Organisational factors in the implementation of educational modules at schools in Barranquilla (Colombia)

The study investigates how organisational factors—especially job/work design of teachers—shape the implementation quality (fidelity, dose, frequency) and perceived effectiveness of two school-based interventions in Barranquilla, Colombia: the Pisotón socio-emotional programme and the Flexible Methodologies academic levelling modules. Grounded in implementation research that highlights the importance of organisational context (leadership, climate, training, supervision), the authors hypothesise that task characteristics (autonomy, variety, significance), supervisory support, and workload will be associated with better implementation fidelity and outcomes. The COVID-19 lockdown provided a natural experiment to examine how abrupt changes to the work environment affected implementation and whether organisational profiles moderated these effects.

Prior work shows organisational factors are key to successful implementation (Durlak & DuPre, 2008), including leadership, climate, teamwork, task design, and integration of programmes into organisational structures. In schools, positive climate relates to fidelity and sustainability (Williams et al., 2019). Training and technical assistance increase fidelity (Eiraldi et al., 2014), and ongoing supervision supports proper development (Wolfenden et al., 2014). Workload can hinder fidelity (Lichtenstein, 1982), while management support facilitates resources, legitimacy, and flexibility for innovation (Aksorn & Hadikusumo, 2010; Lochmiller et al., 2016; Sperandio et al., 2009). Class size and teacher motivation/training also matter (Correa & González, 2016; Benveniste & McEwan, 2000). Few studies have directly applied a work design lens (autonomy, feedback, task significance; Parker et al., 2001) to school implementation, a gap this study addresses.

Design and setting: Cross-sectional mixed-methods study conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic, focusing on 72 public schools in Barranquilla, Colombia, implementing either Pisotón (preschool socio-emotional education) or Flexible Methodologies (Brújula for illiterate 9–14-year-olds; Accelerated Learning for 10–15-year-olds behind grade level). Participants: 102 teachers (after excluding 3 incomplete from 105), predominantly women (87.3%), average age 43.75 (SD 9.46). Each managed about 30 students (SD 23.91), with high proportions of Venezuelan migrant students (90.2%) and some internally displaced students (26.5%). Instruments: (1) Work Design Questionnaire (WDQ; 77 items, Likert 1–5), covering task, knowledge, social, and work context characteristics; Spanish version with excellent internal consistency (α=0.917). (2) Programme implementation questionnaire capturing dose (minutes per activity; monthly hours of implementation, preparation, and direct work), frequency (days between sessions), and fidelity (5 items: adherence to design, frequency, materials, manual, training; Likert 1–5). Items assessed both before and during confinement. Also included 14 items on organisational dynamics (workload, management support, teamwork). (3) Perceived effectiveness (3 items: achieving objectives, compliance with objectives, behavioural change; Likert 1–5). (4) Personal/class data (experience, demographics, class composition). (5) Qualitative interviews: 70 videotaped interviews analysed by six independent coders using inductive thematic analysis aligned to the two research questions; consensus reached via focus group. Procedure: Teachers were contacted via email/WhatsApp; questionnaires administered via video call (~90 minutes). Informed consent obtained. After instruments, informal debriefs captured experiences and pandemic-related changes. Analysis: SPSS 26. Paired t-tests compared pre- versus during-confinement indicators. Group comparisons (Pisotón vs Flexible Methodologies) on WDQ factors. Associations via bivariate correlations (21 WDQ factors with implementation and perceived effectiveness pre/post). Multiple regressions using WDQ macro-dimensions (task, knowledge, social, work context) as predictors of dose, frequency, fidelity, and perceived effectiveness (pre/post). K-means cluster analysis (k=2, 10 iterations, convergence 0.02) on WDQ macro-dimensions to identify organisational profiles; clusters compared on implementation and context variables. Qualitative findings triangulated with quantitative results.

Pandemic-related changes (Q2): All teachers continued implementation during confinement, but intensity declined. On average, 59.88% (SD 20.05) of planned activities had been executed at interview time; mean students reached dropped from 28.74 (SD 19.68) to 19.84 (SD 15.09). Dose reduced by ~40% (M 41.94, SD 22.67). Significant decreases: minutes per activity 188.73→106.40 (t=8.194, p<0.001); hours with students/month 71.16→39.82 (t=7.760, p<0.001); implementation hours/month 99.53→73.28 (t=5.521, p<0.001). Frequency worsened: days between sessions 1.21→2.52 (t=-2.986, p<0.01). Fidelity indicators all declined (e.g., expected frequency 4.35→2.86, t=12.130, p<0.001; design followed 4.41→2.94, t=12.642, p<0.001; necessary training 3.99→3.22, t=4.618, p<0.001). Perceived effectiveness decreased: achieving objectives 4.41→3.47 (t=8.883, p<0.001); compliance 4.39→3.28 (t=10.449, p<0.001); behavioural change 4.14→3.50 (t=4.405, p<0.001). Management support and teamwork indicators declined; workload indices increased (e.g., workload affecting frequency 1.62→2.62, t=-8.458, p<0.001). Work design profiles (Q1): WDQ scores depict intellectually demanding, socially intensive work with high autonomy. Pisotón sites reported higher social characteristics: initiated interdependence (t=3.352, p<0.001), interaction outside organisation (t=2.573, p<0.05), feedback from others (t≈2.005, p≈0.05), and better ergonomics/working conditions; Flexible Methodologies reported comparatively poorer work context (working conditions t=3.158, p<0.01; ergonomics t=2.320, p<0.05) and less equipment use (t=2.947, p<0.05). Associations and models: Before confinement, autonomy/intrinsic task characteristics correlated with fidelity and perceived effectiveness; dose/frequency showed limited links to organisational aspects. Notably, working conditions and ergonomics negatively correlated with minutes per activity (r≈-0.27 to -0.29). Regression (pre-confinement): task characteristics significantly predicted fidelity (B=0.210, p<0.01) and perceived effectiveness (B=0.210, p<0.01); work context characteristics negatively predicted minutes per activity (B=-0.310, p<0.05). Models for dose (overall), fidelity, and perceived effectiveness were significant (F=3.861, p<0.01; F=5.361, p<0.001; F=4.719, p<0.01, respectively). After confinement, no models were significant; associations largely attenuated, except small positive link of feedback from job with fidelity (r=0.296, p<0.001) and negative link of feedback from others with minutes per activity (r=-0.268, p<0.001). Organisational profiles (clusters): Two clusters emerged. Cluster 1 (n=48) scored higher across task, knowledge, social, and work context characteristics; Cluster 2 (n=54) lower. Cluster 1 had greater management support (t=3.377, p<0.001), more teamwork (t=3.614, p<0.001), higher fidelity (t=4.013, p<0.001), and higher perceived effectiveness (t=2.737, p<0.05) before confinement, though they reported fewer implementation hours/month (90.05 vs 107.9; t=-2.094, p<0.05). Cluster 2 more often taught students with forced displacement (χ²=4.477, p<0.05) and included more Flexible Methodologies teachers (χ²=9.802, p<0.01). Qualitative triangulation: Teachers highlighted hierarchical supervision (internal/external) and peer coordination (e.g., WhatsApp groups) as key supports, especially during lockdown. Increased workload and role strain (e.g., caregiving) were common; teachers adapted via remote materials, phone/voice messages, printed guides. Continuous monitoring helped maintain session frequency, sometimes with shorter activities.

Findings confirm that organisational context—particularly task design features like autonomy, variety, and task significance—supports higher fidelity and perceived effectiveness of school-based programmes. Supervision and integration into stable structures enhance sustainability and resilience. During COVID-19, implementation intensity and fidelity declined markedly, workload rose, and teamwork/management support indicators weakened; nonetheless, active hierarchical supervision and cohesive teams mitigated declines in frequency/dose. Programmatic differences map onto organisational design: Flexible Methodologies operate as stable structures with tighter supervision but poorer perceived work conditions; Pisotón is embedded within preschool classes with richer social interaction and external feedback. The pandemic stress test showed that changes in the work environment translated into changes in implementation quality, with impacts varying by organisational profile. These results align with literature linking organisational capacity and structured programme supports to better implementation and sustainability.

The quality of implementation of psychoeducational programmes in schools is partly determined by teachers’ work design. Before COVID-19, richer task characteristics predicted higher fidelity and perceived effectiveness, and work context factors related to time-on-activity. Pandemic-related school closures broadly reduced dose, frequency, fidelity, and perceived effectiveness, overshadowing pre-existing organisational differences; however, ongoing hierarchical supervision and cohesive teams helped sustain implementation. Practically, integrating programmes into routine school operations and designing teaching roles with high autonomy, variety, and meaning can improve fidelity and sustainability. Future research should test whether embedding programmes in stable organisational structures protects continuity during crises and examine objective student outcomes with longitudinal designs.

The study involved a modest, heterogeneous sample across two distinct programme types and educational levels, introducing organisational variability that limits direct comparability. Pisotón is an add-on programme integrated into varied institutions (foundations, schools, community homes), whereas Flexible Methodologies function as formal modules in official schools. Impact assessment relied on teachers’ retrospective self-reports of perceived effectiveness rather than objective outcomes; longitudinal and outcome-linked evaluations are needed. Broader, more representative samples would help systematise organisational diversity and strengthen generalisability.