A Study to Observe the Effect of School Environment on the Teaching Effectiveness of the Teachers By Dr. Ram Kishan Sharma[1]

Abstract

The present study was aimed to examine the impact of School environment on the Teaching Effectiveness of the teachers through quasi experimental design with a sample of 399 Sec and Sr Sec school teachers from 20 schools of more and less favorable school environment. The study concluded that the quality of school environment positively affects teachers teaching effectiveness .however the male teachers of more and less favorable school environment  have almost same level of teaching effectiveness while female teachers of more favorable school significantly more  than teachers having less favorable school environment. Along with this also the quality of girl’s school environment as perceived by female teachers was superior to that of boy’s school environment as perceived by male teachers.

Keywords: School Environment, Teaching Effectiveness.

INTRODUCTION

The School was first analyzed systematically in 1932 by Willard Waller in his pioneer work, The Sociology of Teaching. The assumption made by him and other authors is that school environment is important determinant of teaching-learning behavior, though the significance of other variables cannot be discounted. They found that contextual variables of learning were neglected in many educational studies. Gross (1956) said that a systematic study of the school as an organization has, yet, to be made.

After 1970 a new line of enquiries captured the attention of the researchers in the field of natural and social sciences. This line of enquiry introduced the concept of environment into the field of educational research. The concept implies a complex interaction of organisms, events and conditions. After 1970 a new emphasis was laid on the study of human environments, both physical and social. The concern was conceptualized as “Social ecology” which was defined as the multidisciplinary study of the impacts of physical and social environments on human beings. In spite of the theoretical formulations about the importance of environment as a factor of human behavior and development, little theoretical and empirical research work has been done with a view to conceptualize and categorize environments and situations so as to make it possible to treat the environmental side of the person- environment interaction in a systematic and scientific way. What is more important from the point of view of research is not the actual environment, but the environment as it is perceived by the individual. The perceived and actual environment may, sometimes, be entirely different. Even the hard and difficult conditions of the environment may be perceived as a definite advantage by some individuals.

The environment is loosely defined as any event or condition outside the individual that is presumed to influence person’s development or behavior. Interpreted as such the school environment may be defined as the totality of events or conditions taking place in the school around the teachers and the students. But, not all of these are important. It is a common knowledge that the environment of schools differs from school to school. This is so because of various determining factors viz. institutions economic condition, type of administration, size, policies, characteristics of people working in them etc. vary from one institution to another. Psychologists have frequently asserted that “Man-in-Context” is the most realistic way of thinking and talking about man wherever he may be. This is true that man is born with several genetic tendencies. Yet, the still greater a truth is that the environment in which he grows, lives and works, modifies these older tendencies and also develops new ways of thinking and behaviors as a result of the pressure of the environment and efforts on the part of the teachers to adjust to these pressures. Some of the behaviors of the teachers that can contribute to qualitative improvement of teaching-learning and Job Satisfaction, motivation, self concept, morale, subject knowledge, competence in teaching, skill in maintaining good human relationships and so on. But, these characteristics of teachers cannot be made to be generated, developed and maintained in the vacuum.

It is perhaps the environmental conditions that enable the teachers to hold them up. In an unfavorable environment these behaviors may not survive and may die down.

OPERATIONAL DEFINITIONS OF KEY TERMS

School Environment: The various behavioral characteristics of teachers were affected by the kind of environment that prevailed in the schools. Assessment of the quality of school environment is tentatively perceived to be a composite of five aspects such as reward and support system, order and control, goal-focus and task structure, relationships and personnel problems orientation and organizational involvement

Teaching Effectiveness: School teaching effectiveness was defined in terms of teachers’ observations and perception of the school teaching in the context of its effect on students’ learning and other developmental aspects. It includes teachers’ perception about teachers’ interest in teaching, sincerity and commitment to his job, preparation made for teaching, effective class room discipline, students’ impressions about teaching qualities of class room communication, etc.    

OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

1. To study the quality of environment of male and female schools on comparative basis.
2. To assess and describe the quality of environment of the schools of Aligarh Distt.
3. To establish whether the quality of school environment is linked with teachers’ teaching effectiveness.

HYPOTHESES OF THE STUDY

1. More favorable environment schools teachers have more positive perception of schools’ teaching effectiveness.
2. The male teachers of more favorable environment schools perceive school teaching effectiveness more than the teachers of less favorable environment schools.
3. The female teachers of more favorable environment perceive schools teaching effectiveness more than the female teachers of less favorable environment schools.
4. There is a significant difference between the quality of environment of male and female schools.

REVIEW OF THE RELATED LITERATURE

Schools may well be considered as organization. They are social organizations, social systems constructed to attain certain specific goals. They have definite population, clearly defined structure, a compact of social relationships, pervaded by a we feeling and having a culture of their own. It was systematically analyzed by Waller in his book. “Sociology of Teaching” It was emphasized therein that the environments are important determinants of teaching-learning behaviors, though the significance of other variables cannot be discounted. This was the view expressed by Campbell also in Scholars in Context: The Effects of Environment on Learning.  Even now there are found very few studies of the organizational properties of educational institutions. But, the view that schools and schools should be regarded, studied and analyzed as organizations has become well-established. More recently there has emerged a new interest in the study of schools and schools as organizational societies, although application of organizational theory and analysis has been much less noticeable in case of these institutions, particularly the educational organizations. These educational organizations focus on change in the human variables as their goals and objectives. Organizational climate defines the organizational environment which is basically psychological, different from physical environment. Katz and Khan (1966) have demonstrated its importance and have suggested various possible dimensions along which it can be measured. Stern, Pace, Walberg, Halpin, has done a substantial amount of research work related to school environment as a factor of school teacher’s behavior. Studies of Farinola, Lee, Sharma, and Taylor have revealed the linkage between institutional environment and a host of organizational behaviors and institutional characteristics.

Only a few studies involved investigations into the relationship of environments and the variables of the study.

While in the case of Research of Teaching Effectiveness, Kundu (1985) concluded that the area of teacher effectiveness has not, yet, received its due attention in the hand of researchers in India. All the studies were, however, studies of teacher behavior or teaching effectiveness and not of teacher effectiveness. Factors of teaching success that emerged as a result of researches by Cortis, Domas, Tiedeman, Evans and others were intelligence, personalities, interest, attitude to education and teaching biographical data such as age, sex etc.Mazzei, Vaishnavi, Ganesh also found in their studies more or less the same results. However in few studies positive relationship between teaching factors and teaching effectiveness could not be found. In their studies Elliassen and Mastin concluded that teachers’ interest in teaching and attitude towards teaching were significantly related to success in teaching. Few researcher concentrated on this aspect of research. K.C. Vashistha and Jagdish Verma, found that sharp difference existed between effective and ineffective teachers on emotional construction, dependency etc.The study of Beena Shah, Agrawal, also remarked the same which was required. Kukreti, Virendra Singh found no effect of stream, subject, sex, culture on teaching effectiveness. In fact how Teaching Effectiveness was related to School Environment, could not attract enough attention of the researchers.

METHODOLOGY

The method used for the purpose of this study was quasi experimental design. The population for to purpose of this study was defined as all the teachers working in the High Schools and Intermediate schools of Aligarh Distt. There were 94 such institutions having approximately 2000 teachers.

Sample of the Study:

The double stage sampling scheme was planned.  At the first stage the unit of sampling was the school while at the second stage the unit of sampling was teachers. It was decided to select 20 schools (»20% of the total) out of 94 schools. Systematic sampling technique was used.

The 399 teachers working in these schools were administered the school environment questionnaire. Then all 20 schools were distributed in two categories-more or less favorable environment schools and these were further distributed in Male and Female schools.

Variables of the Study:

Independent Variable                             :       School Environment

Dependent Variable                                :       School Teaching Effectiveness

Tools Used:

School Environment Questionnaire     :       Dr. A.B. Bhatnagar

School Teaching Effectiveness             :       Self by the Investigator

ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION OF THE DATA

Table 1. Comparison between More Favorable and Less Favorable Environment                                                       School Teachers on Teaching Effectiveness

	N	Mean (M)	Mean Difference (D)	S.E.	S.ED	t	dF	Remark
MFE LFE	230 170	47.326 43.147	4.179	0.929 1.185	1.506	2.774	398	Significant at .01level

Table 2. Comparison between More and Less Favorable Environment Male Teachers on their                                        School Teaching Effectiveness

	N	Mean(M)	Mean Difference (D)	S.E.	S.ED	t	dF	Remark
MFE(Male) LFE (male)	114 116	47.804 50.136	2.332	0.173 1.497	2.3097	1.00	228	Not Significant at .01 level

Table 3. Comparison between More and Less Favorable Environment Female Teachers on their                             School Teaching Effectiveness

	N	Mean (M)	Mean Difference (D)	S.E.	S.ED	t	dF	Remark
MFE(Female) LFE (Female)	100 70	54 44.5	9.5	1.583 1.911	2.482	3.82	168	Significant  at .01level

Table 4. Comparison between Male and Female School Teachers on School of Environment

	N	Mean (M)	Mean Difference (D)	S.E.	S.ED	t	dF	Remark
Male Schools Female  Schools	230 110	56.761 62.260	5.503	0.949 1.187	1.47	3.98	398	Significant at .01level

MFE= More Favorable Environment School Teachers.

LFE= Less Favorable Environment School Teachers.

CONCLUSIONS

• It was obvious that the quality of school environment positively and significantly affects teachers’ teaching effectiveness.
• More Favorable school environment leads to positive perception of schools teaching effectiveness in the teachers (Hypothesis-1).
• More and less Favorable school environment have almost same level of school teaching effectiveness in the case of Male teachers and the difference is not significant (Hypothesis-2).
• For female teachers’ more favorable school environment was found to be significantly related to better school teaching effectiveness (Hypothesis-3).
• The quality of girls’ schools environment as perceived by the female teachers was superior to that of Boys’ schools environment perceived by male teachers (Hypothesis-4).

REFERENCES

Agrawal, Shuchi. (1998). A Study of Work effectiveness of the Employees of the Government Organizations in Relation to their Alienation, Morale, Personality Traits and Values. Ph.D. Thesis in Psychology, M.J.P. Rohilkhand Univ. Bareilly.

Argyris, Chris. (1962).The Integration of the Individual and the Organization” in George B. strothers (ed.). Social Sciences Approach to Business Behaviors, Homewood III Irwin and Dorsey.

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Bloom, B.S. (1964). Stability and Changes in Human Characteristics.  New York, Wiley.

Campbell, W.G. (ed.) (1970). Scholars in Context: The Effect of Environment on Learning. Wiley International Edition, New York.

Chhattopadhyaya, S.N. Organizational Environment Questionnaire, NHAI, New Delhi.

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Sells, S.B. (1963). An Integrationists Look at the Environment, Am. Psychologist, Vol-18. P-696-702.

Waller, Willard. (1932). The Sociology of Teaching. Wiley Publishers, New York, pp. 6-7.

Withal, J. (1965). Development of the Climate Index, Jl. Edu. Res., Vol. 45, p-9.

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[1] Teacher VM Inter College, Sikandrarau Hatras, UP.