Evaluating the quality of self-evaluations: The (mis)match between internal and external meta-evaluation

Abstract

This article focuses on school self-evaluations (SSE). It addresses whether SSE meets quality indicators and whether differences can be found between the quality judgments of school principals and inspectors. Data stem from two complementary data collections: population data of school inspections and a survey of a representative sample of school principals. The results show that principals and the inspectorate declare themselves on average to be satisfied with the quality of the self evaluations. However, their judgments do not match. This raises questions about the validity and reliability of the evaluation by principals and the inspectorate. The article deals with the limitations of self-reporting by principals and of the inspectorate's framework and methodology in evaluating the quality of school self evaluations.