School Climate and School Culture

The concept of climate is a recurring theme of the three sections of this article. The inadequacy of climate as a metaphor is addressed in the first section. Teachers do, however, use the term “climate” in an explanatory and predictive way. When evaluators and researchers work with teachers they have a particular responsibility both in provision of data and in the use of concepts which frame the data. These and related issues form the second section. The third and major section portrays a model of culture which acknowledges overt and covert meanings as well as the interaction of the different levels of the model, namely beliefs, values, norms and standards, and finally behaviour. The discussion develops a linkage from the culture of the organisation to wider societal influences. School climate is placed as the most superficial level of the interactive model of school culture.