Institute for Education Policy Research

School Improvement: Trends and Resources

The performance of schools on measured indicators is an important policy issue in the UK. We have contributed to the literature by investigating aspects and techniques that have been little considered elsewhere in the literature. Our work on the effectiveness of different types of expenditure was one of the earliest in this area in the UK and used a data base from school inspections. In collaboration with the University of Cambridge, we have argued that there are good reasons to consider that school improvement is subject to marked persistence over time. We have pioneered the application of dynamic panel data analysis to school performance; firstly by investigating the pathways of performance and latterly in models that investigate the role of expenditure in this framework.

Recent Publications

• Hurd, S., Mangan, J. and Adnett, N. (2005) 'Are secondary schools spending enough on books?', British Educational Research Journal 31, 2: 239-255.
• Mangan, J., Pugh, G. and Gray, J. (2005) 'Changes in Examination Performance in English Secondary Schools over the Course of a Decade', Schoole effectiveness and improvement 16, 1: 29-50.
• Pugh, G. and Mangan, J. (2003) 'What's in a trend? A comment on Gray, Goldstein and Thomas (2001) "Predicting the future: the role of past performance in determing trends in institutional effectiveness at A level"', British Educational Research Journal 29, 1: 77-82.
• Pugh, G., Mangan, J., and Gray, J. (2008) 'Resources and attainment at key stage 4: estimates from a dynamic methodology', Department for Children, Schools and Families, Research Report DCSF-RR056.
• Pugh, G. (with) Rosanowski J, Rentoul J., Demster N., Fisher D., Hosking N., Hunter R., & Walford G. (2000) New Zealand Ministry of Education: a Strategic Research Initiative. Literature Review 4. The Effects of School Governance, Ownership, Organisation and Management on Educational Outcomes, Wellington, NZ: Ministry of Education.