Acta Paedagogica Vilnensia ISSN 1392-5016 eISSN 1648-665X

2023, vol. 51, pp. 118–131 DOI: https://doi.org/10.15388/ActPaed.2023.51.7

What is the implementation practice of schools as learning organisations from the perspective of local governments?

Inese Lūsēna-Ezera
Liepaja University
inese.lusena-ezera@liepu.lv

Gunta Siliņa-Jasjukeviča
University of Latvia
gunta.silina-jasjukevica@lu.lv

Abstract. The approach of the school as a learning organisation was updated in the world with rapid changes in teaching and learning processes, in the governance of educational institutions and learning content and learning outcomes. Introducing, promoting and strengthening the approach of schools as learning organisations can also be observed in the field of education in Latvia. The learning organisation approach is based on cooperation between different parties to achieve common learning goals. In order to introduce, implement and strengthen the changes initiated in education in Latvia, it is necessary not only to develop cooperation between the different stakeholders, including the cooperation between the educational institution and its founder, particularly the municipality, but also to understand whether all stakeholders, especially municipalities, fully understand the approach of the school as a learning organisation when facilitating educational institutions to become learning organisations. The aim of the study was to find out the practice of the school as a learning organisation approach in education institutions in Latvia from the perspective of Latvian local governments. It was find out that the implementation of Latvian education policy in the context of school as a learning organisation in local governments does not take place within a single, unified system. It was identified that the obstacles or difficulties identified by local governments in the implementation of school as a learning organisation are applicable both at the level of education policy planning, at the whole-school level and at the school management level, furthermore, modelling and growing learning leadership is one of the weakest dimensions of the school as a learning organisation in educational institutions.
Key words: Learning organisation, school as a learning organisation, Educational policy, Local governments

Kokia yra mokyklų, kaip mokymosi institucijų, naujovių diegimo įgyvendinimo praktika iš vietos valdžios institucijų perspektyvos?

Santrauka. Mokyklos kaip mokymosi institucijos pozicija patyrė virsmų visame pasaulyje, nes sparčiai keitėsi mokymo ir mokymosi procesai, švietimo įstaigų valdymas, mokymosi turinys ir siekiniai. Latvijos švietimo srityje taip pat matomas mokyklos kaip mokymosi institucijos pozicijos formavimasis, skatinimas ir stiprinimas. Mokymosi institucijos pozicija grindžiama įvairių suinteresuotųjų šalių grandžių bendradarbiavimu siekiant bendrų mokymosi tikslų. Latvijoje inicijuotiems pokyčiams švietimo srityje priimti, įgyvendinti ir stiprinti būtina ne tik plėtoti skirtingų suinteresuotųjų šalių bendradarbiavimą, įskaitant švietimo įstaigos bendradarbiavimą su jos steigėju – savivaldybe, bet ir suprasti, ar visos suinteresuotosios šalys, ypač savivaldybės, visapusiškai supranta mokyklos, kaip mokymosi institucijos, poziciją sudarant sąlygas švietimo įstaigoms tapti mokymosi institucijomis. Tyrimo tikslas – išanalizuoti mokyklos kaip mokymosi institucijos pozicijos raišką Latvijos švietimo įstaigose iš Latvijos savivaldybių perspektyvos. Rezultatai atskleidė, kad Latvijos švietimo politikos įgyvendinimas mokykloje kaip mokymosi institucijoje nevyksta vienoje, bendroje sistemoje su vietos savivaldos institucijomis. Nustatyta, kad vietos savivaldos išskiriamos kliūtys ir sunkumai, su kuriais susiduria mokykla kaip mokymosi institucija, reiškiasi tiek švietimo politikos planavimo, tiek visos mokyklos ir jos valdymo lygmenimis, be to, mokymosi lyderystės modeliavimas ir ugdymas yra viena iš silpniausių mokyklos kaip mokymosi institucijos dimensijų švietimo įstaigose.
Pagrindiniai žodžiai: mokymosi institucija, mokykla kaip mokymosi institucija, švietimo politika, vietos valdžia

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Acknowledgments. The article was prepared under the European Social Fund project No. 8.3.6.2/17/I/001 “Establishment and implementation of the Education Quality Monitoring System” within the framework of the research “A model and tool to support the implementation of the approach school as a learning organization in educational institutions”.

Received: 12/05/2023. Accepted: 28/06/2023
Copyright © Inese Lūsēna-Ezera, Gunta Siliņa-Jasjukeviča, 2023. Published by Vilnius University Press. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Licence (CC BY), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

Introduction

As the world is rapidly changing, the issue of schools’ ability to adapt to today’s constant and dynamic developments in technology, the labour market and society as a whole is becoming more topical. One perspective is the transformation of traditional schools into learning organisations. A learning organisation is an interdisciplinary concept that is described as “an organisation that is able to change regularly and adapt to new environments and circumstances as its members learn individually and together to achieve their own and shared goals” (Kools et al., 2020), while according to the core principles of a learning organisation defined by Senge in his book The Fifth Discipline: The Art and Practice of the Learning Organization, the role of the school as a learning organization is to teach all its members to think, communicate and collaborate, both among themselves and within the ecosystem in which they operate (Senge, 1990).

The functioning of a learning organisation is based on three values: 1) a supportive learning environment characterised by psychological safety; 2) specific learning processes and practices that involve experimentation to develop and test new methods and techniques for identifying and interpreting problems in the organisation and proposing innovative solutions; 3) leaders who reinforce learning by encouraging employees to learn through their thinking, decision-making and personal behaviour in the organisation (Garvin et al. 2008). A learning organisation is an open system which allows creating an alternative vision of the future, and a systemic, thinking organisation is able to see the bigger picture by looking at the interrelationships of systems both within the organisation and with other organisations (Stoll and Kools, 2017), develops common goals, creates a collaborative learning environment, encourages innovation and risk-taking, regularly reviews aspects of the organisation’s performance, recognises and evaluates good practice within the organisation, and provides continuous professional development opportunities for employees (Silins et al., 2002). This implies that a key characteristic of the education system is the functional transformation of educational institutions into ‘learning organisations’ that offer diverse learning opportunities, emphasise a learning culture and purposeful learning based on evidence of learning needs, and collaborate with different stakeholders to expand and develop learning opportunities.

Learning organisations can be viewed in several dimensions, including different aspects of leadership, strategies, participation in policy making, continuous learning, dialogue and exploration of professional practice, team learning and the establishment of such processes and structures that support learning not only at the individual but also at the organisational level (Leufvén et al., 2015). The most widely used model in practice today is the OECD’s integrated model of the school as a learning organisation with 7 dimensions (OECD, 2016):

1) developing and sharing a vision centred on the learning of all students;

2) creating and supporting continuous learning opportunities for all staff;

3) promoting team learning and collaboration among all staff;

4) establishing a culture of inquiry, innovation and exploration;

5) embedding systems for collecting and exchanging knowledge and learning;

6) learning with and from the external environment and larger learning system;

7) modelling and growing learning leadership.

The approach of introducing, promoting and strengthening schools as learning organisations can also be observed in the field of education in Latvia. Since 2016, Latvia has been gradually moving towards a competence-based approach to teaching in general education, which also marks the implementation of a new approach to school governance so that the school that teaches becomes the school that learns. The direction towards the implementation of the school as a learning organisation approach in the education system of Latvia is defined in the national education policy planning document “Education Development Guidelines 2021–2027” in relation to one of the key characteristics of the education system of Latvia, named therein as “functional transformation of educational institutions” (Ministru kabinets, 2021). Latvia’s education policy envisages addressing the issue of ensuring strategic and effective management of the education system and institutions, emphasising the implementation of the school as a learning organisation approach as an important aspect of the ability of educational institutions to regularly develop and adapt to new conditions and situations (Ministru kabinets, 2021). One of the goals of the education policy of Latvia “Sustainable and effective management of the education system and resources” requires addressing the issue of “how to ensure strategic and effective management of the education system and institutions” and the implementation of the school as a learning organisation approach is identified as an important aspect of achieving this goal through change management and the development of an internal organisational culture in educational institutions (Ministru kabinets, 2021). As mentioned in the European Commission’s 2020 report “European ideas for better learning: The governance of school education systems,” “national governments are shifting greater control to the local level while maintaining responsibility for the quality – referring to the effectiveness, efficiency and equity – of the overall system” (European Commission, 2020). Similarly, in Latvia, local governments and the education administrations under their government have an important role to play in the transition towards the transformation of educational institutions into learning organisations, by supporting school principals and deputy principals of educational institutions in the implementation of this transition (Ministru kabinets, 2021). The significant role assigned to local governments in Latvia in the context of building and strengthening schools as a learning organisations is particularly emphasised, since the ensuring and developing high-quality education in accordance with the objectives set by the state and the needs of the individual is one of the competences of local governments in education as defined by the legislator (Education Law, 1999a, with amendments in 22.10.2022.). In addition, the main tasks of the education board as a subordinate institution of the municipality are related not only to planning the development of education, setting priorities in the field of education and youth policy, developing and implementing strategic and policy planning documents of the municipality in the field of education, but its function is also to facilitate public participation in education, including cooperation of educational institutions with state and municipal institutions, employers, social partners, nongovernmental organisations, to inform the public about the development, achievements, offer and quality of educational programmes in the educational ecosystem of the municipality (Education Law, 1999b, with amendments in 20.10.2022.).

To strengthen the school as a learning organisation, the European Commission emphasises not only the need for cooperation and communication at horizontal level between regions, schools, between school and parents or even wider society, facilitating the transfer of knowledge and good practice, and at vertical level between schools and local governments or between teachers and schools, but also the need to understand the school as a learning organisation approach in school activities. (European Commission, 2020). Poor understanding of the nature of the school as a learning organisation can be one of the main impediments to the development of the concept of the school as a learning organisation. Lack of understanding of the concept of leadership can also hinder the formation of a school as a learning organisation (Liebowitz, 2018). Understanding of the school as a learning organisation can contribute to schools’ ability to respond to different complex challenges and to make the necessary improvements, because it is based on cooperation and communication between these horizontal and vertical connections, or different stakeholders (European Commission, 2020).

To consolidate and implement the changes introduced in the education in Latvia, it is necessary to develop a common understanding of the school as a learning organisation approach and to develop cooperation between different stakeholders: the educational institution and the founder, the educational institution and the local community, the educational institution and parents of learners, the educational institution and other institutions (including other educational institutions, businesses, higher education institutions, etc.).

The aim of the study was to find out the practice of the school as a learning organisation approach in education institutions in Latvia from the perspective of Latvian local governments. In order to achieve the aim of the research, two research questions have been raised: What are the perceptions of local governments about the practice of the school as a learning organisation in general education institutions? To what extent do the local governments already ensure the effective implementation or enforcement of the policy of educational institutions as learning organisations?

In order to find out the perceptions of local governments about the practice of the school as a learning organisation in general education institutions, the survey data of 25 specialists in general education from 17 Latvian local governments (counties/state cities; N=38), including educational boards, were analysed. A measurement tool – questionnaire with five groups of questions was developed to find out:

• their associations when thinking about the school as a learning organisation (multiple choice question with 17 possible associations) and the performance indicators of educational institutions in implementing the school as learning organisation (1 question with 31 performance indicators – statements in 3 point scale: is characteristic, partly characteristic, not characteristic)

• the assessment of the school as a learning organisation practice in general education institutions in the municipalities using the OECD’s integrated school as a learning organisation model with seven dimensions (OECD, 2016) (1 question with 41 indicators in 4 point scale: is characteristic, partly characteristic, not characteristic; don’t know);

• the activities implemented by the local governments to strengthen educational institutions as learning organisations (1 open question);

• impediments/difficulties in the introduction of schools as learning organisations in educational institutions in the local governments (1 question with 41 possible impediments/difficulties in 4 point scale: is characteristic, partly characteristic, not characteristic; don’t know) .

The survey data was collected between 29/09/2022 and 07/10/2022 using an online questionnaire. MS Excel 2016 application was used for data processing and analysis of the survey data. A survey performed in this study involving human participants was in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

In order to evaluate to what extent the local governments already ensure the implementation or enforcement of the policy of educational institutions as learning organisations, the strategic planning documents of 11 Latvian local governments were analysed. The document analysis was carried out between 17/102022 and 31/10/2022. Local governments were selected using a nonprobability sampling method.

Research results

The results of the research revealed that all the surveyed local government professionals associate the school as a learning organisation with learning by doing, collaboration, learning to learn, teamwork, change, innovation and everyone’s involvement in identifying and solving problems, while the school as a learning organisation is associated least with disciplined thinking and learning from the past (Figure 2). According to Hargreaves and Fink, learning from the past is one of the principles of sustainable management as it “respects and builds on the past in its quest to create a better future” (Hargreaves and Fink, 2006), therefore, succession is important, which builds on the best of the past to create an even better future (Taylor, 2020). Moreover, experimentation, adaptation and leadership are also not the most significant characteristics of the school as a learning organisation in the view of local government professionals (Figure 1). At the same time, analysing the responses of local government specialists to the question of the performance indicators that are typical for an educational institution if it implements a learning organisation approach in its activities, it was found that, in the view of the municipalities, such educational institutions are able to adapt to various circumstances, there are discussions and different opinions, the school’s performance is analysed, staff learning is supported and its continuity ensured, and school staff are satisfied with their work.

Figure 1. Associations of the local governments on the school as learning organization (multiple choice question; survey data)

Assessing the school as a learning organisation practice in general education institutions in the governments using the OECD’s integrated school as a learning organisation model (OECD, 2016) with seven dimensions developing and sharing a vision centred on the learning of all students; creating and supporting continuous learning opportunities for all staff; promoting team learning and collaboration among all staff; establishing a culture of inquiry, innovation and exploration; embedding systems for collecting and exchanging knowledge and learning; learning with and from the external environment and larger learning system; modelling and growing learning leadership, it was discovered that, according to local governments the most critical school as a learning organisation dimensions for educational institutions are establishing a culture of inquiry, exploration and innovation and modelling and growing learning leadership, where in both dimensions four out of seven indicators were rated as “typical” by less than 40% of the municipal experts. For example, on the dimension establishing a culture of inquiry, exploration and innovation, only 32% of municipal experts felt that students are actively engaged in research and that school staff are willing and ready to experiment and introduce innovations into their practice; only 24% of municipal experts indicated the involvement of school staff in research activities to explore and expand their practice which is specific to educational institutions. On the other hand, with regard to the dimension of modelling and growing learning leadership, only 32% of local government professionals considered school leaders to be proactive and creative agents of change, while only 28% indicated that school leaders promote and engage in close collaboration with other schools, parents, the community, higher education institutions and other partners. The school principal will play a crucial role in shaping the learning organisation, and only the development of any school that creates the environment and conditions for collective and individual peer learning and the dissemination of good practice will lead to continuous improvement and high teaching performance, resulting in higher quality teaching and student achievement (Mulford, 2003; Elmore, 2008).

The evaluation of the practice of the school as a learning organisation also highlights the problems that are revealed in the local governments’ evaluation of both the dimension team learning and fostering collaboration in schools, where only 20% of the local governments’ experts believe that school staff feel comfortable approaching each other for advice or guidance, and the dimension continuous professional development of staff, where only 16% of the local governments ‘ experts could say that the professional learning of school staff creates challenges for thinking.

Taking into account that local governments do not consider disciplined thinking as one of the main characteristics of a school as a learning organisation, this can be seen as a reason for such a low assessment of the implementation of a school as a learning organisation by local governments, considering that systemic thinking is one of the disciplines of a learning organisation, which is characterised as the ability of employees to see and understand the processes within and outside the organisation, the relationships and structures in the surrounding environment, and how the processes taking place in society affect the functioning of the organisation (Senge, 1990). In addition, it envisages the ability of the organisation to learn from its past experiences and mistakes (Senge, 1990; Wai-Yin Lo, 2004).

In 2021, the Ministry of Education and Science of Latvia developed a model for the school professional support ecosystem in Latvia, determining that the role of local governments is to provide professional support to schools, including ensuring the activities of learning coordinators in governments, who are responsible for developing teacher collaboration and organising the exchange of experience in important areas, and the activities of learning consultants in governments, whose task is to observe lessons, provide individual and group support to improve practice and support the entry of new teachers into the school (Izglītības un zinātnes ministrija, 2021). At the same time, it is important to mention that the competence of the governments is also to organise methodological, scientific, informative and other types of intellectual support for learners, teachers, parents of learners and educational institutions to ensure the quality of education; therefore, the education policy envisages that governments are responsible for the development of methodological and advisory networks to promote professional competence and cooperation among teachers (Ministru kabinets, 2021). The responses of local government specialists to the open questions on their implemented or planned activities for strengthening educational institutions in their becoming learning organisations, the professional development of local government staff, providing support to school management, providing methodological support to teachers and promoting cooperation with other schools in the national city or region were summarised. The answers of the local government specialists revealed that, in terms of professional development of school staff, their main focus is on identifying staff needs, organising and coordinating various good practice events, as well as organising training on the school as a learning organisation. As indicated by the governments, they also provide support to school management, but mostly in the area of governance (e.g., school work planning, preparing a development plan and a school self-evaluation report), not in the area of strengthening learning leadership. Special attention should be paid to this because learning leadership of school heads from the perspective of local governments is one of the lowest rated dimensions of the school as a learning organisation in their municipal schools.

Summarising the responses of local governments on the impediments or difficulties in developing the school as a learning organisation, it has been revealed that they are applicable both to the level of educational policy planning and to the school level, especially to the school management level. At the level of education policy, the main impediments or difficulties mentioned were: staff perception of “yet another reform in education” (80%), financial provision (64%), lack of communication between planners and implementers of education policy at different levels (68%); at the school level, the main impediments or difficulties mentioned were the lack of a change agent (76%), lack of staff time for professional development (72%), inability of staff to change their thinking (72%), systemic thinking (64%); at the school management level – noninvolvement or minimal involvement of staff in identifying and solving problems of the educational institution (72%), lack of regular feedback to staff (indicated by 64%) and lack of individual support to each staff member (60%). The impediments to the development of schools as learning organisations identified by local governments are broadly in line with the observations of education management researchers, such as insufficient financial resources for schools to function as learning organisations, linked to the unequal distribution of funding across general education institutions (OECD, 2018); failure to provide learning opportunities and support to all school staff, including school management, as professional development not only for teachers but also for school management and other support staff is important in implementing the school as a learning organisation (Kools an Stoll, 2020; Kampylis et al., 2015); an inclusive work environment that lacks mutual trust and support (Somech and Drach-Zahavy, 2007; Kools and Stoll, 2016); and the absence of a learning leader as a change agent in the organisation (Kools and Stoll, 2016; OECD, 2013b); insufficient parental involvement in school life (OECD, 2013a); and finally, insufficient support from policy makers and administrative governments, as a systemic approach is needed to promote the transfer and adoption of good practice in schools as learning organisations (OECD, 2013a), which can be achieved through inter-school cooperation networks and closer collaboration between policy makers and implementers (OECD, 2013).

In order to assess the scope of the school as a learning organisation in the education development plans of the local governments of the Republic of Latvia, the strategic planning documents of 11 local governments were analysed. By evaluating the documents of 11 local governments on the development of education in the local governments (Appendix A1), it was found that not all local governments have developed separate educational development planning documents. For several local governments, education development issues are included in municipal development planning documents. After the review of municipal documents, it was concluded that only three out of eleven municipal planning documents directly mention the concept of a learning organisation. At the same time, it has been identified that the implementation, promotion and strengthening of basic principles of the school as a learning organisation is partially included in the municipal development planning documents, which mostly contain 3–4 elements characterising the school as a learning organisation, for example, activities for closer cooperation with entrepreneurs; support for professional development of teachers; promotion of cooperation, transfer of experience and examples of good practice among teachers at the regional level, but the mentioned elements do not fully cover the implementation, promotion and strengthening of the school as a learning organisation in educational institutions in the local government.

Conclusions

The implementation of the school as a learning organization approach involves effective cooperation between stakeholders. This applies not only to the relationships between school staff, but also to the short-term and long-term collaborative relationships the school develops with other organisations in the local community, especially at the level of local government and nationally. The results of the surveys of local governments reveal that modelling and growing learning leadership is one of the weakest dimensions of the school as a learning organisation in educational institutions. Consequently, one of the most important prerequisites for developing a school into a learning organisation is leadership, implemented on a daily basis by the school principal or an extended school management team. The responsibility of the school management team is not only to obtain diverse data on how the school is doing and what the learning needs of the stakeholders are, but also to organise the management of financial, administrative and human resources for the realisation of a shared vision of the school. In the school as a learning organisation, it is expected that the principal will create a learning environment and infrastructure in the school, which will be characterised by purposeful, regular and systematic professional development, the formation of a culture of cooperation and feedback, as well as support for the parties involved – students, parents, teachers, representatives of the local community, etc. – to meet their individual learning needs.

Despite the fact that in order to strengthen educational institutions’ becoming as learning organisations, local governments marked the professional development of staff, providing support to school management, providing methodological support to educators and promoting cooperation with other schools in the city or county as implemented or to be implemented activities, more attention should be paid to promoting the understanding of the school staff about the nature of the school as a learning organization and its role in improving the quality of education in Latvia, especially the school principal, who should play the role of a change agent in the formation of the school as a learning organization, and even more so if the research reveals that from the point of view of local governments, learning leadership is one of the weakest dimensions of the school as learning organisation in their educational institutions.

References

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A APPENDIX

A1 Review of the documents of 11 local governments on the development
of education in the local government

The local government`s No.1 Education Strategy 2022-2027 does not include the term school as a learning organisation and the goal to transform schools into learning organisations, but the Action Plan contains a number proposed tasks to implement the development priorities, which are closely linked to the principles of schools as learning organisations. The Strategy’s Action Plan sets three priorities: 1) human resources; 2) inclusive education; 3) governance. The above-mentioned strategy does not contain information on the establishment of a methodological support centre or a person performing its functions.

The local government`s No.2 General Education Institutions’ Development Strategy 2018-2025 includes the term “school as a learning organisation” and the action plan envisages various tasks to develop the action line of “implementing the competence approach in the curriculum”. Other action lines also include tasks related to the introduction and/or promotion of the principles of the school as a learning organisation: 1) the development of teachers’ professional competence and personal development, attracting new teaching staff; 2) an optimal network of general education establishments in the municipality; 3) the opportunity for every child to be involved in the direction and processes of educational processes, actively expressing his or her civic position; 4) cooperation provides fair, inclusive and high-quality education for everyone, as well as lifelong learning opportunities; 5) ensuring the diversity of interest education based on the development and implementation of an individual learning approach, improving learners’ competences and promoting their achievements.

The local government`s No.3 Education Development Strategy 2019-2025 does not include the term school as a learning organisation and the objective of transforming schools as learning organisations, but in this case, too, the Action Plan contains a number of priority objectives that are closely linked to the principles of schools as learning organisations. The actions promoting schools as learning organisations are included in the following action areas: 1) education governance, quality and monitoring; 2) cooperation; 3) development of methodological work; 4) support for employees in the education sector; 5) support for inclusive education; 6) offer and content quality; 7) human resources; 8) cooperation. According to the strategy of Municipality No.3, the Board of Education is supposed to ensure the development of the management of methodological support.

The local government`s No.4 Education Sector Development Concept 2020-2025 includes the term school as a learning organisation, its first course of action envisages an accessible place in a high-quality and modern educational institution for every child and young person in Municipality No.4. The Action Plan of the above-mentioned concept envisages measures to promote the functioning of schools as learning organisations with the aim of achieving the following strategic goals: 1) inclusive and accessible education environment; 2) learning achievements; 3) educational governance; 4) cooperation towards common goals. The Action Plan contains information on the establishment of the Methodology Centre. Its task is to provide methodological support to general and vocational education institutions for quality improvement, implementation of the competence approach in education according to the national and municipal educational development policies.

The local government`s No.5 Education Development Concept 2021-2027 also includes the term school as a learning organisation, as the first course of action within the strategic goal “ Successful Education Governance” to provide effective support to educational institutions to develop as learning organisations. The Concept’s action plan contains measures to support the functioning of schools as learning organisations in order to achieve the following strategic goals: 1) successful education governance; 2) inclusive and supportive learning environment; 3) quality learning; 4) relevance to educational objectives. The functions of the municipal pedagogical-methodological centre are carried out by one of the gymnasiums in the municipality.

Local government`s No.6 education planning document is not available. The development of the municipality’s Education Strategy 2022-2027 is one of the municipality’s education priorities for the school year 2022/2023. The municipality has a methodological centre whose priorities are related to stimulating the school as a learning organisation approach: 1) to promote cooperation, sharing of experience and good practice among teachers at the municipal level; 2) to participate in lesson observations and provide constructive feedback; 3) to provide information on current developments in the field; 4) to identify further professional development needs of teaching staff.

Local government No.7 does not have any education planning documents. In the planning document “Sustainable Development Strategy 2030 of the Municipality No.7” Municipality No.7 is described as a centre of culture and education (in a specific region of Latvia). After analysing the planning document, it can be concluded that the information reflected in it does not directly relate to the approach of the school as a learning organisation. The concept of ‘school as a learning organisation’ is not included in the planning document, but the programme mentions that activities should be planned for closer cooperation between entrepreneurs, educational institutions and research institutions in order to promote the development of a knowledge-based economy in the city, innovation and technological progress.

Local government No. 8 does not have any education planning documents. Action 1 of the Sustainable Development Strategy 2030 of this municipality is high-quality and modern education. The strategy mentions the mutually coordinated and integrated functioning of a network of educational, cultural and sporting institutions in cooperation with public institutions and the private sector as one of its strategic policies, which is in line with one of the dimensions of the school as learning organisation. In the Development Programme 2022-2027, high-quality and accessible education has been set as Priority 4, envisaging support for the development of teachers’ professional competence and digital literacy, the creation of inclusive and socially-emotionally safe environment in educational institutions, solutions for everyone’s talent and growth, monitoring the quality of education and data-based decision-making, as well as sustainable and efficient management of the education system and resources. The programme includes a visualisation of the school as a student-centred place that is characterized by teamwork and mutual learning, a culture of inquiry and innovation, leadership support for development and a vision of engaging all students in learning.

In the local government`s No. 9 Education Development Concept 2015-2020 (extended to 2022), the concept of school as a learning organisation is not included. One of the proposed alternatives is socially accessible education, which envisages the creation of a democratic education system in the Municipality that is easily accessible (in terms of location and cost) to any resident of the Municipality, however, it can be observed that the document emphasises the learning of talented, not all students, as envisaged in the school as a learning organisation approach.

Local government No.10 does not have any education planning documents. In the planning document “Municipal Development Programme 2012-2018” and “Municipal Sustainable Development Strategy 2030” the concept of “school as a learning organisation” is not mentioned, but the strengthening of cooperation between educational institutions and entrepreneurs, which is one of the principles of this approach, is mentioned.

Local government No.11 does not have any education planning documents. The concept of school as a learning organisation is not mentioned in the Action Plan of the Municipal Development Programme 2022-2028. The programme sets out objectives related to this approach, such as: 1) Developing the network of educational institutions in the Municipality and providing support for the professional development of teachers; 2) Promoting cooperation between stakeholders in the education process; 3) Promoting knowledge synergies between vocational education and the business sector.