Climate and Culture 1

Activity: Conduct a climate analysis in your school.

Description:
A climate analysis survey was administered to all members of the East Brainerd
Elementary School Faculty and Staff. he survey was optional and anonymous. !"# of
the faculty and staff completed the survey.
$hat went well% $hat did not% &iven the chance to do it a'ain( how would you do it
better%
hac)er( Bell( and Schar'el *+,,"- state( .hrivin' schools have positive school
cultures that support student learnin'( students( parents( and staff/ *p. 01-. As a school
leader( it ultimately becomes the principal1s responsibility to ensure that the climate of
the school is one that is positive rather than to2ic. Dr. $ayne 3oy has conducted much
research to help administrators identify the climate and culture of their schools. he
survey allows administrators to e2amine five areas related to climate and culture. he
five areas are instructional inte'rity( colle'ial leadership( resource influence( teacher
affiliation( and academic emphasis.
After administerin' Dr. 3oy1s 4r'ani5ational 3ealth 6nventory *+,,0- for
Elementary Schools( 6 was able to e2amine the climate and culture of East Brainerd
Elementary. 4verall the school1s health inde2 falls in the avera'e ran'e with a score of
7"!.80. Each cate'ory of the assessment proved that the school was functionin' within
the avera'e ran'e. his ultimately means that the school has avera'e instructional
inte'rity( colle'ial leadership( resource influence( teacher affiliation( and academic
Climate and Culture +
emphasis.
3oy *+,,0-( claims that .6nstructional inte'rity describes a school that has
inte'rity in its educational pro'ram./ his area is a particular stren'th for the school since
it came out with the hi'hest of the avera'e scores. he score was 9,,.,". his
ultimately means that the faculty and staff have bou'ht into the school1s vision and they
are unified when it comes to what is e2pected of them and the school. he 'roup is able
to withstand the pressures that outside community members or parents put on them since
their foundation is stron' and thrivin'. his is important to consider because this proves
that the administration holds true to the school1s beliefs rather than switchin' viewpoints
due to parental or community input.
Colle'ial :eadership was the ne2t hi'hest cate'ory since it ended up with a score
of 7"".09. his cate'ory is e2tremely important because .it refers to behavior by the
principal that is friendly( supportive( open( and 'uided by norms of e;uality./ *3oy(
+,,0-. his is a vital point because the faculty and staff feel safe within the environment.
6t is also important to point out that althou'h the faculty and staff feel comfortable within
the school environment( the principal continues to have hi'h e2pectations for the teachers
and this tone is clearly felt throu'hout the school. his area is very li)ely to be a stren'th
for East Brainerd Elementary because the principal sets the tone of .we are all
professionals/. he principal encoura'es collaboration( is willin' to listen to teachers
and to e2amine alternatives for situations. 4pen discussions are held and teachers seem
to understand what is e2pected of them. $ithin this section the one area that does need
to be stren'thened is the amount of appreciation that needs to be shown. his is
somethin' that does need to be addressed and somethin' that can be easily fi2ed since a
Climate and Culture 0
simple note in a mailbo2 or a .'ood <ob/ while wal)in' down the hall will probably ma)e
teachers feel more appreciated and will provide teachers with that positive reinforcement
that will 'ive them the drive to continue to wor) hard.
eacher affiliation was another area that fell in the avera'e ran'e with a score of
7"!.91. eachers at East Brainerd Elementary are con'enial with one another and they
help out as necessary. hey are able to wor) as a team to help meet the needs of their
students and they offer their assistance to ma)e sure that the daily routines run
appropriately *3oy( +,,0-. 6t is also important to point out that the teachers appear to
en<oy their <obs and are enthusiastic in their teachin'.
he two lowest scorin' sections are resource influence and academic emphasis.
Althou'h both of these areas fall within the avera'e ran'e( they were the lowest scorin'
sections. .=esource influence describes the principal1s ability to affect the action of
superiors to the benefit of teachers. eachers are 'iven ade;uate classroom supplies( and
e2tra instructional materials and supplies are easily obtained/ *3oy( +,,0-. he school
ended up with a score of 7"!.,". 6f we loo) closely at the data we can see that the
;uestions that scored lowest within this section had to do with how the administration is
able to influence their superiors. For the most part the teachers felt that they were 'iven
enou'h resources and e2tra materials for their classrooms. herefore( when loo)in' at
how we can improve this section we must e2amine strate'ies that can be used to build the
relationship between the school and central office staff.
6 was surprised to see that academic emphasis ended up bein' the lowest score for
East Brainerd Elementary. he school ended up with a score of 7">.00. his section
e2amines the school1s .press for achievement/ *3oy( +,,0-. 6 believe that this is an area
Climate and Culture 7
that we do need to loo) at closely and that this is the area that needs to be a priority for
the school. 6f loo)in' at the ;uestions and the data that was received( one can easily see
that the lowest areas deal with the students1 motivation to see) out additional wor) to
help them improve and the ne'lect to complete homewor). he results do show that the
students are cooperative durin' classroom instruction and they do respect their peers who
do well academically.
At this point( it is my belief that the school1s priority needs to be to improve in the
area of academic emphasis. hac)er et al. *+,,"- states( .6mprovin' instruction should be
the aim of every administrator in every school( and a school1s culture should fully
support that aim/ *p. 1+>-. Since the data shows that student motivation seems to be a
concern for most teachers we need to ma)e sure that we are e2aminin' the way we
present our instruction and our e2pectations. 6 also believe that it needs to be a priority to
'et the parents onboard since homewor) is another area of concern. he population of
East Brainerd Elementary has chan'ed drastically within the last 1,?19 years. he school
is 'oin' to have to e2amine what it will ta)e to understand these new cultures and how
they view education. $e must wor) with the parents so that they can see the importance
of a ;uality education and we must encoura'e them to <oin our team so that we can ma)e
the bi''est impact on our students. Finally( it needs to be a priority for the administration
of the school to wor) more closely with the central office staff. Faculty and staff of East
Brainerd Elementary should )now whom they can turn to if they need additional
resources and they should feel li)e they are bein' supported by the supervisors( directors(
and lead teachers that have been assi'ned to their school.
As we loo) at developin' an action plan to help improve the climate and culture
Climate and Culture 9
of East Brainerd Elementary we must thin) about what we will implement now( what will
be done later( and what will happen ne2t. he school needs to wor) on 'ettin' parents
involved now. hey need to have a close relationship with all of the sta)eholders and
parents are part of that 'roup. he school will need to wor) closely with the @A and the
Family @artner Specialist to develop family ni'hts where families are brou'ht into the
school and where presenters share information about how to complete homewor)( how to
challen'e students at home( what parents should do if they have concerns( etc. eachers
should wor) on developin' parentAteacher conferences and newsletters should 'o home
on a wee)ly or monthly basis so that parents are )ept abreast of what is 'oin' on.
eachers should contact parents when they observe somethin' positive( not only for
ne'ative situations( so that parents feel accepted within the school environment. After
this has been done( the school will need to focus on buildin' relationships with the central
office staff. A way to do this is to invite these individuals for celebrations that may
occur. Administration can also invite support staff in when brainstormin' is ta)in' place
so that the staff has an opportunity to wor) hand?in?hand with these individuals. 6f at all
possible( the central office staff can also help durin' in?school professional development.
he ne2t thin' that will need to happen is that the faculty and staff will have to reflect on
any new situations that may arise as a result of these chan'es. Bew resources may be
needed or additional professional development may be helpful. he staff will need the
time to collaborate with one another and they will need to be 'iven the resources they
need to help the school maintain a positive climate and culture.
Climate and Culture 8
Climate and Culture >
=eferences
3oy( $. C. *+,,0-. The organizational health inventory for elementary schools.
=etrieved from http:AAwww.waynehoy.comAohi?e.html
hac)er( .( Bell( D. S.( E Shar'el( F. @. *+,,"-. Creating school cultures that embrace
learning: What successful leaders do. :archmont( BF: Eye 4n Education.