Restructuring in practice : a qualitative case study of restructuring efforts in four urban junior high schools.

Because many schools systems are expending great amounts of time and money for restructuring, documentation and examination of restructuring efforts may provide models that can be used by schools initiating restructuring efforts. This study will explore the efforts of one urban public school system to restructure its four junior high schools from a traditional organizational model to one that is built around interdisciplinary clusters. By documenting the restructuring efforts of four urban junior high schools, this qualitative case study will contribute to the growing body of restructuring literature, and offer an examination of a practical application of restructuring to the field. This type of dramatic change in organization prompts a number of important questions that will guide this study: (1) Why was this change undertaken, and who initiated it? (2) What are the formal district level policies dictating the restructuring? (3) How are the district level policies being implemented at the school level? (4) Who has provided the leadership for successful restructuring (has it varied among the four junior highs)? (5) How have these efforts been impacted by the changing demographics and fiscal crisis in the city? Following a review of the restructuring literature, the design of the study will include research of archival records to construct an accurate picture of the community, guided interviews with key central office and building level administrators, and a sampling of teachers in each of the four junior highs, and analysis of program documents generated by the restructuring efforts. This study offers a unique perspective in its examination of restructuring in a large urban school system, which in its size and complexity presents many challenges. Centralized decision making, the implementation of one policy in four different schools, team-building, pedagogical changes, and impact on students will all be affected by the district\u27s size. Further, this urban area is challenged by a fiscal crisis which cripples both the funding of the school system and the necessary services a city must provide, as well as the impact of a state school choice program. Attempting to restructure in these most challenging circumstances presents an interesting case study. Documenting the efforts, including both the successful and the unsuccessful elements, may provide pragmatic approaches for other districts undertaking restructuring efforts