The Study
Do the systems of control over teachers’ workplaces ultimately affect the way they view their jobs and structure their classrooms? Ken Frank, assistant professor in the Department of Counseling, Educational Psychology and Special Education, along with colleagues Charles E. Bidwell of the University of Chicago and Pamela A. Quiroz of the University of Massachusetts collected data from 13 high schools of widely varying sizes and serving students of differing socioeconomic backgrounds in an effort to answer that question.

The Findings
The literature contains some evidence of the relationships between teachers’ conceptions of work and teaching practices and on-the-job experiences. However, there is little research on how the school workplace affects teachers’ instructional beliefs and practices. Workplace or organizational control of teaching generally refers to administrative management, but this study extends that definition to parent and teacher power. The researchers studied faculty social organizations in 13 high schools from the Chicago area. Through interviews, they learned about the distributions of power in the schools, modes of decision-making, and levels of faculty involvement. They also performed a number of observations, and surveyed faculty members in the all of the schools studied. The researchers found that size and the relative strength of parents — what they called client power — tended to be related to how a school is organized. For instance, they found that of the three largest schools with low parent participation and control, all ranked high on bureaucratic, centralized decision-making. Of the three small schools that ranked high in client power, two ranked high and one ranked medium on what the researchers termed collegial control where teachers working together frequently made decisions about school policy. In terms of workplace controls and teachers’ orientations, the researchers found a strong indication that at least in certain settings workplace controls have the power to alter what teachers think about and how they go about their work. In particular, teachers adopt a pal-like orientation in schools where there is a marketplace such as competition for students, and adopt a progressive orientation in schools where decisions are made through collegial consultation. Based on their findings, the researchers argue that systems of workplace control affect teachers’ conceptions of the purposes and methods of teaching and, correspondingly, their classroom practices.

What It Means To You
Given the findings, what kind of workplace controls are in place in your district’s schools? How do these controls affect the attitudes and classroom practices of your teachers?

For More Information
Bidwell, C.E., Frank, K.A. & Quiroz, P.A. (1997) Teacher types, workplace controls, and the organization of schools. Sociology of Education, 70(4), 285-307.

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