Current issues in my professional context - Week 26

The history of a school can play a large part of developing a culture by which the school is recognised. My school has traditions that make it unique. The reason this changes is because staff change, management change, students change, and they bring new ideas, new or different values

 

Werner (2015) discusses climate and culture and how new people bring their feelings and beliefs, but do they recognise the culture and climate of the school? Should they recognise it or do we continue to develop and change the culture and climate to reflect the people within the school?

 

Socio-economic factors:

Maeroa is a decile 3 with a community aged between 15 and 64 years old (70%).  The Ministry of Education (MOE) (2017), states that deciles are a measure of the socio-economic position of a school’s student community relative to other schools throughout New Zealand.  According to Gargiulo, 2014; P5), “A student from a lower socio-economic status group is less likely to engage in schools, nor achieve academic success. This is because it impacts on a student’s ability to be prepared for the classroom, the family’s relationship with the school and the hidden curriculum”

 

Almost 30% of the Maeroa Community families are one parent, which is significantly higher than Hamilton City as a whole. Couples with children - 35%; couples without children - 36.7%.  Almost 50% of our households are living in rented houses, which can create a transient community.

 

School culture

As a decile 3 school, our students come from homes with limited resources and money, and this is an important consideration when building and maintaining a culture.  Gargiulo (2014), states that poorer families see the school as being the authority rather than a relationship partner. They have less resources to support students with their learning.  At Maeroa we have a system of reporting to parents that encourages parents to keep in touch with their child’s learning. Student Led Conferences are held mid-year for families to come in and learn about their child, meet with the teacher, and feel part of our community. A new initiative this year to support this, is Check and Connect nights. If there are concerns or more information needed, parents are welcomed back into the school a few weeks after the reporting, for updates.

Professional environments in relation to my practice

It is important to stop and revisit the values present within a school. Within my own team, I have developed a culture that is uniquely ours through the people I have worked with over 8 years. Every year I explain what is important to me, our motto, our karakia, and then open discussion to create our collective ideas.  Adapting to new ideas and the values of others is important to build an effective community of practice within my team.

Stoll (1998) commented on the importance of leadership in developing a culture and climate within a school. Staff need to understand what is important to the school and be involved in new changes and perspectives within the wider community. New staff bring new and different values and there needs to be deliberate acts of planning to make sure the old and new merge into a culture and climate that all can accept and be proud of.

References

Gargiulo, S. (2014). Principal sabbatical report. Retrieved from  http://www.educationalleaders.govt.nz/Leadership-development/Professional-information/Principals-sabbatical-reports/Report-archives-for-2007-2014/Secondary-award-recipients-2014/Gargiulo-Salvatore

Ministry of Education. (2017). School deciles. Retrieved from  https://education.govt.nz/framework/main.php/running-a-school/resourcing/operational-funding/school-decile-ratings/?url=/school/running-a-school/resourcing/operational-funding/school-decile-ratings/ 

 

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