Date: Topic:

Sept 1 Course Introduction & Overview

Week 1: Foundations of Organizational Theory

• Topics: Overview of organizational theory and major framework

• Activities: Course introduction, syllabus review, icebreaker activity, discussion on the role of organizational theory in education

Sept. 8 Foundations cont'd

Week 2: Evolving Perspectives

• Topics: Conceptual Tools to Understand Leadership as Organizations, Developing Systems Thinking, Evolving Role of the School Principal

• Activities: small group discussions on organizational theory evolution, developing mental models, developing a theory of practice, case study 1.1: View from the Balcony

Sept. 15 Contemporary Theories 1

Week 3: Managing Tasks and People

• Topics: Traditional (closed) vs Modern (open) Organizational Theory

• Activities: holistic view of organizations (Mary Parker Follett) & Hawthorne Studies (Mayo), case study 2.1: An Abrupt Culture Change

Sept 22 Contemporary Theories 2

Week 4: Leadership as A Shared Process (EDEM 673 review)

• Topics: Leadership as a Social and Relational Process, Getzels-Guba Model of Organization

• Activities: complexity leadership theory, case study 3.1: What Happened Here? The Dangers of Groupthink (video)

Sept. 29 Motivation

Week 5: Motivating People to Accomplish School Goals

• Topics: Synopsis of Motivation Theories

• Activities: motivation defined, motivation and needs, motivation and beliefs, motivation and goals

• Student led discussion on article and and short video clip picked by students from list of resources on MyCourses:

  1. starting this week --> students leading the discussion will pick an article and a short video to bring a different perspective on the weekly course theme (for example this week it's on motivation and the organization

Oct. 6 Leading Organizational Change 

Week 6: 

• Topics: Organizational communication, conflict management, resolution strategies

• Activities: Theory into Practice, conflict resolution role play, Who's on First?

Oct. 20 Four Frame Model (Bolman and Deal)(intro)

Week 7: 

• Topics: The Power of Reframing (model)

• Activities: Watch presentation on the Four Frame model, to be used moving forward for the last half of the course;

Oct. 27 Managing Conflict & the Four Frame Model (cont.d)

Week 8: 

• Topics: The Four Frame Model:  structural frame, human frame, political frame, symbolic frame; 

• Activities: Theoretical framework presentatons, Integraton workshop, midterm reflection and synthesis

Nov. 3 Communication

Week 9: Information Flow and Perceptions

• Topics: Synopsis of Decision Making Theories

• Activities: Making decision with the 'principal' lenses, data-driven decision making; human frame, political frame

Nov. 10 Building the Organization's Capacity

Week 10: Capacity and Culture

• Topics: Second-Wave & Third-Wave Theories

• Activities: Introducing Change Theories & Applying to Schools; setting the stage for Michael Fullan (wk. 11)

Nov. 17 Problem Solving, Decision Making and Leading Change (Fullan)

Week 11: 

• Topics: Transforming Organizational Structures, Learning Organization principles, change management

• Activities: Making Complexity Work; Nuance: Understanding Change; Relationships, relationships, relationships

Nov. 24 Ethical Decision Making / Leading Change (con'd)

Week 12: Reforming and Restructuring

• Topics: Transforming Organizational Structure

• Activities: Relationships, relationships, relationships, case study

Dec.1 Bringing It All Together

Week 13: Allocating Resources and course wrap-up

• Topics: Comprehensive reflection session (the four frame model revisited)

• Activities: Robert F. Kennedy HS case study