Testing the role of accountability in teachers’ school placement decisions: Findings from an experimental study

Sabine Glock Florian Klapproth

Sabine Krolak-SchwerdtMatthias BöhmerUniversity of Luxembourg

This research was funded by Grant C08/LM/02 from the Fonds National de la Recherche Luxembourg (FNR).

Background• countries with tracking

– tracking is not solely based on achievement levels

– students with low socioecomic status and immigration background are disadvantaged (e.g. Bos et al., 2007; Burton et al., 2004)

Luxembourgish school system

• school types in Luxembourg

– Enseignement secondaire – university entrance

– Enseignement secondaire technique – vocational qualification

– Régime preparatoire – limited vocational qualification

Tracking procedure

• council makes the tracking decision

– primary school teacher (has two votes)– one teacher from each secondary school type– responsible school inspector

• parents have to follow the decision

Tracking procedure

• tracking should be based on performance related cues

– school grades– scores in standardized achievement tests– working and learning habits

Thill, 2001

Theoretical background

• dual process models of impression and judgment formation (e.g. Brewer, 1988; Fiske & Neuberg, 1990)

– heuristic judgment formation

– rule-based judgment formation

Theoretical Background

• motivation determines the use of the different strategies

– high motivation rule-based– low motivation heuristic

• accountability moderates motivation (Lerner &

Tetlock, 1999; Tetlock, 1992; Tetlock & Kim, 1987)

Hypotheses

• teachers with high accountability performance related cues

• teachers with low accountability non-performance related cues

• teachers as a member of the council? non-performance related cues

Accountability manipulation

• three different experimental conditions

– high accountability– low accountability– council condition

material• seven cues

– below or above average school grades– below or above average scores of standardized

achievement tests– positive or negative working and learning habits– positive or negative social behaviour – high or low SES– with or without immigration background - nationality– female or male - gender

Procedure and participants

• procedure

– instruction– reading and judging

each student – tracking decisions

• highest• middle• lowest school track

• participants

– 54 primary school teachers– 38 years old– 14 years of teaching

experience– 31 teachers gave

instructions in the sixth grade

Manipulation check

60

65

70

75

80

85

high council low

perceived accountability in percent

F(2,49) = 3.45, p2 = 0.12, p < .05

Results: school placement decisions

Lowaccountability

Council Highaccountability

school grades 85.18** 31.86** 50.67**

test scores 14.01** 12.32** 10.26**

nationality 3.21** 1.84* 1.68

SES 1.20 1.54 1.53

working and learning habits 2.42* 2.01* 2.81**

social behavior 1.52 1.38 1.50

gender 2.04 2.11 1.56

*p < .10; **p < .05; odds ratios

Discussion

• teachers with low accountability

non-performance related cues • teachers as a member of the council

non-performance related cues• teachers with high accountability

only performance related cues

accountability improved tracking decisions

General Discussion

• high accountability induced rule-based judgment formation

• making teachers aware of the importance of the decision

• introducing the need to justify tracking decisions

Thank you for your attention!!!

• We conducted an experimental study providing minimal information about each student. Thus, our results are limited in their ecological validity. How could validity be improved in experimental settings?

• We provided text information about our students. However, teachers see, hear, and communicate with their students. Do you think that providing information about students in another modality (i.e. video tapes or pictures) would have influenced the results of our study?

• If accountability truly is as a factor that improves school placement decisions how might it be increased in the Luxembourgish school placement procedure?