Abstract
The decoupling argument - that schools respond to pressures from the institutional environment by decoupling changes in structures from classroom instruction - has been a central feature of institutional theory since the early 1970s. This study suggests the need to rethink this argument. Drawing on a study of the relationship between changing ideas about reading instruction in California from 1983 to 1999 and teachers' classroom practice, the study provides evidence that messages about instruction in the environment influence classroom practice in a process that is framed by teachers' preexisting beliefs and practices and the nature of the messages themselves. Implications are drawn for theories of teachers' autonomy and methodological approaches to studying macro-micro linkages.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 211-244 |
| Number of pages | 34 |
| Journal | Sociology of Education |
| Volume | 77 |
| Issue number | 3 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Jul 2004 |
Funding
The author thanks Charles Bidwell, Meredith Honig, Nathan MacBrien, Aaron Pallas, W. Richard Scott, and Joan Talbert for their helpful comments on earlier versions of this article. Support for data collection was provided by the Center for Research on the Context of Teaching at Stanford University. Data analysis and writing were supported by a dissertation fellowship from the Spencer Foundation and by support from the School of Education and the Learning Research and Development Center at the University of Pittsburgh.
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Education
- Sociology and Political Science