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Importance of School Culture

Introduction

School culture refers to the guiding values and beliefs evidenced in how a school operates. School culture encompasses the expected behaviors, values, and attitudes that impact the way an institution operates. An institution that develops and maintains a positive shared culture knows which aspects are significant in fostering effective learning and strives to consciously pass these values to the students. While school culture appears constant, it is a dynamic space that is influenced by policies, laws, and changes in leadership. This text discusses how school leaders affect culture, how effective use of data impacts school culture and how stakeholder belief impacts culture.

How School Leaders Affect School Culture

Without a doubt, school leaders affect school culture positively and negatively. They are School leaders are critical in shaping school culture. For instance, school principals often communicate the institutions core values in their day-to-day work. Teachers, on the other hand, reinforce those values in their words and actions. Additionally, parents boost their spirit when they partake in governance, visit the school and celebrate successes. School leaders first read the culture and then articulate and uncover core values as regards sculpting of culture. In so doing, they help identify the constructive and destructive aspects of culture. Also, school leaders tend to reinforce positive cultural elements and modify the negative and dysfunctional elements. School leaders build school culture by celebrating the achievements of students and members of staff (Blau and Tamar, 769). They also speak eloquently on the mission of the school. School leaders can also influence culture by recounting the success stories of students and honoring those that work to serve the purpose of the school.

How School Data Impacts School Culture

The effective use of school data can impact school culture in various ways. School data can be used to set professional expectations within the institution. The principals have various expectations from the educators. Data can be used to build culture by providing them with clear messages on how data use supports learning. The educators need to know what data needs to be collected and how it will be used. The educators should be informed how data from new reports or assessments can be helpful. As data increases, principals should use various techniques to justify the changing requirements. Another way school data impacts school culture is through facilitating the flow of information. Gathering data is only the first step; another person will need to compile, analyze and distribute findings (Engvik and Anne, 470). If a school has a plan for managing data flow, collaboration among the parties becomes easy. According to research school data makes collaboration effective and streamlined.

How Stakeholder Beliefs and Attitudes Impacts School Culture.

The beliefs and attitudes of stakeholders often have a notable impact on school culture. All stakeholders including principals, teachers, school board, and parents shape the school culture in one way or another. The attitude of stakeholders that are within the school on a day-to-day basis, for instance, is influential. If the teachers have an attitude that is indicative of disenchantment, dissatisfaction, and apathy, then this undoubtedly reflects the school culture. Similarly, the attitude displayed by learners towards their instructors and the school at large is rather significant in the formation of culture. Majority of the population in schools are students and their feelings and opinions tend to reflect majorly in the school’s culture and how society at large perceives the institution.

Conclusion

School culture has to do with the values and beliefs displayed in the running of a school. School leaders play a significant role in positively and negatively influencing school culture. In addition to leadership, school culture is also influenced by laws and policies. Noteworthy, parents play a huge role in influencing school culture. Moving forward, all stakeholders should adopt clear communication channels as they are an important aspect of school communication.

Works Cited

Blau, Ina, and Tamar Shamir-Inbal. “Digital competencies and long-term ICT integration in school culture: The perspective of elementary school leaders.” Education and Information Technologies 22.3 (2017): 769-787.

Engvik, Gunnar, and Anne Berit Emstad. “The importance of school leaders’ engagement in socialising newly qualified teachers into the teaching profession.” International Journal of Leadership in Education 20.4 (2017): 468-490.