School Culture Resources
School Culture Re-Boot
Teachers and administrators can begin to know their school culture better by considering the three levels of culture and noticing how they appear in their school. You may use an outside facilitator or have a school leader serve in this role.
1. Separate into three groups. Assign a group to each of the following culture levels: artifacts, values, or basic assumptions.
2. Ask each group to take 10 minutes to brainstorm all the school culture items or beliefs they can identify for their level that convey what their school values.
Teachers and administrators can begin to know their school culture better by considering the three levels of culture and noticing how they appear in their school. You may use an outside facilitator or have a school leader serve in this role.
1. Separate into three groups. Assign a group to each of the following culture levels: artifacts, values, or basic assumptions.
2. Ask each group to take 10 minutes to brainstorm all the school culture items or beliefs they can identify for their level that convey what their school values.
- Then, conduct a 15-minute walkabout with your group to observe and identify school culture elements in your main entry, main office, halls, classrooms, cafeteria, teachers’ lounge, gymnasium, and teacher and student restrooms. When teachers spot a cultural element, they should point it out to colleagues and see if they agree that it does reflect the school’s culture and whether they think it effectively or indifferently motivates teachers’ and students’ best efforts.
- Groups return to meeting room and report findings back to the larger group.
- Discuss:
- Which group had the most difficult time identifying elements in the school’s culture level? Why do you think this is so?
- Identify some of the school culture elements you observed and where you observed them.
- What do these cultural elements express about what the faculty and administration value?
- Which of these cultural elements express what your students and parents value?
- Which cultural elements are the most effective in conveying these messages? Which are the least effective? Which give the wrong message?
- What else do the faculty and administrators value that are not clearly expressed by these varied cultural elements?
- What else do students and parents value that are not clearly expressed by these cultural elements?
- How can thinking about school culture and how you express what you believe are your most important goals help you do your jobs better?
- What is the worth in having teacher leaders or faculty spend more time (on another occasion or occasions) thinking about values and assumptions in order to make work more meaningful, satisfying, and productive for yourselves and your students?
- On a different day, conduct this same activity with teachers in each department, the student council, and the parent teacher student association members for their experience, identification of the school’s cultural elements, and feedback from these essential school community members.