Building Culture
Knowledge-Building for Teachers Series
Culture is something I’ve been thinking about more and more, especially as I prepare for the new year in a few weeks. Culture in the classroom and culture in a school has a huge impact on the success and well-being for students, teachers, and staff. Often I think it is left to chance, but as you will see in the resources below, there are ways to build a positive culture explicitly and intentionally.
Podcasts
Ep 002: From Compliance to Buy…–Operation Education with Pritesh Raichura and Neena Sharma
I’m loving this new podcast from Pritesh and Neena. This episode is especially pertinent for thinking about how to develop a classroom culture of buy-in as you begin the new year.
S02E01 - Dr. Ray Boyd on Leadership, Vision, and School Culture with Brendan Lee
A great interview from a school leader, and his journey to create a strong culture of success for students, teachers, and staff at his school.
Articles
Attention by Design: Why I Refuse to Gild My Teaching and My Classroom by Brett Benson SoL in the Wild
More than just classroom set up, Brett shares how the classroom decor (or not to decor) has an impact on classroom culture. This is an excellent read.
Building Culture: how to shape character through daily interactions | Bunsen Blue by Pritesh Raichura
Pritesh focuses on explicitly teaching and practicing values to create a strong culture of character in his classroom. This post really shows how teaching culture is just as important as teaching academics.
Bootcamp by Joe Kirby
Joe Kirby writes about “Bootcamp” at Michaela that includes teaching “pupils the mindset and habits to succeed at school” and the why behind everything they do.
Making everyday excellence ‘routine’ by guest contributor, Sara Dower
Sara shares practical ways to teach routines explicitly based on the experience of her school and classroom.
How Teaching Happens by Paul Kirschner, Carl Hendrick, and Jim Heal
Section 5 “In the Classroom” includes some interesting research on relationships in the classroom and the impact on student success. One of the articles is listed next.
The Key to Classroom Management by Robert J. Marzano and Jana S. Marzano
This article shares how with “appropriate levels of dominance and cooperation and an awareness of student needs, teachers can build positive classroom dynamics.”
The hidden curriculum for adults: Why school norms shape teachers more than policies by Dr. Haili Hughes
This post is geared more toward teacher culture. Dr. Hughes has been writing amazing Substack posts, and I would recommend them for any teacher wanting to refine their practice.
Blogs with Video
This is a post on the highly impactful “What To Do” Cycle from TLAC with classroom video (of course!). This was one of the best professional development trainings I have attended.
Culture Onboarding and Habit Assemblies (with video) from Peps Mccrea’s Evidence Snacks
Peps shares some simple but powerful ways to build culture and norms whole school. Habit assemblies bring the whole school (or certain grades) together to practice school routines, giving everyone a common language and clear examples. Culture onboarding helps integrate new and upcoming students to the routines of the school to keep the school culture strong.
Book
How the Other Half Learns by Robert Pondiscio
A look into Success Academy, charter schools that provide high-quality education for low-income students of color. He self-described it this way: “I intended my book about Success Academy to focus on curriculum and instruction. It ended up being, almost by accident, more about school culture. It matters a whole lot.”
Amazing post! Perfect leading up to school!