This study examines the school organizational culture influencing the assignment process for low-experience teachers, aiming to identify characteristics of school organizational culture related to the avoidance of assigned teaching duties within the c...
This study examines the school organizational culture influencing the assignment process for low-experience teachers, aiming to identify characteristics of school organizational culture related to the avoidance of assigned teaching duties within the context of low-experience teachers. Focusing on Schein's (1985/1990, 2004, 2010) cultural theory, this study sought to explore the school organizational culture operating in the assignment of duties to novice teachers based on Schein's three-level cultural framework: Artifacts, Espoused values, and Underlying assumptions.
Furthermore, drawing on Park Sam-cheol's (2003) study, which applied Schein's organizational culture concept to Korean school organizations and subdivided each level, artifacts were subdivided into tangible ‘symbols’ and intangible ‘organizational behavior patterns,’ while espoused values were subdivided into ‘promoted values’ and ‘values in use’ for analysis.
The research method employed case studies, conducting in-depth interviews with eight middle school teachers in Seoul with five years or less of experience who had served in administrative positions. The collected interview data and documentary materials were analyzed using Braun and Clarke's (2006, 2022) thematic analysis method, a qualitative case study analytical approach.
The results according to the research questions are as follows. First, analyzing the school's operational practices governing the assignment of administrative duties to junior middle school teachers as artifacts of school organizational culture, we categorized them into tangible ‘symbols’, intangible ‘organizational behavior patterns’, 'school atmosphere'. The tangible symbols included group outputs like ‘duty rosters’ and the physical environment of individual schools, such as ‘small school size’ and ‘a staffing structure centered on low-experience teachers’, which influenced the assignment of duties to low-experience middle school teachers.
Intangible organizational behavior patterns were categorized into administrator and colleague teacher behaviors, and school atmosphere. Organizational behaviors operating in the assignment of duties to junior high school teachers with little experience included actions such as ‘repeated duty proposals by administrators operating in the assignment process’ and ‘passive intervention by colleague teachers’.
Regarding school atmosphere influencing assignment allocation, we confirmed the existence of ‘a school atmosphere where taking on assignments during the early career period is taken for granted’ and ‘a school atmosphere where assignment teachers are avoided’.
Next, the cultural norms justifying the assignment of duties to junior high school teachers with little experience, as explicit values (Espoused values) of the school organizational culture, are categorized into ‘Espoused values’ and ‘Operating values’. Espoused values represent the values the school organization aspires to. In this study, these included values shared as desirable within the school, such as ‘Duty teachers are absolutely necessary’, ‘Senior teachers are suitable for duties’, 'Administrative positions are offered to teachers who work diligently,‘ and 'Taking on an administrative role is a good opportunity to strengthen professional expertise.’
Conversely, ‘values in use’ refer to the beliefs actually held by organizational members and functioned as cultural norms justifying the assignment of administrative duties to low-seniority middle school teachers. Analysis confirmed that values such as ‘Once assigned a position, one must continue holding it’, ‘If one does not want a position, they must find an alternative themselves’, and ‘Position teachers should be those familiar with the school context, regardless of experience’ are culturally prevalent elements within the school organization.
Finally, the underlying assumption of the school organizational culture, and the implicit premise within the school organization that solidifies the assignment of administrative duties to junior high school teachers with little experience, was revealed as ‘trapping’. Once assigned an administrative role, one is recognized as capable of performing such duties, making it difficult to be assigned non-administrative tasks in subsequent work distributions. This signifies the difficulty of escaping such assignments, meaning that even if unwanted, teachers continue to be assigned duties from their early career stages. For early-career teachers, the process of assigning teachers to specific duties is fundamentally premised on a recognition of managerial authority, a desire to avoid causing trouble, and an understanding of the school's situation – factors that make the assignment both unavoidable and something to be avoided. Therefore, while junior teachers may appear to have a choice to accept or decline an assignment, the reality is that it is difficult to refuse an assignment proposal, ultimately leading them to be stigmatized as an assigned teacher. This study found that the assignment practices for junior high school teachers with little experience are implicitly conducted under the cultural premise of ‘being trapped,’ thereby exacerbating the phenomenon of avoiding assigned teaching positions.
This research aimed to expand the scope of school organizational culture studies while deriving useful implications for teacher support and personnel system design. Recent changes in the educational field, such as the increase in low-seniority teachers assigned to administrative duties, highlight the need for systematic support to enable them to fulfill their roles. This study aimed to provide meaningful implications for enhancing the sustainability of the educational field and strengthening teaching professionalism by establishing a basis for effectively supporting low-seniority teachers assigned to administrative duties, whose numbers are likely to grow further.