) is carried out. As a result, the article contributes to the identification of the most significant variables at school level that influence student engagement and their opportunities for school success

El rol de los centros educativos en la prevención del abandono escolar : una aproximación desde la perspectiva micropolítica

España y Cataluña presentan unos niveles muy elevados de abandono escolar prematuro (AEP) que se sitúan muy lejos de los objetivos establecidos por la estrategia europea Education and Training 2020. Dada la relevancia del fenómeno, se han desarrollado numerosas políticas para abordar el fenómeno y avanzar en su prevención y combate. Los centros de educación secundaria no son agentes neutros en la adopción de dichas políticas, sino que tienen un rol activo en su implementación y recontextualización. El objetivo del artículo es estudiar la forma a través de la cual los centros educativos, en tanto que contextos micropolíticos, gestionan los riesgos de AEP de su alumnado y aplican diferentes lógicas para abordar el fenómeno. Para ello se ha llevado a cabo un estudio de casos múltiple en cinco centros de educación secundaria obligatoria de Barcelona. Los resultados del análisis muestran cuatro grandes lógicas para hacer frente a los riesgos de AEP: la heterogeneidad, el acompañamiento, la omisión y la expulsión. Dichas lógicas generan oportunidades ampliamente desiguales para alcanzar el éxito educativo de todo el alumnado y ponen de manifiesto la importància de aplicar estrategias preventivas a nivel de centro para combatir el abandono escolar.Spain and Catalonia register high percentages of early school leaving (ESL), remarkably far from the targets set by the European Strategy Education and Training 2020. Given the relevance of this phenomenon, many policies have been developed in order to tackle ESL, both focusing in its prevention and reduction. Secondary schools are not neutral agents in adopting such policies, but have an active role in its implementation and recontextualisation. The aim of this paper is to analyse the way in which schools, understood as micropolitical contexts, manage the risks of dropping out of schools and implement different strategies to combat ESL. To do so, a múltiple case study in five compulsory secondary schools in Barcelona has been conducted. The results of the analysis allow identifying four main logics in managing the risk of ESC. These are: heterogeneity, acompainment, omission and expulsion. These rationales generate different opportunity frameworks in achieving educational success of all students and highlight the importance of implementing preventive strategies at school level to combat ESL.Espanha e Catalunha têm níveis muito elevados de abandono escolar precoce (AEP) que estão localizados notoriamente aquém das metas estabelecidas pela Estratégia Europeia Education and Training 2020. Dada a relevância do fenómeno, têm-se desenvolvido numerosas políticas para lidar com o fenómeno e avançar na sua prevenção e combate. Os centros de educação secundària não são agentes neutros na adoção de tais políticas, mas têm um papel ativo na sua implementação e recontextualização. O objetivo do trabalho é estudar a o modo como as escolas, enquanto contextos micropolíticos, enfrentam os riscos de AEP dos seus alunos e aplicam lógicas específicas para encarar o fenómeno. Para isso, foi realizado um estudo de caso múltiplo em cinco centros de educação secundária obrigatória em Barcelona. Os resultados da análise mostram quatro grandes lógicas para enfrentar os riscos de AEP: heterogeneidade, acompanhamento, omissão e expulsão. Essas lógicas geram oportunidades muito desiguais para alcançar o sucesso escolar de todos/as os/as alunos/as e mostram a importância da implementação de estratégias de prevenção a nível dos centros para combater o abandono escolar

The politics of educational success : a realist evaluation of early school leaving policies in Catalonia (Spain)

The objective of the article is to examine what is 'taken for granted' in the policies designed to combat Early School Leaving (ESL) in Catalonia, identifying their implicit ontologies, causal assumptions and logics of action. In order to do so, the realist evaluation is applied. Specifically, this methodology has been applied to compare the discourses, priorities and policies of two key agents in defining and implementing policies to combat ESL in Catalonia: the Catalan Department for Education (Regional Government body) and the Barcelona Education Consortium (Local Government body). In each case, systematic documentary analysis has been conducted as well as in-depth interviews with educational experts and policymakers. The results of the analysis allows opening up the black box of the political priorities defined by this two political agents, identifying two highly controversial logics to understand educational success and to consequently address ESL

El efecto de la clase social en la decisiones educativas : un análisis de las oportunidades, creencias y deseos educativos de los jóvenes

El abandono escolar prematuro es uno de los principales retos contemporáneos con que se enfrentan los países europeos en general y España en particular. El objetivo del artículo es adentrarse en la comprensión de este fenómeno a partir de un análisis cualitativo de las decisiones, prácticas y estrategias educativas de jóvenes que han abandonado los estudios recientemente. En particular, analizamos el efecto de la clase social sobre las oportunidades, creencias y deseos educativos de los jóvenes y la influencia de estas variables para abandonar los estudios. Primeramente se presenta una revisión del debate entre las teorías de la reproducción y de la elección racional y explicitando la posición de las autoras en el mismo. El resultado global del análisis, pone de manifiesto que las decisiones educativas de los jóvenes van más allá de los cálculos racionales y que es fundamental atender a los aspectos no intencionales ni instrumentales que se esconden bajo las mismasESL represents one of the most challenges that great part of the European countries and especially Spain are facing. The main objective of this paper is to analyze this phenomenon from a qualitative perspective of the educational decisions, strategies and practices made by young people who have recently dropped out school. In particular, we analyze the effect of the social class on the educational opportunities, desires and believe of young people and the influence of these categories on the decisions of dropping out school. The paper begins by presenting a review of the debate between the theory of cultural reproduction and the rational choice theory with a brief explanation of the rational defended by the authors on this debate. The overall conclusions show that educational decisions made by young people go beyond rational reasoning and that it is necessary to analyze unintended and non instrumental aspects hidden under these decisions