5.1. Rival Hypotheses of Best Practice
5.2. Challenging Common Myths about Schooling
One of the key issues in case study research is the extent to which the findings are generalisable beyond the particular setting of the case. Yin (1994, p. 10) distinguishes between the goals of scientific experiments, which seek to generalise to populations and universes, and case study research, which seeks to expand and generalise theories. The value of case study research lies in its ability to identify, analyse and express theoretical propositions which may have resonance in other settings. The rigour of this process would not be complete without a counter-analysis of rival hypotheses about best practice which have emerged during the course of the investigation. In this section, there is some attempt to answer five counter claims about best practice which have arisen out of the research. These claims are that best practice at Loreto Sealdah:
· rests on a leadership model which can best be described as a 'personality cult';
· is dependent on massive financial resources;
· is made possible by high levels of conformity among Loreto educated, Loreto trained staff;
· is dependent on having highly trained staff;
· is a religious phenomenon.
There is no doubt that each of these rival claims contains within it a grain of truth. However, the significance of the claims, taken individually or together, is that they may be used to invalidate a more generic theoretical model of best practice which has the potential for application across a wider body of schools in India. The five counter-claims are all open to being used as conservative, change-resisting, and limiting theories, enabling their proponents to dismiss Loreto Sealdah as a unique but irrelevant institution in the broader context of India. In contrast, the analysis and explanatory framework which this report contains has used research evidence to suggest that a more complex and sophisticated process of 'doing' best practice has emerged out of the school's experience. It is therefore important to examine briefly each of the claims in turn, and suggest why they cannot be used to dismantle a more generic theory of best practice, even where they contain elements of truth within them.
The 'Personality Cult' Theory
There can be no doubt that Sr. Cyril has been the pioneering spirit of many of the changes at Loreto Sealdah. Children and staff refer to her as a "visionary" and a "spiritual" leader of the school, while she herself acknowledges that she is the "ideas person" behind many of the innovations which have led to a form of best practice at the school. Beyond the school gates Sr. Cyril has become a high profile and celebrated educational leader in national and international circles, adding weight to the theory that her personality is central to the vision of the school. At first glance, then, it appears that the theory of a powerful personality driving and sustaining change in the interests of best practice, has some credibility. Certainly, in a broader context of educational torpor and inertia (see Shukla and Kaul, 1998; Shotton, 1998), the theory that powerful and vocal leaders are necessary to 'kickstart' the system, has merit. However, there are a number of countervailing tendencies within the school which suggest that a different interpretation is possible.
Firstly, in discussions and interviews with coordinators, teachers 10, administrative staff and pupils, all avowed that they now 'owned' the changes, and that these would continue without the presence of Sr Cyril. These actors and participants are so involved in the programmes and projects of the school, some of which they themselves have initiated or refined, that they feel that they 'own' them. Moreover, in the short-term, the school continues to function effectively without Sr. Cyril for a significant part of the school calendar while she is away at conferences, workshops and meetings. Capacities have been built across the system as a result of these absences. All these factors evidence the dispersal of authority which has been referred to as a feature of best practice in the section on freedom and responsibility (4.3.2).
10 Except for one teacher who said that the programmes would all collapse without Sr Cyril's presence.
A second way of countering the view that a 'personality cult' is at play within the school, is that a number of other schools send members of their staff to Loreto to observe and identify aspects of the school programme which may be adapted or translated into their own school contexts. The system, values and generic characteristics within it, rather than the personalities at the school, are the features that those who would model their practice on Loreto Sealdah take away. Significantly, when asked whether the ethos and practice of the school would be maintained when her term as principal came to an end, Sr. Cyril affirmed that the staff and pupils would carry the programmes and projects forward, provided that the new leadership was supportive. This points to the fact that leadership is both an important and a transferable commodity in the production of best practice. It points away from the notion of a cult of personality driving best practice.
The Financial Resources Theory
The financial resources theory is a similarly compelling way of explaining away best practice at Loreto Sealdah as the product of healthy bank balance sheets. There is certainly some validity in the argument that "good education costs more than bad" (Beeby, 1986). There can also be no doubt that the school has more money and resources than many other schools in India. However, there are three interesting counter-arguments to the financial resources theory. The first is that a substantial number of independent schools in India with similar resource bases have not put their schools to as extensive or as good use. The second is that Loreto Day School has used whatever resources it has imaginatively, extensively and powerfully in the interests of best practice. There are lessons for all schools,' worldwide, rich and poor, in the boundary-breaking strategies which Loreto has adopted to maximise its resources. The principle of maximising resources in response to need has driven the creative stretching of resources to capacity, and beyond. The third argument is linked to the second, and posits that the resource question is more about human agency and the values of a school, than about how much money a school might have. The fact that Loreto plans programmes, projects and buildings in advance of the funding, and takes financial risks in the interests of its outreach to the poor, for example, suggests that the school is driven by its values agenda, rather than its bank balance.
The Conformity Theory
This theory argues that the staff at Loreto are predisposed to the values of the school before they enter it, by virtue of the fact that they have been educated and trained in the same or other Loreto institutions. To some extent, this may be true, in that Loreto Schools have long exercised a preferential option for the poor, and are part of a particular religious and cultural tradition. However, the direction that Loreto Sealdah has taken in the last twenty years would take many a seasoned Loreto nun by surprise. It is an atypical Loreto School in that it has radically altered the definition and direction of traditional Loreto Schools, while still remaining in the fold. Arguably, the teachers on the staff do conform to a set of shared values and a collective vision, but the express recruitment policy of the school to have critical and independent thinkers on the staff, and the explicit intention to tolerate mavericks and critical ideas, must provide a corrective to conformity.
The Theory of Highly Trained Staff
This argument rests on the premise that for best practice to happen the staff must be highly trained professionals. To some extent, the fact that most of the primary teachers have been trained at Loreto Teacher Training College, one of the foremost training institutions in India, must have an influence on the quality of education at Loreto Sealdah. There is certainly a core of well-trained staff at the school. But the school's willingness to recruit beyond this group, arid even to recruit a barefoot trainee from its own para-teacher training programme to assist with teacher training, is evidence of a different philosophy at work. The staff development which takes place through the Barefoot Teacher Training Programme and the Rainbow School, where orthodox methodologies and theories may hamper learning rather than assist it, has meant that the school is more interested in creative thinkers who are willing to work by trial-and-error, than teachers whose qualifications give them a set of certainties which may, in fact, prevent learning.
The Religious Phenomenon Theory
This theory maintains that the ethos, values and programme at Loreto Sealdah are God-inspired, and by implication, only possible within schools with a religious foundation and tradition. Certainly, the spiritual dimension of the school is compelling, both as an example of Christianity at work, and as an example of building an ecumenical community out of a multi-faith group. 11 Whilst the school has been described by outsiders as "a place of grace", and there is a vision, a compassion and a generosity which mark it out as a special place of god-likeness and godliness, it is also a place of tremendous human agency and action. Sr. Cyril's maxim that she would "make compassion compulsory" at Loreto Sealdah flies in the face of orthodox theology with its notions of prayerful reflection, revelation, and response. It exemplifies the pragmatic, matter-of-fact, and hands-on approach to poverty and social justice that the school has taken, out of the view that love is central to spirituality, just as action is central to love. To some extent, then, Loreto Sealdah may be seen as a school which is responsive to circumstance, and whose vision includes a high level of exposure to the realities of life in India, and a 'can-do' attitude.
11 The majority of pupils at the school are Hindu. There are Catholics, Protestants, Sikhs, Jains and Muslims on the school roll, and among the school staff. There are also atheists and agnostics.
A second way of exploring the critical issues which this case study has highlighted, is through representing and confronting some common myths about schooling. In this instance, the practices of Loreto Sealdah are used as a reflective tool, whereby notions of schooling and best practice in general may come under scrutiny. A set of common myths, represented overleaf, reflect some of the concerns discussed in Section 5.1 on rival hypotheses of best practice. Most refer to the values, activities and practices which have been discussed more generally in the report. As such they represent a kind of critical summary of the case study analysis.
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COMMON MYTHS THAT LORETO CHALLENGES 1. Schools need massive physical resources to educate properly. 2. Low teacher: pupil ratios contribute to effective teaching and learning. 3. Social class and academic achievement are related. 4. There needs to be a ladder of promotions to motivate teachers. 5. Teachers are too overloaded and stressed to take on new and challenging roles. 6. Strangers and stray dogs on the premises will trash the property. 7. You can't run two schools within one building, at the same time. 8. You can't run two schools, a soup kitchen, a night shelter, and a teacher training programme within one building, at the same time. 9. Teachers always grumble. 10. Children need to be protected from the harsh realities of life. 11. Good fences make good neighbours. 12. Competition is the best way to motivate pupils. 13. You must know where the money is coming from before you make the plan. 14. Principals get stale if they stay in the same job in the same school for too long. 15. You can't change the basic structure of how a school operates. 16. Freedom is dangerous. Teachers and pupils will often take advantage of it. 17. Rich and poor children mix like oil and water. |
