The Dark Side of School Culture

McNamara, Patricia; Hickey, Niamh; MacCurtain, Sarah; Blom, Nicolaas

doi:10.3390/soc11030087

Cited by 12 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 51 publications

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“…Those in official leadership positions can retain power, thereby leaving those outside of the group with significantly less power. Referent power [41] can emerge, as those who are in the 'leadership circle' potentially affiliate with each other and each other's ideas closely, thereby normalising a culture of 'us and them' [42]. Bourdieu [43] suggests that those who occupy similar positions have a chance of having similar dispositions and interests and, therefore, engage in similar practices.…”

Section: Who Leadership Is Shared Withmentioning

confidence: 99%

Distributed Leadership in Irish Post-Primary Schools: Policy versus Practitioner Interpretations

2023

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School leaders have faced significant challenges since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Distributed leadership has become the default leadership response implemented by schools to manage increased pressure. While Irish schools have traditionally operated behind a ‘closed-door’, there has recently been a movement towards a shared model of leadership, and Irish school leadership policy currently endorses the adoption of a distributed leadership model. Increased interest and policy endorsement notwithstanding, distributed leadership remains an elusive concept. The aim of this study was to explore Irish post-primary school personnel’s interpretations of distributed leadership and analyse these interpretations through a teacher empowerment lens with respect to Irish school leadership policy. This study reports the results of a thematic analysis of 363 survey responses provided by post-primary school personnel. Short’s six dimensions of teacher empowerment were utilised to inform a framework for thematically analysing the participants’ interpretations. An initial framework for enacting distributed leadership through an empowerment lens was outlined. Interpretations were found to diverge regarding (i) what is shared, (ii) who it is shared with, and (iii) how it is shared. This paper adds to the corpus of knowledge concerning how distributed leadership is understood in practice and will aid in informing future school leadership policy documents.

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Section: Who Leadership Is Shared Withmentioning

confidence: 99%

Distributed Leadership in Irish Post-Primary Schools: Policy versus Practitioner Interpretations

2023

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“…Power and organisational culture are key components for organisational inaction in terms of addressing workplace bullying [54]. Indeed, Mannix-McNamara, Hickey, MacCurtain and Blom [55] note that poor workplace behaviours are linked to interpersonal conflicts which in turn are linked to the artefacts and manifestations of school culture and to epistemological assumptions such as subject hierarchy, cliques and deficiencies in leadership.…”

Section: Strategies School Leaders Use To Address Stress and Interper...mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We would suggest differently. Mannix-McNamara et al [55] have found that seeking support from school leaders was ineffective and that naming the poor workplace behaviours was perceived to only exacerbate their situations. However, with professional development and leadership capacity building in the realm of IPC and difficult conversations, these matters can be effectively addressed.…”

Section: Strategies School Leaders Use To Address Stress and Interper...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Staff Stress and Interpersonal Conflict in Secondary Schools—Implications for School Leadership

Bruce

Hrymak

et al. 2022

Societies

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The importance of school leadership and workplace stress is a recurring theme in education-based research. The literature reports that workplace stress in teaching is a difficult matter to resolve, with mixed outcomes from interventions. The aim of this initial scoping study was to report on the experiences of school leaders with interpersonal conflict (IPC), a known cause of this workplace stress. Accordingly, a sample of twelve school leaders working in Irish post primary schools were recruited to participate in this study using semi-structured interviews. All twelve participants reported experiencing workplace stress and linked other people as a source of this stress. Nine out of twelve had experienced IPC as a school leader. School leaders also noted a fear of reporting workplace stress. Half of the participants reported becoming ill from workplace stress and had taken time off from work. Participants also reported ‘balkanisation’ of like-minded cliques that tried to exert control over other groups. None of the participants expressed confidence in organisational strategies to resolve workplace stress or IPC. This study demonstrates that resolutions for IPC were scant. Further research is needed to conceptualise this phenomenon in the school environment and to support school leaders to effectively manage IPC as a cause of workplace stress.

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“…School culture in educational organizations is interpreted as policies, interpersonal dynamics, attitudes, habits, and formal and informal behaviour rules in schools (Mannix-McNamara et al, 2021). School culture is one of the most complex and essential concepts in education (Mincu, 2022).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Strengthening Public School Culture: Integration of Local Wisdom, Religious Values, and Universal Values

Jamaluddin,

Manda

2023

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This study focuses on integrating local wisdom, religious values, and universal values. This study aims at revealing various secondary school cultures in public schools. This study employed a qualitative method with a case study design at Junior High School SMPN 7 Muaro Jambi. Data was collected using observation, in-depth interviews, and document study techniques. The collected data were analyzed using an interactive model, including data condensation, presentation, and verification. Triangulation techniques, extended observations, and member checks are employed to increase the validity of the data. The study revealed that five school cultures still characterize school managerial life: Gotong Royong (cooperation), Musyawarah (deliberation), Islamic Ritual, Clean and Healthy, and Discipline. These five cultures are manifestations of adherence to local values (indigenousity), religious values, and universal values. Combining these three integrated sources of values is a distinctive pattern of school culture that becomes the foundation for developing school quality at public schools at SMPN 7 Muaro Jambi. This research implies that integrating local, religious, and universal values in school culture enriches learning and prepares students for a globally complex world.

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The Dark Side of School Culture

Cited by 12 publications

References 51 publications

Distributed Leadership in Irish Post-Primary Schools: Policy versus Practitioner Interpretations

Distributed Leadership in Irish Post-Primary Schools: Policy versus Practitioner Interpretations

Staff Stress and Interpersonal Conflict in Secondary Schools—Implications for School Leadership

Strengthening Public School Culture: Integration of Local Wisdom, Religious Values, and Universal Values

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