Using the Lenses of Organizational Culture and Climate for Research on Science Teacher Professional Learning

Abstract

Teachers are members of school district organizations that have their own organizational culture and climate. We differentiate a school or district as an organizational cultural context from the broader community cultural context or individual sociocultural background; it stands as an intermediate context with effects that may differ from the external cultural influences while having profound influences on teachers’ thoughts, feelings, and actions. In this conceptual paper, we review the theoretical foundations of organizational culture and organizational climate, and the corresponding ideas of assumptions, values, artifacts, and shared perceptions of policies, practices, and routines. We then summarize types of research questions and research methods that are well-suited to the organizational culture and climate framework. We apply these concepts to two example cases from the field of science education. We identify potential research opportunities for organizational culture and climate in science education that can extend and deepen our efforts to understand teachers’ experiences within school organizations. This paper is part of the special issue on Teacher Learning and Practice within Organizational Contexts.