UNDERSTANDING SCHOOL CULTURE

Writer: Suwandi Permana (super)

(Pengurus MKPS SMK Dinas Pendidikan Provinsi Jawa Barat/Komunitas Cinta Indonesia/KACI #PASTI BISA#)

Culture is an abstract concept that exists within any group of individual with a shared history. The history include rituals, myths, celebration, and tradition. The term culture has been used to define a person. For example, a person is “ cultured” means that the person has got good understanding and exposure to art. Vehbi Celik (2009) states that culture also defines a society which includes language, customs, dress,history, and traditions. But in this review focuses on school culture. Schools have different cultures specific to themselves. School culture represents dominant values, norms, assumptions, beliefs, stories, ceremonies and symbols shared by the members of a school. Hopkins (1994) defines school culture as the observed patterns of bahavior in a school. For example, a teacher calls a student to clean a classroom ans see how the teacher interacts with the student and the way the student responds to the teacher’s instruction or the way how the veteran teachers react to a novice teacher.The patterns represent unwritten procedures and policies. The culture gives distinctive identity. This indentity can be either positive or negative.The elements of School Culture are as follows:

a)         Vision and value: combine to myths. The myths are the spiritual sources of schools. The vision and purpose of an organization define success (Schein,2004). Schools outline these in the mission statements and school beliefs. Everbody in the school have to know and believe in these statement to facilitate strong culture.

b)         History and stories: also bring myths to life in school culture.Element of history form and shape school culture. A learning organization is one that mines past and present experiences for important lessons and principles. Recounting history transmits these important precepts, giving meaning to cultural practices and ways.( Deal & Peterson,1999,p.48).Schools and organizations learn from past successes and failures and apply it towards the present and the future. The elements of history that need to be understood are: leadership, crises, conflicts, people, relationship and changes. Stories convey information,morals, and myths vividly and convincingly. Stories communicate and perpetuate culture.

c)         Ritual and ceremonies: Ritual in schools begin as routines.They become linked to the school’s purpose and mission.They develop a history and begin to take on a life of their own as they become imbedded in the hearts of the school community. Rituals are used to connect and teach individuals about the school culture. Ceremonies are used to celebrate staff and student accomplishments. These ceremonies are used to reinforce shared values.They come in the forms of opening ceremonies, graduations, or mid year assemblies. The cereminies strengthen culture by involving asking to share and celebrate success.(Deal & Peterson,1999)

d)         History and traditions:Events from the past influence present culture.One learns the past to understand the present. Longer histories represent more established cultures.

e)         Architecture and artifacts : School cultures can take on the character of the builiding or the surroundings and campus. Architecture gives people a sense of pride when it incorporates school value and history.Artifacts and symbols are items that represent the school culture. Student’s work displayed on the walls, mission statements, core values,people from the past are artifacts. flags that represent the student population or statues that signify the local and the school culture (Deal & Peterson,1999). Positive School culture can drive all aspects at school work effectively. Not only does it elevate academic performance of the school but also the development of teachers and staff in the school become a priority. But, toxic or negative culture lies on the basis of many problems. Rise of violence in schools, safety problem, students’s exposure to risk and loosening of moral values are all stemmed from negative school culture. As conclusion to the above discussion, that culture influences everything that happens within a school, including norms,values, rituals, and symbols ( Ylimaki,2011). The research found out that culture may well have a lasting and wide ranging influence on school improvement. The culture also enables a better understanding of the organizational behavior and a favourable asmosphere for organizational learning culture.