Change is always difficult. And when it comes to school education, change is surrounded by myths and manipulations. A small number of students means a threat of closure for the school and a low level of education for the students. The bad demographic situation, low level of knowledge and helplessness of the teaching staff are nothing compared to the motto “Should they close down the school, the whole village will die out.”
Participants of the info session held in the Regional Office of U-LEAD with Europe in the Zaporizhzhia Oblast, together with U-LEAD expert Serhii Diatlenko, explored whether this was true and whether it was possible to change the status quo.
“How to protect small schools is beyond the scope of this discussion. We will talk about how to make a small school fit the municipality. An understaffed school will be considered from the educational, financial and social perspective, in terms of its capacity criteria, the conditions that would allow it to succeed,” Serhii Diatlenko told the participants.
Small school is an informal concept. Educational institutions with 5 to 48 students in primary school and 40 to 108 students in lyceum can be included in this category. Here is a caveat already: Legally, a lyceum cannot operate as a small school.
12% of “resilient students”
The results of the External Independent Evaluation usually show that the knowledge level of the students of rural schools is indeed inferior to those who studied in schools in the cities.
According to the PISA study (2018) on the dependence of success on the socio-economic status of students, students with a high socio-economic status have double or triple chances to succeed in their academic performance compared to their peers with a low socio-economic status. The greatest difference in success is observed between students whose educational institutions are located in large cities and those who go to schools in villages: it is more than two years of study.
The study also singles out the category of “resilient students”. Their level of knowledge remains quite high despite the low socio-economic level. In Ukraine, according to the results of testing in the three main subject areas of PISA, such students average 12% at the national level. That is, if there are 100 students in a small school, 12% of them, i.e. one or two students in each class, have a chance to perform well.
The quality of educational services is not only about the level of knowledge
The school should teach the child to apply knowledge in real life and master key competencies. This is an accepted criterion of the quality of education. The ability to cooperate and think critically, know your strengths and develop them, as well as teamwork are skills that help you get a job and be successful. After all, 15% of career success depends on professional skills, and 85% are “soft” skills.
According to Serhii Diatlenko, a teacher’s grade cannot be considered a measurable result of a student’s knowledge. After all, by evaluating a student, a teacher evaluates themselves and their work as well, so they cannot be objective enough to offer a quality assessment.
The task of the school and every teacher is to find what is a child’s strength and strengthen it to the greatest extent possible. Because that is where the child will succeed.
What/who does the quality of the educational process depend on?
The principal, teachers (pedagogical staff), parents and the educational environment directly influence the educational process. Serhii Diatlenko named them in this order, although the participants of the info session voted to move the educational environment to the first place.
“The principal forms the teaching team and influences the professional growth of the team. The work of teachers largely depends on interaction with the principal. The educational environment also depends on it,” said the expert.
By affecting the quality of the educational process, each of the above can become either a catalyst for positive changes in a small school or a dead weight.
Teachers need to have pedagogical autonomy, join professional communities, develop their strengths and mitigate their weaknesses, and work out certain personal markers “regarding their class”. Motivation, competition and decent pay are also important.
Parents are an important element of the educational process; they need to be communicated with and be able to influence its quality.
A high-quality educational environment is a safe, comfortable and modern one that engages students in its planning and creation. Premises should be available for people with reduced mobility. The school should have modern equipment to ensure the educational process as well as a high-speed Internet connection.
Financial component and saving resources
The annual salary fund for the teaching staff of the small lyceum is roughly UAH 2–2.5 million per year. Small schools always require additional funding from the local budget.
In addition to other sources of funding (attracted grant or charity funds), the expert recommended saving resources by creating combined classes, conducting combined lessons, doing “friendly” substitutions and paying bonuses instead of set allowances.
“A small school must show that it also strives for effective management,” said Mr Diatlenko.
Social significance of a small school in the municipality
If the municipality can turn a small school into a centre of education and create a point of growth there, it can open up prospects for development. It can host kindergarten and extracurricular groups and clubs, and educational courses for adults can be held here. It can be a cultural and sports centre as well, home to a library, drama and sports clubs.
At the info session, the participants learned the best practices for managing an understaffed school in the Reshetylivka municipality. Earlier, they received recommendations for evaluating the capacity of schools according to five criteria: educational activities of the school, professional capacity of the teaching staff, interaction with parents, authorities and residents of the municipality/village, financial and economic activities of the school, formation of an educational environment.