Abstract
This article argues that educational change ispreoccupied with process at the expense of substance. This preoccupation results from an inherent biastoward viewing change as good and from the dominanceof technocracy over democracy as the value forselecting change strategies and goals. Using testingas an example, the effects of change bias andtechnocracy on the lifeworld of schools is examined. It is proposed that change be transformed from apolicy science to a design field within which not onlywould the verification of change strategies beimportant but so would the situational validation ofbroader goals and objectives.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
REFERENCES
Barton, Paul E. (1999). Too Much Testing of the Wrong Kind; Too Little of the Right Kind in K-12 Education. Princeton, NJ: Policy Information Center, Educational Testing Service, Mar.
Beck, Nuala (1998). Shifting Gears: Thriving in the New Economy. New York: Collins Publishers.
Bennis, Warren and Nanus, Bert (1985). Leaders: The Strategies for Taking Charge. New York: Harper & Row.
Broudy, Harry S. (1965) Conflicts in values. In R. Ohm and W. Monohan (eds), Educational Administration - Philosophy in Action. Norman: University of Oklahoma, College of Education.
Bryk, A.S. and Driscoll, M.E. (1988). The School as Community: Theoretical Foundations, Contextual Influences and Consequences for Teachers and Students. Madison,WI: National Center for Effective Secondary Schools.
Coleman, J. (1988). Social capital in the creation of human capital. American Journal of Sociology 94, 95–120.
Coleman, J. and Hoffer, T. (1987) Public and Private High Schools: The Impact of Communities. New York: Basic Books.
Elkin, S. and Soltan K.E. (eds) (1993). A New Constitutionalism: Designing Political Institutions for a Good Society. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Fischer, F. (1990). Technocracy and the Politics of Expertise. London: Sage Publications Ltd.
Fullan, M. (1997). Emotion and hope: Constructive concepts for complex times. In Andy Hargreaves (ed), Rethinking Educational Change with Heart and Mind. 1997 Yearbook of the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (pp. 216–233). Alexandria, VA: The Association.
Gamoran, A. (1996). Student achievement in public magnet, public comprehensive, and private city high schools. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis 18(1), 1–18.
Goodlad, J. (1999). Teachers as moral stewards of our schools. Journal for a Just and Caring Education (July) 5(3), 237–241.
Gross, B. (1980). Friendly Fascism. New York: Evans.
Habermas, J. (1987). The Theory of Communicative Action. Vol. 2. Lifeworld and System: A Critique of Functional Reason. Boston: Beacon Press.
Hargreaves, A. (1997). Introduction. In A. Hargreaves (ed), Rethinking Educational Change with Heart and Mind. 1997 Yearbook of the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (pp. vii–xv). Alexandria, VA: The Association.
Heyward, C. (1989). Touching our Strength: The Erotic as Power and the Love of God. San Francisco: Harper & Row.
Hill, P.T. and Celio, M.B. (1998). Fixing Urban Schools. Washington DC: The Brookings Institution Press.
Hoff, D.J. (1999). Calif. approves math, english textbooks tied to standards. Education Week (June) XVIII(41), 10.
Hollenbach, D. (1995). Virtue, the common good, and democracy. In A. Etzioni (ed), New Communitarian Thinking: Persons, Virtues, Institutions, and Communities. Charlottesville, VA: University Press of Virginia.
Lieberman, A. and Miller, L. (1999). Teachers - Transforming Their World and Their Work. New York: Teachers College Press.
Lipham, J.M. (1964). Leadership and Administration. In D.E. Griffiths (ed), Behavioral Science and Educational Administration, The Sixty-Third Yearbook of the National Society for the Study of Education, Part II. Chicago: The Society.
Medawar, P.B. (1984). The Limits of Science. New York: Harper and Row.
Nothwehr, D. (1998a). A lesson from a sarcastic Jesus. Catholic Education: A Journal of Inquiry and Practice 2(2), 82–97.
Nothwehr, D. (1998b). Mutuality: A Formal Norm for Christian Social Ethics. San Francisco: Catholic Scholars Press.
Sergiovanni, T.J. (1982). Hermeneutics and the science of administration Review Journal of Philosophy and Social Science 7(1 & 2), 30–52.
Sergiovanni, T.J. (1984). Leadership and excellence in schooling. Educational Leadership (Feb.) 41(5), 4–13.
Sergiovanni, T.J. (2000). The Lifeworld of Leadership: Creating Culture, Community, and Personal Meaning in Our Schools. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Simon, H.A. (1996). The Sciences of the Artificial, 3rd edn. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press.
Sowell, T. (1999). Motive for change can be self-serving. San Antonio Express-News, June 22, p. 5B.
Starratt, R.J. (1996). Transforming Educational Administration: Meaning, Community, and Excellence. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Tyack, D. (1999). Needed more educational conservationists. Education Week, June 23, p. 68.
Winograd, T. and Flores, F. (1986). Understanding Computers and Cognition: A New Foundation for Design. Norwood, NJ: Ablex Publishing.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Sergiovanni, T.J. Changing Change: Toward a Design Science and Art. Journal of Educational Change 1, 57–75 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1010048200151
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1010048200151