PSYC5515: Organisational Development and Change

PSYC5515 Seminar 6: Case Study

Beach View High School Analysis

Beach View High School (BVHS), a government school, was built in 1992 and drew its enrolment
from the rapidly growing coastal development that surrounded it. When it was built, an
independent Christian college, Christian Coastal College (CCC), was already operating and catered
for pupils in K-7 with plans to expand to K-12. It did so three years after BVHS.
As the suburbs around both schools grew, so, too, did their respective enrolments. By 2000, BVHS
had an enrolment of about 1,500 and CCC about 1,000, 450 of whom were in years 8 to 12. The
prediction was that by 2012, enrolments at BVHS would stabilise at about 1,000 due to the aging of
the population in its catchment area.

The foundation principle of BVHS, Bob Anthony, retired in 2006 and was replaced by his deputy,
Sandy Taylor. Sandy’s appointment was somewhat controversial given that she had been a deputy
for only four years. For a while BVHS ran smoothly but some disturbing trends had become
apparent, namely:
1. A drop in numbers in excess of predictions. By 2010, the enrolment had dropped to 1,100
whereas the enrolment at CCC had increased to 1,500, 750 of whom were in years 8 to 12;
2. Compared with previous years, the percentage of students at BVHS who qualified for
tertiary studies was steadily declining. At CCC, however, the percentage was not only
higher but was steadily improving;
3. Student behaviour was a source of concern. Suspensions were up and teachers reported
increased incidents of aggression and S general rise in antisocial behaviour;
4. Long serving staff were actively seeking transfers whereas it was not that long ago that
BVHS was a sought-after school; and
5. Standardised test results at BVHS were consistently below those of government schools of
similar economic status.

The trends were all too apparent to the District Superintendent, Janice Greenspan, who called a
meeting with the administration team (Sandy, her two deputies and the eight heads of
department). At the meeting Sandy expressed her frustration that teachers tended to blame the
steadily declining standards at BVHS on parent apathy, student apathy and a lack of resources.
Further to this, Sandy said that she had spent many hours gathering data and making
presentations to teachers pointing out that they were in a perilous position.

At the meeting, the head of the science Department, Mandy Petroski, tabled a list of concerns
raised by staff members, namely:
1. Increased stress due to the heavy workload associated with implementation of a new
curriculum and a change to the reporting system;
2. A lack of meaningful consultation. Decisions were imposed rather than by consensus,
which was how it used to be;
 PSYC5515: Organisational Development and Change

3. A feeling of being abandoned by the administration, particularly with respect to student

discipline;
4. A loss of confidence in light of the publicity associated with the declining marks; and
5. Too many plans for improvement were abandoned before they had a chance to work.

Mandy also attributed part of the problem to the allegedly poor standard of behaviour and
achievement demonstrated by those entering the BVHS from the local primary schools. The data
however did not support this claim because NAPLAN (National assessment program- literacy and
numeracy) results showed that the local government schools were performing at or above
expectations.

The District Superintendent said that the teachers could say what they like, but the fact remained
that student performance, and apparently student behaviour, at the BVHS was declining, and in
some cases, was only marginally better than that of schools in more difficult areas. Janice made it
clear that it was staff who had the problem, not the parents, and certainly not the students, and
unless things improved, the government appointed expert review group (ERG) would be called in
and ‘heads would roll’. The District Superintendent concluded by saying that she was
understanding of the issues but was equally under pressure to improve the status of public
education. Her closing remarks were to the effect that there were really no excuses for the poor
results at BHVS.

Question
Question
number

1. Choose a relevant diagnostic model and apply it to identify the challenges at BHVS

Use the de Bono’s Six Hats to provide different perspectives on the key issues facing
2.
BVHS (as per question 1).

What additional data would you be seeking to collect in order to more fully diagnose
3.
issues at BVHS? Discuss the type of data and collection methods in detail.