Interrelations between policymakers’ intentions and school agents’ interpretation of accountability policy in Israel

Authors

  • Lisa Amdur Tel Aviv University
  • Irit Mero-Jaffe Beit Berl Academic College

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.14507/epaa.25.3016

Keywords:

Accountability, loose coupling, public policy, policymakers, national testing

Abstract

The study examined the interrelations between policymakers’ intentions for test-based accountability policy, and school agents’ perceptions and actions with regard to this policy. Mixed-methods were used and encompassed 24 policymakers, 80 school principals, 168 teachers and case studies of four schools. New institutional theory, including the concept of “environmental shift” (Powell & Di Maggio, 1991) and the metaphor of “coupling” (Weick, 1976), served as the conceptual framework. Findings indicate that the interrelations between intentions, perceptions and actions are mainly tightly coupled. These are discussed by invoking three types of institutional isomorphism (DiMaggio & Powell, 1983): coercive, mimetic and normative.

 

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Author Biographies

Lisa Amdur, Tel Aviv University

Lisa Amdur teaches at the Division of Foreign Languages at Tel Aviv University and in the MA TESOL program of TAU International. She also works at the TAU Center for Language Excellence that provides individual language support to students and faculty. 

Irit Mero-Jaffe, Beit Berl Academic College

Irit Mero-Jaffe is a lecturer at Beit-Berl Academic College. She is also a staff member at the Center for Educational and Social Research at the Beit Berl Academic College within which she executes evaluation studies.

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Published

2017-08-14

How to Cite

Amdur, L., & Mero-Jaffe, I. (2017). Interrelations between policymakers’ intentions and school agents’ interpretation of accountability policy in Israel. Education Policy Analysis Archives, 25, 84. https://doi.org/10.14507/epaa.25.3016

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Section

Articles