Are Schools Really Like This? Factors Affecting Teacher Attitude Toward School Improvement

Are Schools Really Like This? offers a new way to think about school improvement without generating resistance from teachers, administrators, support staff, parents, and community members. By combining the concepts of system thinking, mental models, effective school research, political theories, and Deming's theories of management, this book is able to bring to light a systemic model and theory for improving schools. This volume offers a model and theory describing six organizational dimensions that react to innovations in an attempt to balance the internal and external societal visions of what constitutes a "good school." Three case studies are provided as a framework for individuals or groups to use in finding key agreement or disagreement patterns. Finally, the text serves as a testimony to the dedication and effort put into improving schools despite the obstacles, with each community and school organization presenting their own unique stories.