Transitioning Schools, Trust Considerations

Schools undergoing a transition moving from a sinking school to a moving school rely on the expertise of leadership to initiate this movement. Sinking schools are characterized by dysfunctional staff relationships and power issues (Stoll, 1999, p.525). Fundamentally underlying these dysfunctions are issues regarding trust. Schools that are faced with trust issues will most likely not participate in collaborative activities (Bryk et. al, 2003, p. 43). There has been some recent research in addressing trust issues leading to greater collaboration. Cosner of the University of Chicago highlights high school principals that were successful at building organizational capacity and provides tried and tested ways to develop trust.

Although there is no generic, one size fits all solution for addressing the issue of developing or reestablishing trust, two influential ways to move a school is to develop a focus on people and promoting positive politics. There appears to be a number of practical considerations that can be applied to solving trust problems according to Tshannen-Moran, “. . . principals support trust formation between teachers by shaping a cooperative culture, creating time and structures that support collaboration, establishing norms for interaction, intervening to help resolve conflicts or to enforce norms of behavior, and improving the conflict resolution skills of teachers.” (as cited by Cosner, 2009, p.256). Context is key, decisions about the final approach to solving the issue of trust need to be based on the specific situations that the school is faced with.

Creating a culture of trust is important to ensuring the successful transition from a sinking school to one that is moving. School leadership needs to focus on trust issues and ensure that they alleviate them. Doing so will create a culture that enhances compassion, fosters dependability, embraces frankness and subsequently leads to greater collaboration.

References

Bryk, A., & Schneider, B. (2003). Trust in schools: A core resource for school reform. Educational Leadership, 60(6), 40-44.

Cosner, S. (2009). Building organizational capacity through trust. Educational Administration Quarterly, 45(2), 248-291.

Stoll, L. (1999). Realising our potential: understanding and developing capacity for lasting improvement. School Effectiveness and School Improvement, 10(4), 503-532