Development of a Model for Effective Junior High Schools

This study set out to develop a model for effective junior high schools in accordance with the norms of the Iranian society and based on Fundamental Reform Document of Education, the National Curriculum and the objectives of secondary education. To this end, a thorough examination of the theoretical foundations as well literature review was conducted and 16 components were derived. These components were organized in the form of a questionnaire whose face and content validity was approved by 15 educational experts from Northwest of Iran. To assess the reliability of the questionnaire, internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha test) and test-retest (intra-class correlation coefficient) were used and the revised questionnaire was piloted among 60 individuals (α= 0.982 and ICC = 0.931). After confirming the validity and reliability of the measure, it was administered to a sample of 217 individuals. The collected data were analyzed using descriptive (mean, standard deviation) and inferential statistics (one-sample t test). The results of confirmatory factor analysis (performed with Amos) also indicated a good fit between the 16-component model of effective schools and the observed data. In the ranking of the components of the effective school model, “achieving the objectives” with standardized estimate of 0.88 was the most effective one, whereas the component of “having high expectations of students” with standardized estimate of 0.55 was the least effective one.