Negotiating for Democratic Communities in Schools: Principals’ Perspectives

Social Control for Democratic Community

“…Earlier analysis of part of the data from the larger study of principals' perceptions on democratic community, school improvement, and social justice indicated that school leaders expressed fear of letting others be responsible for what they themselves were accountable for (Wasonga & Christman, 2009). Similar views have been discussed in the literature (Firestone & Shipps, 2005;Marshall & Gerstl-Pepin, 2005;Nelson et al, 2000;Short & Greer, 1997;Strike, 2007;Weiss & Cambone, 2000).…”

“…Miller and colleagues (2009) and McGhee and Nelson (2005) report that the culture of accountability based on student achievement has forced principals to exercise control over what and how teachers teach. In another study (Wasonga & Christman, 2009), principals reported that they used social control as a way to protect children from oppressive practices among teachers and the school system. In addition, control was used to enhance democratic community by requiring and ensuring that all the teachers participate in decision making at various levels of school governance.…”