Components and Indicators of School Administration of Excellent Primary Schools in Songkhla Province

This research aimed to investigate the components and indicators of school administration in excellent primary schools in Songkhla Province. The study focused on analyzing the administrative components and indicators that contribute to school excellence. The sample consisted of school administrators, teachers, and educational personnel from primary schools that had received the Royal Award School and the Office of the Basic Education Commission (OBEC) Awards. A total of 300 participants were selected in the 2024 academic year. The research instrument was a questionnaire, and the data were analyzed using exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). The results of the exploratory factor analysis revealed four components comprising 26 indicators: teacher competency (7 indicators), student competency (4 indicators), administrators’ school administration processes (10 indicators), and participation of personnel and stakeholders (5 indicators). The results of the first-order confirmatory factor analysis indicated that the measurement model was consistent with the empirical data. All latent variables demonstrated high reliability, with values ranging from 0.912 to 0.983, and were statistically significant at the .001 level (AVE = 0.727–0.833, CR = 0.912–0.983, χ² = 400.001, df = 235, χ²/df = 1.702, RMSEA = 0.048, CFI = 0.985, TLI = 0.979, RMR = 0.008). Furthermore, the results of the second-order confirmatory factor analysis also showed a good fit with the empirical data (χ² = 249.304, df = 163, χ²/df = 1.529, RMSEA = 0.042, CFI = 0.992, TLI = 0.984, RMR = 0.014, p = 0.000).The findings provide empirical evidence supporting a structured framework of components and indicators for school administration toward excellence in primary schools, which can be utilized as guidelines for enhancing administrative effectiveness and achieving sustainable excellence.