TOPIC 1:

School
Social
System
The School
• A system of social interaction
• It is an organized whole comprising
interacting personalities bound together
in an organic relationship (Waller, 1932)
• Characteristics:
 an interdependence of parts
 a clearly defined population
 differentiation from its environment
 a complex network of social relationships
 own culture
What is “Social System”?
• a social organization
• is a group of elements and activities that
interact and constitute a single social entity
(Longress, 2000)
• it is a model or organization that possess
creativity beyond its component parts; it is
distinguished from its environment by a
clearly defined boundary; it is composed of
subunits, elements and subsystems that are
interrelated within relatively stable patterns of
social order (Olsen, 1970)
What does “Social System” refers
to?
• Refers to Activities and Interaction of groups
consisting of members brought together for
a common purpose
• Classroom is a good example of social
system
 Ethos
 Norm
 Values
 Psychological aspects
Basic Assumption for
Social
System Models
Assumption
~ is a fact/statement that accepted
without proof

1. Social systems are open systems

2. Social systems consist of
interdependent parts,
characteristics, and activities that
contribute to and receive from the
whole
Basic Assumption for
Social
System Models
3. Social systems are peopled
4. Social systems are goal oriented
5. Social systems are structural
6. Social systems are normative
7. Social systems are sanction bearing
8. Social systems are political
9. Social systems have distinctive cultures
Basic Assumption for
Social
System Models
10.Social systems are conceptual and
relative
11.All formal organizations are social
system: But all social systems are
not formal organizations.
Key Elements of the School as
a Social System
Schools are social systems w i t h the following
key parts:
• Structure:
 roles are expectations of positions t hat are arranged in
a hierarchy.
• Individual:
 the individual is a key unit in any social system;
regardless of position, people bring w i t h them
individual needs, beliefs, and a cognitive
understandings of the job.
• Culture:
 represents the unwritten feeling part of the
organizations: its shared values
Key Elements of the School
as a Social System
Politics:
 informal power relations t hat develop spontaneously.

Core:
 the teaching-learning process is the technical core of
schools.

Environment:
 everything outside the organization; source of inputs.
Outputs: the products of the organizations,
e. g. educated students.
Feedback:
 communication that monitors behavior.
Effectiveness:
 the congruence between expected and actual outcomes.