SMALL SCHOOLS IN RURAL SETTINGS: IMPACT OF A MULTI-SCHOOL MANAGEMENT APPROACH ON PUPILS, STAFF AND PARENTS

Abstract

Keeping schools open in small or remote communities is a major challenge. Short of transporting children out of their community to larger ones, effective cost-reduction measures are required.  One approach is multi-school management, where one individual is the acting director (or principal) for two or more schools. The aim of this paper is to present the results of an empirical study of the perceived impact of this approach. A total of 18 elementary schools (6 with a single director and 12 with multi-school directors) were included in the study, generating 4 samples: 18 directors; 182 teachers; 1235 pupils; 1598 parents. All participants filled out a questionnaire aimed at evaluating school climate, overall satisfaction, communication, school achievement, problem behaviours and organizational climate. Results indicated that parents are the ones who react the most negatively to a multi-school management approach.

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