The benefits of
teaching in a small school is that we all work together towards doing what is
best for the school and making changes that is agreed upon by all stakeholders.
From the administration level down to the support staffs, our school invites
all personnel to partake in decision making processes that will benefit the
school. Given that not every individual understands the changes to be made, we are
sometimes broken down into departments to make the changes which will then be
presented to the whole school body. When making big decisions, the public is
invited to comment on the changes and make recommendations or suggestions. We
include them in this process because they too, are affected.
Having the dynamic
of my school makes influencing others seem effortless. As long as the changes
that are being made are backed by research and data, my colleagues would jump
at the chances of making our school better. Even when it comes to making cuts, all
school personnel are understanding if enough information is shared with them.
Power is shared among all staff. Boundaries are set in place so that no one individual can
gain control over the others or administration is not stricken in terms being
disrespected or stepped on.
"You only have power over people so long as you don't take everything away from them. But when you've robbed a man of everything, he's no longer in your power - he's free again." Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
I really like your quote at the end! I agree that power has to be shared as the game will change from shared responsibility to the blame game! Great post! Thank you for sharing!
ReplyDeleteYes, even in small groups power needs to be observed and monitored. It sounds like your school has a good handle on this as to not let it go too far in any one direction. And having the "power dynamic" or decisions supported by research can be very helpful. It even shifts the dynamic to some degree off of the person and onto the "proof." The power of communication is key, in any size organization, because it includes others and invites them to participate in the process. Thanks for sharing!
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