Shadi Fallah

Department of  management,  Islamic Azad University, Qaemshahr, Iran

shfallaah@gmail.com

Yousef Gholipour-Kanani

Department of Industrial Engineering, Islamic Azad University, Qaemshahr, Iran

Abstract. Project management information system (PMIS) helps managers in decision making, planning, organizing and controlling the project. Based on the importance of decision making, the aim of this study is assessing the effects of PMIS on the project management success. This study designed a comprehensive model to evaluate the impact of PMIS on the project management functions. This model included five factors such as: PMIS quality, the quality of output information of PMIS, PMIS application, PMIS impact on project management and the impact of PMIS on the project success. This study conducted in Iran in three dependent firms in Tehran petroleum. Data of this research is collected by using questionnaires from project managers. Results demonstrated the crucial role of PMIS on the project management success due to better planning, proper scheduling, regulating and controlling the project. At the end limitation and suggestion for future study is discussed.

Keywords: Project management information system, decision making, planning, project control.

INTRODUCTION

Information is one of the most important capitals in the organizations, because all physical facilities and environmental decision making are affected by information. Information can change competitive aspects withing the organization and lead to competitive advantage. Morever, successful organizations in information technology can change competition characteristics in the industry and benefit by being pioneer. Due to the importance of project management information system (PMIS) to implement project faster, less expensive and with higher quality, the general expectation from project managers enhanced (Welsch, 2006). Organizations apply information systems in their organizations to improve effeciency and profitibility; through this way they can adopt themselves easier to environmental changes and attain updated information. Also managers can estimated the project costs,  profits and budget by using PMIS. In general, PMIS can be used in Implementing activities, goods and materials management, collecting and classifying financial and non-financial information, and storage of information.

Despite of the importance of PMIS, there are still limited studies in this filed. Previous studies mostly considered on implementing information technology instruments in the organizations. Morever, due to importance of oil and gas projects more research about PMIS is needed. Because, in this industry PMIS can play the key role in recognizing the suitable resources, planning and scheduling, this study has considered on the effect of project management information system on  project managers and project success.

Forasmuch as PMIS accompanies managers in all process of implementing project, this study aims to assess the effect of PMIS on  project managers. Also  this study targeted to evaluate the effect of  PMIS on project success. Furthermore, the effects of PMIS on its application, project management characteristics and quality of outputs.

LITERATURE RIVIEW

An information system defined as ‘’ a set of related components that assist to collect, recovery, processing, storage and distribution of information within the organization’’ (Olson, 2004). This information is very useful for decision making and controlling the operation in an organization. Managerial team can use this information for analysis and making decision about future product line. Also Management information system defined as ’’ series of tools which provide to managers the required information in their professional fields on time, accurate and in appropriate conditions’’. Study of Welsch (2006) indicated that MIS assists middle managers through the provision of information in appropriate formats according to what they need.

According to Olson (2004) projects due to their diverse and uniqueness are structurally different from the current organizational routines. Project management is always more difficult than regular administration and requires more attention to different aspects of organization. The project combines the demands of the custodians, contractors and other stakeholders; so to create unity between all factors involved in the project, appropriate techniques and utilities should be exploited (Baker et al., 2009). Belout (2003) in an empirical study considered on the effects of PMIS on multi-project environment. Results showed that using project management information system is beneficial for project managers. However, no adverse effects have been observed due to the project, and information overload.

Commonly projects implement in certain time, cost and quality; they mostly done only for one time. Therefore it is essential to apply an instrument which helps organization to do projects more effective (Dietrich and Lehtonen, 2005).  Also another study has investigated the Challenges in information systems projects (Finch, 2003). Adams and Barndt (2008) in their study showed that PMIS has a positive effect on the management and execution of construction projects and managers should give careful consideration to overcome the weaknesses of the project. According to study of (Cooper et al., 2001) during the projects some changes may happen in process. Despite the theoretical accuracy in the preparation of plans and administered programs, managers should carefully pay attention to using on time and accurate information. Also project control team requires different expertise to accomplish the responsibilities as good as possible (Dai and Wells, 2004). For the purpose of control, various units should send information to control project department under proper discipline and coordination. Particularly, the activities which locate on the critical path of the project should regularly monitor and inspect to ensure that occurred delays don’t lead to delay in entire project. Bozeman and Kingsley (2007) showed that data quality of PMIS is related positively to the correct decisions, managers’ satisfaction from PMIS and increasing usage of PMIS within the organization. Also this study discussed about implementing multiple projects simultaneously causes that the project managers expand the results of the quality information for a project to all existing projects. Based on abovementioned literatures the following hypotheses were proposed:

H₁. PMIS quality is positively related to output information quality.

H₂. PMIS quality is positively related to PMIS application and project management factors.

H₃. Output information quality of PMIS is positively related to PMIS application and project management factors.

H₄. PMIS application influences positively on project management factors.

H₅. PMIS application influences positively on project success factors.

H₆. Project management factors influences positively on project success.

METHODOLOGY

Data of this research attained by distributing questionnaire which included 20 questions based on 6 main categories. This study targeted project control department of three firms which dependent to Tehran Petroleum Company. Targeted employees were 80 and all of them participated in this research. According to table of Morgan number of participants is 63. This study applied SPSS to test normality of study population and hypothesized relationships. Testing normality of population evaluated by using Kolmogorov–Smirnov test; also binominal test applied to assess the hypothesized relationships.

To consider on validity of questionnaire, all questions reviewed by several scholars and their opinions applied in the study instrument. After discussion and making some changes, the validity of questionnaire approved by them.  To test reliability of questionnaire, this study applied Cronbach’ alpha and all values ranged between .76 and .85; Therefore, result demonstrated the reliability of questionnaire. Scale format of questionnaire was based on five-point Likert scale (1=very low to 5=very high).

Table 1. Respondents information

                              Number           Percentage

Gender:

Male                                                      51                      81%

Female                                      12                  19%

Total                                  63                100%

Organizational tenure:

<5 years                                                19                   30%

6-10 years                       30                       48%

>11 years                                              14                        22%

Total                                        63              100%

Educational level:

Bachelor degree                 42                  67%

Master degree                              21                  33%

Total                                       63                100%

RESULTS

Results of Kolmogorov–Smirnov test showed that data of this study is not normal; therefore assessing data is done by using Binominal test which is one of the nonparametric tests. As can be seen in Table 2, P-Value related to H₁ is less than 0.05; this result indicated that there is significant difference between two groups. Furthermore, according to the reality that 95% of responses were ‘’high’’ ad ‘’very high’’; it conclude that PMIS has positive and significant effect on quality of output information. Thus, H₁ is supported. Similarly, P-Value related to H₂ is less than 0.05 and majority of responses (94%) were ‘’high’’ ad ‘’very high’’. This finding reveals that quality of PMIS influences positively and significantly on application of PMIS and project management factors. Therefore, H₂ is supported. Also table 2 shows that the responses of participants about H3 were mostly (93%) above “fair’’ with P-Value<0.05. This result indicates that quality of PMIS output information is positively and significantly related to PMIS application and project management factors. Therefore, it reveals the empirical support for H₃. To assess H4 which indicates to the positive relationship between PMIS application and project management factors; Table 2 shows that 90% of responses were ‘’high’’ ad ‘’very high’’ and P-Value<0.05. Thus, H₄ is empirically supported. Also 86% responses related to H5 are above ‘’fair’’; also P-Value related to H₅ is less than 0.05; this result indicated that there is significant difference between two groups. Abovementioned values indicated the positive relationship between PMIS application and project success factors. Therefore, H₅ is supported. The last hypothesis is also empirically approved with majority of ‘’high’’ and ‘’very high’’ responses (94%) and P-Value<0.05. Therefore, there is positive significant relationship between project management factors on project success. Generally, all hypotheses were supported.

Table 2. Results

                        Maen          SD         %Responses ≤3       %Responses>3          α          P-Value

H1                     4.56           .33             5%                     95%                  .05            0.00

H2                     4.40           .39                 6%                           94%                .05            0.00

H3                     4.43           .48                 7% 93%                .05                           0.00

H4                     4.46           .50                10%                         90%                 .05            0.00

H5                     4.44           .40                14%   86%                 .05            0.00

H6                     4.55           .47                  6%                          94%                .05            0.00

Discussion

This study is done based on direct and indirect effects of PMIS on project success. Easy usage of system, flexibility, respond time, easy learning, integrity of system, all have critical roles on quality of provided information. When quality of PMIS is high, information is more Reachable, reliable, accurate, comprehensive and secure. Result demonstrated that quality of information directly and intensively is related to applying PMIS and its effects on project management. But quality of information is not the only factor that should be considered; because it will be useful when it applies in organization through qualified managers. Using affective PMIS makes performance more professional due to its application in planning, controlling, setting and reporting in different steps of projects.

Results indicated that PMIS quality influences positively on output information quality, PMIS application and project management factors, project management project factors and project success factors. Results of this study were consistent with the result of existing empirical researches (e.g., Belout, 2003; Bozeman and Kingsley, 2007; Olson,  2004).

Limitation and suggestion for future research

The first limitation of this study is related to generalizability because data of this study collected from three dependent firms to Tehran Petroleum Company. It is beneficial if future studies consider on larger number of participants.   Also this study conducted in Iran which is known as developing country; therefore to generalizability of results to developed countries some problems may occur.  Also data of this study collected on limited period of time and does not cover information and changes may happen over time.  Therefore, it is useful to collect data using longitudinal design. Finally, further consideration should be done about other internal and external factors may effect on the quality of PMIS.

References

– Baker, B., Murphy, D., Fisher, D. 2009. Factors affecting project success. In Cleland, D., King, W. (Eds),Project Management Handbook, Wiley, New York, NY, 902-19.

– Kostalova, J., Tetrevova, L., Syedik, J. 2015. Support of Project Management Methods by Project Management Information System. Procedia – Social and Behavioral Sciences, 210, 96-104.

– Bozeman, B., Kingsley, G. 2007. Risk culture in public and private organizations. Public Administration Review, 58 (2), 109-18.

– Iyer, K.C., Banerjee, P.S., 2016. Measuring and benchmarking managerial efficiency of project execution schedule performance. Measuring and benchmarking managerial efficiency of project execution schedule performance, 34 (2), 216-236.

– Dietrich, P., Lehtonen, P., 2005. Successful management of strategic intentions through multiple projects. International Journal of Project Management 23 (5), 386–391.

– Ghaffari, M., Sheikhahmadi, F., Safakish, G. 2014. Modeling and risk analysis of virtual project team through project life cycle with fuzzy approach. Computers & Industrial Engineering, 72 (June), 98-105.

– Jafarzadeh, M., Tareghian, H.R. Rahbarnia, F., Ghanbari, R. 2015. Optimal selection of project portfolios using reinvestment strategy within a flexible time horizon. European Journal of Operational Research, 243(2), 658-664.

– Liu, S., Wang, L. 2016. Influence of managerial control on performance in medical information system projects: The moderating role of organizational environment and team risks. International Journal of Project Management, 34(1), 102-116.

– Welsch, W. 2006. “Input: state and local IT spending surge begins”, available at: http://www.washingtontechnology.com/news/1_1/daily_news/28292-1.html (accessed July 29, 2006).

Main Author: Dr. Reuben Nguyo Lecturer under mentorship Programme

Department of Educational, Administration and Planning University of   Nairobi

Co-Author: Jedidah  Nyawira  Kimathi, North-Eastern Hill University, India. Department of Education P.O. Box 793022, Meghalaya, Shillong

Abstract

School accountability—the process of evaluating school performance on the basis of student performance measures—is increasingly prevalent around the world. Kenya has not been left behind. Therefore, the paper will explore the challenges and strategies of accountability in education in Kenya. Accountability in education is a broad concept that could be addressed in many ways, such as using political processes to assure democratic accountability, introducing market-based reforms to increase accountability to parents and children, or developing peer-based accountability systems to increase the professional accountability of teachers. The most commonly considered definition of accountability involves using administrative data-based mechanisms aimed at increasing student achievement. The study found out that the Government of Kenya is struggling with many challenges related to accountability in education. The challenges include: enrolment policy, education for individuals with disabilities, staff and performance, quality assurance and standards, management and governance among others. As far strategies to enhance accountability include devising performance indicators through The National Education Sector Plan (NESP) 2013-2018.

Key Terms: Accountability, Indicators of accountability, challenges

 Introduction

As the economies of nations compete for strong positions within a competitive global market place, many governments have become increasingly interested in the performance of all aspects of their education systems. This trend, coupled with the enormous expenditures that are devoted to education, has also precipitated widespread public requests for higher levels of scrutiny concerning the quality of education. These demands for information about school system performance can only be addressed through the implementation of systematic accountability systems.

Historically, the education profession has conformed to the requirements of regulatory or compliance accountability systems (usually based on government statutes), and has also subscribed to professional norms established by associations of educators. However, at the beginning of the 21st Century, accountability systems have also been required to respond to demands that professional performance be judged by the results that have been achieved (UNESCO,2005).

Accountability has been an educational issue for as long as people have had to pay for and govern schools. The term covers a diverse array of means by which some broad entity requires some providers of education to give an account of their work and holds them responsible for their performance.

Anderson (2005) asserts that Educational accountability targets either the processes or results of education. A desired goal is identified (e.g., compliance with the legal mandates of providing special education, highly qualified teachers, improved student performance), and measures are identified for determining whether the goal is met (e.g., a checklist of indicators that the legal mandates have been met, a target of 90% correct for teachers taking a test of current knowledge and skills, a target of 60% of students performing at grade level by the end of each school year). Criteria for determining whether the goal has been met can involve specific determinations of ways that the goal may and may not be met (e.g., deciding how many indicators in the checklist must be marked to be considered meeting the legal mandates, determining the specific content that does or does not count for specific types of teachers, determining how to calculate the percentage of students performing at a proficient level, and how to define grade level performance).

Models of Accountability in Education

A number of models of accountability in education have been developed, chiefly by Kogan (1986), Ranson (1986), Elliot et al. (1981) and Day and Klein (1987). These models illustrate different codes which specify, for example, alternative methods of presenting and evaluating the account. Whilst there are some differences of classification and nomenclature, four main models of educational accountability emerge from the literature: professional, hierarchical, market and public. Although it is unlikely that any of the ideal models will exist in its pure form.

(a) Professional Accountability

The emphasis on accountability for process is characteristic of professional accountability. Sockett (1980, p. 11) illustrates this, arguing that ‘the question (professionals) debate is not whether certain results have been achieved, but whether professional standards of integrity and practice have been adhered to’. In this form of accountability, teachers, and hence schools, are accountable to professionals. Ranson (1986) states that the educational process is so complex that only professionals can hold other professionals to account.

(b) Hierarchical Accountability

In contrast to professional accountability where accountability is ‘sideways’, the hierarchical model involves accountability ‘upwards’. This is exercised through the managerial hierarchy and stresses the contractual relationship with the state. Becher et al. (1981) describe it as an obligation to render an account to an employer.

(c) Market Accountability

In the market model, accountability is to the consumer (normally the parent). The emphasis is on accountability for outputs, mainly measured by examination results. In this system, schools are accountable to the consumer who chooses their product or an alternative in the marketplace. In order for the market to operate effectively, information (for example, examination results) needs to be available so consumers know the full specifications of the product they are ‘buying.’

(d) Public Accountability

Both market and public accountability involve an active role for parents. In the public model, this active role is required of the community more widely. The method of accounting stresses parental and community participation in determining the purpose and process of education (Ranson 1986). This operates collectively through the democratic process as well as indi-vidually, and therefore involves all individuals within an electoral ward. It stresses mutual accountability and partnership between politicians, professionals, parents and the community.

Forms of Accountability in Education

Accountability occurs in many ways in educational systems:

1. a) System Accountability

Educational accountability in which the system is held responsible for the results of its students gained popularity in the early 1990s. Schools, local education agencies, and states are held accountable for the performance of all students in the public education system.

1. b) Accountability for the Process of Education

This is a common form of educational accountability. Schools are required to meet accreditation criteria. Special education programs must demonstrate that they have provided services and maintained Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) in a manner consistent with the law. The desired goal of educational accountability focused on process is to improve the process that is targeted. Special education IEPs are an example of a process targeted for accountability. Meeting the process requirements means demonstrating compliance with a number of requirements in the law and in regulations for IEPs. Measurement occurs through the completion of a checklist, for example, that identifies the requirements (such as providing notice within a certain period of time, having specific signatures on the IEP document, and so on). The criteria for determining when the measures show that the goal has or has not been met are defined in terms of numbers of elements that must be checked. The consequences for not meeting the goal generally include a letter identifying the problems in the process. In some cases, repeated failure to meet the criteria results in penalties, such as reduction of funding, to the educational system.

1. c) Individual Accountability

Student accountability implemented via promotion or exit exams is a common type of individual accountability in schools. Students are required to pass a test to demonstrate that they are ready to move either from one grade to the next (promotion) or leave the educational system with a credential certifying successful completion (exit). The tests that are administered to students generally cover those topics that the school system or its public have deemed important for individual students to demonstrate at a certain point in time. The criteria for determining when the measures show that the goal has been met (for instance, that the student is ready to move from one grade to the next) are defined in terms of passing scores on the test. In some cases alternative criteria are available to certain students who either are not able to pass the tests or who need to demonstrate that they have met criteria through other means.

Individual accountability for the adults in the education system include such variations as teachers being held responsible for passing tests to obtain or keep jobs, or principals and educators receiving salary bonuses on the basis of student achievement. This type of accountability includes the same components as other educational accountability systems, with goals, measures, and other criteria for determining when the goal has been met, and rewards and sanctions for meeting or not meeting the criteria.

Challenges to Accountability in Education

Enrolment Policy

The Education Sector has been making improvements in terms of access to institutions of basic education and provision of services. However, the challenge of attributing learning outcomes to the investment in the sector still remains. The resource investment over the years, both for development and recurrent expenditures would have by know translated into exemplary results at the ECDE, primary and secondary school levels; however this is not the case.

At the ECDE level for instance, though the enrolment increased from 1.914 million children (967,544 boys and 946,678 girls) in 2009 to 2.37 million (1,175,530 boys and 1,194,518 girls) in 2011, the Gross Enrolment Rate (GER) was still at 65.5 per and at 41.8 percent in 2011. Clearly, this is an indication that many children of nursery school going age were still not enrolled in the

ECDE centers, a clear violation of the children’s right to basic education.

At the primary school level enrollments increased from 8.8 million (4.5 million boys and 4.3 million girls) in 2010 to 9.86 million (4.98 boys and 4.86 girls) in 2011; the gross Enrolment Rate was at to 115.0% while the Net Enrolment Rate was at 95.7% in 2011. While this demonstrate good progress in terms of access from a national point of view, the situation is not the same especially in ASAL areas where many children of school going age can still be seen staying at home during school days. The Completion rate stood at 74.6 per cent in 2011 clearly showing that children are dropping out of school. The question is, why do they drop where do those who drop go to?

In terms of transition from primary to secondary schools, the rate was at 73.3 per cent (68.9 per cent for male and 75.3 per cent for female) in 2011; again it is clear that some learners do not access secondary education; where do they go to? What alternatives do they have? Does the government know where they are?

At the Secondary School level the enrolment grew from 1.18 million students in 2007 (639,393 boys and 540,874 girls) to 1.5 million (804,119 boys and 695,896 girls) students in 2009 to 1.7 million (916,302 boys and 792,818 girls) students in 2010 and further 1.8 million (948,706 boys and 819,014 girls) in 2011. The GER for secondary level was at 48.8 per cent (51.0 per cent for boys and 46.8 per cent for girls) and the NER was at 32.7 per cent (32.6 per cent for boys and 33.1 per cent for girls) in 2011; a clear indication that many children of secondary school going age are not in schools.

Education for Individuals with Disabilities

While Kenya government recognizes the need to educate all children, including those with exceptional needs, there lacks a mechanism to ensure and oversee that all students have equal access to education. The crucial question regarding persons with disabilities, especially those with intellectual disabilities is: how will the rights of persons with exceptionalities be protected from economic, social, and political neglect? An estimated 80% of all individuals with disabilities reside in isolated areas in developing countries (Oriedo, 2003) with 150 million of them being children (Eleweke & Rodda, 2002). Disability-related issues affect approximately 50% of the population in these countries (Oriedo, 2003, Mukuria, Korir & Andea, 2007). In most cases, disability problems are compounded by the fact that most of the people with disabilities are extremely poor and live in areas where medical and educational services are not available (Eleweke & Rodda, 2002; Meja-Pearce, 1998; Oriedo, 2003; Mukuria & Korir 2006). According to the 2009 census, this group makes up approximately 20% of the Kenya’s population (Kenya Bureau of Statistics, 2009); unfortunately, only 2% of individuals with disabilities receive any form of special education (Eleweke & Rodda, 2003; Mukuria & Korir, 2007).

Staffing & Teacher Performance:

Though the outcry on teacher shortage continues to be heard, additional concerns also revolve

around teacher distribution with allegations of some schools having more teachers than they require while in other schools, at every given time, some classes remain untaught because of teacher shortage. Teachers’ absenteeism also remains an issue that cuts across many schools in the country with concerns that some teachers chose to be away based on a mutual agreement with the head teacher as opposed to an official documentation of leave of absence.

Quality Assurance & Standards support:

Teacher performance records are lacking in many schools: While at the Classroom level, it is not easy to determine the extent to which the teachers are delivering the right content; but instead the performance of the teacher is left to be reflected in the performance of the learners (often during external examinations)

Another critical gap is that the school terms often begin with the teachers not aware of the specific dates that the QASOs would be visiting their schools. The criterion that determines which schools to be visited during a particular term is also not readily available. Some schools also indicate that one calendar year ends without any QASO visiting their schools and as such no quality assurance support is received from MoE throughout the year. Most of the QA&SO are not clear on the kind of support teachers require and they also have capacity gaps.

Even though feedback is given to the schools after visits have been conducted by MoE officials, the feedback never trickles down to the learners and their parents / guardians. Most of the time the feedback is discussed at the teachers level while other actors in education service provision are left out. The feedback at times reaches the headquarters of MoE but there are no clear mechanisms of responding to such feedback until a crisis emerge.

Management and Governance:

While some schools have School Management Committees and Board of Management in place, that have undergone trainings conducted by Ministry of Education officials, the functioning of

these committees is not reflected in the manner in which school programmes and activities are implemented. In some instances, the head teachers continue to make decisions by themselves (as

individuals) and the SMC &  BoM members hardly question such decisions. There is also lack of School development Plans in most schools and this creates an opportunity for poor plans.

The information on the funds received that is displayed on the school notice boards has been limited to the FPE funds with many head teachers not displaying any other funds the school receive, especially those collected from parents towards other programmes, for example the school feeding programmes. In terms of purchases of school items, there have been outcry among parents that some head teachers collude with suppliers to increase the prices of goods (often way ahead of the market prices) with the aim of receiving “kickbacks.”

Very few schools do generate annual financial reports for discussion with parents; majority of schools choose to discuss the financial reports with the MoE officials and ignore the parents, guardians and children. In addition, auditing of the funds that the schools receive every year is irregular and such audit reports are never shared with the parents, guardians and children.

Access to Information:

Information flow between the school administration and the teachers is another gap that exists in many primary and secondary schools. For instance, some teachers are only aware of the data in regards to the learners in the school and their performance but have no idea on the resource requirements of their schools and the management of resources that the schools receive. The level of awareness of some teachers in regards to various policies and guidelines in education service provision is also minimal; this is however attributed to lack of access to such documents at the school level; there are cases where the school head teachers limit such information to themselves and do not share with the other teachers in the school.

While the children are aware that the government has been financing the Free Primary Education, many of them are not aware of how much they have been entitled to over the years. Worse is the fact that some of the parents and guardians too are not aware of what their children

are entitled to under the FPE programme. This is attributed to lack of clear communication modes between the school administration and the children, and their parents and guardians.

Holistic Focus on Learners:

On an annual basis, the schools over concentrate on discussing the performance of the children in regard to KCPE and KCSE results; and very minimal is discussed in reference to performance of the children at other levels (class 1 – 7 & Form 1-3). While many of the school teachers are aware that some of the learners do not transit to secondary schools, it appears that majority of the teachers have no role in following up where such learners go to. For instance, there are cases where some teachers interact with their former pupils in the neighborhood such as in the market centers; while they are very much aware that such children have not enrolled in secondary schools; they do not bother to find out whether such children require support.

Some parents have also  have left their children in the hands of teachers and do not care to follow up on what their children do in school; some do not even attend school meetings throughout the year and do not event care to find out what deliberations and decisions are made in such meetings.

Finances:

Though the government supports the Free Day Secondary Education (FDSE) programme, there is a general feeling among the public that secondary education in Kenya is largely expensive. The fact that various categories of schools charge different amounts of fees is something that continues to amaze the public. There are cases of schools that get to acquire the National level status then increases the fees payable by about 50%; goes ahead to demand the same from parents and the government does nothing.

Various secondary school heads continue to incur exorbitant expenditures with completely no oversight. For instance who pays for the cost of Kenya Secondary Schools Heads Association Annual meeting? Is it the Government of Kenya? is it from the Head teachers personal incomes? or from the poor parents and guardians (from the fees paid to schools)? This is something that the public is seeking for accountability on the part of the government. Secondary schools in Kenya continue to manage millions of shillings annually; but majority of the schools do not report to the students, parents and guardians on their incomes and expenditure on annual basis. Reports that are shared publicly are largely in regards to performance and very minimal information on finances. A part from the details of the fees to be paid in the subsequent year, the secondary schools heads often give very minimal information on the expenditure of the previous

years.

Public Participation:

 Even though various districts have a culture of annual education stakeholders meetings, the participants in such meetings are often limited to head teachers, teacher unions, FBOs and NGOs. Public participation in such meetings, for example through the Chairpersons of schools and other representatives of parents and children continue to remain very minimal.

Strategies towards Accountability in Education

The National Education Sector Plan (NESP) 2013-2018 is an all-inclusive, sector-wide

programme whose prime goal is: Quality Basic Education for Kenya’s Sustainable

Development. The sector plan builds on the successes and challenges of the Kenya Education Sector Support Programme (KESSP), 2005-2010. Sector governance, management and accountability in a decentralized setting with devolved responsibilities and diverse partnerships have been emphasized. Clear guidelines for coordination, transparency, and reporting at the national, county, sub-county and institutional levels are paramount. The focus on improvement of education quality specifically targets: improvement of schooling outcomes and impact of the sector investment; development of relevant skills; improved learning outcomes; and improved efficiency and effectiveness in use of available resources.

Four major sets of performance indicators for NESP are identified as;

1. Social development and economic growth for the 21st century are dependent on a broad base of capable, literate, numerate, confident and motivated citizens. These citizens will actively contribute to a knowledge-based society. The National Education Sector Plan (NESP) sets out to shape the education system to complement and support the national aspirations of Kenya.

2. The sector plan as set out in NESP emphasizes a holistic and balanced development of the entire education sector, and is embodied in recent legislation, including the Basic Education Act 2013. The NESP Implementation Plan focuses on the urgent need to enroll all students in basic education, raise literacy and numeracy levels, reduce existing disparities, and improve the quality of education with a focus on teacher quality, school level leadership, more effective applications of teacher training in the classroom, increasing resources to the education sector, and targeting improvements and monitoring key results.

3. NESP sets out to expand on the national aspirations set out in Vision 2030 through a statement of comprehensive goals and objectives. It further aligns a commitment to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and the education related goals of the Millennium Development Goals with a vision for the wider educational aspirations of Kenya.

4. The foundation priorities of the education system provide the strategic implementation processes set out in NESP. Through the extensive consultation processes undertaken for developing NESP, stakeholders elaborated that the vision and goals embody and cluster around four principles:

Inclusiveness

This principle is about the fullness of the range of learning opportunities provided for all children, young people and communities. The NESP describes the social circumstances and barriers to learning that present challenges to implementation planning.

Integrated and Unified System

This principle is about the characteristics of an efficient education system that effectively and coherently integrates all learning institutions, central authorities and administrative agencies, through their mandates, processes and procedures. NESP describes governance, management and administrative expectations (institutional arrangements) that will ensure all students are exposed to opportunities of shared knowledge and culture.

Equitable School Environment

This principle is about the provision of safe, stimulating and innovative learning places of modern pedagogy for all children and young people. NESP sets out goals and objectives for the fair provision of infrastructural, teaching and learning resources and support systems to benefit all learners.

Quality of Learning

This principle is about the setting of rigorous quality benchmarks in the curriculum and its delivery and assessment so as to ensure that the learning opportunities for all children and young people are maximized. NESP describes expectations for minimum standards of the physical learning environment, curriculum development, teacher performance, and prescribes the work of agencies to monitor and assure ongoing quality.

5. NESP also implies four central and interdependent policy pillars to underpin the

development of each of the described implementation strategies:

Pedagogy Enhanced by Technology

NESP makes a very strong representation of the role of technology in a modern, vibrant and successful society. NESP envisages a solid technology base through information and communication technology (ICT) to be reflected within the curriculum at all levels, its delivery and the system support mechanisms. The principles described above clearly focus on the fundamental place of pedagogy in lifting and maintaining quality of learning. This policy pillar establishes the place of technology as a powerful support to pedagogy but not the determinant of pedagogy.

Systemic Solutions

The NESP principle of an integrated and unified system demands that meeting the challenges requires the design, development and implementation of agencies, approaches and processes that support the interdependencies of all elements within the system. The setting of priorities and sequencing of implementation strategies will take account of the expected growth and impact of the education system. The NESP elaborates the mechanism (the National Education Board, NEB) whereby growth and impact is considered across the social and wider sectors.

Collaboration

The achievement of the sector plan requires a high commitment by all key stakeholders in the education system to working together as a team. Collaboration as an approach, however, goes beyond individuals working together for the common goal with a focus on the learner. It includes the establishment of conditions and relationships between the central administration, agencies and learning institutions to facilitate collaborative processes and approaches. The design of new and strengthened strategies is expected to stimulate and maintain a focus on group, rather than individual, effort through to the very top of the system.

Capacity Development

Achieving the NESP goals in a decentralized system requires significant capacity building at all levels of the education system. The strengthening and establishment of new ways of working through clearly defined roles, expectations, responsibilities, accountabilities and mandates are best achieved by capacity building of both human and resources. This policy pillar will strive to incorporate capacity building as a prime driver for reform.

Conclusion

The Government of Kenya is encountering many challenges as it deals with accountability in education owing to the fact that the idea of accountability has not yet been embraced fully neither by the assessors nor those being assessed. Mechanisms have been formulated to enhance accountability but have not yet been implemented fully.

Recommendation

There are should be concerted efforts among all the education stakeholders to ensure there accountability in education. There also needs sensitization about accountability in education as many stakeholders are not aware of their role as far as accountability is concerned. Follow up measures on accountability should be to put in place.

References

Anderson A.J. (2005). Accountability in Education. The International Academy of Education (IAE) and the International Institute for Educational Planning (IIEP).

Becher, T., M. Eraut & J. Knight. (1981). Policies for educational accountability. London: Heinemann Educational.

Day, P. and R. Klein. (1987). Accountabilities: five public services. London: Tavistock

Eleweke, C. J., & Rhoda, M. (2000). The challenge of enhancing inclusive education in developing Countries. International Journal on Inclusive Education, 6 113-126.

Elliot, J., D. Bridges, D. Ebutt, R. Gibson and J. Nias. (1981). School accountability. London: Grant McIntyre.

Farrell, M.C & Law, J.(2002). Changing Forms of Accountability in Education? A Case Study of Leas In Wales. Public Administration77, 2 .Wiley online library.

Kogan, M. (1986). Educational  accountability. An analytic overview. London: Hutchinson.

Korir, J. & Mukuria, G. & Andea, B. (2007). Educating children with emotional and /or emotional Disabilities in Kenya. A right or a privilege? Journal of International Special Needs Education, 10, 49- 57.

Figlio, D & Loeb, S. (2011). School Accountability. In Eric A. Hanushek, Stephen Machin, and Ludger Woessmann, editor: Handbooks in Economics, Vol. 3, The Netherlands: North-Holland, pp. 383-421.

Meja-Pearce, A. (1998). Disabled Africa: Rights not welfare. Index on Censorship, 27, 177-195.

Oriedo, T. (2003). The state of persons with disabilities in Kenya. Council for Exceptional Children: Division of International Special Education and Services. fromhttp//www.cec.sped.org/ind/natlover.html.

Republic of Kenya (2015). Ministry of Education, Science and Technology National Education Sector Plan Volume One: Basic Education Programme Rationale and Approach 2013 – 2018.

Republic of Kenya (2012). The Report of the Task Force on the Realignment of the Education Sector to the Constitution of Kenya.

Republic of Kenya (2011) Education Sector Report

Republic of Kenya (2012) Education Sector Report

Ranson, S. (1986). ‘Towards a political theory of public accountability in education’,Local Government Studies 4, 77–98.

Sockett, H. (1980). ‘Accountability – the contemporary issues’ in H. Sockett (ed.), Accountability in the English educational system. London: Hodder and Stoughton.

World Vision Kenya (2012). Enhancing Responsiveness and Effectiveness of Basic Education Service Delivery in Kenya Project Reports

http://www.education.com/reference/article/accountability/

http://www.unesco.org/iiep

Mustafa Wshyar Abdullah AL-Ahmedi

Lecturer at Koya University – Koya, Erbil/ Iraq

Abstract:

This article is exploring the use of language by the individuals of a group who are active members of a team. Real examples are given to further investigate the language awareness in real life communications.

Key Words: Language, Awareness, Workplace, Team, Individuals

1. Introduction

      Working in a team can enhance a great experience for a participant in a group work. The enhancements can be new information, the way of dealing with subject matters, and communication with people who may have different ideas. Those features are mostly very important to be existed in a person who looks for a good employment opportunity. It is a reality that most employers try to employ someone with those and some other characteristics like a good command in using technology. Integrating to a work environment is significant for an employee to perform an acceptable performance. To be a successful person in a workplace, being aware of cross cultural and different types of community of practice has its significance.

As a part of Language Awareness in the Workplace, the students had to work in one of the projects which were offered to participate. One of them was “Wish upon a Star” and the other one was “Equality and Diversity at UCLan”. All the students decided to go with the first one because the majority desired to take part in it and the minority of students did not like the idea of creating a small group. “Wish upon a Star” is a project which leads to publishing a book about star and constellation stories for children. The aim of the book is to provide the readers, who are supposed generally to be children, with constellation and star beliefs in India and the UK. The master students in English Language and Literature were requested to contribute some cultural facts and beliefs about sky issues to the content of the book.

The preparation for the project started in early December 2011 and the book is expected to be published around July 2012. This report is written to show what were done to contribute to the project and the way which steps were taken. It explores the writer’s, who was a group member, weaknesses and strengths which are very important to be discovered for improvement. The benefits will also be mentioned as the most participants could obtain new skills or at least improving the existed ones.

2. Community of Practice

• An Introduction to Community of Practice

The term community of practice (CofP) is frequently mentioned in the modern world, especially when individuals exist in a group form to take a responsibility. Lave and Wenger (1991: 98) define the term: “A community of practice is a set of relations among persons, activity, and world, over time and in relation with other tangential and overlapping communities of practice.” That is to say, communities of practice are groups of codes which understood and used by the same members of a group. In other words, communities of practice are the ways of communication among the members of a group to achieve the common aims.

Hardcastle and Powers (2004) see community of practice as an application to practice skills to make communication in community groups, organizations or institutions. The relation among individuals is based on the community practice. In other words, it is a community of practice which arranges an acceptable relationship among members of a group. The members can communicate with each other through some common communication rules which are known by all the other members as they are familiar with the community they gathered in.

      Communities of practice are everywhere; human beings belong to several communities of practice in different time and places: at home, work, school, or in hobbies (Wenger, 1998). It can be said that a community of practice can be found in all aspects of life and it is the main tool of communicators. It is a tool which helps human beings to communicate and share ideas. They can understand each other through it and they can express themselves easily. As a result of this argument, community of practice involves in all forms of communication or it is the basic and it’s the way which makes communication.  Wenger (1998: 84) claims that there are three dimensions of a community of practice which are: mutual engagement, joint enterprise and shared repertoire. To understand these dimensions, looking at an example can be helpful before defining them. A large company which consists of many departments can be a good sample to give the reader a clear overview about the dimensions. The managers of departments can altogether engage in a group meeting which is arranged for all of them to discuss the goals of the company and they mutually engage. They may have a joint enterprise from discussing the achievements among themselves. The managers can also have shared repertoires by exchanging stories of achievements and other events.

• Mutual Engagement

This is a regular interaction which people in pairs or groups discuss general issues (Holmes and Meyerhoff, 1999). This type is very simple which usually does not need arguments or debates. It is general discussions and it is the basis of relations. It can be said this one is used when the members have a shared goal and they all work to achieve it. As a result, the members communicate through this type of CofP because the target is the same. The communication can be while drinking a coffee or small meetings.

• Joint Enterprise

It is more than a shared goal and needs process; complex relationships are involved in this dimension (Wenger, 1998). Members usually debate and have more serious meetings for longer hours.

• Shared Repertoire

This dimension is the most complex one which linguistic resources involve in and The meetings are more serious in which gestures, pictures and regular meals become a part of the CofP (Holmes and Meyerhoff, 1999). The members of a group negotiate the meaning which shows disagreement sometimes.

• Community of Practice of the MA English Language and Literature team

The group consisted of different people from different cultural and educational backgrounds. There was a main goal which was a contribution to publish a book and all the members worked for the same aim. It is worth mentioning that there was a main group in which sub groups involved in. My course mates and two of the tutors were members in a subgroup. This sub group mainly arranged meetings for its members and attended once the general meeting of the whole group. The whole group, which was the main one, included MA English Language and Literature team, MA Publishing Team and MA Creative Writing for Children Team.

            The common goal of the main group and subgroups was the same which was preparing the content for the book. Each group and individual had different duties; the duties were divided among the subgroups through their educational backgrounds. My group was supposed to carry out a research and collect data related to cultural beliefs as our educational background relates to language, culture and literature. Our part was exploring the beliefs in India and the UK about constellations and stars. Two members of the group had an Indian background and two members were British who were familiar with the beliefs in the UK. The other three members had no background about both countries and they tried to help those members to collect data and find information about both cultures.

            Regarding the power, all the members were equal in terms of controlling or managing the project. None of the members in the whole group including supervisors were more powerful. All the ideas were discussed and they were arranged to create a good content to the project. In brief, all the members decided on the content of the project and there was not anyone to have a final decision as the group generally decided on the final decision.

3. Discursive Chosen Community of Practice

Discursive means everyday talk and it is a multi-utterance of talk; in order to analyze a conversation, meeting or talk, discursive should be analyzed (Tracy, 2002). Tracy (2002) argues that a talk is called discursive practice rather than a talk because it leads us to recognize the talk not like just a single thing, but to see it like an activity which has different parts. To interpret a talk, all the aspects like culture, speakers’ power status, politeness/ impoliteness and the others should be analyzed. After considering all these aspects, the exact meaning behind that speech might be explored and understood. As a result, it can be said that discursive practices are mainly used in conversation analysis to see how a conversation is conversed to show how successful it is.

            The language of communication for the MA English Language and Literature team was English as nobody could talk the first language of some other participants. Some of the members of the team had different accents but it did not affect the communication. All members’ speech tone was fine and it was always stayed at an average level which was considered polite. All the members of the team started studying in the same course since September 2011 and continued till late May 2012, but still some members of the group sometimes confused some other members’ names or even they did not know. This case shows that there was a lack of communication among some of the members and they did not have tight relations with each other. If the confusion or not knowing the names does really prove this, that means the relation among members of the team had to be tighter to enhance higher achievements.

In terms of the practices of the MA English Language and Literature team, it can be said that power was essentially equal as all the members worked all together. The decisions were taken through evaluating all the individual ideas and the ones, which were believed to be the best, were chosen. Generally speaking, the power did not have an important role as a community of practice in the group. The tutors who worked with us did not have a power of leading the project to any direction which they might desire. Their role was to guide us and answering our questions about the project to do our part very well as all student members were new for such a research and project.

            The practices like jocular and politeness were very common. There were many different ideas about the project and all the participants tried to show their thoughts to be admitted by other members. All the discussions were done in a very polite and friendly environment. To the best of my knowledge, cultural differences never made a problem. The obstacles or problems were solved through jokes and indirectly without harming any member. For example, a member of the group had always a problem with time managment; the member usually arrived to the meetings late. Other members did not react or sometimes I used jokes as a reaction, like telling that the member was supposed to arrive later and the moment was taken humorously. I personally tried to solve all the problems without making any trouble for the team. As it has been mentioned, the late arrivals or not attending was the biggest issue for the team. In such cases, other members volunteered to do the job which was considered to be done by someone else. In spite of this, those members who had such problems were encouraged to participate the meetings and to share towards the project.

            Collectivism and individualism had their influence on the members but they did not change the direction of the activities. The members of the team were divided equally on both these cultural backgrounds. The members who came from collectivistic cultures desired to arrange more meetings, while people from individualistic cultures did not mind and they thought the discussions could be done by using Facebook and emails. A member who was from a collectivist culture was not very happy as we did not have as many meetings as that member preferred to have. In spite of this concern, all other members including others from collectivist cultures were quite happy about the progress of the project. High context and low context was another difference like collectivism and individualism, but I never felt about its existence. All the members were very friendly and as it had been mentioned earlier, the power was equal which did not make any difference among us to recognize this matter.

4. Employability Outcomes

The project was an opportunity for me to improve the skills which directly relate to my future employment. Communication skills were among the most important ones that I needed. In my undergraduate study, I did not have any group works; though, this project was the first one in my life which I became a group member to carry out a research. Communicating with people from different academic level and nationalities made me more communicable. This is a very important feature for a person to have it while seeking an employment opportunity. After the period of the project and communicating to the members of the group, now I am more confident in terms of contacting other people. The key point here is confidence because it can be increased through practicing the skills in real workplaces.  To be honest, I was not very confident in my communication in the past, but now a serious improvement can be seen. This improved skill is a significant outcome of working on the project. It can definitely be said that I will communicate easier in the future and it is a very important feature to have to be more employable.

Time management is another issue which I see as an employability outcome of this project. I usually had been good at managing my time, but when started this project, the skill needed improvements. During the work of the project, many weaknesses could be found about the time management skills. Through consulting other members and external sources, some of the negative points were changed to positives. This point is very important for my future employment and career because success can be the result of good time management. I was provided with very useful leaflets and sources by the tutors about this issue. After reading them, I found that I had to manage my time better as it was not great. Now, my time is managed better and I can have more activities as the least amount of time is spent carelessly or without a plan. I have many goals that I work hard to achieve them. My main targets are obtaining higher degrees and learning more to have a better employment opportunity. Trying to reach all the achievements need a good plan which requires managing time very well. This skill can have a main role in my future employability.

The dream employment for me is working in a group which consists of people from different cultures and nations. Such an employment essentials cross cultural skills, that is to say, someone with a good knowledge of different cultural aspects. The group of people which involved in the project was quite diverse. I worked with people who had different ideas and attitudes. It was a good introduction for me to learn some basics of dealing with people who may think differently especially with different customs. It does not look like having a conversation with someone who the same culture is shared with. In this sense, communicators should be more careful to avoid misunderstanding. After communication with all the members of the team, my cross cultural information increased significantly.

We had many meetings to discuss the project; a great number of people from different courses and positions attended to the meetings. In the meetings, I usually could improve my leadership skills as I always tried to participate and contribute something to the meetings. It can be said that being active in a group can enhance leadership skills because usually active people become leaders. Problem solving was another issue which I could recognize it from myself; I could solve some of the problems in a few meetings. While my leadership and problem solving skills were improving, my self-confidence increased significantly. As people relied on me sometimes and they wanted me to speak at the meetings, I became more confident in communicating with other people. This helped me to recommend solutions and new ideas with less hesitation.

Using technology to enhance a group aim was another new thing for me. Facebook was generally used to update group members about the recent changes of the project and sometimes, the ideas were discussed there. We had two Facebook groups: one of them was shared between students of my course and MA publishing students, the other one was dedicated to the students of my course. The second one was not very active as we usually preferred face to face communication, but I usually became an active member of the first group. I used the group to update MA publishing students about our works. It was proven to me that a space on a social network can be very useful for a group to work on a project. People from a work place can have such a group to discuss issues and problems about their job or they can easily ask questions and search for the answers there.

Team work was very new for me and I found that it is more beneficial than doing a type of work individually. It could be seen that a team work was more successful than a work of an individual. In the project, I realized that to get great achievements for a group, a shared aim of the team is very important. That is to say, all the members of a group should work to achieve a target and the group achievements should be more important than individual attainments.