The dissertation explores teacher professional development as a strategy for improving school performance. The theoretical part defines school quality, teacher quality, and instruction quality. It further talks about teacher professional development, specifically strategies that involve teacher's reflective practices and teacher collaboration. The practical part of the dissertation examines the characteristics and impact of a five year support model of school based teacher professional development. The process was closely observed through case studies of four subjects in a particular school. The findings reveal that the implemented model contributed to the changes in the principal's leadership style, school culture and climate the most. KEYWORDS Teacher professional development, school quality, teacher quality, instruction quality, teacher collaboration, teacher coach, team teaching.

Thesis (MEcon)--University of Stellenbosch, 2006. / Education production function analysis is widely recognised as one important area of research that needs to inform education policymaking, specifically policy relating to the mix of funded inputs in a schooling system. Arriving at production functions is a complex task, and is fraught with methodological pitfalls. This thesis sets out to establish a framework for undertaking education production function analysis, and in discussing its various elements, including its pitfalls, recommendations for good practice are arrived at. The material analysed is of four types: texts on econometric theory; existing production function analyses; documentation relating to three dataintensive school monitoring programmes, namely Brazil’s SAEB, South Africa’s Systemic Evaluation and the international SACMEQ programme; and lastly data, relating mainly to South Africa, from the 2000 run of SACMEQ. The thesis is organised according what can be regarded as seven key analysis steps. These steps include a focus on the importance of a ‘mental model’, the relative benefits of the one-level regression model and the hierarchical linear model (HLM), and the formulation of actual production functions for South Africa based on the SACMEQ data, using both one-level and HLM models. Key conclusions are, firstly, that the HLM, though still under-developed, offers great analysis potential and, secondly, that production function analyses ought to be translated into budgetary terms in order for them to become fully meaningful to the policymaker.

Notre système d’éducation, comme on le connait, est le fruit de la Révolution tranquille des années 1960. S’appuyant sur un principe de démocratisation, le système scolaire est rapidement devenu le levier de développement économique et social d’une société « en retard » par rapport au reste du pays (Proulx et Charland, 2009). Cependant, d’après Lessard (2019), le système scolaire du Québec fait piètre figure en matière d’équité : il est le moins équitable des systèmes canadiens, et ce, pour plusieurs raisons. Depuis la Révolution tranquille, la Loi sur l’instruction publique québécoise (LIP) régit les droits et obligations des élèves et des institutions scolaires, et reconnait également certains droits des parents d’élèves, comme les choix d’écoles au primaire et au secondaire. Ces choix semblent par ailleurs évoluer de manière croissante, en particulier depuis les années 1980. En effet, sur fond de courants politiques et économiques globaux (la Nouvelle gestion publique – NGP, la Gestion axée sur les résultats - GAR, etc.), et aussi nationaux et locaux (la Loi sur l’instruction publique du Québec, politiques municipales et urbaines diverses, etc.), ces pratiques de choix tendent à profiter d’une conjoncture favorable qui stimule leur montée (Bélanger, 2011; Turmel, 2014; Felouzis et coll., 2013). En outre, ils feraient partie des leviers favorisant ce que Felouzis et ses collègues (2013) appellent les « marchés scolaires » (Felouzis et coll., 2013). Dans les marchés scolaires, les prix ne constituent pas une mesure de la qualité éducative. La relation offre-demande éducative s’appuie alors sur l’élaboration de jugements sur la qualité perçue, une qualité non mesurable basée sur des critères sociaux différents en fonction des intentions éducatives et origines sociales variées des familles (Felouzis et coll., 2013, p. 4). Le fait est que ces jugements différenciés participent ultimement à la construction de possibilités de choix inégalement réparties entre les familles. Considérant que le paysage scientifique québécois abordant les processus de choix scolaires est, à ce jour, relativement vierge, cette thèse a donc pour visée d’éclaircir la question et donner une intelligibilité à la construction de jugements de qualité d’une bonne école secondaire. Embrassant une posture interprétative compréhensive, cette thèse s’inspire de la sociologie interactionniste de van Zanten (2009) sur les choix scolaires de même que de la sociologie de la famille (de Singly, 2010; Déchaux, 2010; Valois, 2009), tout en portant une attention particulière au poids des capitaux dans la sociologie de la reproduction sociale selon la perspective de Bourdieu (1979) et Bourdieu et Passeron (2011). Basée sur vingt-sept entretiens semi-dirigés qui ont été conduits auprès de parents résidant dans cinq arrondissements montréalais (Ahuntsic-Cartierville, Côte-des-Neiges-Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, Mercier-Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, Montréal-Nord, Rosemont-La-Petite-Patrie), l’analyse inductive des données révèle une variabilité importante des processus de choix parentaux, élaborés en fonction de conditions, de ressources différenciées, de perceptions subjectives et contraintes objectives. En effet, celles-ci sont fortement indexées en fonction de l’offre de services éducatifs dans les secteurs de résidence des familles et conditionnées par la position socioéconomique des parents et le statut EHDAA des enfants. Il a également été constaté que les qualités sociales de l’établissement sont souvent, spécialement aux yeux des parents de classes moyennes, corrélées avec les qualités de l’instruction. Ce constat a été noté chez plusieurs répondants, bien que seuls ceux disposant de ressources économiques et culturelles suffisantes soient en mesure de mettre en place des stratégies pouvant satisfaire leurs préférences et leur vision de la qualité éducative souhaitable pour leur enfant. / The Quebec education system is based on a democratization principle and rapidly became a lever for the economic and social development of a society “lagging behind” the rest of the country (Proulx & Charland, 2009). However, according to Lessard (2019), while being above average compared to the rest of OECD countries regarding performance, the Quebec school system does much worse with regards to equity: it is the least equitable of the Canadian systems. Since the Quiet Revolution, the Quebec Education Act (Loi sur l'instruction publique) regulates the rights and obligations of students and institutions, and also recognizes certain rights to the parents. School choice, for elementary or high school, is among the individual rights of parents recognized by the Education Act. Throughout the world, many global political and economic trends (New Public Management or NPM, accountability, etc.) as well as provincial and local policies (the Education Act in Quebec and various municipal and urban policies, etc.) stimulate the growth of choice practices, and the situation in Quebec, especially in Montreal, is no different. Researchers have yet to meaningfully address school-choice processes, but international studies have shown tangible links between the high school-choice processes of middle- and upper-class parents and increased inequality through social segregation (Felouzis et coll., 2013; van Zanten, 2009a). This dissertation aims to clarify the current debates on school choice in Montreal and highlights parental perceptions related to the singular feelings, experiences, and trajectories entailed in the choice of high schools. This research is essentially based on previous work by Felouzis et coll. (2013) and Karpik (2007) on judging quality of a public service. It also borrows conceptual notions from the sociology of the contemporary family (Singly, 2010) as well as studies by Déchaux (2009) and Valois (2009). Furthermore, following Bourdieu (1979) and Bourdieu and Passeron (2012), it illuminates the importance of cultural, economic, and social capital in the judgment and decision-making process of parents when they attempt to choose the right high school for their child. Finally, it feeds off of the interactionist sociology of van Zanten (2009) on school-choice decisions. The study first examined the decision-making processes of twenty-seven Montreal parents whose child is transitioning from elementary to high school. It then studied the educational supply in the five Montreal boroughs in which these parents reside: Ahuntsic-Cartierville, Côte-des-Neiges-Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, Mercier-Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, Montréal-Nord, and Rosemont-La-Petite-Patrie. This thesis also embraces comprehensive and interpretive sociology and is based on semi-structured interviews (Kaufmann, 2011; Boutin, 1997). The inductive data analysis revealed great variability in parents’ school-choice processes following their differentiated conditions and resources. Only some parents could actually consider enrolling their child in the school of their choice. The limitations observed came down to places available in the institutions, the successful completion of a qualifying examination, the payment of relatively high school fees, the limited geographical access to certain schools or their child’s handicaps, social maladjustments or learning difficulties. Finally, the results extracted from the analysis highlight that the subjective perceptions and objective constraints that come into play in the school-choice process are also strongly conditioned by the supply of educational services in the families’ area of residence where there is indeed a differentiated access to education services. It shows that families living in these areas do not all have access to the same provision, to the same “quality” of education services and that the possibility of choosing a school or relocating to a given area of residence is tied to family income.

Education is one of the most important public goods that society can provide, and researchers have since long agreed that schools' performances are capitalized into residential property prices. However, all previous research is based on residential markets where school districts prevail. This study aims to investigate how the capitalization of residential properties are affected when pupils have free choice and how proximity to schools affect this relationship. The study covers the years 2011 to 2018 and is based in Västerås municipality, Sweden. Through a hedonic pricing model with a semi-logarithmic form, that includes both fixed effects through postal codes and yearly fixed effects, we can show that school quality is capitalized into residential property prices. The quality of schools is estimated through four types of school characteristics; pass rates in national tests, pupil-to-teacher ratio, pupil ethnicity and parental educational background which are combined into a single variable using Principal Component Analysis (PCA). Using geo-coordinates, school characteristics are assigned to properties in two different scenarios. In the first, only school characteristics of the closest school are assigned to properties. In the second, properties are assigned the average characteristics of all schools within a radius of 875 meters from the home i.e., walking distance for pupils in third grade. Our results show that quality of education is capitalized in property prices even if pupils are not limited by school districts. We find that if school quality is improved by one unit, the price of local apartments and houses increases by 2.13-3.06% and 2.07-2.19%, respectively. The results also indicate that capitalization is affected by how many schools are within walking distance. Residentials in close proximity of several schools have more options and thus experiences a stronger capitalization effect than properties close to only one school. / Utbildning är en av de viktigaste funktionerna som samhället kan tillhandahålla, och forskningen har sedan länge varit överens om att skolors prestationer kapitaliseras i bostadspriser. All tidigare forskning är dock baserad på bostadsmarknader strukturerade efter skoldistrikt. Denna studie syftar till att undersöka hur kapitaliseringen av bostäder påverkas av ett fritt skolval samt hur avstånd till skolor påverkar detta förhållande. Studien omfattar åren 2011 till 2018 och är baserad i Västerås kommun, Sverige. Genom en hedonisk prissmodell med semilogaritmisk form, som inkluderar både fixed effects genom postnummer och årliga fixed effects, kan vi visa att utbildningskvalité kapitaliseras i bostadspriserna. Utbildningskvalité uppskattas genom värdet av fyra typer av skolvariabler; andelen godkända elever i nationella prov, elever per lärare, elevens etnicitet och föräldrarnas utbildningsbakgrund som kombineras till en enskild variabel genom Principal Component Analysis (PCA). Med hjälp av geokoordinater tilldelas bostäderna skolors unika värden i två olika scenarier. I det första tilldelas bostäderna endast värdet för den närmsta skolan. I den andra tilldelas bostäderna ett genomsnittligt värde av alla skolor inom en radie av 875 meter från bostaden, dvs. gångavstånd för elever i tredje klass. Våra resultat visar att utbildningens kvalitet kapitaliseras i bostadspriserna även om eleverna inte begränsas av skoldistrikt. Vi finner att om utbildningskvalitén förbättras med en enhet så ökar priset på lägenheter och hus i området med 2.13-3.06% respektive 2.07-2.19%. Resultaten tyder också på att kapitaliseringen påverkas av hur många skolor som ligger inom gångavstånd. Bostäder i närheten av flera skolor har fler valmöjligheter och får därmed en starkare kapitaliseringseffekt än bostäder nära endast en skola.