Abstract:

Recent results of international and Hungarian student achievement assessments show that the Hungarian education system is neither highly effective nor equitable and that parents' and families' financial, social and cultural circumstances strongly influence student achievement (OH, 2023; OECD, 2023a, 2023b). Differences between schools also have a significant influence, i.e., the impact of family background is mainly through the school's average socioeconomic status (OECD, 2023a). However, our previous research (Széll, 2015, 2018) has also shown that there are primary schools with low social status that score highly on student performance assessment tests (resilient schools) and others that lag significantly behind in this respect (vulnerable schools).

This presentation will build on our previous research's analytical framework and results (Széll, 2015, 2018) to explore the school-level factors that may reveal differences between primary schools with similar socioeconomic disadvantages and those at risk. Therefore, in addition to exploring the current situation, the analysis provides an opportunity to compare with previous findings. The timeliness of the analysis is also supported by the fact that, due to the significant shortening of the site questionnaires, the 2022 National Competency Survey (NCS) is the last one in which we will be able to include such a wide range of school characteristics in the analysis as we were able to in our previous research.

The analysis is based on the site-level results of the Hungarian National Assessment of Basic Competences (NABC) 2018–2022 and information and administrative statistics from the site questionnaires (e.g. pedagogical practices, student and teacher characteristics, indicators of student progression, school climate). School effectiveness is measured by school-level pedagogical value-added indicators using linear regression models, in which absolute test scores are estimated by historical test scores and the socioeconomic status of the school. Differences between resilient and vulnerable school groups categorised by pedagogical value-added (top quartile vs. bottom quartile) and socioeconomic status (bottom quartile) are examined using statistical tests and multivariate binomial logistic regression. The comparison is complemented by analysing the average characteristics of all primary and all primary schools with similar socioeconomic disadvantages.

The results support the more favourable characteristics of resilient schools relative to vulnerable schools in almost all dimensions examined. Adding to this, even so, in all aspects, the resilient schools show a less favourable picture than the more advantaged schools. In other words, the massive gap between resilient and vulnerable schools, and even more so between socio-economically advantaged and less advantaged schools, has persisted in this respect for several decades and has widened in specific dimensions (e.g. teacher composition).

The research results reveal deeper links between the effectiveness and equity of the Hungarian education system and highlight key dimensions that education policy needs to address.

Keywords:

School effectiveness, equity, SES, resilience, pedagogical value-added.