In another step, we compared the program theories in the six countries to distinguish
commonalities and differences in their assumptions on causal mechanisms of the
Table 1 (continued)
Country Documents analysed Inspection officials interviewed
Klassensprecher/innen; Standort- und
Perspektivengespräch mit dem Schulleiter;
Schulentwicklungsplan; Brief
Bezirksschulrat N.N. an die Hauptschule/
PTS; LehrerInnengespräch; Zoller,
2005; 2008)
Czech
Republic
White paper on education reform (2001),
Education Act regulating tasks and
functioning of Inspectorate (2004),
documents and reports of Inspectorate,
describing their work and outcomes.
Interviews with head of regional school
inspectorate and the deputy chief school
inspector
Educ Asse Eval Acc
respective inspection systems. The assumptions that are similar in most program
theories are considered to be the ‘conceptual core of inspection’, representing those
potential causal mechanisms explaining how school inspections may lead to school
improvement which all national inspection systems in our study seem to subscribe to.
The ‘conceptual model’ of the processes and effects of school inspection resulting
from this procedure will be empirically tested in another stage of this international
project (which is not reported in this paper). The findings of this procedure are
summarized in Fig. 1 and explained in the following section.