The article focuses on school inspections as an instrument for school development and aims to clarify how schools cope with the results which are generated by it. It is based on the assumption that the specific situation of a school has an impact on how and in what way the results are received and dealt with in schools. In order to support this argument, this article contains the findings of case studies (based on interviews and surveys) carried out in mainstream schools in Germany. The article provides empirical insight about different ways schools cope with the inspection results, revealing that the extent to which an established organisational structure of development work exists within the schools is particularly important for effectively using the inspection results. This article draws attention to the necessity to adapt the kind of support to the individual schools.
Böhm-KasperO.SeldersO. (2013). ‘Schulinspektionen sollten regelmäßig durchgeführt werden’? [School inspections should be conducted regularly’?] In van AckerenI.HeinrichM.ThielF. (Eds.), Evidenzbasierte Steuerung im Bildungssystem? [Evidence-based governance in the education system?] (Die Deutsche Schule, 12. Beiheft, pp. 121–153). Münster, Germany: Waxmann.
2.
BöttcherW.KeuneM.NeiwertP. (2010). Evaluationsbericht zum Projekt ‘Schulinspektion in Hessen’ [Final report concerning the project ‘School inspection in Hesse]. Münster, Germany: Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster.
3.
CullingfordC.DanielsS. (1999). Effects of OFSTED inspections on school performance. In CullingfordC. (Ed.), An inspector calls: OFSTED and its effects on school standards (pp. 59–69). London, England: Kogan.
4.
de WolfI.JanssensF. J. G. (2007). Effects and side effects of inspections and accountability in education: An overview of empirical studies. Oxford Review of Education, 33, 379–396.
5.
DederingK. (2012). Schulinspektion als wirksamer Weg der Systemsteuerung? [School inspection – An efficient way of controlling the system?] Zeitschrift für Pädagogik, 58, 69–88.
6.
DederingK.FritschN.NierhoffC.RichterK.WeyerC. (2014). Schulinspektion als Instrument der Qualitätsentwicklung von Schulen [School inspection as an instrument for school quality development]. Vechta, Germany: Universität Vechta.
7.
DederingK.MüllerS. (2011). School improvement through inspections? First empirical insights from Germany. Journal of Educational Change, 12, 301–322.
8.
DöbertH.RürupM.DederingK. (2008). Externe Evaluation von Schulen in Deutschland – die Konzepte der Bundesländer, ihre Gemeinsamkeiten und Unterschiede [External evaluation of schools in Germany – The concepts of the states, their similarities and differences]. In DöbertH.DederingK. (Eds.), Externe Evaluation von Schulen – Historische, rechtliche und vergleichende Aspekte [External evaluation of schools – Historical, judicial and comparative aspects] (pp. 63–151). Münster, Germany: Waxmann.
9.
EhrenM. C. M.AltrichterH.McNamaraG.O’HaraJ. (2013). Impact of School inspections on teaching and learning – Describing assumptions on causal mechanisms in six European countries. Educational Assessment, Evaluation and Accountability, 25, 3–43.
10.
EhrenM. C. M.PerrymanJ.ShakletonN. (2014). Setting expectations for good education: How Dutch school inspections drive improvement. School Effectiveness and School Improvement. Retrieved from http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09243453.2014.936472.
11.
EhrenM. C. M.VisscherA. J. (2006). Towards a theory on the impact of school inspections. British Journal of Educational Studies, 54, 51–72.
12.
FatkeR. (2010). Fallstudien in der Erziehungswissenschaft [Case studies in education]. In FriebertshäuserB.LangerA.PrengelA. (Eds.), Handbuch Qualitative Forschungsmethoden in der Erziehungswissenschaft [Handbook qualitative research methods in education] (pp. 159–172). Weinheim, Germany: Juventa.
13.
GärtnerH.HüsemannD.PantH. A. (2009). Wirkungen von Schulinspektion aus Sicht betroffener Schulleitungen [Principals’ perceptions of the impact of school inspection]. Empirische Pädagogik, 23, 1–18.
14.
GärtnerH.WursterS. (2009). Befragung zur Wirkung von Schulvisitation in Brandenburg [Survey on impacts of school visitation in Brandenburg]. Berlin, Germany: Institut für Schulqualität der Länder Berlin und Brandenburg e.V.
15.
GärtnerH.WursterS.PantH. A. (2014). The effect of school inspections on school improvement. School Effectiveness and School Improvement, 25, 489–508.
16.
GrekS.LawnM.OzgaJ.SegerholmC. (2013). Governing by inspection? European inspectorates and the creation of a European education policy space. Comparative Education, 49, 486–502.
17.
HuberF. (2008). Konsequenzen aus der externen Evaluation an Bayerns Schulen [Consequences of the external evaluation at Bavarian schools]. In BöttcherW.BosW.DöbertH.HoltappelsH. G. (Eds.), Bildungsmonitoring und Bildungscontrolling in nationaler und internationaler Perspektive [Educational monitoring and educational controlling in national und international perspective] (pp. 265–278). Münster, Germany: Waxmann.
18.
HusfeldtV. (2011). Wirkungen und Wirksamkeit der externen Schulevaluation: Überblick und Stand der Forschung [Effects and effectiveness of external school evaluation. An overview of the state of research: Überblick und Stand der Forschung]. Zeitschrift für Erziehungswissenschaft, 14, 259–283.
19.
KotthoffH.-G.BöttcherW. (2010). Neue Formen der ‘Schulinspektion’: Wirkungshoffnungen und Wirksamkeit im Spiegel empirischer Bildungsforschung [New forms of ‘school inspection’: Effect hopes and effectiveness in the mirror of empirical education research]. In AltrichterH.Maag MerkiK. (Eds.), Handbuch Neue Steuerung im Schulsystem [Handbook on new control in the school system] (pp. 295–325). Wiesbaden, Germany: VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften.
20.
LambrechtM.KotthoffH. G.Maag MerkiK. (2008). Taktieren oder Öffnen? [Beating time or opening?] In BöttcherW.BosW.DöbertH.HoltappelsH. G. (Eds.), Bildungsmonitoring und Bildungscontrolling in nationaler und internationaler Perspektive [Educational monitoring and educational controlling in national und international perspective] (pp. 279–291). Münster, Germany: Waxmann.
LandwehrN. (2011). Thesen zur Wirkung und Wirksamkeit der externen Schulevaluation [Theses on effect and effectiveness of external scool evaluation]. In QueselC.HusfeldtV.LandwehrN.SteinerP. (Eds.), Wirkungen und Wirksamkeit der externen Schulevaluation [Effects and effectiveness of external school evaluation] (pp. 35–69). Bern, Switzerland: hep Verlag.
23.
LuginbuhlR.WebbinkD.de WolfI. (2009). Do inspections improve primary school performance?Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 31, 221–237.
PietschM. (2011). Nutzung und Nützlichkeit der Schulinspektion in Hamburg [Use and usefulness of school inspection in Hamburg]. Hamburg, Germany: Behörde für Schule und Berufsbildung, Institut für Bildungsmonitoring, Schulinspektion Hamburg.
26.
PietschM.JankeN.MohrI. (2013). Führt Schulinspektion wirklich nicht zu besseren Schülerleistungen? [Does school inspektion really not lead to better student performance?] In SchwippertK.BonsenM.BerkemeyerN. (Eds.), Schul- und Bildungsforschung (pp. 167–185). Münster, Germany: Waxmann.
27.
PietschM.JankeN.MohrI. (2014). Führt Schulinspektion zu besseren Schülerleistungen? [Does school inspektion lead to better student performance?] Zeitschrift für Pädagogik, 60, 446–470.
28.
RosenthalL. (2004). Do school inspections improve school quality? OFSTED inspections and school examination results in the UK. Economics of Education Review, 23, 143–151.
29.
ShawI.NewtonD. P.AitkinM.DarnellR. (2003). Do OFSTED inspections of secondary schools make a difference to GCSE results?British Educational Research Journal, 29, 63–75.
30.
SlavinR. E. (2005). Sand, bricks, and seeds: School change strategies and readiness for reform. In HopkinsD. (Ed.), The practice and theory of school improvement: International handbook of educational change (pp. 265–279). Dordrecht, The Netherlands: Springer.
31.
SommerN. (2011). Wie beurteilen schulische Gruppen die erlebte Schulinspektion? [How do school actor groups evaluate school inspection?] In MüllerS.PietschM.BosW. (Eds.), Schulinspektion in Deutschland [School inspections in Germany] (pp. 137–164). Münster, Germany: Waxmann.
32.
WilcoxB.GrayJ. (1996). Inspecting schools: Holding schools to account and helping schools to improve. Buckingham, UK: Open University Press.
33.
WursterS.GärtnerH. (2013). Schulen im Umgang mit Schulinspektion und deren Ergebnissen [How do schools deal with school inspection and its results?]. Zeitschrift für Pädagogik, 59, 425–444.
34.
WursterS.RichterD.SchliesingA.PantH. A. (2013). Nutzung unterschiedlicher Evaluationsdaten an Berliner und Brandenburger Schulen [Use of various evaluation data in schools in the federal states of Berlin and Brandenburg]. In van AckerenI.HeinrichM.ThielF. (Eds.), Evidenzbasierte Steuerung im Bildungssystem? [Evidence-based governace in the education system?] (Die Deutsche Schule, 12. Beiheft, pp. 19–49). Münster, Germany: Waxmann.
