REVIEW OF LITERATURE:
Culture is considered to be group-specific behaviour that is acquired, at least in part, from social influences. Here, group is considered to be the species-typical unit, whether it be a troop, lineage, subgroup, or so on. According to Roger Addison and Carl Haigs in their work “ Performance Architecture” (2011) Culture is a key element in all organizations, a strong force that can out-gun even the most well meant change initiatives if not properly managed. Left alone, and not understood or considered, organizational culture will manage the leadership. Organization culture is typically described as the DNA of a company. “Patterns of behavior that are overtly or covertly agreed by a group as the proper way to behave in any given situation.” (Carlton and Lineberry, p. 196) “The way we do things around here.” (Burke and Litwin, in Carlton and Lineberry, p. 19) “…knowing what to do and how to behave without a rule book” (John Stumpf, CEO Wells Fargo Bank, 2009).
Wilkins and Patterson (1985) stated that the organisation culture changes are neither revolutionary nor evolutionary. Chin and Benne’s (1969) three approaches to cultural change are power, emprical and normative. The first two are normally utilized to change behaviours, which both Burke (2002), Kilman Saxton and Sepra (1985) recommended as the starting points in cultural change. Allen (1985) Harris (2002) Deal and Peterson (1993) stressed that the individuals within the organisation must be repeatedly offered invitations to participate in the new culture. Among the subsystems the most important factors that affect and effect organisations culture are (a) rewards (Allen, 1985; Schein, 1992) (b) Information and Communication systems (Allen, 1985; Schein, 1992) (c) training (Allen, 1985); (d) recruitment, selection and orientation (Allen, 1985; Deal & Peterson, 1993 Schein, 1992) (e) Organization structure and design (Schein, 1992); and (f) formal statement of philosophy, values, creed, goals or visions (Schein, 1992).
According to Dr. Kent D. Peterson, professor in the Department of Educational Administration at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Director of the Principals Leadership Institute the dimensions of positive culture are – the realization of a need to have a widely shared sense of purpose and values that is consistent and shared across members. The absence of these may lead to conflicts. There is a need felt to emphasis on the group norms and focus on continuous staff learning to reinforce group improvement. Identifying a sense of responsibility of staff for a student’s learning rather than blaming the students. A collaborative and collegial relationships between staff members for sharing ideas, problems and solutions. A real focus on professional development, and staff reflection, and sharing of professional practice.
On the contrary a toxic culture, a term that Terry Deal and Dr. Kent D. Peterson has coined, is almost the opposite of a positive culture. There is a sense of depression and frustration in the college. There’s no shared sense of purpose. The college is fragmented. There are negative norms around improvement and learning. The members don’t believe that they can improve what they do. They blame the community for not having better students. In toxic cultures very less celebration of success are seen and there are few traditions that reinforce positive and supportive aspects of the school.
Significantly, there is a connection between organization culture and performance. Companies that have a strong culture suited to their industry and business plan significantly outperform their competitors in the long term (Kotter and Heskett). A company that harnesses its culture, ties it to branding, and leverages its power to a competitive advantage over rival organizations that do not. This is based on the pressure for producing results as well the inner urge for achieving something. The need for achievement was originally formulated by Murray in 1938, and since then the concept has been refined. The present study focuses on the relationship between positive college culture and academic achievements, which may be weaker for students who have lower needs of achievements
METHODOLOGY OF THE STUDY:
The present study used both Primary and Secondary data. The primary data collections tools were Focus Group, Interview and Questionnaire. The questions were broken down into two dimensions of Culture Audit based on the study by William Fitzgerald, both of which are needed for an institution to survive. The first set of questions deals with how the Institution adapts and survives in the larger Society. The second set relates to with internal integration how the organization develops and maintains relationships among its members. Both these dimensions are interrelated. These questions were asked in the form of focus group and a formal survey was adopted using a questionnaire. The independent variables of the present study are assessed in two dimensions, the external adaptation and internal integration, the dependent variables is the present culture
( positive or toxic) and the moderating variable is the students needs for achievements. The variables relating to the external adaptation were Mission, Vision & Strategy, and the variables relating to the internal integration were the level of interpersonal trust, interpersonal communication, discipline, Physical culture, classroom discipline etc.,
The Questionnaire were administered to 150 students and 113 of the survey were complete at a response rate of 75%. After eliminating a total 13 survey results due to incomplete information, the resulting sample consisted of 100. The Sample consisted of 57 female (57%) and 43 Male (43%). The Mean age of the subject were 20.33 years. The sampling method used was random quota. The randomness was based on the gender of the students. An interview and a focus group discussion were served for 23 teachers. All of them actively participated.
HYPOTHESIS OF THE STUDY:
Ho: The classroom discipline and students Academic achievements are independent
Ho: The departmental meetings and interpersonal communications are independent
Ho: The interpersonal trust and interpersonal communications are independent
Ho: The physical culture of the college and the academic achievements of students are independent
