The in-tensions of educational policy for school supervision

Analysis in a sector of Hidalgo, Mexico

Abstract

In recent years, educational policy in Mexico has tried to promote change processes for improvement purposes. Therefore, management models have become devices to guide school practices. From this context, school supervision has become more complex, due to the demands it faces on a daily basis, which has generated tensions in the practice of supervisors. Therefore, the objective of this article is to show how the process occurs that goes from the approach of educational policy, to its implementation and achievement of its objectives, since as will be seen, the intentions of the policy encounter obstacles in daily practice, which are identified as tensions, since they suppose the constant interaction of educational subjects that put into question the established power relations and the traditional management mechanisms. The analysis of the supervision practices is carried out through a qualitative case study in a school sector in the state of Hidalgo. As part of the analysis, four central tensions are identified: the discursive: supervising or accompanying; accountable or meet the needs of the area; the union and the official; and, that of experience and training. Based on its analysis, it is possible to conclude, among other aspects, which the reality shown reveals that school supervision continues to be an oversight; with weaknesses in its control function, assessment and evaluation, as have those who perform individual and contextual conditions that favour its implementation.