Module 2 Strand E1
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Module 2 Strand E1
Factors That Matter - School Culture
Factors That Matter - School Culture
When parents walk into your school today, do they feel like they are walking
into the past or the future?
How do you feel about walking into your school.....do you feel like you are walking into
the past or in the future?
Do you feel like your school can 'take on the world'?
Is there time for reflection and solitude?
Are support staff included and valued?
Is success celebrated?
Is collegiality happening with the entire staff - ie. Collaboration is the norm?
Is your school a place where people want to be?
Exercise #8 - It's Up To Our Imagination -School Culture
| "School culture includes the values, symbols, beliefs and shared meanings of parents, teachers, students and others conceived as a group or community. The "stuff" of culture includes a school's customs and traditions; historical accounts; stated and unstated understandings; habits, norms and expectations;' common meanings and shared assumptions." Thomas Sergiovanni |
Describe your school culture in a paragraph. Once you have done it, see if you can determine which classification you would place your school.
| Forms of Cultures | Personal Interaction | Work Interaction |
| Harmony Around Teaching | -school climate is friendly because people are talking about their teaching and personal lives | -a community of leaders
begins -teacher-talk around teaching and students is common -begin to work collectively towards a common goal |
| Good School | -time for reflection and
solitude -support staff included and valued -success is celebrated -collegiality of the entire staff; they work together and care for each other with trust |
-collaboration is the norm (comfortable, not imposed) e.g. study groups, teams, partnerships, observation, experimentation, risk taking - interactive professionalism |
| Take on the World | -this is The Inclusive School with something extra . It combines everything from previous models and adds the desire for excellence. Winning is expected. | There are two additional qualities: strong desire for improvement and constant striving for excellence. |
Now that you have classified your school, what changes would get the most results with the least time and money? How are those changes going to happen?
You may want to look up Educational Leadership Volume 56 Number 1 September 1998 as this particular journal focused on the Culture of Schools - how to create a school where people like to be.
Whoopi Goldberg...Celebrity Quiz
Here is an interesting article for you to check
out. It is called the:
Change Process and Alternative
Scheduling. It is rather lengthy, but it is filled with some interesting propositions.
School Size, School Climate, and
Student Performance presents a very lengthy research article.
Assignments