Our school’s decile rating of 4 helps to identify the Socioeconomic status of our community. We have a mix of families from very low income, struggling families to families who are comfortable. Unfortunately many of our families struggle to assist their children at home. According to APA. (2016),
Families from low-SES communities are less likely to have the financial resources or time availability to provide children with academic support.
This rings true with our school. However our community is very close knit and will support each other where and as they can. We have families who have lived in our area since it was first created as a suburb. There is a strong sense of community and support.
As a school we support our families in many ways from learning needs to social and emotional. We provide food for breakfast and lunches through Kids Can and local people who donate food. We discuss issues and problem solve as a staff regularly so I don’t feel that my practice is affected more than other decile 10 schools that I have worked in.
The professional environment that I work in is firstly, an ILE with a co-teacher. This has had a positive impact on my practice as my co-teacher is an experienced ILE teacher. She is extremely organised and I have had to ‘up my game’ in many areas, particularly paperwork. Collaboration has improved my communication skills and I’m looking more in depth and more often at my students data and progress.
We are included in a vertical syndicate which is very confusing at the moment as I am still unsure exactly who is in it and what the purpose of having us vertical is? We have also had many changes in staff over the last few years so the dynamics of the group as a whole has been unsettled. I feel like we are still in a trial and error mode when it comes to how our school is organised and run which is causing confusion and uncertainty.
Our school culture at present is a difficult one to describe without feeling apprehensive about saying the wrong thing. However, I shall attempt to do so in the most professional manner I can. Our culture is much like Stoll's (1998) Hothouse model where we experience high levels of control and feel constantly monitored and scrutinised. This in turn fosters the feelings of claustrophobia and constant pressure. Unfortunately, I don't feel that it is a very healthy culture at present which is a major issue for me.
Schein 1985 argues the possibility that the “only thing of real importance that leaders do is to create and manage culture”.
This is something that needs to be addressed urgently but HOW? I am not senior management so how do I affect that change without drama? Morgan (1997), cited by Stoll (1998), suggested 2 questions that leaders and managers should ask themselves:
- “What impact am I having on the social construction of reality in my organisation?”
- “What can I do to have a different and more positive impact?”
These are 2 questions I would love to see answered...but how to pose them is the dilemma.
Stoll’s ‘Norms of Improving Schools’ was mildly distressing for me to read as my school is missing the mark on more than half of these factors.
- Shared goals - Our systems are very clumsy and confusing. An attempt has been made to set up a shared vision but it is not really clear, partly due to changes in staff.
- Responsibility for success - I have only put this here because of the stress that we are put under for this! We are often spoken to in a negative way about how negative the data is. I am demotivated and annoyed when I should be the opposite. My conclusion is that it’s all in the delivery of the message.
- Support - There is always someone there which I am grateful for. Unfortunately sometimes the support we feel we need is not always what we get, because we are not listened to or we are labelled as moaners or stirrers so don’t say anything.
- Openness - This is not something we can do with ease with all of our SLT. Words are often twisted to suit and it’s often not worth the trouble it causes.
On the positive side, our management encourages Risk Taking, Lifelong Learning and Continuous Improvement through PD and freedom to trial new techniques and programmes. We are a fairly Collegial staff and there is an understanding that we are all valuable in some way and have something to offer. Our social events have been known to be celebratory to the extreme but this has declined over the years. I’m putting this one down to staff turnover but also possibly low staff moral where no-one can be bothered anymore. It’s just the usuals. One thing that is clear to staff and students alike is our Behaviour expectations and consequences via the behaviour book. This is something that has been consistent through my time at my school.
My conclusion is that for our culture to change it needs to come from the top. There needs to be an acknowledgement that there is an issue before it can begin being resolved. There needs to be open and honest discussions using ‘I’ statements to avoid attack. More importantly there must be someone brave enough to start the wheels in motion...someone from the outside perhaps, or someone who can be bothered.
References
APA. (2016). Education and Socioeconomic Status. Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/pi/ses/resources/publications/education.aspx
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
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