CHAPTER 1O

CREATING A
POSITIVE
SCHOOL
CULTURE 2
Learning OBJECTIVES
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Cite ways by
Explain the Discuss how
1
meaning of school culture 3
which you can
contribute to
school culture affects the building of
learning: positive
culture
What is the meaning of
school culture?
• One of the most complex and important concept in education (Schein,1985)
• It refers to the beliefs, perceptions, relationships, attitudes and written and unwritten
rules that shape and influence every aspect of how a school functions.
• The term also encompasses more concrete issues such as the physical and emotional
safety of students, the orderliness of classrooms and public spaces or degree to which
a school embraces racial, ethnic, linguistic and cultural diversity.
culture as a social construct

• Culture is a social construct not a genetic construct. This means the school
culture is therefore, something that we do not inherit or pass on through the
genes. Rather, it is something that we create and shape.
school climate vs. school culture

• School climate - refers to the school’s effects on students including teaching

practices, diversity and the relationships among administrators, teachers, parents and
students. School climate is driven by and reflected in daily interactions of staff,
administrators, faculty and students and the outside community.
• School culture - is a deeper level of reflection of shared values, beliefs and traditions
between staff members. It refers to the way teachers and other staff members work
together and the set of beliefs, values and assumptions they share.
 Collegiality

Experimentation

High expectations

12 elements Trust and confidence

of a positive Tangible support

culture Reaching ou to the knowledge

Appreciation and recognition

 Caring, celebration, humor

Involvement in decision making

elements of a Protection of what is important

positive
Traditions
culture
Honest and open communication
1.cOLLEGIALITY
• The school atmosphere is friendly. You work in an atmosphere where
responsibility and authority are shared by everyone. You can be yourself.
.EXPERIMENTATION
• The atmosphere encourages experimentation and so will welcome mistakes as
part of the learning process. No student, no teacher gets punished for a mistake.
Mistakes are not intended.
 3.high expectations
• It’s has been said one’s level of achievements is lower that one’s level that
aspiration. So set high expectations for high achievement
4.trust and confidence
• Students, teachers, school heads and parents relate well and work well when
relationshipd are solidly built on trust and confidence. In fact, honest and open
communication is possible when there is trust and confidence in each other in
the school community
 5.tangible support
• Everyone in school community gets concrete support for the good that they do.
Support comes in not just in words but in action. School heads sees to it that
LCDs in the classrooms are functioning.
6.reaching out to the
knowledge base
• Teachers care to grow professionally to update themselves on content
knowledge and pedagogy, the first domain in the Philippines Professional
Standards for Teachers
appreciation and recognition

• Certainly words of appreciation and recognition make classroom climate highly

favorable. A reminder to teachers; “You are not made less when you praise
others. Instead, you become magnanimous.” The problem sometimes is our eyes
are so quick to see the negative and so we despise them immediately but are
eyes are blinded to the good and so we overlook them and fail to appreciate.
8.caring, celebration, humor
• kids don’t care what you know until they know that you care. They don’t listen
to teacher when teacher doesn’t care. It may be good to remind teachers that
many of students, especially those who struggle, don’t receive nearly enough
positive feedback in the classroom or in their personal lives.
9.involvement in decision
making
• Involving others who are concerned with decisions to be made enhances sense
of ownership. They also feel important.
10. protection of what is
important
• What schools consider important must form part of their tradition and so must
be protected by all means.
 11. traditions
• A school must have an intentional culture-based program on shared values,
beliefs, and behaviors. This strengthens sense of community. A truly positiove
school culture is not characterized simply by the absence of gangs, violence or
discipline problems but also by the presence of a set of norms and values that
focus school community attention on what is important and motivate them to
work hard toward a common purpose.
12. honest and open
communication
• No one gets ostracized for speaking up his mind. The atmosphere is such that
everyone is encouraged to speak his mind without fear of being ostracized. The
agreement ate every discussion is “agree to disagree”.
shared norms:
teacher and student
norms
 reporters:
salomon, diane jane
salgados, renz maxwell
rosales, carolyn
thank you for
listening !