Sign Up Now
Get instant access to over 1 million+ study documents
OR
Already registered? click here to login
By creating your account, you agree to our terms of service, privacy policy and student honor code.
Warning Signs of Resistance to Change in a School
Lack of engagement in professional development is a big flashing red indicator that teachers and administrators might resist change when it comes along. In fact, in my experience as well as what I have gleaned from the readings, one of the most telling signs of resistance to change is when stakeholders such as teachers and staff show a lack of interest and engagement in taking opportunities for professional development. As Danielson (2006) points out, this is a problem because a thriving school culture is one where continuous learning and growth are valued by all team members. And if teachers are not actively participating in new training sessions, they are likely going to resist embracing new methods or practices when it is time for them to be implemented.
Another warning sign is negative communication that persists. Deal & Peterson (1999) discuss the importance of narratives and stories within the school culture, and they note that when the dominant narratives that stakeholders (teachers/administrators) share are negative or focus only on past failures rather than on future possibilities, it tends to mean that these people are rooted in the past and are unlikely to be open to changes. This kind of negativity often is manifested in gossip, complaints...…I once encountered resistance when trying to implement a new hands-on lab approach. Some teachers were accustomed to the traditional lecture-based format and were skeptical of the new method. However, I used my credibility and good reputation as someone passionate about biology and student engagement, and thus I was able to pilot the approach in my classroom. The results were overwhelmingly positive. Students showed increased interest and better retention of the material. I then shared these results with my colleagues, and many of them saw the benefits and adopted the approach in their classrooms. This taught me how evidence-based advocacy has so much power and why it is important to…
References
Danielson, C. (2006). Teacher leadership that strengthens professional practice. Alexandria,
VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.
Deal, T., & Peterson, K. (1999). Shaping school culture. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Batz clearly is attempting to be a consensus manager -- he wants an agenda to go through for implementation with the least amount of conflict. However, it is also possible that he is being rather Machiavellian (potentially at the expense of committee and administrative time). He allows infighting to occur with the ostensible hope that the individuals will work things out. Yet there is an underlying current that perhaps
Before our new principal started two years ago, I considered transferring. Two of my colleagues had also left over the previous year. Morale was generally low, parents complained a lot, and I heard rumors in the community about our school. We were the brunt of jokes, but I felt powerless to do anything about it because I was not in a position of leadership or in any position to tell
School Culture on School Safety Many studies have been done on safety in schools. Likewise, many studies have been done on the culture of various schools. Unfortunately, there has not been significant research on a link between the two. This is not to say that these kinds of studies have not been done, but rather that there has not been enough of them. Many of the studies that have been
This polarization of different groups is likely to carry over into the classroom: socio-economic disadvantages often translate into economic disadvantages. If one population is more represented in higher-level classes this can foster prejudice. High-performing minority students may feel uncomfortable if they make up an even slimmer majority in their honors and AP classes. The segregation in the business indicates how on an adult level there is even more community division. Students
Learning Theories of ELLs and School Culture Situated cognition theory; Situated cognition theory states that the knowledge that people possess is embedded in their activities, culture and context within which it is learned. This type of learning is also commonly referred to as "situated learning." A lot of learning practice methods assume the acquisition of knowledge from the situation of learning an applied theory. Critics point out that such an assumption inhibits
Cognitively Complex leadership teams influence School Culture and Student Performance? Cognitive complexity Neuman (1989) in his study defined cognitive complexity as a psychological variable or characteristic which defines how simple or complex the perceptual and frame skill of the person is. An individual with a higher cognitive complexity perceives the tasks in different ways as compared to a person with lower cognitive complexity. It can also be defined as the amount