Validation of Neighborhood Training School Pattern through Questionnaire

Today, the position of the school as a formal educational institution has changed compared to the past. Today’s schools are open spaces and social entities mutually related to community and relevant institutions,This article is extracted from the quantitative part of the dissertation titled “Developing and Validating the Model of School as the Neighborhood Educational Center”. The article related to the qualitative part (developing the model of the school as the neighborhood educational center) has already been introduced and presented.research

This study is applied research concerning research objectives and an exploratory mixed project regarding its type. The qualitative step was according to the grounded theory method. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews with 24 experts and professionals in educational management, followed by data analysis in three stages of open, axial, and selective coding. As a result, the model of school as the neighborhood educational center was developed in six categories of causal conditions, axial phenomenon (school as the neighborhood educational center), mediating conditions, intervening conditions, strategies, and consequences. The quantitative step used the descriptive-survey method to validate the proposed model. The data collection tool at this step was a researcher-made questionnaire completed by 41 principals, teachers, and deputy principals (experts in executive and educational positions) in different regions of Tehran and also University professors, selected through purposive-judgmental sampling. The relationships between research variables were investigated by path analysis/structural equation modeling, using Smart PLS software.

According to the results, causal conditions affected the main factors positively and significantly. Also, the main and intervening factors influenced strategies significantly and positively. However, underlying factors did not affect strategies significantly. The results also confirmed positive and significant effects of strategies on consequences.

To change the schools into the neighborhood educational centers, it is necessary to consider the position of schools,, seek to change community attitudes towards the educational role of school through the media, appoint school principals based on meritocracy, review rules and regulations, emphasize school-centeredness, and increase school authority.