Understanding School Culture
-
Upload
matt-scully -
Category
Health & Medicine
-
view
19.439 -
download
1
description
Transcript of Understanding School Culture
![Page 1: Understanding School Culture](https://reader034.fdocuments.net/reader034/viewer/2022051514/54844751b4af9f910d8b4ab0/html5/thumbnails/1.jpg)
Linda S. NelsonExecutive Director
North Carolina Association of Independent Schools
UNDERSTANDING SCHOOL CULTURE
![Page 2: Understanding School Culture](https://reader034.fdocuments.net/reader034/viewer/2022051514/54844751b4af9f910d8b4ab0/html5/thumbnails/2.jpg)
BeliefsValuesTraditionsPatterns of BehaviorClimateEnvironment“The Way We Do Things”
WHAT IS SCHOOL CULTURE?
![Page 3: Understanding School Culture](https://reader034.fdocuments.net/reader034/viewer/2022051514/54844751b4af9f910d8b4ab0/html5/thumbnails/3.jpg)
Expressed Culture vs. Observed Culture
Are they the same?Should they be?
WHAT THEY SAY vs.
WHAT THEY DO
![Page 4: Understanding School Culture](https://reader034.fdocuments.net/reader034/viewer/2022051514/54844751b4af9f910d8b4ab0/html5/thumbnails/4.jpg)
THREE LEVELS OF CULTURELevel One
What you might see on your first visit – first impressions
Level TwoValues, beliefs, “the way things
should be done”These are “testable” in the physical
environment
Level ThreeFundamental beliefs about school,
students, etc.Reason for being
![Page 5: Understanding School Culture](https://reader034.fdocuments.net/reader034/viewer/2022051514/54844751b4af9f910d8b4ab0/html5/thumbnails/5.jpg)
BOARDBroadly defines through Mission
and Vision
![Page 6: Understanding School Culture](https://reader034.fdocuments.net/reader034/viewer/2022051514/54844751b4af9f910d8b4ab0/html5/thumbnails/6.jpg)
It’s the head’s role to translate and communicate that “definition” of culture. Heads do not have a choice about whether they communicate; everything they do is a communication. They only have a choice about how and what and how consistently they will communicate.
THE HEAD OF SCHOOL IS THE CULTURAL LEADER– LIKE IT or NOT…
![Page 7: Understanding School Culture](https://reader034.fdocuments.net/reader034/viewer/2022051514/54844751b4af9f910d8b4ab0/html5/thumbnails/7.jpg)
The primary methods available to leaders to allow them to shape culture are:
Paying attention to some aspect of school life
Choosing to measure some aspect of school life
![Page 8: Understanding School Culture](https://reader034.fdocuments.net/reader034/viewer/2022051514/54844751b4af9f910d8b4ab0/html5/thumbnails/8.jpg)
AS CULTURAL LEADER…If a head is consistently interested in one thing, it will become a centerpiece of school culture. If a head is inconsistently interested in many things, unclear in communicating with employees, or inconsistent in decision-making or defining priorities, people will spend a lot of time trying to figure out what’s going on. The head’s inconsistency will become a central feature of the school culture. (Understanding School Culture, Michael Thompson
![Page 9: Understanding School Culture](https://reader034.fdocuments.net/reader034/viewer/2022051514/54844751b4af9f910d8b4ab0/html5/thumbnails/9.jpg)
HEAD OF SCHOOL IS:Symbol of CulturePotter who shapes the
CulturePoet who uses language to
describe the CultureActor who plays out the
values and visionHealer who presides over
life transitions in the community
![Page 10: Understanding School Culture](https://reader034.fdocuments.net/reader034/viewer/2022051514/54844751b4af9f910d8b4ab0/html5/thumbnails/10.jpg)
HEAD HAS A KEY ROLE IN DETERMINING IF EXPRESSED
CULTURE AND OBSERVED CULTURE MATCH
![Page 11: Understanding School Culture](https://reader034.fdocuments.net/reader034/viewer/2022051514/54844751b4af9f910d8b4ab0/html5/thumbnails/11.jpg)
Supporting CastWatchdog vs. Enablers
ROLE OF TEACHERS AND ADMINISTRATORS
![Page 12: Understanding School Culture](https://reader034.fdocuments.net/reader034/viewer/2022051514/54844751b4af9f910d8b4ab0/html5/thumbnails/12.jpg)
SKELETONS IN THE CLOSETEvery school has skeletonsThese skeletons become a
part of the culture – good or bad
The way a community deals with these “skeletons: speaks volumes about its “culture” and commitment to self-improvement
![Page 13: Understanding School Culture](https://reader034.fdocuments.net/reader034/viewer/2022051514/54844751b4af9f910d8b4ab0/html5/thumbnails/13.jpg)
Independent Schools as institutions most closely resemble families and churches
Everyone related to the school has a vested interest in what is going on and has strong opinions
Personal and Professional lines can become blurred
Strategic thinking, visioning, values can quickly become “situational”
ONE BIG HAPPY FAMILY
![Page 14: Understanding School Culture](https://reader034.fdocuments.net/reader034/viewer/2022051514/54844751b4af9f910d8b4ab0/html5/thumbnails/14.jpg)
WHERE DO “NEWBIES” FIT IN?
Good Question… “Does the Shoe Fit?”
Fresh EyesBroader Perspective
![Page 15: Understanding School Culture](https://reader034.fdocuments.net/reader034/viewer/2022051514/54844751b4af9f910d8b4ab0/html5/thumbnails/15.jpg)
QUESTIONS…FINAL THOUGHTS