Organizational Coherence in the Context of School Improvement: The Development of a Coherence Framework

• In Event: 46.086 - Roundtable Session 16
  In Roundtable Session: 46.086-25 - Theorizing in and About Educational Organizations

Abstract

Coherence is an organizational property describing the extent that a school coordinates its resources, systems, and processes with a collective focus on improving student outcomes. This paper reports the development of a coherence framework that describes the practices and outcomes required to coherently implement a designed improvement strategy. We discuss the concept of coherence, and then draw on the organizational and educational literature to propose a framework in which leadership practices guide the crafting of organizational practices which cohere with the adopted reform strategies. The outcome of these combined practices is a shared enacted theory of improvement. The framework and its associated measurement rubric provide specific guidance for researching and promoting coherent school improvement through designed initiatives.

Authors

• Megan A Welton, Auckland University

• Viviane M. Robinson, University of Auckland

• Helen S. Timperley, University of Auckland