Activity Two - Socio-economic Status & Culture

SOCIO-ECONOMIC STATUS OF THE COMMUNITY, SCHOOL CULTURE AND PROFESSIONAL ENVIRONMENTS

Introduction:

Stoll (1998) defines school culture as being one of the most important concepts in education. She goes on to explain that a number of factors shape the culture of the school, such as the age of the school, influences of the community (whānau included), primary/secondary differences, the social mix of the pupils and any changes that may occur in Society.

Socio-Economic Status

The school I am currently at is comprised of 35% Māori students, 52% European, 7% Pasifika and 6% other  Education Review Office (2016). It is a Decile 3 and draws children from  a range of Socio-economic areas. One complete area has a lot of Housing New Zealand homes with the majority of the whānau unemployed or in seasonally employment such as orchard employees. At the other end of our zone, is a band new subdivision with the majority are employed in full time positions. So we have quite a mix. 

Problems that arise because of the low Socio-Economic Status of some of our whānau are very similar to many schools across New Zealand. Poverty brings absenteeism, lack of clothing and food and in some cases, poor health. We have attempted to ease some of these issues by registering with Kids Can Organisation, securing an onsite Social Worker, working daily with the Public Health Nurse and building strong partnerships with community and whānau. These solutions also work well for those who do not fit into the low Socio-Economic status.

School Culture

My school was built in 1903. The entrance depicts a very 'traditional' school that was built in the early 1900's. When you move to the back of the school, the buildings change to reflect the 1970's with classrooms placed randomly around a netball court and huge grass field.  There are in fact 3 other Primary Schools close by that reflect a similar age and time. Not to sound crass, but 'old and white'. We recognise this and are currently working on plans to solve this problem. 

Reading this back, it sounds so negative. In fact, it's not, it is a statement of where our school culture is at the moment. Our school has a lovely feel about it and has a very good name in the Community. The roll has grown considerably over the past 3 years. Changes are being made, beginning with staff. Stoll and Fink (1995) discussed the norms for improving schools and reading these, I realise how closely we aligned we are. In the same article, Stoll and Fink (1995) talk about 'reculturing' where new ideas, values and beliefs are formed. That's where we are at the moment, which means our school motto "Piki Haere - Keep on Climbing" is the right fit for us.

Professional Environment

As I said above, we have had a fair few changes in our Staff. Starting with a new Principal nearly 5 years ago, there have been many changes. There are only 2 staff in 24 teachers who have been there longer than 5 years. This has meant changes in routines, the way meetings are held and collaborative learning spaces. Teaching pedagogy has had to change, and for some it was too big a change, for others it was and still is an exciting time to be a teacher at our lovely school. This has all had a positive impact on the student's learning with more to come!

APA. (2016). Education and Socioeconomic Status. Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/pi/ses/resources/publications/education.aspx

Education Review Office (2016). Mahora School. Retrieved from  http://www.ero.govt.nz/review-reports/mahora-school-24-05-2016/ 

Stoll (1998). School Culture. School Improvement Network’s Bulletin 9. Institute of Education, University of London. 

Stoll, L., & Fink, D. (1996). Changing our Schools: Linking School Effectiveness and School Improvement. Buckingham: Open University Press.