With the continuous change in the social, economic, and legal standards, there is a constant need for change in society on how people interact and do things. Additionally, with human interaction, the way of doing things might need to be changed or adjusted, leading to change in the various human institutions. Change is mainly facilitated by human nature to get things done differently from the usual way. Moreover, new standards are quickly being accepted, which had previously been considered unacceptable. The criteria in a society reflect the tenets and values that define a particular community. Furthermore, these values held by the community are consequently transferred to the younger generation in the schools. Therefore implementing changes in the education system at the national, district, and school levels is essential.
Making changes in school should not be a rushed activity. On the contrary, it should be a well-thought-out thing because the change has significant implications on human beings. Change is perceived as an action made without the participants' consent (Reigeluth & Karnopp, 2020). It is essential to involve the teachers and administrators in the change process in a school setup. This will enable more ownership of the change process and, ultimately, the change being successful. Notably, the change process should begin with the minor aspects such that the students and teachers alike are receptive. Acceptance will give room for more significant changes to be made in the future.
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Moreover, when the changes implemented do not work, it is vital to accept that they didn't work and learn from them. This will help create a culture of change in the school. With every change, there is a disgruntled voice objecting to it. Instead of being angry or feeling frustrated, the dissenting reason should be listened to (Reigeluth & Karnopp, 2020). By listening to the concerns raised, it can make the intended change better. These dissenting questions are the ones that keep the reality of the matter close. Every institution has a history of its transformation, which can either be positive or negative. If the institution has had change recently, they might be receptive to new ideas. If they hadn't had any difference, resistance would not be uncommon. Furthermore, if the previous experience with change was bad or good, it will play a role in how the change will happen. Since the school involves parents, teachers, stakeholders, and students in the change process, they already know what to expect if the change is implemented. Awareness of these perceptions is crucial in comprehending whether the stakeholders will be receptive or resist the change.
The school administrators implement changes at the school level or district level to address various needs in the school. This need can be to develop the learners' skills and value further. Such change can be objectively to develop the appropriate attitude and skills among students for survival in the society and workplace. With the advances in technology, there has been a significant source of information that can be used in implementing the changes deemed essential (Telfer, Howley & Thurlow, 2020). For example, the teacher can use the available information in the teaching and learning process. Consequently, this will help improve the learner's well-being from spiritual, physical, and intellectual standpoints. The stakeholders should invest in the well-being of the children to help in their success.
Formal power is derived from the standard position an individual has in an organization. In contrast, informal power is obtained from the relationships an individual can build with co-workers and respect earned. This influence is derived from the viewpoint of stakeholders in that organization. Furthermore, every organization has a structure that indicates the chain of command and delegates different responsibilities to different organization members. With the system and responsibility comes formal power (McShane and Glinow, 2017). For example, the headteacher has authority over the school's decisions and control over the teacher. Besides, they are answerable to the district heads of education. On the other hand, the teachers have authority over their departments and what goes on in the classes. Although the headteacher is the most influential person through the education system structure, that is not entirely true in most school systems. The most authoritative person in a department is the person with the most influence. Furthermore, a significantly influential person in the school system can lead people to accomplish a task or achieve a goal. Informal influence is derived from relationships build amongst employees. People with informal power may have more experience or better knowledge in a particular area or have a charismatic personality which can sway other members to their side.
Agents of change are actively involved in championing change which needs them to keep moving with the new trends in society. A change agent needs to be flexible (Beech & Maclntosh, 2017). Change agents need to appreciate creative minds and be open to change themselves. Appreciation of other non-traditional methods of doing things is very vital. To achieve this, the change agent will need to connect with people of different ages and various backgrounds better to understand the experiences and understanding of the people. Diversification of knowledge is another prerequisite for change agents (Reigeluth & Karnopp, 2020). Not only concentrating on the industry but also following what is happening in other industries and observing what is working and not working in those industries. This will help the change agent apply new mechanisms which will drive their goal forward. Through being results-oriented, there will be continuous change (Rosenabaum, More & Steane, 2018). Having specific priorities for the results helps in achieving continuous improvement in the field of concern. Having focus on particular goals means that the plans are a must to be completed. This will make clear the decision-making process and what is expected. Developing practical listening skills is very vital. By listening to other people’s ideas as you try to meet the problem's solution, one can get the opinions of other people and implement them into their ideas, making them better and more efficient. Furthermore, people love to be involved in the democratic process of realizing change. Besides, considering their opinions makes them feel a sense of belonging towards the organization. They are taking responsibility if the process is essential. By taking responsibility for the team or change process, the change agent will correct the mistake and make changes. Moreover, the team players will have faith in the leader and walk with him.
Implementing change can be realized in different ways. However, there are six stages to go through before change implementation. These include maintaining the old system, creating awareness, exploration, transitional, the emergence of new infrastructure, and predominance of the new system (Rosenabaum, More & Steane, 2018). Maintenance of the old system is where the educators and stakeholders in the education system still want to hold on to the old system without accepting that the system needs to be changed. This stage is followed by the awareness stage, whereby a few stakeholders realize that the system is not functioning well as it should be. However, having realized this, the stakeholders should be aware of what to be done to remedy the situation. The exploration stage is the policymakers visit new places where they are using other systems and try to learn from them. In this stage, low-risk methods are tried out. The transition phase is followed where many stakeholders are inclined to adopt the new system and are willing to take more risks to embrace the unique strategies. The emergence of the new infrastructure follows. The infrastructure of the integration of the new system is developed. In this stage, aspects of the old system are still considered, keeping in mind the desired outcome. Lastly, the new system takes the predominance, and the new system is taken up into operational, and the new leaders coming in adopting it.
In a case study of Traverse City West Senior High, the school was performing well, and everything was ok. This was the old system, and it worked well for them. However, there was a need to reduce the number of students failing and help improve the not performing students. The awareness of the need to give more opportunities was created, and exploration was done, and the smaller learning communities consortium was identified, and the transition started. Through the federally funded initiative, the school was able to maintain the standards of performance. Also, it helped in the overall improvement of the performance of the learners. Having witnessed the success of the new process, it was eventually adopted, making it the best performed in the new system.
In conclusion, change in the education sector is a continuous activity caused by the need to better the learning process and the education system. There are fundamental concepts that are followed in implementing change to make it acceptable and work. Changing skills, values, and technology impacts the learner’s well-being. The change agent can stay relevant by listening to others, being knowledgeable, flexible, and being results-oriented through prioritizing. As seen in the above-discussed case study of Traverse City West Senior High, there are six stages of implementing change. The stages are the old system, creating awareness, exploration, transitioning, the emergence of a new structure, and new system predominance
References
Beech, N., & MacIntosh, R. (2017). Managing change: Enquiry and action . Cambridge University Press.
McShane, S., & Glinow, M. A. V. (2017). Organizational behavior . McGraw-Hill Education.
Reigeluth, C. M., & Karnopp, J. R. (2020). Vision and Action: Two Sides of the Coin for Systemic Change in Educational Systems. TechTrends , 64 (5), 769-778.
Rosenbaum, D., More, E., & Steane, P. (2018). Planned organizational change management: Forward to the past? An exploratory literature review. Journal of Organizational Change Management .
Telfer, D. M., Howley, A., & Thurlow, M. (2020). The Role Of State Assessment In District-Wide Reform. Inclusive Education: A Systematic Perspective , 95.
