Activity 2: Current Issues in my Professional Context

School Culture

Schein (1985), describes an organisation’s culture to be, “the deeper level of basic assumptions and beliefs that are shared by members of an organisation.” A school’s culture is shaped by many things: it’s history; it’s external context, such as what the community and parents views are, and societal changes; and the internal context - who the teachers and pupils are (Stoll, 1998).

I can see the influences of all these things shaping the school culture at the school I work. The culture the school strives for is inclusive and (as the first thing stated on its website!), high achieving. Ways the school fosters this culture is:

• Te Whare Putake, the Maori immersion unit
• Weekly huis for the Maori community to attend
• informal open days  
• presentation of certificates at assemblies

However, this is a culture under scrutiny at the moment as we are looking at implementing growth mindset practices into the school, which has led to discussions around the wording of certificates and the debate of celebrating high achievement over effort and progress. Culture is constantly evolving and being reconstructed (Stoll, 1998).

Other influences on the school culture are the children attending it. Our students come from culturally diverse backgrounds, some with English as their second language and parents that do not speak English so find it difficult interacting with the school. Many of the children are also transient as seasonal work finishes and their parents move back overseas, or they take their children for extended holidays during term time. Another interesting aspect of the parent community, which can challenge the culture of the school, is parent communication. I had an interesting run in with a parent at the start of the year via email. Having raised no concerns with me prior, or come in to see me, they called into question my teaching practice and wished for their child’s removal from my class immediately. In this age of digital asynchronous communication and social media, the inclusive and professional culture of the school can be challenged.

Professional Environment

I think this is defined by the Management Team’s desire to progress and keep up to date with effective practice to foster 21st century learners. Recently, we were given the option of working together in collaborative teaching Pods, and classrooms were adapted to accommodate this. I felt trusted as a professional to make my own choices and pursue best practice. The success of this was that teachers were given the option of working together or remaining in single cell classes. Interconnections were encouraged, but diversity of thought was also allowed (Stoll, 1998, p. 13). However, this challenged some of the school systems, such as teacher release time and appraisals. These were adapted to release teachers together - the result being more collective commitment and shared responsibility between colleagues.

Socioeconomic Status and our School Community

Our school is a Decile 5 school. We are semi rural with children that live on farms or orchards, in town, or on the marae. We have many families that fall into the low socioeconomic bracket, and families where the parents work full time. Because of this, and reflective of our culture being ‘inclusive and high achieving,’ the school has actioned a number of strategies to support student well-being and a parent/teacher partnership:

• Local businesses and charities help us fund the Breakfast club before school three days a week, and provide supplies for lunches
• There is a hardship fund for those that can’t afford school books or trips
• On a case-by-case basis we offer support where it is needed - such as providing shower facilities for children without proper housing
• Parent/teacher interviews have been done away with in favour of a Family Picnic evening to allow working parents to attend.

As a school, we endeavour to embody Stoll & Fink’s (1996) Norms of Improving Schools, but understand that just as school cultures are constantly evolving, so are these. Achieving these require constant reassessment of our goals and culture, and continued engagement with the community.

References:

Schein, E.H. (1985) Organizational culture and leadership. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. p. 6.

Stoll. (1998). School Culture. School Improvement Network’s Bulletin 9. Institute of Education, University of London. Retrieved from http://www.educationalleaders.govt.nz/Culture/Understanding-school-cultures/School-Culture

Stoll, L., & Fink, D. (1996). Changing our schools: Linking school effectiveness and school improvement. Buckingham: Open University Press.