PRINCIPLES OF SCHOOL ORGANIZATION

Meaning of School Organization

School organization is a combination of two words, via, school and
organization. In order to understand the meaning of school organization, it is
essential to understand the meaning of school and organization separately.

Meaning of School
The term school has many different meanings. Some people consider
School as a place where the students utilize their leisure hours profitably. Some
regard it as a seat of learning; some others believe that is a society in miniature.
Some others interpret school as the temple of Goddess Saraswati, where the
students sit together forgetting all their differences on the basics of caste, creed,
colour and sex. Because of such differences, the scholars define the term in the
following manner.
John Dewey
“The school is a special environment where a certain quality of life and
certain types of activities are provided with the object of securing child’s
development along desirable lines”.
Ryburn
“The school is a co-operative society, a place where giving or taking of
co-operation is experienced by all”.
Nunn
“The school must be thought of primarily not as a place of learning where
certain knowledge is learnt but as place where young are disciplined in certain
form of activity namely those that are of the greatest and most permanent
significance in the wider world”.
K. G. Saiyidian
“The school is a centre of rigorous life. It is an indirect intimate contact
with the realities of life around, reflecting the best and worthiest of its features
which are simple enough to appeal to the child”.

Meaning of Organization
Organization means to bring into existence. Organization is directly
connected with planning and efforts made by the people. It is a medium,
through which goals and the objectives envisaged by the administration are
achieved. Administration is pre-executive stage while actual execution occurs or
should occur at the organizational level. It is the coordinated activities of a
group of persons constituting the organization to lead the common goal.
Organizations are of two types, formal and informal. The formal
organization is one established by the external authority. The positions held by
the people in such an organization are determined by some external authorities.
For instance, a college has been established by the state government or by some
private enterprise. The positions in the college that is, of the Principal, vice-
principal, professors, readers and lecturers or of ministerial staff are determined
not by the workers in the college but by the external authorities.
An informal organization grows out of a formal organization or otherwise
on account of the interpersonal relationships of the group. There is a common
affinity among the members of the formal organization. Each member of the
group is able to interact with every other member of the group. The group is
formed voluntarily to achieve certain objectives. The group develops its own
structure or technique of working. There is no hierarchical order in the group.
They are all more or less equal in all respects expect for doing their assignments
allotted by the group itself.
Organization can also be interpreted in another two ways: For example,
when we say that this school is under D. A. V. Organization, the organization
refers to a body or a controlling organization. When we say the organization of
the school is up to the mark, we mean setting up of things. Thus, organization is
concerned with the pre- execution stage of a school. It is a stage when all
arrangements of a school are made available. The term organization has been
defined as:
J. B. Sears
“It is a machine for doing work. It may be composed primarily of persons
of materials of ideas, of concepts, symbols, forms, rules, principles or more
often of a combination of these. The machine may work automatically or its
operation may be subject to human judgement and will”.
W. H. Ryburn
“Organization simply means the practical measure which we take to
ensure that the system of work we use will be of the greatest possible assistance
in carrying out our aims and of the greatest benefit to our children.”
Elsbrel
“Organisation of the school is the administrative expression of
educational theory”

When we combine the two terms, school and organization, we mean school
organization is nothing but setting up of an institution. The important steps for
school organization are acquiring land for the school campus, construction of
school building, furnishing the class room with furniture, admitting the students
of school, appointing headmaster and assistant teachers, organizing curricular
and co- curricular activities, maintaining cumulative record cards etc. These
organizational aspects of the school are mainly concerned with those systems
and processes which contribute to the achievement of the set goals. It covers all
human and physical factors which may be in view. The school activities should
keep a particular aim in view. For example, we organize co-curricular and social
activities so as to generate a proper atmosphere in which the moral character of
the students may be developed on the desired lines. For achieving this, emphasis
will have to be laid on the appointment of worthy, morally sound and dedicated
teachers.
School organization is concerned with a system in which the headmaster,
the teacher, the students, and other related persons come as a team to undertake
the task of running the school on sound lines. Hence by school organization we
mean the act of organizing all available physical and human resources in an
organized manner to attain the objectives of education.

PRINCIPLES OF SCHOOL ORGANIZATION

1) Child- centred principle

Since education aims at the all-round development of the child, it is essential
that school organization should be child centred. As a result, it can help in
developing student’s abilities, innate qualities, emotions, attitudes and natural
traits. The school organization should be such as to generate an atmosphere
which may help the child in the development of his social, moral, physical and
mental capabilities. To provide opportunity to every child for his optimum
development school activities should be properly organized.
2) Community centred principle
One of the objectives of education is to make the child an active, useful and
worthy member of the society. Therefore, along with child centred principle,
community centred principle should be adopted in schools. When we try for the
development of the child as an individual, we should also make arrangements
for the progress of the community. School organization should keep in view the
developmental needs of the children as well as the community ideals,
aspirations, needs, values and culture.
3) Democratic principles
The school prepares the future citizens and inculcates democratic values in
them. The democratic ideals are inculcated in the minds of the children through
the school activities. Students can develop knowledge about democratic
principles if we can organize schools on democratic lines. The principles of co-
operation and co-ordination in the entire school system can help the students to
develop knowledge about democratic living. School organization should be
planned in such a manner that the headmaster, the teachers, the students and
other staff members work with team spirit. They should feel that school
organization is their own activity. If a single individual dominates over school
organization, all democratic ideas are destined to fail.
4) Principle of optimum use of available resources
Education has certain objectives to be achieved. In order to achieve these
objectives, optimum use of available resources must be made while organizing
the school. The physical and human resources of the community should be used
in such a manner that the items, money and energy are utilized effectively for
proper organization of the schools. Recruitment of teachers, use of up-to-dare
teaching techniques, use of equipment, preparation of textbooks and
construction of curriculum should be made in such a manner that they can be
directed towards fulfilling the educational needs of the students and avoiding
the misuse of time, energy and money.
5) Principle of flexibility
Society is dynamic in nature, not static. Since education aims at developing the
abilities of the child in a manner that would help in the development of the
society, it becomes necessary to effect changes in school organization from time
to time. Therefore, school organization should be dynamic in nature, not static.