Spring 2022 - EDUC 813 G031
Organizational Theory and Analyses (3)
Class Number: 7053
Delivery Method: In Person
Overview
Description
CALENDAR DESCRIPTION:
This course critically examines organizations in which educational leaders work from different theoretical perspectives and in light of research evidence. It also critiques several past and current reform initiatives, and explores specific topics in-depth. A central and pervasive question of the course concerns organizational purposes, especially with respect to learning, and how these purposes are served by organizational structures and processes.
COURSE DETAILS:
This course is a required course in the SFU MEd program in Educational Leadership. The course focuses on understanding the structures, processes, and cultures of educational organizations (e.g. schools, colleges, universities) through the tools afforded by various theories of organizations. An organizational analysis allows for a broader view of the entire system internally and externally, not simply as divisions, departments, or functions. Organizational analysis emphasizes conceptual models and the way these can be applied to the contexts and problems that members and leaders of educational organizations face.
Class Dates:
Jan 7/8
Jan 21/22
Feb 4/5
Feb 25/26
Mar 26/27
Class Times:
Friday: 4:30pm-7:30pm
Saturday: 9:00am-3:00pm
COURSE-LEVEL EDUCATIONAL GOALS:
The course is designed to help students meet the following learning objectives:
- Gain familiarity with a range of theoretical approaches to understanding organizational behavior, and understand the affordances of different theoretical lenses in analyzing organizations
- Apply the insights from different organizational theories to educational organizational challenges
- Develop an awareness of your personal beliefs about organizations and an understanding of the implications of those beliefs
- Construct a useful set of theoretical tools that help in exploring and addressing complex organizational issues
- Further develop and refine critical thinking and communication competencies appropriate for graduate-level study in Education
Grading
- Culminating Case Study 40%
- Participation 20%
- Work-in-Progress Assignments 20%
- Class Facilitation Activity 20%
NOTES:
I am looking forward to conducting the first in-person class of this cohort program!
Becky
REQUIREMENTS:
FIRST WEEKEND READING ASSIGNMENT
Please read and be ready to discuss the following three readings before the first weekend of class (Jan 7/8).
Pasque, P. A., Khader, L. M., & Still, C. (2017). Critical case study as an imperative for organizational activism and institutional change. In P. Pasque & V. Lechuga (Eds.), Qualitative inquiry in higher education organization and policy research (pp. 75-99). New York: Routledge. [This chapter is accessible in digital form through the SFU library.]
Donnan, M. E., Aitken, A., & Manore, J. L. (2020). "If not here, where?": Making decolonization a priority at an undergraduate university. In S. Cote-Meek & R. T. Moeke-Pickering (eds.), Decolonizing and indigenizing education in Canada (pp. 193-210). Canadian Scholars. [This is chapter 11 in the required text by Cote-Meek and Moeke-Pickering]
Chapter 2 (Bureaucracy) in the Manning text
Materials
REQUIRED READING:
Manning, K. (2018). Organizational Theory in Higher Education, 2nd Edition. New York, NY: Taylor and Francis
ISBN: 9781138668997
Cote-Meek, S. & Moeke-Pickering, T. (Eds.). (2020). Decolonizing and Indigenizing Education in Canada. Toronto, ON: Canadian Scholars.
Additional readings will be accessible through the SFU library or on CANVAS.
Graduate Studies Notes:
Important dates and deadlines for graduate students are found here: http://www.sfu.ca/dean-gradstudies/current/important_dates/guidelines.html. The deadline to drop a course with a 100% refund is the end of week 2. The deadline to drop with no notation on your transcript is the end of week 3.
Registrar Notes:
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: YOUR WORK, YOUR SUCCESS
SFU’s Academic Integrity web site http://www.sfu.ca/students/academicintegrity.html is filled with information on what is meant by academic dishonesty, where you can find resources to help with your studies and the consequences of cheating. Check out the site for more information and videos that help explain the issues in plain English.
Each student is responsible for his or her conduct as it affects the University community. Academic dishonesty, in whatever form, is ultimately destructive of the values of the University. Furthermore, it is unfair and discouraging to the majority of students who pursue their studies honestly. Scholarly integrity is required of all members of the University. http://www.sfu.ca/policies/gazette/student/s10-01.html
TEACHING AT SFU IN SPRING 2022
Teaching at SFU in spring 2022 will involve primarily in-person instruction, with safety plans in place. Some courses will still be offered through remote methods, and if so, this will be clearly identified in the schedule of classes. You will also know at enrollment whether remote course components will be “live” (synchronous) or at your own pace (asynchronous).
Enrolling in a course acknowledges that you are able to attend in whatever format is required. You should not enroll in a course that is in-person if you are not able to return to campus, and should be aware that remote study may entail different modes of learning, interaction with your instructor, and ways of getting feedback on your work than may be the case for in-person classes.
Students with hidden or visible disabilities who may need class or exam accommodations, including in the context of remote learning, are advised to register with the SFU Centre for Accessible Learning (caladmin@sfu.ca or 778-782-3112) as early as possible in order to prepare for the spring 2022 term.