Positioning and validating the supervision framework

The purpose of this study is to verify the scientific basis of the indicators that are part of the Dutch Inspectorate’s Supervision Frameworks for primary and secondary education and to relate the Supervision Frameworks to central functions of education, such as qualification, integration and personality development.
With respect to the first part of this general purpose, a more straightforward linkage to scientific knowledge is possible than is the case for the second part (relating to societal functions). Since the rationale of the Inspection Frameworks is clearly inspired by the means-to-end thinking inherent in educational effectiveness research, where process indicators are selected for their positive association with learning outcomes, the knowledge base that has been generated by this body of research is a likely source of validation. The basic question of this kind of validation is to check whether the set of process indicators on teaching and learning in the Inspection Frameworks, corresponds well with the set of variables that has received empirical support in educational effectiveness research. In order to do so it is of vital importance to make up the balance as far as the state of the art of educational effectiveness research is concerned. This means that the international research literature should be captured as fully as possible and that methods should be employed to summarize and synthesize the research results in a clear and concise way. In order to do so, techniques for meta-analyses are being
employed.