IMPLEMENTING EDUCATION POLICIES:

LEADING FOR EFFECTIVE CHANGE IN

EDUCATION

Dr. Beatriz Pont

OECD Directorate for Education and Skills

Vienna, Austria 14 December 2018

@beatrizpont

CONFERENCE ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF EDUCATION REFORMS

GOVERNANCE AND LEADERSHIP IN CHANGE PROCESSES

EU PRESIDENCY AUSTRIA 2018

2

A changing world……..……...leading to education change

Education reforms, OECD, 2008-2014

OECD (2015): Education Policy Outlook 2015: Making Reforms Happen

Reforms on key policy areas Don't consider current/other policies

Content

Large reform activity (+455) Reform fatigue/lack of sustainability

N of reforms

Context of reforms

Centered around policy design Need to focus on implementation

Reform process

Evaluation

WeaknessesStrengths

Complexity between design and implementation of reforms

only 10% Evaluation research abound

Reform adoption

Need to create school learning cultures Low understanding of school capacity

OECD (2015): Education Policy Outlook 2015: Making Reforms Happen

Education policy implementation is a purposeful and multidirectional change

process aiming to put a specific policy into practice and which may affect a given

education system on several levels.

How to ensure policies reach schools, students and classrooms?

4

?

5

The process of policy making in education is no longer linear

Easton, D. (1958); Jones (1984)

Problem definition

Agenda setting

Policy options

Policy development

Policy implementatio

n

Policy evaluation

From theory…

6

Policy making ………a complex web of human interactions

influenced by the context…

… to practice

Contextual factors

• Politics, socioeconomic and timing factors

• Changing governance and institutions

• Other reforms

Policy making

• Piece meal approaches (lacking coherence)

• Insufficient capacity development

• Lack of resources

• Data/information poor

Actors• Multiple actors

• Resistance to reform

Design of the policy: coherent

Implementation:

aligned and planned

Education reform is not only for policy makers from the top down, but a

balancing act beyond evidence-based policy making

7

Not much research

evidence on

education policy

implementation.

Very context based.

8

For policy success, both the content and the policy process are important

Viennet, R. and B. Pont (2017), "Education policy implementation: A literature review and proposed

framework", OECD Education Working Papers, No. 162, OECD Publishing, Paris. http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/fc467a64-

en; www.oecd.org/education/implementing-policies

• The policy at least partially defined before implemented. Its justification, validity of its causal theory and goals, complementarity with other policies and feasibility affect whether it can be effectively implemented.

Smart policy design

• Actors can interpret, react and influence implementation. Including them throughout the process facilitates long term success and prevent reactions against reforms.

Inclusive stakeholder engagement

• The process’ features are adapted to the structures and governance of its system at a given time, to the particular actors, and around the specific educational policy.

Conducive context

• A coherent plan outlines concrete measures to make the policy design operational, with sufficient resources, capacity building, communications, and engaging stakeholders.

Coherent implementation

strategy9

A framework for policies to reach schools and classrooms

•The policy at least partially defined before implemented. Its justification, validity of its causal theory and goals, complementarity with other policies and feasibilityaffect whether it can be effectively implemented.

Smart policy design

10

8.8%

6.1%

1.9%

5.5%

8.1%6.8%

8.0% 8.3%

2.8%

13.9%

3.1%4.3% 4.0%

5.4%

2.9% 2.8%

7.3%

0%2%4%6%8%

10%12%14%16%

Dis

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em

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eci

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Use

of

reso

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Equity and Quality Preparing Students for theFuture

School Improvement Evaluation andAssessment to Improve

Student Outcomes

Governance Funding

0 10 20 30 40

Student truancy

Students skipping classes

Students lacking respect for teachers

Student use of alcohol or illegal drugs

Students intimidating or bullying other students

Teachers not meeting individual students’ needs

Teacher absenteeism

Staff resisting change

Teachers being too strict with students

Teachers not being well-prepared for classes

OECD average

OECD (2016), "Student and teacher behaviour hindering learning: Results based on school principals' reports", in PISA 2015 Results (Volume II): Policies and Practices for Successful Schools, PISA, OECD Publishing, Paris, http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/9789264267510-graph26-en.

11

Percentage of students in schools where the school principal reported that the following phenomena hinder student learning to some extent or a lot:

• Actors can interpret, react and influence implementation. Including them throughout the process facilitates long term success and prevent reactions against reforms.

Inclusive stakeholder engagement

TENSIONS

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Students/

Classroompractice

Ministries

Regionalbodies

Universities

Schoolowners

Schoolleaders

Teachers

Defining roles and attributions

• Actors can interpret, react and influence implementation. Including them throughout the process facilitates long term success and prevent reactions against reforms.

Inclusive stakeholder engagement

13

Political environment

Governance and institutions

• Central/decentralised

• External institutions

Complementary policies

• Assessment policies

• Curriculum reform

• Initial teacher education

System and school leadership

• The process’ features are adapted to the structures and governance of its system at a given time, to the particular actors, and around the specific educational policy.Conducive context

14

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

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2013 2005

Source: World Gallup Poll 2013

• The process’ features are adapted to the structures and governance of its system at a given time, to the particular actors, and around the specific educational policy.Conducive context

Public confidence in education system, 2005, 2013

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Objectives

indicators

TargetedCommunication

Timing

Clarity in rolesand

responsibilities

Resources

Monitoring feedback

• A coherent plan outlines concrete measures to make the policy design operational, with sufficient resources, capacity building, communications, and engaging stakeholders.

Coherent implementation

strategy

• Review by G Donaldson in 2015 to understand need, to define .

Smart policy design

• Consultation in independent review.

• Pioneer schools

• Parliamentary acceptance

• Co construction.

Inclusive stakeholder engagement

• Political moment suitable. .

A conducive context

• Outlines concrete measures to make the policy design operational, with sufficient resources, capacity building, communications, and engaging stakeholders.

A coherent implementation strategy

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Dimensions of effective policy implementation

Wales

Clarify objectives

related to wales

development;

PISA

consultation;

co-construction

Pioneer schools

Political moment

Consortia; school

improvement plan

Co-construction

Plan w/resources

OECD

Japan

Every 10 years

Update curriculum

For 2030

consultation;

Pioneer schools

Political moment?

Governance

Resources/capacity

17

For policy success, both the content and the policy process are important

Viennet, R. and B. Pont (2017), "Education policy implementation: A literature review and proposed framework", OECD Education Working

Papers, No. 162, OECD Publishing, Paris. http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/fc467a64-en

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Implementing education policies: supporting effective change in

education

Strategic advice

Policy assessment

Implementationseminars

OECD education policy implementation support from a comparative perspective

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Tailored OECD Implementing Education Policies Support: Selected

examples

• 3 years

• Schools as Learning Organisations (SLO) model

• 2 Policy Assessments

• Strategic advice and Implementation Seminars

• SLO survey, School self-evaluation toolkit

Wales

• 2 years

• Competence development model for schools

• Policy assessment

• Participation in meetings, doc. review, reference group

• Implementation Seminars

Norway

• 1 year

• Senior Cycle Review

• Policy Assessment

• Participation in national consultation meetings, steering group

Ireland

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Publications and other deliverables: selected examples

The School as Learning

Organisation model in Wales

Frameworks HighlightsPolicy Assessment

ReportsBriefs Seminars

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

www.oecd.org/education/implementing-policies

Beatriz Pont Sr. Education Policy Analyst, Directorate for Education and Skills

beatriz.pont@oecd.org; + 33 (0)14524 1824

@beatrizpont