adhocracy

Organizational philosophy or style characterized by adaptive, creative, integrative behavior which (in contrast to a bureaucratic style) is flexible and non-permanent and which, therefore, can respond faster to a changing environment.

In context: Problem solving organization for inventing new programs. Skrtic states that the best example of an adhocracy is NASA during the Apollo phase in the 1960s. To achieve its mission of landing a man on the moon, team members needed to work collaboratively and continuously invent and reinvent possible solutions.

Wikipedia:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adhocracy


anomalies

A deviation from the common rule, type, arrangement, or form.

Source: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/anomaly

In context: From a cultural perspective, the prevailing paradigm often distorts an anomaly to make it seem as if it is still consistent with the shared system of meaning already in place. The only way for a paradigm shift to successfully occur is when enough anomalies mount up to break down the prevailing shared system of meaning.


antifoundational methodological orientation

In context: A rejection of the belief that schools are rational and that change occurs in a rational-technical process.


CAST

A nonprofit research and development organization that works to expand learning opportunities for all individuals, especially those with disabilities, through Universal Design for Learning.

Source: http://www.udlcenter.org/glossaries/glossary_eng#CAST

For further reading:
CAST: www.cast.org


CAST logo
CAST logo
CAST logo: Interlocking letter Cs in red and navy blue.www.cast.org

circumscribed

To constrict the range or activity of definitiely and clearly.

Source: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/circumscribe


cognitive
Of or pertaining to the mental processes of perception, memory, judgment, and reasoning, as contrasted with emotional and volitional processes.


Cognitive theories
Cognitive theory is a learning theory of psychology that attempts to explain human behavior by understanding the thought processes.

Source: http://phobias.about.com/od/glossary/g/cognitivethedef.htm

configuration theory

In context: Configuration theory refers to the frameworks and templates that show organizational structures (like a more complex organizational chart).  Well know examples include the Mintzberg Fives and Helgeson's Web of Inclusion.

Source: http://www.provenmodels.com/22/five-configurations/henry-mintzberg/

For further reading: http://www.kon.org/leadership/web_inclusion.html

 


contingencies
A future event or circumstance that is possible but cannot be predicted with certainty.

Source: The New Oxford American Dictionary, Second Edition, Kindle version, Oxford University Press, 2008.

corrigible

Capable of being corrected or reformed.

Source: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/corrigible+

In context: From the cultural perspective, schools are corrigible systems of meaning.


critical pragmatism

A type of reform that questions the underlying assumptions that led to a particular course of action.  In this article, Skrtic is engaging with this concept.  As you can read in the main portion of this Book Builder book, Skrtic’s argument for the restructuring of schools as adhocracies is questioning the underlying assumptions on which traditional public schools are structured.


cultural frame

In context: This frame views organizations as bodies of thought, as schemas, cultures, or paradigms. Theories based on this frame are premised on the idea that humans construct their social realities through intersubjective communication.


decoupled
Separated, disengaged, or dissociated (something) from something else

Source: The New Oxford American Dictionary, Second Edition, Kindle version, Oxford University Press, 2008.

discretion

Individual choice or judgment

Source: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/discretion


discretionary

1. Left to or regulated by one's own judgment.

2. Available for use as needed or desired.

Source: http://www.thefreedictionary.com/discretionary

In context: Work environment in which individuals have the freedom to decide what should be done in a particular situation.

 


discursive coupling

Arrangement that is premised on reflective thought, and thus on the unification of theory and practice in the team of workers.

In context: In an adhocracy, discursive coupling is brought about by collaboration and mutual adjustment.


dynamic
(Of a process or system) characterized by constant change, activity, or progress

Source: The New Oxford American Dictionary, Second Edition, Kindle version, Oxford University Press, 2008.

Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975

(Now known as the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act). A federal law ensuring services to children with disabilities throughout the nation, IDEA governs how states and public agencies provide early intervention, special education and related services to more than 6.5 million eligible infants, toddlers, children and youth with disabilities.

Source: http://www.udlcenter.org/glossaries/glossary_eng#individuals_with_disabilities_education_act_idea

In context: Skrtic asserts that EHA has largely failed to achieve its goal of providing an appropriate public education to students with disabilities.

For further reading:
http://idea.ed.gov/


finite repertoire
A limited and defined supply of skills or capabilities

Source: The New Oxford American Dictionary, Second Edition, Kindle version, Oxford University Press, 2008.

functionalism
The dominant mode of theorizing in the social disciplines, educational administration, and special education. Asserts that social reality is objective, inherently orderly, and rational, and thus that social and human problems are pathological.

In context:  Skrtic advocates for the abandonment of functionalism as a method of analysis for both special and general education.

functionalist approach

In context: An approach which adheres to the belief that social reality is objective, inherently orderly, and rational, and thus that social and human problems are pathological.


heterogeneity
A quality or state of dissimilar or diverse ingredients or constituents

Source: The New Oxford American Dictionary, Second Edition, Kindle version, Oxford University Press, 2008.

imposition
An act of force (something unwelcome or unfamiliar) to be accepted or put in place

Source: The New Oxford American Dictionary, Second Edition, Kindle version, Oxford University Press, 2008.

Individuals with Disabilities Education Act

A federal law ensuring services to children with disabilities throughout the nation, IDEA governs how states and public agencies provide early intervention, special education and related services to more than 6.5 million eligible infants, toddlers, children and youth with disabilities. (First known as Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975.)

Source: http://www.udlcenter.org/glossaries/glossary_eng#individuals_with_disabilities_education_act_idea


For further reading:
http://idea.ed.gov/


inherently
Existing in something as a permanent, essential or characteristic attribute.

Source: The New Oxford American Dictionary, Second Edition, Kindle version, Oxford University Press, 2008.

institutionalization theory

Institutional theory attends to the deeper and more resilient aspects of social structure. It considers the processes by which structures, including schemas, rules, norms, and routines, become established as authoritative guidelines for social behavior. It inquires into how these elements are created, diffused, adopted, and adapted over space and time; and how they fall into decline and disuse. Although the ostensible subject is stability and order in social life, students of institutions must perforce attend not just to consensus and conformity but to conflict and change in social structures.

Source: Scott, W. Richard 2004. “Institutional theory” P408-14 in Encyclopedia of Social Theory, George Ritzer, ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

For further reading: http://www.istheory.yorku.ca/institutionaltheory.htm


interdependency
Dependent on each other.

Source: The New Oxford American Dictionary, Second Edition, Kindle version, Oxford University Press, 2008.

intersubjective

Comprehensible to, relating to, or used by a number of persons, as a concept or language.

Source: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/intersubjective

In context: Organizational theorists working from the structual frame believe that humans construct realities through intersubjective communication.


John Dewey

Progressive educational reformer (1859-1952).  Considered the first pragmatist in that he sought to improve schools within the framework of a traditional bureaucracy.  Skrtic argues that Dewey supported worthwhile changes in education but could not implement them because schools during the industrial revolution (and today) are structured as machine bureaucracies.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Dewey


John Dewey in 1902.
John Dewey in 1902.
John Dewey in 1902.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:John_Dewey_in_1902.jpg

machine bureaucracies

In machine bureaucracies work processes are standardized. An expert decides what this process will look like, so individuals do not have decision making power.
In context: Examples of how public education has attempted to become more like a machine bureaucracy include ““teacher proof” curriculum, incentive pay schemes, and promoting test scores as the primary indicator of school effectiveness” (Bolman & Deal, 2003, p. 76).

Source: http://www.lindsay-sherwin.co.uk/guide_managing_change/html_change_strategy/07_mintzberg.htm

For further reading: Boleman & Deal (2003), p. 75 - 76.


Max Weber

German sociologist (1864-1920) scholar on many different topics including economics.  

In context: Within the context of Skrtic’s article, Weber conducted analyses of bureaucratic organizations and the interaction of these organizations with democratic governance. Weber believed that bureaucracies were vital to the success of democractic procedures because these institutions follow rules meant to give all citizens the same benefits and responsibilities. At the same time, however, Weber viewed the standardization and emphasis on efficiency within bureaucracies to be inherently undemocratic. Skrtic applies this kind of thinking to education in order to argue that schools must become adhocracies if the democratic ideals of equity and excellence are to be achieved.

Source:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Max_weber


Max Weber in 1894.
Max Weber in 1894.
Max Weber in 1894.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Max_Weber_1894.jpg

mutual adjustment

A model of organizational coordination, where, in a generally understood environment of moral rules, norms, conventions, and mores, "very large numbers of people watch each other, then modify their own behavior just enough to accommodate the differing purposes of others, but not so much that the mutual adjusters lose sight of where they themselves want to go" (Cleveland, 2000).

Source: http://papedia.wikispaces.com/mutual+adjustment+theory+%28Lindblom%29

In context: A process of continually inventing and reinventing novel


naïve pragmatism
A type of reform that often falls short of its goals because its proponents do not question the underlying assumptions that led an original course of action to fail.

In context: Skrtic argues that most special education advocates engage in instituting this type of reform.  

nonrational entities

Entities that are not based on reason.

Apdated from: http://www.thefreedictionary.com/nonrational

In context: Quasi-random, emergent systems of meaning or cultures.


nonrational-cultural process

Cultural process not based on reason.

Source: http://www.thefreedictionary.com/nonrational

In context: Change is quasi-random and is influenced by culture.


normative
Adhering to a set standard of development or achievement usually derived from the average or median achievement of a large group.

Source: The New Oxford American Dictionary, Second Edition, Kindle version, Oxford University Press, 2008.

organizational theory
Academic discipline concerned with the analysis of organizations and bureaucracies.  

In context: Skrtic’s article is an example of scholarship in this field.  He uses organizational theory to analyze how the bureaucratic structure of traditional public schools has led to the barrier of special education to improve outcomes for students with disabilities.

overt
Done or shown openly; plainly or readily apparent, not secret or hidden

Source: The New Oxford American Dictionary, Second Edition, Kindle version, Oxford University Press, 2008.

paradigmatic

Of or pertaining to a paradigm.

Source: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/paradigmatic

In context: Paradigmatic theories emphasize the way organizational realities create and recreate people. Individuals subscribing to a paradigmatic theory conceptualize organizations as paradigms or shared systems of meaning.


pathological
Caused by or involving disease.  

Source: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/pathological

In context: In Skrtic’s view most disability diagnoses are not pathological but rather socially constructed.  

precepts
A general rule intended to regulate behavior or thought

Source: The New Oxford American Dictionary, Second Edition, Kindle version, Oxford University Press, 2008.

prescriptive discourse of educational administration
Of or relating to the imposition of or enforcement of a rule or method.

Source: The New Oxford American Dictionary, Second Edition, Kindle version, Oxford University Press, 2008.

In context: In educational administration this refers to the idea that what happens in schools and classrooms can be controlled externally.

professional bureaucracies
In professional bureaucracies  skills are standardized usually through training or education. Decision making responsibilities are retained by the people doing the work because they are trained in their specialized skill.

For further reading: http://www.lindsay-sherwin.co.uk/guide_managing_change/html_change_strategy/07_mintzberg.htm

professionalization
In context: Work is professionalized when there is specific training, rules, and norms that are usually introduced in professional schools, such as medical school or law school.

rational system
A type of bureaucratic organization that seeks to optimize efficiency as a means through which to achieve the organization’s goals.

In context: In the context of public education, Skrtic argues that public schools are meant to be rational systems.  Paradoxically, however, he finds that by emphasizing efficiency many public schools fail to effectively educate students with and without disabilities

rational-technical change
An effort to improve the effectiveness of bureaucracies through reform meant to operate within the traditional structure of a rational system.

In context: In Skrtic’s view, most contemporary special education reforms are rational technical changes that are not effective because special education is not a true rational system.

Regular Education Initiative (REI)
A movement during the 1980s to try and correct the limitations of IDEA by eliminating separate special education programs and creating one system of general education in which students with disabilities were to be supported within general education classrooms.

In context: Skrtic focuses on REI as an example of a movement that will ultimately fail to reform education unless its proponents expand their criticism to question the basic assumptions which dictate the structure of traditional public schools.

resource room

A separate special education classroom in a regular school where some students with educational disabilities, such as specific learning disabilities, receive direct, specialized instruction and academic remediation and assistance with homework.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resource_room


scientific management

An early 20th century school of management thought concerned primarily with the physical efficiency of an individual worker.

Source: http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/scientific-management.html

In context: This view assumes that organizations are rational and that organizational change is a rational-technical process.

Wikipedia:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_management


segregated special classroom

A separate classroom for students with disabilities. Also referred to as a “self-contained classroom.”


social efficiency movement

A major movement in the United States, Britain and other industrial nations in the early 20th century that sought to identify and eliminate waste in all areas of the economy and society, and to develop and implement best practices

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Efficiency_Movement

In context: Scientific management as first applied to schools and other social organizations during the social efficiency movement.


This is a 1908 US editorial cartoon on Theodore Roosevelt and conservation.
This is a 1908 US editorial cartoon on Theodore Roosevelt and conservation. During the Social Efficiency movement, President Roosevelt advocated for the need to eliminate wasteful uses of limited natural resources.
This is a 1908 US editorial cartoon on Theodore Roosevelt and conservation. During the Social Efficiency movement, President Roosevelt advocated for the need to eliminate wasteful uses of limited natural resources.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:TR-Enviro.JPG

specialization
In context: Specialization is necessary in a professional bureaucracy because individuals have specific skills to address a specific problem, but complex problems  require coordination with other individuals with different sets of specific skills.

standardization
Made to conform to a measure, norm or model, usually through comparative evaluations.

Source: The New Oxford American Dictionary, Second Edition, Kindle version, Oxford University Press, 2008.

In context: Standardization is a part of both machine and professional bureaucracies. In machine bureaucracies the work process is standardized and in professional bureaucracies an individual’s skills are standardized.

structural contingencies
Material structures like formalization, professionalization, and bureaucracy itself.

In context: Skrtic asserts that structural contingencies shape members' understanding of reality because ultimately affect members’ experience, beliefs, values, and actions.

Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contingency_theory

structural frame

The structural frame refers to an organizational approach that focuses on the formal roles and relationships in the organization through which expectations of others and exahnges between them are sanctioned (Boleman & Deal, 2008, pp. 47 - 50).

Source: Bolman, L.G. & Deal, T. E. (2009) Reframing organizations: artistry, choice and leadership (Fourth edition). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

 


technical change

Technical changes "can be implemented from current know-how... through the application of authoritative expertise and through the organization's current structures, procedures, and ways of doing things" (Heifitz, Grashow & Linsky, 2009, p. 19).

Source: Heifitz, R., Grashow, A., Linksy, M. (2009). The practice of adaptive leadership: Tools and tactics for changing your organization and the world. Boston: Harvard Business Review Press.


technocrats
In context: In a machine bureaucracy, technocrats are the experts who develop the work process for other to carry out.

Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technocracy

Text-to-speech

The combination of text appearing on the computer display together with the computer speaking that text aloud with a digitized or synthesized voice.

Source: http://www.udlcenter.org/glossaries/glossary_eng#text_to_speech


Image Placeholder

theoretical discourse of the multidisciplinary field of organization analysis

In context: This approach provides a broader view of school organization and change. However, because the theories generated through this approach are influenced by current modes of thinking, the theoretical discourse has also been dominated by a belief that organizations are rational.


Thomas M. Skrtic

A professor of special education at the University of Kansas.

For further reading:
KU Faculty and Staff: http://www.soe.ku.edu/faculty-staff/thomas-skrtic.shtml


Thomas M. Skrtic
Thomas M. Skrtic
Thomas M. Skrtichttp://www.soe.ku.edu/faculty-staff/thomas-skrtic.shtml

UDL BookBuilder

A free online tool that allows users to create, share, publish, and read digital books that engage and support diverse learners according to their individual needs, interests, and skills.

For further reading:
http://bookbuilder.cast.org/


Screenshot of the "Welcome" page on the UDL BookBuilder website
Screenshot of the "Welcome" page on the UDL BookBuilder website
Screenshot of the "Welcome" page on the UDL BookBuilder website. An instructional coach, "Terry" the giraffe, welcomes users to the site.http://bookbuilder.cast.org

Universal Design for Learning (UDL)

An educational approach with three primary principles:

  1. Multiple means of representation, to give diverse learners options for acquiring information and knowledge
  2. Multiple means of action and expression, to provide learners options for demonstrating what they know
  3.  Multiple means of engagement, to tap into learners interests offer appropriate challenges, and increase motivation


Source: http://www.udlcenter.org/glossaries/glossary_eng#udl

For further reading:
CAST: www.cast.org
UDL National Center: http://www.udlcenter.org