A case study of teacher culture and its effects on the early implementation stage of a planned change at the secondary level

This was a fifteen month case study on teacher culture at the secondary level and its effects on the implementation of an outcomes-based curricular system. An analysis of teacher culture and its implications for such a system was also conducted. This study's researcher assumed the role of a participant observer. An analysis of teacher culture was constructed through the use of semi-structured interviews, observations, and examination of documents. This study's sample consisted of members of two content areas in a large suburban-Chicago high school. Collected data were coded using a model for organizational culture, and an analysis of the implementation process was conducted in light of factors identified by past research as integral to successful change. Implementation was measured by pilot programs both proposed and implemented during this time frame.;This study's findings suggest teacher culture did impact the early implementation stage of this reform effort. Teacher culture in this study contrasted sharply with the premises that underlie an outcomes-based curricular system. This study's findings indicate that successful implementation seemed to mirror changes in given areas of teacher culture. This study further concluded that the implementation process addressed most, but not all, of those factors integral to change. The failure to identify and acknowledge teacher culture in this study may have impacted this reform effort in a negative manner. This study's findings were analyzed using a systems theory approach.