This study, part of a wider study, presents the results concerning school climate as examples of best practices in highly effective schools. Thirty-two primary and secondary schools were identified and selected using multilevel statistical modelling techniques and hierarchical linear models that identified schools with higher-than-expected student results from among all the schools in the Autonomous Region of the Basque Country. Once schools had been identified and characterised, the best practices were selected via a qualitative study involving 83 interviews with 3 groups of key informants: 25 inspectors, 26 educational advisors and 30 management teams from the 32 selected schools. Results show that school climate incorporates aspects related to academic climate, social relations and organisational structure. The development of school climate is linked to teachers’ commitment to educational work, involvement, teamwork and participatory management. The ultimate aim of this study is for the best practices identified to serve as a useful tool in the design and implementation of the improvement actions carried out in all schools in the Spanish Autonomous Region of the Basque Country. Thus, one suggestion is to broaden our understanding of climate beyond peaceful coexistence between students, and to include teamwork processes and democratic participation in the peaceful coexistence plan.
https://doi.org/10.15366/reice2017.15.4.001