Exploring the Relationship Between School Effectiveness Frameworks and Student Learning Outcomes: Evidence from North Central Nigeria

This study explores the explanatory power of school effectiveness frameworks in accounting for variation in student learning outcomes across secondary schools in North Central Nigeria, covering Plateau, Benue, and Kogi states. While school effectiveness research has generated substantial evidence in Western contexts, the adaptation and empirical validation of these frameworks in sub-Saharan African school settings requires deeper theoretical and empirical engagement. The study employs a sequential mixed-methods design. Phase one uses hierarchical linear modelling on survey data from 1,000 students, 200 teachers, and 60 school administrators across 30 schools. Phase two embeds case studies of 6 schools to generate explanatory mechanisms. Data sources include the School Effectiveness Questionnaire, West African Senior School Certificate Examination scores, and semi-structured interviews. The study integrates Creemers' Comprehensive Model of Educational Effectiveness, Scheerens' Context-Input-Process-Output Model, and Bourdieu's Field Theory to examine school culture, instructional leadership, teacher professional learning community, and resource sufficiency as effectiveness predictors. Findings are anticipated to demonstrate that teacher professional community and instructional leadership are the most robust school-level predictors of student outcomes, with resource sufficiency moderating these relationships. Recommendations provide evidence for the Plateau, Benue, and Kogi state ministries on context-sensitive school improvement strategies. Keywords: school effectiveness, student learning outcomes, North Central Nigeria, hierarchical linear modelling, school improvement