All of us who are engaged in curricular reform are up against a culture that either invites or discourages change. In this article about the culture of schools, Peterson invites us to look at what makes up a culture and how to encourage positive aspects of the culture while transtioning negative practices and beliefs into more positive ones.
"When a school has a positive, professional culture, one finds meaningful staff development, successful curricular reform, and the effective use of student performance data. In these cultures, staff and student learning thrive. In contrast, a school with a negative or toxic culture that does not value professional learning, resists change, or devalues staff development hinders success. School culture will have either a positive or a detrimental impact on the quality and success of staff development."
