EXTERNAL EVALUATORS OF EDUCATIONAL TASKS: INITIAL TRAINING, RECRUITMENT AND EMPLOYMENT STATUS
B. The relation between status and required qualifications
In the vast majority of countries, external evaluators have permanent civil servant status and are employed by the central (or regional) authority responsible for carrying out external evaluation. Recruitment to these posts is always based on an open competitive procedure. Some authorities (such as those in the Flemish Community of Belgium and in Austria) have created selection committees or advisory commissions that shortlist the best candidates. This list is transmitted to the body in charge of the final selection which is invariably the ministry of education.
Countries offering civil servant status to evaluators are those in which the conditions for access to posts seem to be the most demanding (Figure 4.3). Besides expecting candidates to hold a degree, some of them require these graduates to complete a specialist course or pass a qualifying examination, or both. The United Kingdom (England and Wales) is alone in insisting that inspectors satisfy such requirements, without guaranteeing employment to candidates who do so. Open competitive examinations (or other forms of examination) are also common recruitment procedures in countries in which external evaluators are permanent employees of the evaluating authority. In some cases (as in Spain and Poland), competitive examinations should be regarded as an integral part of the recruitment procedure for civil servants in general, rather than as a procedure for appointment to the post of external evaluator as such.
In Spain and Poland, those who perform successfully in this examination are automatically entitled to perma- nent employment as school inspectors. In Portugal, candidates for the position of inspector are recruited from among civil servants (teachers or educational administrators) through a competitive tender. A selection com- mittee is responsible for the final proposal of the list of candidates to be submitted for approval by the Senior Chief Inspector. Candidates are required to complete a specialised course and in-service training for a full year, before becoming tenured inspectors. In the United Kingdom (England and Wales), satisfactory performance in Ofsted/Estyn’s assessment procedures entitles candidates to register as approved to work as members of an inspection team. It does not, in itself, guarantee employment. Inspection contractors bid, under competitive ten- der, for contracts to carry out scheduled inspections, and assemble their inspection teams from approved inspectors who are either their employees or work under contract to them. Candidates for the position of inspector in Slovenia have to pass the professional examination within a year of completing their probation- ary period. Following their appointment, they must additionally continue to take an examination in professional skills once every four years in order to retain their position, although this requirement is currently subject to review.
Another common feature of the recruitment procedure for civil servants is a probationary period. Indeed, the countries with probationary periods for external evaluators, namely Belgium (the Flemish Community), Germany, France, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom (Scotland), Poland (in the case of kura-
tor but not advisory inspectors - wizytator) and Slovenia, are also countries in which inspectors enjoy civil
servant status.
Countries that entrust external evaluation to independent experts tend to accept candidates with a broader range of qualifications (less related to teaching) as long as they submit demonstrable evidence of the expertise required in educational issues or quality management.
In Iceland, the criteria for selection as an independent evaluator are clear evidence of thorough knowledge of and experience in compulsory education, and expertise in evaluation or quality management. Local govern- ment authorities in Hungary contract evaluation out to educational experts or research institutes – in most cases, the regional pedagogical institutes (MEPI). Iceland and Hungary are also the only two countries to offer a degree in evaluation. In neither country, however, is possession of the degree an essential condition for access to the post of external evaluator.
FIGURE 4.3: THE RELATION BETWEEN EMPLOYMENT STATUS AND THE FORMAL QUALIFICATIONS
OF EXTERNAL EVALUATORS OF SCHOOLS AS ENTITIES (IN THE CASE OF EDUCATIONAL AND POSSIBLY OTHER TASKS), COMPULSORY EDUCATION, 2000/01
No requirements on formal Teaching qualifications or a degree
qualifications (but possibly Plus specialist course in evaluation
specialised courses) and/or qualifying examination
Civil servant statuts/employment DK, DE, IE, NL, AT, FR1, PT, UK (NI), LI, RO1-2 BE nl, ES1-5,
contract (permanent) SE2, CZ1, EE1, CY, LV, LT1, SK1 UK (HMIE in SC1), PL1, SI Employment contract UK (lay inspectors in SC1) PT UK (associated assessors IS1-2
(temporary) in SC1), RO2
Independent expert DK, UK (lay inspectors in E/W1), UK (enrolled inspectors and HU2 registered inspectors in E/W1),
IS1-2
(–): BE fr, BE de, EL, IT, LU, FI, NO, BG, MT (see notes in the annexe) Small numbering: see explanatory note
Source: Eurydice.
Additional notes
Denmark: Applies solely to evaluation carried out by EVA.
Sweden: The NAE uses a combination of its own staff and independent experts for purposes of external evaluation of municipalities and, from 2003, external evaluation of schools. Independent experts do not have to satisfy any official qualification requirements. Instead, they are chosen on the basis of their expertise in the field under review.
United Kingdom (E/W): The information relates to independent inspectors engaged by inspection providers who organise inspec- tions under contract to Ofsted/Estyn. Her Majesty’s Inspectors (HMI), civil servants on the permanent staff of Ofsted/Estyn, also inspect some schools. Their responsibilities include establishing a regulatory framework for inspection and setting the requirements for and keeping registers of those who have been approved to work as members of inspection teams (enrolled inspectors) and those who have been approved to lead inspections (registered inspectors). Regular inspections of schools are carried out by independent contractors who are responsible for forming their teams of inspectors from those included on the registers.
Explanatory note
MEANING OF THE SMALL NUMBERING USED IN THE FIGURES
a) Details regarding the approaches to evaluation considered
France: (1) evaluation of the school plan by the IEN (primary schools) and IPR (lower secondary schools, known as collèges) and (2) evaluation of the collèges by the académie authorities.
Sweden: (1) evaluation conducted by municipalities and (2) supervision of schools by the NAE, mainly when it is reported that they may not be complying with national regulations.
United Kingdom (E/W): Evaluation conducted by (1) OFSTED/Estyn and (2) by LEAs. United Kingdom (SC): Evaluation conducted by (1) HMI and (2) by LA.
Iceland: (1) evaluation of methods of internal evaluation and (2) evaluation of schools. Czech Republic: Evaluation conducted by (1) the inspectorate and (2) the founder.
Estonia: Evaluation conducted by (1) the state supervisory agency and (2) the founders (in most cases the municipalities). Lithuania: Evaluation conducted by (1) the inspectorate and (2) the founder.
Hungary: (1) compulsory evaluation concerned with management aspects (policy-oriented evaluation) and (2) optional evaluation concerned with educational aspects (development-oriented evaluation).
Poland: Evaluation conducted by (1) the kuratorium and (2) municipality (gmina). Romania: Evaluation conducted by (1) the Inspectorate and (2) the NCEAPE. Slovakia: Evaluation conducted by (1) the inspectorate and (2) the founder.
b) Regional variations
Spain: Evaluation conducted in (1) Andalucia, (2) Catalunya, (3) The Canary Islands, (4) the Basque Country, (5) the remaining Autonomous Communities.
The position of evaluator is in some countries declared incompatible with certain jobs or positions in the public sector. In the Flemish Community of Belgium, for example, no evaluator may hold a political man- date, occupy a management position with the school educational provider, or be employed in an educa- tional institution. The most common condition is that evaluators can no longer exercise their teaching pro- fession.This rule, however, does not apply in countries that use independent experts for carrying out exter- nal evaluation, such as the United Kingdom (England and Wales) and Hungary. These experts are always free to combine work as external evaluators with a possible career in teaching.