Transforming School Culture
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Transcript of Transforming School Culture
NORTH CAROLINA MIDDLE SCHOOL ASSOCIATION CONFERENCE 2013
LINDA HOPPING
TRANSFORMING SCHOOL CULTURE
EXPECTED OUTCOMES
participants will learn how to transform toxic cultures into collaborative endeavors
participants will analyze their current school culture and begin the development of a plan to make it more collaborative
ESSENTIAL QUESTION
What would a middle school look like if the culture was inviting,
supportive, and safe for all stakeholders?
HOW BIG IS THE GORILLA IN YOUR SCHOOL?
In most schools, the 800 pound gorilla that impairs performance and stifles change is CULTURE.
CHANGE IN THE GULCH
trailblazers
pioneers
settlers
stay at homes
saboteurs
THREE LEVELS OF CHANGE
Procedural
Structural
Cultural
Leading School Change
RESISTANCE TO CHANGE
• teachers who have seen similar changes fail
• new teachers who lack confidence to try something unfamiliar
• lackluster teachers who throw a wrench in the process in an attempt to derail it
FOUR TYPES OF TEACHERS
Believers “Yes we can”
“Tweeners” “I don’t know”
Survivors “Get me through the
day”
Fundamentalists “No way”
School Culture
Transforming School Culture, Anthony Muhammad
WHERE ARE YOUR TEACHERS?
Believers Tweeners
Survivors Fundamentalists
?
FOUR TYPES OF CULTURE
collaborative
contrived
dictator/administration rules
isolated
Where is the culture in YOUR school?
RATE YOUR SCHOOL CULTURE A SINGING VERSION
Toxic
I Can’t Get No Satisfaction Who Let the Dogs Out? I Will Survive 16 Tons Take This Job and Shove It Help! Hard Day’s Night Wrong Again Send in the Clowns The Sounds of Silence Bridge Over Troubled Waters Rainy Days and Mondays Empty Chairs at Empty Tables
Healthy
Stairway to Heaven Celebrate We Are the Champions Top of the World I Am a Believer We Are Family The Hero Is In You Lean on Me Ain’t No Mountain High Enough Imagine One Moment in Time I’m A Believer
THE LOOK OF A TOXIC CULTURE
Toxic
negative values
fragmented
destructive
lack of integrity
and values
negative relationships
pessimistic staff
negative beliefs
Shaping School Culture
HOW DO YOU CHANGE A TOXIC CULTURE?
• be a role model for the change
• realize that the first impression when instituting change is all important
• emphasize that the change is in the best interests of the students
• instill an awareness of both the existing culture and the need for change
• invite teachers to be part of the change
• support positive cultural elements and staff
HOW DO YOU CHANGE A TOXIC CULTURE?
• gather support of the superstar teachers and then bring the others along
• pretend almost everyone is on board
• focus on recruitment, selection, and retention of effective, positive staff
• focus on eradicating the negative
• meet on the negativity head-on
HOW DO YOU CHANGE A TOXIC CULTURE?
• diminish fear and apprehension
• rebuild around positive norms and beliefs
• consistently celebrate the positive and the possible
• develop new stories of success, renewal, and accomplishment
• help toxic teachers make the move to a new school
TRICKS TO DEALING WITH COMPLAINERS
disperse their negative power
do not treat them as a group
realize they cannot influence the believers
remember they complain EVERYWHERE
Leading School Change
TRICKS TO DEALING WITH COMPLAINERS
redesign staff meeting arrangements
meet with them INDIVIDUALLY to discuss plans for change
do not put them in adjacent classrooms, common teams or PLC’s
match them up with trailblazers and pioneers
Leading School Change
Strong, positive school cultures result in increased student achievement and motivation
Guiding Your School Community to Live a Culture of Caring and Learning
SHIFTING SCHOOL CULTURE
• teaching • teacher isolation • pass/fail mindset • compliance • curriculum overload • general goals • static assessment • independence • planning to plan • time and staff fixed • learning for most
• learning • collaboration • elimination of failure • commitment • guaranteed curriculum • specific goals • dynamic assessment • interdependence • planning to improve • learning fixed • learning for all
FROM TO
BUILDING A POSITIVE CULTURE
“Trust is the glue that holds a collaborative culture together.”
Skillful Leader II
Collaborative Culture
trust
Risk-taking
Absence of threat
Successful Collaboration
common understanding
common commitment
efficiency and effectiveness
data to monitor performance
adjust efforts based on data
SHAPING A SUCCESSFUL CULTURE
focus on a student-centered mission and purpose
strengthen positive elements of existing culture
build on established traditions and values
hire staff who share the values of the culture
use history to fortify and sustain values and beliefs
Shaping School Culture
POWERFUL, POSITIVE CULTURES
collegiality
experimentation
high expectations
trust and confidence
tangible support
reaching out to the knowledge bases
POWERFUL, POSITIVE CULTURES
appreciation and recognition
caring, celebration, humor
involvement in decision making
protection of what is important
honor traditions
honest, open communication
Butler and Dickson, 1987
TODAY’S PRINCIPAL
• provides an atmosphere conducive to shared decision-making and collaboration at all levels
• asks questions rather than providing answers
• facilitates the process of school improvement rather than prescribing how it should be done
• collaboratively explores alternatives to ineffective policies and practices rather than dictate the ones that will be used
This We Believe in Action
TODAY’S TEACHERS
• are active leaders in the school learning community
• participate in instructional discussions within learning communities that are centered on student success
• are involved members of their teams
• seek ways to make curriculum integrative, relevant, and challenging for students
TODAY’S TEACHERS
• share instructional strategies to help meet individual student needs
• discuss data with their colleagues and use it to inform instruction
• share their expertise to help the school solve problems, make decisions, and set policy and direction
This We Believe in Action
SCHOOL RITUALS AS PART OF CULTURE
RITUALS
coffee and doughnuts
attendance
dismissal
schedule
SCHOOL CELEBRATIONS AS PART OF CULTURE
Celebration is a key element in building and maintaining a positive, collaborative culture – embrace ALL partners in your celebrations
WHAT DO YOU CELEBRATE? PAIR , SHARE WITH A PARTNER
BUILDING A POSITIVE SCHOOL CULTURE
is everyone’s
respon
sibility
W H A T D O Y O U N E E D T O D O A T Y O U R S C H O O L ?
TICKET OUT THE DOOR
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Barth, Roland. (2001). Learning by heart. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. Burgess, Jan & Bates, Donna. (2009). Other duties as assigned. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
Clark, Sally & Clark, Donald. (2008). Leadership that makes a difference. Westerville, OH: National Middle School Association.
Covey, Stephen R. (2008}. The leader in me. New York, NY: Free Press. Darling-Hammond, L. (1997). The right to learn: A blueprint for creating schools that work. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Deal, Terrence E. (1999). Shaping school culture: The heart of leadership. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
DuFour, Richard & Eaker, Robert. (1998). Professional learning communities at work. Bloomington, IN: Solution Tree Press.
Fullan, M. (1998). Leadership for the 21st century-Breaking the bonds of dependency. Educational Leadership, 55 (7), 6-10.
DuFour, R., DuFour, R., Eaker, R., and Karhanek, G. (2004). Whatever it takes: How professional learning communities respond when kids don’t learn. Bloomington, IN: Solution Tree Press.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Gibbs, Jeanne. (2007). Guiding your school community to live a culture of caring and learning: The process is called tribes. Windsor, CA: Centersource Systems.
Muhammad, Anthony. (2009). Transforming school culture. Bloomington, IN: Solution Tree Press. Peterson, Kent D. (1999). Shaping school culture. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Platt, A., Tripp, C., Fraser, R., Warnock, J., Curtis, R. (2008). The skillful leader II. Acton, MA: Ready Action Press. This we believe: Keys to educating young adolescents. (2010). Westerville, OH: National Middle School Association.
This we believe in action: Implementing successful middle level schools. (2012). Westerville, OH. Association for Middle Level Education.
Whitaker, Todd. (2010). Leading school change. Larchmont, NY: Eye On Education.