Developing a secondary school ethos

Abstract

Names: School Ethos has been described by other words such as School Culture, character, Spirit, Person, Identity, Nature, Distinct Quality, Wholeness and Gestalt. All of these are appropriate. All together they describe this reality well. Everyone will have one's preference. If one word could include all the meanings of the above words, it would be the ideal word to use. So, we shall use them interchangeably according to the aspect under consideration. As the general overall term, we shall respect our title, and use 'Ethos'. The substance is what is most important, not the name. Definitions: There are also many definitions. All favour a particular slant, but they are in the right direction and they serve to put us in the picture. Ethos is the characteristic spirit of the community, people or system. "It is the 'feeling', even in the empty school; a presence that says a lot about its people." "An Ethos is the set of ideas, attitudes and activities that is associated with a particular group of people". "Ethos is the distinctive character and atmosphere of a school, which reflects the extent to which it promotes the moral, intellectual, social and personal development of its pupils. (I would say; its people)" - N. Ireland Inspectorate. "The character of the Organization, is the sum total of all the qualities, contributions and influences ·of. all the stakeholders, on the whole group, including the interpersonal relations and reactions and interactions. "Grandeur of Character is Moral Principle in practice." (Glenville Kleiser). "The school is a person. Its Ethos is the reply to a question similar to the one we might ask about a person: What kind of person is this? What kind of school is this?" Some Elements of Successful Cultures: Very relevant here are the findings of a recent research about the reasons for the success and longevity of some 150-year-old companies, (Current average life span of business companies is 10 years) carried out by a BBC Research Team. In a Radio Business Programme on Sunday 4th January, 1997 about these companies, the researchers said that the study confirmed that: They have a core ideology. They did not necessarily start with a great product. They persisted. When they discovered a good product, they accepted nothing less than excellence and maintained the same quality throughout. When the product was no longer in demand they changed it. The present product does not really matter; it can change. However, the following do not change: The company culture, ideals, standards, shared ideologies, written aims, community compactness and principles. They stick to their principles of Quality, Customer Care, Efficiency and Reliability, which had made their best product great. They clearly define their principles, identity and aims and they value and honour those who share their beliefs and are proud to become company men (like Shell men, IBM men). All love the company and are happy to belong fully to the same culture and all that it stands for. Others leave. No one is allowed to spread bad attitudes. The attitude of all is that of total commitment to the company. Once the people are respected and motivated they will want to give a lot to their own company. Their chief executives are nurtured from within the company, from people who have knitted their life around the company. They are known to, and valued by the company. The company knows their present and future worth and tells them, so. Most importantly the company is looked upon as a person. It grows. It changes. It makes mistakes and comebacks. It strives to be good and to move ahead, always building, always improving, and wanting to live for ever. Above we can observe some important elements of culture which are all applicable to schools, even more so perhaps, because schools are more People centred. Our products are the Curriculum and· the facilities we offer to all our people. Culture/Ethos is about People. More about this in Part 4.