I will dare to enter the debate on the makings of a successful school and proffer some hopefully sagacious solutions to help us decide on a modus vivendi.

Most educational institutions are labelled as being successful on the basis of students’ performance in their major exit examinations. At the secondary level, the regional Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) and the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE) are the measuring sticks by which schools are considered top performers. At the primary level, it is the Grade Six Achievement Test (GSAT).

In June of each year, following the release of GSAT results, media houses have the tendency to splash students’, parents’ and teachers’ ecstatic or morose faces on television or in the newspapers to share their jubilation or depression about the placement of students at certain schools. Similarly, with the publication of CXC results in August, schools are ranked based on percentage passes. These actions erroneously contribute to and perpetuate the concept that successful schools are those whose students do well in exit examinations. Let’s face the facts, students’ academic performance is critical to the public’s view of how successful a school is, but this is a rather myopic view considering that there are so many other crucial factors that contribute to the making of a successful school.

Individual success

One reason for saying this is that many educators at the secondary and tertiary levels will attest to a little known fact: Many a student who gets an above 90% in GSAT or a Grade One in CSEC English A or Communication Studies may not be able to produce an essay that features an introduction, a thesis statement, topic sentences, developing sentences, clincher sentence and a concluding paragraph, nor one that depicts semantic and structural features of a well written essay. They may also corroborate my view that these students do not possess the critical thinking skills that allow them to become meaningfully engaged in discussions that demand the use of higher-level thinking skills. In fact, many of our students are oblivious of the word “think”, and seemingly are incapable of carrying out that mental function.

Whereas I applaud the work that the illustrious students, their supportive parents and diligent teachers put in, we must begin to ensure that all schools are justifiably labelled and that the merits of their labelling are equitable or nearly so. In a recent conversation with fellow educator, Paula Miller Foster, principal of Balaclava High, it was pointed out that the society must quickly and completely dispel the myth that effective schools are only those whose students perform well in these exams, as oftentimes successful students attend extra classes to augment the teaching they get in their school, yet it is the school in which the student is registered that gets the accolades.

A successful school should also be seen as one whose programmes add value to the students. So, whereas some of the newly upgraded high schools will not get high percentage passes, their incremental improvement should be extolled. Additionally, there are other facets to educational institutions; academics is only one.

Equity

Admittedly, educators are ultimately responsible for the academic achievement of their students, but I have no doubt an improvement in the former will result in significant improvement in the latter. School leaders are oftentimes too lax in implementing effective programmes that can greatly improve the climate of the education system. It is true that the climate of schools is dependent on a number of factors, including the school’s culture, but it cannot be denied that organisations such as parent-teachers’ associations and alumni have a lot to do with a healthy school climate.

We would rather not see these entities pointing fingers at the “other” for flaws in the system, but rather take quality time to work jointly or individually to fix the sometimes plethora of problems schools face such as poor infrastructure, a paucity of resources, the ridiculously high numbers of students in some classes, and the woefully inadequate transportation system for students. Should these issues be addressed meaningfully, rather than apply a band-aid approach, which we are so prone to taking, we may see more schools developing a culture of excellence, and thus getting the desired results.

Atmosphere of excellence

Students also must be encouraged to excel regardless of the socioeconomic status of their parents or the community. Dr Larry Lezotte, one of the pioneers of the Effective Schools Movement, articulated in his book What Effective Schools Do that “effective teachers make a conscious effort to give equal opportunity for all students to respond during class, provide thoughtful feedback to every student, and are willing to re-teach concepts that students have not mastered”. I therefore believe that students must be made to believe that “excellence is as excellence does”. They must be set high standards and made to believe that they can achieve these.

School leaders must share their vision and mission with staff, students and parents and get not only a buy-in but allowing it to become the mantra of everyone.

Actions must be data-driven. Students must know where they stand in relation to the others in their class, year group, school, and country. Statistics in relation to student performance should be shared in general assemblies, students’ council meetings, management meetings, and PTA meetings. Our students have a vast propensity to learn and as educators we must do what it takes for them to succeed.

I am not advocating teacher and student burnout or for parents to spend money lavishly. Far from it! I am saying we should find ingenious ways to allow our students to develop. Teach them. Engage them. Stretch them. Allow them to discover. And then test them.

Remuneration, Resources and Respect

Teachers should be paid what they are worth as well as be provided with the requisite resources to be effective in their jobs. Contrary to the opinions of some naysayers, not all teachers are ill-trained for the jobs they are in. Not all are callous and only care about the 25th of each month. Most teachers are well educated and passionate about what they do. However, I admit that there are some teachers in the system who are performing below par and their attitude and actions are intolerable. There must be a rigid system of accountability that is free from bias that is used to evaluate teacher performance and provide timely and useful feedback. This evaluation should be similar to ones we subject students to — diagnostic, formative and summative. Once we are satisfied that teachers are bringing value to their students, they should be accorded every respect and paid what they are really worth so that they can live comfortably and debt-free.

The remuneration that teachers get in some countries has very well impacted the respect accorded to our profession. In an article published online, the 2013 Global Teacher Status Index, written by Peter Dolton, professor of economics at the University of Sussex, and Dr Oscar Marcenaro-Gutierrez, associate professor at the Department of Statistics and Econometrics at the University of Malaga, the views of individuals in 21 countries were sought to explore the attitudes of the public towards teachers. The countries (Brazil, China, the Czech Republic, Egypt, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Israel, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Portugal, Turkey, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, the UK and the United States) have then been ranked in an index based on these results. According to the index, teachers have the highest status in China and the lowest status in Israel. China, South Korea, Turkey, Egypt and Greece respect their teachers more than all other European and Anglo Saxon countries. The UK and the US are ranked in the middle of the Teacher Status Index. The public in these countries were asked questions exploring how teaching is in comparison to other professions, whether teachers’ earnings are judged to be fair, whether people would encourage their own children to become teachers, and how far people think that pupils respect teachers.

Noticeably, the poll does not cover the Caribbean, but maybe one of the market research companies in the region may take up this task and make public its findings.

I anticipate that proponents for “Payment by Performance” may take me to task and demand quality for increased salaries and I agree. Already, the education sector in Jamaica gets a sizeable chunk out of the government’s budget each year, so should this be increased and more money allocated to teachers’ salaries?

Mandatory Professional Growth

Teachers should also be held accountable for their professional growth and should be mandated to engage in regular upgrades to ensure we are kept au fait with educational trends around the world and are imparting knowledge and skills that are current and in demand. As one of my colleague school administrators, Heather Murray, headmistress of Hampton School and president of Jamaica Association of Principals of Secondary Schools (JAPPS), likes to tell her students “prior preparation prevents poor performance”

School Safety and Security

Another area that can ensure improvement in schools and their ultimate success is that as a society, we should be proactive to ensure that educational institutions are safe. Students must be taught from home that good conduct is of paramount importance to feelings of a safe school. The schools’ written or unwritten code of conduct and the Ministry’s Security and Safety Manual must be adhered to by staff, students and parents. Bullying must not be accepted, condoned or tolerated. Defacing or destroying property must not be accepted, condoned or tolerated. Conflicts are a part of life. Disputes that arise from conflicts can be settled. The placement of school resource officers (SROs) from the Jamaica Constabulary Force and deans of discipline in some schools does help, but there is an overwhelming demand for more.

With all that said about some of the other factors that impact the effectiveness and success of schools, is it fair to label any school as successful, effective or failing without first ensuring that at least the major parts of the proverbial playing fields are level? Let us not be too quick to attach negative labels nor make spurious claims that can impair our views of any school. Let us instead take more than an ephemeral interest in schools — not just in June and August. After all, it is never too late to learn.

Alcia Morgan Bromfield, M Ed, is a communication specialist, author, poet, and serves as a vice-principal of Munro College. Comments: amorganbromfield@yahoo.com