Restricted accessResearch articleFirst published online 2006-03
What is ‘specialist’ about a specialist department in a Specialist School? A case study focusing on dilemmas and contradictions in the ‘partnership’ requirements®
It is a condition of being a Specialist School that the named departmental
specialist(s) develop(s) or extend(s) partnerships with other schools, within and
outside the school’s age phase. This article describes and analyses the
partnerships forged by the mathematics department of one of the first cohort of
specialist mathematics and computing colleges over the first two years of its
designation as a Specialist School. Benefits and constraints are highlighted and
compared with existing findings from other research into Specialist Schools and with
work which focuses on school improvement. Reflections upon this qualitative study of
staff perspectives and experiences, which form the basis of a subsequent study
exploring practice recommendations based on analysis of more cases, are offered
which may help inform decision-making and policy implementation in other schools
considering applying for specialist status.
DfES
(2001b) Specialist Schools Programme. Mathematics and
Computing College Applications: A Guide for Schools.
London: DfES
.
5.
DfES
(2003) A New Specialist System: Transforming Secondary
Education.
London: DfES
.
6.
Fielding, M.
,
Bragg, S.
,
Craig, J.
,
Cunningham, I.
,
Eraut, M.
,
Gillinson, S.
,
Horne, M.
,
Robinson, C.
&
Thorp, J.
(2005) Factors Influencing the Transfer of Good
Practice. Research Brief No: RB615.
London: Department for Education and Skills
.
7.
Garner, R.
(2001)
How a Conservative idea became a Labour success story
. The Independent, 21 June, p.
6
.
8.
Glaser, B.
&
Strauss, A.
(1967) The Discovery of Grounded Theory.
Chicago, IL: Aldine
.
9.
Goldstein, H.
(2001)
Using pupil performance data for judging schools’ and
teachers’ scope and limitations
. British Educational Research Journal,
27(4),
433-442
.
10.
Gorard, S.
&
Taylor, C.
(2001)
The composition of specialist schools in England: track record and future prospect
. School Leadership and Management,
21(4),
365-381
.
11.
Harris, A.
(2004) A study of the Specialist Schools Programme.
Research Brief No: RB587.
London: Department for Education and Skills
.
12.
House of Commons Education and Skills Committee
(2003) Diversity of Provision. 4th Report of the Education
and Skills Committee, Session 2002-2003.
London: The Stationery Office
. Available online:
www.parliament.the-stationery-office.co.uk/pa/cm200203/cmselect/cmeduski/94/9407.htm%23a22
(last accessed 7 February 2005).
13.
Jesson, D.
&
Crossley, D.
(2004) Educational Outcomes and Value Added by Specialist
Schools.
London: Specialist Schools Trust
.
14.
Jesson, D.
&
Taylor, C.
(2001) Educational Outcomes and Value Added Analysis of
Specialist Schools for the Year 2000.
London: Technology Colleges Trust
.
15.
Levacic, R.
&
Jenkins, A.
(2004)
Evaluating the effectiveness of specialist schools in England
. Paper presented at European Conference on Educational Research,
University of Crete, Rethymnon, September 2004.
16.
Nardi, E.
&
Steward, S.
(2003)
Is mathematics T.I.R.E.D? A profile of quiet disaffection in the secondary
mathematics classroom
. British Educational Research Journal,
29(3),
345-367
.
17.
Noden, P.
&
Braun, A.
(2004) Specialist Schools - Further Quantitative
Findings. (Excellence in Cities Report 03/2004). Available online:
http://www.nfer.ac.uk/research/EIC/03-2004.doc (last accessed 15 January 2005).
18.
Ofsted
(2001) Specialist Schools: An Evaluation of Progress.
London: HMSO
.
19.
Ofsted
(2005) Specialist Schools: A Second Evaluation.
(Document HMI 2362).
London: Ofsted
.
20.
Parlett, M.
&
Hamilton, D.
(1977) Evaluation as illumination. In
D. Hamilton
,
D. Jenkins
,
C. King
,
B. Macdonald
&
M. Pallett
(eds) Beyond the Numbers Game, pp. 6-22.
Basingstoke: Macmillan
.
21.
Penney, D.
,
Houlihan, B.
&
Eley, D.
(2002) Specialist sports colleges national monitoring and
evaluation research project: first national survey report. Available
online:
http://www.lboro.ac.uk/departments/sses/institute/iys/pages/collegesreport.htm
(last accessed 11 January 2003).
22.
Richardson, L.
(2000) Writing: a method of enquiry. In
N. K. Denzin
&
Y. S. Lincoln
(eds) Handbook of Qualitative Research, pp.
516-529.
Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage
.
23.
Rudduck, J.
,
Berry, M.
,
Brown, N.
&
Frost, D.
(2000)
Schools learning from other schools: co-operation in a climate of competition
. Research Papers in Education, 15(3),
259-274
.
24.
Sammons, P.
,
Hillman, J.
&
Mortimore, P.
(1995) Key Characteristics of Effective Schools: A Review of
School Effectiveness Research.
London: London University Institute of
Education and Ofsted
.
25.
Schagen, S.
,
Davies, D.
,
Rudd, P.
&
Schagen, I.
(2002) The Impact of Specialist and Faith Schools on
Performance.
Slough: NFER
.
26.
Specialist Schools Trust
(2004) First mathematics and computing colleges conference,
Cambridge, April 2004.
27.
Specialist Schools Trust
(2005a) Specialism information. Available online:
www.specialistschools.org.uk/schools/specialistschoolsprogramme/specialisminformation.aspa
(last accessed 7 February 2005).
Specialist Subject School Bid (2001) Bid submitted by the school to the
Specialist Schools Trust for specialist school status.
30.
Teddlie, C.
&
Reynolds, D.
(eds) (1999) The International Handbook of School
Effectiveness Research.
London: Routledge Falmer Press
.
31.
Younger, M.
&
Warrington, M.
with
Gray, J.
,
Rudduck, J.
,
McLellan, R.
,
Bearne, E.
,
Kershner, R.
&
Bricheno, P.
(2005) Raising Boys’ Achievement.
London: DfES
.
