2. Resources And Their Use

Question 1

Equity
2 interpretations

Equality of opportunity

Equality

Answer 1

Equality of opportunity

• people are able to make the same choices

Equality
- people have the same amount of an item - income or education.

Equity – fairness – adequacy (relate to open system analysis)

Question 2

Horizontal equity

Versus

Vertical equity

Answer 2

• Horizontal equity
• students with similar needs should receive the same amount
• spend equal amounts on each child’s education
  Versus

Vertical equity
- students with greater needs should achieve more resources to access the standard of education provided for the majority

Example
Should examination classes be smaller than those studying for basic education

• apply to the organisation and VLE to the organisation and link to vle experiences to show
  advantages and disadvantages of focus on equity – include the subjectivity of
  judgements of need etc., fiscal equalisation measures, validity of uniformity

Question 3

Adequacy of funding

Answer 3

The extent to which the funding has been matched to the objectives for the school

Question 4

Criteria to judge resources use

The way in which resource use has affected outputs and outcomes

Answer 4

1. Effectiveness
2. Efficiency
3. Economy
4. Value for money
5. Equity

Question 5

Efficiency

Answer 5

The relationship between an institutions inputs and its outputs.

Securing minimum inputs for a given quality and quantity of education provided

Achieved when a given quantity of output is produced at minimum cost.

Efficiency – input output relationships – internal and external efficiency
- link to league table judgements.
Changing inputs and securing outputs –
culture and context, lack of technical knowhow – subjectivity and objectivity in assessment, allocation and evaluation.

Question 6

Efficiency advantages & disadvantages

Answer 6

Advantages

Disadvantages

• schools are multiproduct enterprises (students learn social skills and attitudes as well cognitive k&s)
• tests, exams, qualifications are often used as output
• but outcomes are longer term (employability, earning capacity, health). Harder to measure

Question 7

Technical efficiency

Answer 7

The relationship between the combinations of different inputs used and the resulting quantity of output.

So teacher plus equipment and therefore results. Combined inputs.

The technically efficient combination of teaches plus equipment given input prices that produces an output most cheaply = cost efficient combination.

Eg cheaper teacher and same resources = more cost efficient
Or more expensive teacher and less resources = more cost efficient

Question 8

Educational Productivity

Related to efficiency

Answer 8

Relating the amounts of inputs used to achieve the amounts of outputs.

Question 9

Effectiveness

Answer 9

The extent to which the organisation is judged to be meeting its objectives regardless of cost.

It is the relationship between the schools objectives and it’s outputs (both difficult to quantify)

Effectiveness – meeting objectives regardless of cost – matter of
definitions in differing circumstances - looking at the nature of education –
some reference to Bourdieu and capital in its varied forms.

Question 10

Effectiveness

Advantages and disadvantages

Answer 10

Advantages

• an important reflection of the way in which a school is using its resources
• its a concept that embraces an assumption about the social value of the outputs and moves nearer to the outcome of an organisation

Disadvantages

• schools objectives and it’s outputs (both difficult to quantify)
• schools outputs are long term - how do you measure them
• subjective

Question 11

Economy

Answer 11

The acquisition of resources of the appropriate quality and quantity at the lowest cost.

Often means cutting costs and getting cheaper purchases but must be careful if this effects efficiency as poor quality could be the result.

Rational must be EFFICIENCY:
Least cost for a particular output and not ECONOMY (lowest cost)

Question 12

Value for money

Answer 12

Value for money = efficient and effective

Brings together the measurable and immeasurable (subjective and objective)

Glyn (1993) ‘a situation where those who strive to provide the service do the best they can with the resources that are available’

Also used to consider getting the best value purchases and that they evaluate what they have purchased against the needs of the organisation)

• Can only be judged after considering all the inspection evidence about the educational standards achieved and the quality of education provided, setting this in relation to the schools context and income . 1988 education act.

Question 13

Essay
What are the advantages and disadvantages of the use of the criteria of
equity, efficiency, and effectiveness by those evaluating resource use in an
educational organisation known to you?

Answer 13

This question looks at some of the criteria by which we judge success or failure in using the resources allocated for education. The danger is that quick answers talk about the lot – so a reminder to read the question!

Again, there was some useful vle discussion that you can draw on and Levacic and Audit Commission, Glyn and Black and Machin are the authors that might be
of help. A suggested answer might include the following:

Helpful to begin with a brief analytic description of the organisation and then
either a definition of each of the terms and its application to your
organisation or three subsections including a definition in each.

Equity – fairness – adequacy (relate to open system analysis) vertical and
horizontal – apply to the organisation and link to vle experiences to show
advantages and disadvantages of focus on equity – include the subjectivity of
judgements of need etc., fiscal equalisation measures, validity of uniformity

Efficiency – input output relationships – internal and external efficiency
- link to league table judgements. Changing inputs and securing outputs –
culture and context, lack of technical knowhow – subjectivity and objectivity
in assessment, allocation and evaluation.

Effectiveness – meeting objectives regardless of cost – matter of
definitions in differing circumstances - looking at the nature of education –
some reference to Bourdieu and capital in its varied forms.

Implied consideration of what we mean by evaluation – the hidden question of
who makes the judgements – role of stakeholders - could then lead on to value
for money as an alternative judgemental criterion.