Toward an Organizational Model of Achievement in High Schools: The Significance of Collective Efficacy

Abstract

In this study, a theoretical model to explain school achievement in high schools is developed and tested. Collective efficacy is the key variable in a proposed theoretical system that also includes academic press and socioeconomic status. The authors postulate that both socioeconomic status and academic press have positive effects on school achievement in mathematics as well as improve the collective efficacy of the school. Collective efficacy, in turn, is hypothesized to have a positive effect on school mathematics achievement. Finally, the analysis concludes with a discussion of strategies to enhance collective efficacy of schools.