**How Symbols and Rituals Affect School Culture and Management Management**

**How Symbols and Rituals Affect School Culture and** 

DOI: 10.5772/intechopen.71363

Mehmet Ali Özdilekler, Anna Günsel, Gökmen Dağlı and Ergen Gürbüzer Gökmen Dağlı and Ergen Gürbüzer Additional information is available at the end of the chapter

Mehmet Ali Özdilekler, Anna Günsel,

Additional information is available at the end of the chapter

http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.71363

#### **Abstract**

The aim of the study is to evaluate the directors, teachers, and servants in the pre, primary, and secondary schools of the Near East University on their views about the functions of symbols, values, and rituals in developing school culture. This study was carried out in fall 2016–2017 academic year with 15 directors, 170 teachers, and 15 servants from the pre, primary, and secondary schools of the Near East University. In this research, a qualitative study was conducted, in which a case study design with a semi-structured interview technique was used to collect data through sampling, one of the objective sampling methods. A qualitative analysis technique based on the research questions for content analysis of the collected data was used. The majority of the participants emphasized that the common values of the individuals at school, symbols, rituals, and traditions formed the bases of school culture. Although, in general, perceptions and views related to school culture are positive, there are arguments that school culture should be integrated deeper into education. It is commonly believed that, if worked in collaboration, symbols, values, and ritual functions will contribute a great deal to social—organizational—and individual development.

**Keywords:** school culture, symbol, value, ritual, management, technology, organization

### **1. Introduction**

Rapid developments in every field in today's world, have been forcing both the individuals and the community organizations to adapt an on-going process of alteration, which influences education, as all other fields, and urges the system to adapt to the new process through the provided innovations. But, in due course, organizations responsible for education were negatively affected by the good-will efforts in renovation put them in a

© 2016 The Author(s). Licensee InTech. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. © 2018 The Author(s). Licensee IntechOpen. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

technical and mental position, and the educational institutions were perceived as successful companies, which ignored the needs of the individuals and the community, and were compared with manufacturing factories. It is clear that perceiving educational institutions as a company or a factory is closely related to classical, mental, and scientific approaches in administrative issues from the past to now. Relating schools to traditional approaches created a productive and effective mentality. However, such approaches were not effective in eradicating problems [1–3].

Rituals are radical formations of individuals experience in their social, political, societal, and cultural structures stemming from different necessities since the early days of human existence. Rituals, practiced by tribes and religious functionaries in old days, have taken their place and are applied in today's political and educational structures of states. The relation between ideology and culture has evolved from the efforts of many countries to shape their educational structure with many concepts from the very beginning [8]. Consequently, in order to adapt individuals to domain political value judgments of the past in educational institutions, some cultural issues are transferred to future generations through educational institutions. Cultural transfer in the field of education is possible through ritualistic activities. However, such ritual activities in educational institutions are formally experienced in educational programs, national days, commemorative, and flag-raising ceremonies. Even more, rituals are observed by students in different styles in in-class or outdoor activities. Individuals with various characteristics in social life and educational institutions come up with different views in regard to different paradigms as a result of the rituals among informally appointed

How Symbols and Rituals Affect School Culture and Management

http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.71363

79

This research deals with the functions of symbols, values, and rituals as well as the importance of technology in the development of organizational culture in preschool, primary, and secondary education. When previous studies are overviewed, it can be noted that several studies have been done in organizational culture, but there have not been any studies dealing with the concept of symbols related to organizational culture, values, and rituals all together. Therefore, this study is expected to be different compared to other studies. The findings of this study, conducted among teachers, the key factors in our educational system, it is hoped that the symbols, values, and rituals will add to the improvement of organizational culture. Suggestions related to specifying perceptions to do with school culture, the functions of symbols, values, and ritu-

The aim of this study was to reveal the views by directors, teachers, and servants employed in the pre, primary, and secondary schools at the Near East University about the functions of

• What are the school directors', teachers', and servants' perceptions and views about school

• How according to school directors, teachers, and servants should symbols, values, and

• What tasks and responsibilities should the school directors, teachers, and servants have to

• What do school directors, teachers, and servants suggest to raise the standard in the pro-

als and their impact on school culture will be presented at the end of this study.

symbols, values, and rituals in the improvement of organizational culture.

The following questions were the main areas to be investigated in this study:

individuals through financial and political reasons [9].

**1.1. The aim of this study**

rituals function in schools?

cess of improving school culture?

raise the functions of symbols, values, and rituals?

culture?

Several approaches in administrative and educational issues were effective in presenting some models related to organizations responsible for education. Researches in educational management in our country have recently speeded up and several theories and perceptions were referred to through scientific approaches [4, 5].

Symbolic interactions perceive organizational culture as an invisible power and investigate common sense created by the applicants of the so-called culture. This is because educational organizations are often inter-related with symbols. In the routine running, in the processes to do with determination, educational activities of the organization symbols have a significant role [5]. Although schools focus more on the symbols, the scientific data related to school culture reveal that there are a few researches done to analyze school culture in terms of symbols. In most of the researches done, quantitative studies occupy quite a big part in the analysis of school culture and the relation among the different parameters of culture structures. Even though researches in this field reveal crucial findings related to organizational existence, they are not sufficient to clearly show the fundamental meanings of the basic organizational behaviors. Researches assuming organizations as social structures and symbolic systems prefer qualitative approaches formed of ethnography, case studies, and sample cases in expressing organizational processes [5, 6].

Individual needs are of utmost importance in forming organizational culture. In this respect, some norms, ideas, and values, adapted by the group members, have to be specified when individuals are willing to join a group and being known as well. The history of the organization, membership, and sharing among members have a great say in forming organizational culture [2]. It is obvious that all the elements forming culture are of great importance. Researches show that in schools where certain norms of school culture are effective, there are on-going developments and renewals. Contrary to this, in the case of inefficient norms, renewals and achievements will be less and at random. Among the elements forming organizational culture, values are one of the most important because they are the basis of the culture of the organization. When the relation between organizational culture and interaction are examined, it can be seen that values are the triggering factors in the formation, sustainability, and transfer of organizational culture [7].

Values are essential factors in expressing cultural structures because individuals in an organization come together to share values, social ideals and beliefs. These values or beliefs are reflected through symbolic structures such as legends, myths, stories, and rituals. The shared values form the organizational value system and become the perspectives in perceiving organizational developments [2].

Rituals are radical formations of individuals experience in their social, political, societal, and cultural structures stemming from different necessities since the early days of human existence. Rituals, practiced by tribes and religious functionaries in old days, have taken their place and are applied in today's political and educational structures of states. The relation between ideology and culture has evolved from the efforts of many countries to shape their educational structure with many concepts from the very beginning [8]. Consequently, in order to adapt individuals to domain political value judgments of the past in educational institutions, some cultural issues are transferred to future generations through educational institutions. Cultural transfer in the field of education is possible through ritualistic activities. However, such ritual activities in educational institutions are formally experienced in educational programs, national days, commemorative, and flag-raising ceremonies. Even more, rituals are observed by students in different styles in in-class or outdoor activities. Individuals with various characteristics in social life and educational institutions come up with different views in regard to different paradigms as a result of the rituals among informally appointed individuals through financial and political reasons [9].

This research deals with the functions of symbols, values, and rituals as well as the importance of technology in the development of organizational culture in preschool, primary, and secondary education. When previous studies are overviewed, it can be noted that several studies have been done in organizational culture, but there have not been any studies dealing with the concept of symbols related to organizational culture, values, and rituals all together. Therefore, this study is expected to be different compared to other studies. The findings of this study, conducted among teachers, the key factors in our educational system, it is hoped that the symbols, values, and rituals will add to the improvement of organizational culture. Suggestions related to specifying perceptions to do with school culture, the functions of symbols, values, and rituals and their impact on school culture will be presented at the end of this study.

#### **1.1. The aim of this study**

technical and mental position, and the educational institutions were perceived as successful companies, which ignored the needs of the individuals and the community, and were compared with manufacturing factories. It is clear that perceiving educational institutions as a company or a factory is closely related to classical, mental, and scientific approaches in administrative issues from the past to now. Relating schools to traditional approaches created a productive and effective mentality. However, such approaches were not effective in

Several approaches in administrative and educational issues were effective in presenting some models related to organizations responsible for education. Researches in educational management in our country have recently speeded up and several theories and perceptions

Symbolic interactions perceive organizational culture as an invisible power and investigate common sense created by the applicants of the so-called culture. This is because educational organizations are often inter-related with symbols. In the routine running, in the processes to do with determination, educational activities of the organization symbols have a significant role [5]. Although schools focus more on the symbols, the scientific data related to school culture reveal that there are a few researches done to analyze school culture in terms of symbols. In most of the researches done, quantitative studies occupy quite a big part in the analysis of school culture and the relation among the different parameters of culture structures. Even though researches in this field reveal crucial findings related to organizational existence, they are not sufficient to clearly show the fundamental meanings of the basic organizational behaviors. Researches assuming organizations as social structures and symbolic systems prefer qualitative approaches formed of ethnography, case studies, and sample cases in express-

Individual needs are of utmost importance in forming organizational culture. In this respect, some norms, ideas, and values, adapted by the group members, have to be specified when individuals are willing to join a group and being known as well. The history of the organization, membership, and sharing among members have a great say in forming organizational culture [2]. It is obvious that all the elements forming culture are of great importance. Researches show that in schools where certain norms of school culture are effective, there are on-going developments and renewals. Contrary to this, in the case of inefficient norms, renewals and achievements will be less and at random. Among the elements forming organizational culture, values are one of the most important because they are the basis of the culture of the organization. When the relation between organizational culture and interaction are examined, it can be seen that values are the triggering factors in the formation, sustainability,

Values are essential factors in expressing cultural structures because individuals in an organization come together to share values, social ideals and beliefs. These values or beliefs are reflected through symbolic structures such as legends, myths, stories, and rituals. The shared values form the organizational value system and become the perspectives in perceiving orga-

eradicating problems [1–3].

78 Open and Equal Access for Learning in School Management

ing organizational processes [5, 6].

and transfer of organizational culture [7].

nizational developments [2].

were referred to through scientific approaches [4, 5].

The aim of this study was to reveal the views by directors, teachers, and servants employed in the pre, primary, and secondary schools at the Near East University about the functions of symbols, values, and rituals in the improvement of organizational culture.

The following questions were the main areas to be investigated in this study:

