Determinants of school efficiency : The case of primary schools in the State of Geneva, Switzerland

Details

Serval ID
serval:BIB_EAADF0FFB3DE
Type
Article: article from journal or magazin.
Collection
Publications
Institution
Title
Determinants of school efficiency : The case of primary schools in the State of Geneva, Switzerland
Journal
International Journal of Educational Management
Author(s)
Huguenin J.-M.
ISSN
0951-354X
Publication state
Published
Issued date
2015
Peer-reviewed
Oui
Volume
29
Number
5
Pages
539-562
Language
english
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is (1) to measure school technical efficiency and (2) to identify the determinants of primary school performance.
Design/methodology/approach
A two-stage Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) of school efficiency is conducted. At the first stage, DEA is employed to calculate an individual efficiency score for each school. At the second stage, efficiency is regressed on school characteristics and environmental variables.
Findings
The mean technical efficiency of schools in the State of Geneva is equal to 93%. By improving the operation of schools, 7% (100 - 93) of inputs could be saved, representing 17'744'656.2 Swiss francs in 2010. School efficiency is negatively influenced by (1) operations being held on multiple sites, (2) the proportion of disadvantaged pupils enrolled at the school and (3) the provision of special education, but positively influenced by school size (captured by the number of pupils).
Practical implications
Technically, the determinants of school efficiency are outside of the control of the headteachers. However, it is still possible to either boost the positive impact or curb the negative impact. Potential actions are discussed.
Originality/value
Unlike most similar studies, the model in this study is tested for multicollinearity, heteroskedasticity and endogeneity. It is therefore robust. Moreover, one explanatory variable of school efficiency (operations being held on multiple sites) is a truly original variable as it has never been tested so far.
Keywords
school performance, efficiency, two-stage data envelopment analysis, multiple sites
Create date
27/01/2014 14:22
Last modification date
20/08/2019 16:13
Usage data