The Process of Administering Change in Schools (Essay Sample)

Change in Schools
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Introduction
Change is the only constant thing in this world. It does not matter how little or large a modification can be on a system, organization or the society it is still a change. There are two types of change in any occasion, planned and unplanned. Planned changes are well structured with each having a definite step that is to be taken one after the other and the planners have an expected outcome. Unplanned changes are made instantaneously in a dynamic manner. These are abrupt adjustments made to alter the way things were initially done (David, Clutterbuck, & Megginson, 2013). However, the planners have a vague idea of the desired outcome. This paper will discuss how change affects a school by using an episode from my school and later I will give recommendations on how some things could have been done differently.
Amongst many organizations that experience changes in their lives we have schools to be one of them. It is known to be the most volatile environment especially when the school has set high goals that need to be realized or else the stakeholders face repercussions (Kotter & Cohen, 2002). School administrations are guided by three or more structures or governing affairs, we have complex, chaotic and controlled or a mix of either two of them. It is the principal who is mandated in making prime decisions and keeping the institution on check at all times. However, there are other stakeholders who contribute directly or indirectly towards the course that the school takes (Degenhardt, Duignan, & Australian Council for Educational Research, 2010). Teacher, students and parents are the major stakeholders in this. Teachers engage with the students and the administration on a daily routine to make sure the classes are attended to. Students on the other hand attend to their classes and follow all the set rules while in the school premises. Parents pay their children’s tuition fee, attend school meetings and provide for all the other needs required by their children.
Meaningful conceptualisation of leading educational change
Conceptualization interprets to the paradigm used by the school in making changes. Leadership plays a crucial role in deciding the fate of every aspect in the institution. In this case the principal is the sole leader and he has a board of directors who help him in other projects and many more managerial roles. The board is made up of local society members and other influential individuals that are elected yearly during the Annual General Meeting (Finnan & Swanson, 2000). The school basically adopts the top bottom approach where decisions are made by the top management and then communicated to teachers, students and other staff in the fraternity.
According to Pryor and Bright, this is a controlled environment that we live in this school. The motive on using this model is to ensure that there are less surprises and the principal has everything in order (Pryor & Bright, 2011). There are laws are rules that govern both the students and the teachers, who are the key-daily player that keep this school up and running. Some of the basic rules is on punctuality, a student has to be in school by 7:30am and attend to all classes without failure. The attendance is part of the grading system where it contributes to 15% of the final marks obtained. This rule is aimed at ensuring that students attend as many classes as possible per term. Teachers on the other hand have to attend all classes without failure. However, their control button is not punitive like that of the students. They only need to notify the department’s chairperson or the principal, but they have to make time for lost time and attend to their classes.
There are many driving factors to change in any given environment. For the case of a school, it is the stakeholders that push for these changes. The board of directors, the principal and teachers are the key stakeholders while the students are the subjects in which all the issues revolve around them. However, a change from one of the stakeholders affects the other groups at large because they are all interconnected. We have all experienced change at one point in our lives in one way or another and responded differently. People have different expectations to change and what their desires pursue. When we are involved in the process of delivering change we feel valued and take full responsibility for the outcome projected.
Some of the challenges that a school encounters when delivering change is the society, religion and culture. These aspects are crucial in bringing change because they dictate the terms in which people interact. The school does not aim to build a gap between them and the community but rather enhance their relationship. My school for instance is built on a strong catholic setting in which the students are expected to attend to both their religious classes as well as the formal classes. However, research according to Finnan & Swanson (2000) shows that students are less likely to learn when forced to engage in some activities like attending to a church mass. Religion is a matter of choice and some aspects should rather be kept that way.
Technological change has been one of the most admired and inevitable change in schools. There is always needed to come up with new ways to approach things. I will therefore highlight changes made to my school and then criticize the issue on how I could approach the same issue differently. The change was made on technology where the classes were to get upgrades in terms of security and general service delivery. The change was finally here with us after pushing for it for many occasions. The staff meeting always had this agenda since I arrived here. We could not believe it at first when developers came collecting our views and expectations to the system that would change every aspect of our school. The students were interviewed; teachers, supporting staff and the top management gave the final decision. However, it was implemented in phases. It was only after the successful implementation of one that the next one preceded.
The first phase was the installation of projectors in the classrooms that was to be followed by a Wi-Fi connection. The first phase went on as planned and finally all the classes and labs had a projector. The only challenge to this was obtaining a scheme to use in the classes since it was all new to the teachers and the students. The ministry gave out slides on various subjects taught, but we had to do our modifications to ensure that the students are also enjoying their sessions. The first week was very confusing to the teachers. We had to do away with the board for a while and some of us used to enter the classroom without a laptop to use. However, we later adapted well and made more and more adjustments.
This change was desired by all the stakeholders but it did not turn out as expected. Teachers saw it as an avenue to enhance their teaching strategies when incorporating various approaches. Students wanted it to compete with other schools who had long implemented it. All stakeholders were consulted by the system developers before its implementation but the results were not the expected one, except from the principal’s perspective. We believe that he customised the requirements to best serve his desires to always be in control. Power has been utilized by leaders to make changes in their organizations for the benefit of all. However, in this case the leader has placed this as a private entity despite being a public institution. Other stakeholders are adamant to take any actions or engage in dialog with the school community. They are comfortable with the principal’s operations; he abides with all the requirements and gets good results. They have absolute trust in every decision made.
The same cannot be shared by the teachers who feel humiliated when going on about their duties. The camera scandal is just but one of the instances that the teachers feel undermined in their role in the school. Teachers arriving from other schools who had utilized the chaotic model feel dejected when they come to realise how things are carried out here. I do not have a lot of experience on how the two models work because this is my first school and the others I used to be a student. I have come to realise that there is more that goes along in a teacher’s life other than going to the classroom and delivering good grades and competitive mean scores.
How to Introduce Innovative Teaching Practices Using Technology in a School
This part will engage on detailed analysis on how the same change can be done differently using my selected approach. There are many ways in which technology has been used to enhance teaching in schools. The best way to come up with an appropriate paradigm that will function requires thorough scrutiny from all aspects. We do not want a situation that will result to total collapse, because we will destroy the trust granted by our investors. I have settled for the complex approach that is box flexible and complicated in best serving a school environment. The following is a diagram given by Pryor & Bright that explains all the concepts towards delivering change, from left to right.
Users’ObjectiveUsers’CapabilitiesUsersAcceptanceAdoption of SoundInnovationEffective Outcome
Useruuuuse
The complex theory dictates that the school is run by stiff rules that have to be followed pat all times but there are a few exceptions given to emerging and arising issues. The first step in this diagram is the user’s objective. What is the user’s perspective and is the change necessary? These are the questions that demand for answers before any further step can commence. In this ...