Educational policy implementation is increasingly understood as a dynamic process of translation and enactment shaped by the organizational contexts of schools rather than a linear execution of policy texts. This study examines how organizational scale, resources, and professional cultures influence the enactment of character education policy in Taiwanese elementary schools. Using a comparative qualitative case study design, the research focuses on two schools recognized for effective character education. School A is a small rural school characterized by limited manpower and declining enrollment, whereas School B is a large urban school with a complex professional ecology and diverse stakeholder expectations. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with principals, middle leaders, and teachers, supported by document analysis. Findings show that contrasting organizational contexts produced divergent enactment strategies. In School A, material constraints led actors to adopt a whole-school participation model in which distributed leadership compensated for structural shortages and integrated character education into curriculum and daily routines. In School B, where achieving consensus was more challenging, leaders employed an incremental strategy that relied on pilot initiatives and seed teachers within professional learning communities to gradually diffuse practices. The study argues that the effectiveness of character education does not arise from applying a standardized model but from how school actors interpret, adapt, and recontextualize policy in relation to their organizational ecologies. These findings highlight the need for policymakers to design flexible frameworks that accommodate diverse school contexts rather than relying on uniform implementation expectations.

Authors:
Wen-Yan Oscar Chen, University of Taipei, Taiwan
Sin-Fen Bai, National Chi Nan University, Taiwan

About the Presenter(s)
Ilitsa Daskalova is an Assistant Professor in Primary School Pedagogy at the University of Plovdiv “Paisii Hilendarski”, Bulgaria. Research: active learning, educational leadership, interactive methods. Current project: K–12 active learning models.

Additional website of interest
https://pfpu.bg/%d0%ba%d0%b0%d1%82%d0%b5%d0%b4%d1%80%d0%b8/%d0%bd%d0%b0%d1%87%d0%b0%d0%bb%d0%bd%d0%b0-%d1%83%d1%87%d0%b8%d0%bb%d0%b8%d1%89%d0%bd%d0%b0-%d0%bf%d0%b5%d0%b4%d0%b0%d0%b3%d0%be%d0%b3%d0%b8%d0%ba%d0%b0/%d0%b8%d0%bb%d0%b8%d1%86%d0%b0-%d0%b4%d0%b0%d1%81%d0%ba%d0%b0%d0%bb%d0%be%d0%b2%d0%b0/

See this presentation on the full schedule – Tuesday Schedule

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