Implementing a House System in Elementary and Middle School Using Action Research to Analyze Academic, School Climate, and School Community Change After Systemic Reform

The purpose of this action research study was to determine the impact of implementing a House system in a K-8 rural school over a three-year period to address academic, school climate, and school community concerns. The review of the literature framed the House system as a school climate reform effort in the mold of John Dewey’s social learning theory and experiential learning models, and Paulo Freire’s critical consciousness and democratic principles. The impact of the House system was measured using academic data from summative and diagnostic assessments, school climate data from attendance and discipline records, a faculty focus group, and a faculty and staff survey measuring the perception of the House system’s impact on the relevant areas of focus. The cyclical nature of action research, including planning, acting, developing, and reflecting stages of addressing concerns resulted in school leadership adjusting the design of the House system over the three-year implementation period to best fit the needs and structure of the school setting. Findings included evidence of stronger student effort and modest improvements on summative and diagnostic assessment, increased attendance percentage, decreased discipline referrals, and improved perceptions of faculty and staff in year three of the program as the House system evolved to best fit the school setting. The fiscal implications of school climate reform at this scale were analyzed and documented for the community partnerships that emerged. Research in this area should continue to focus on the effect of a token economy on the whole child, the role of faculty and staff perception on school climate and academic results, and the potential of student mentoring and role modeling within House systems to influence school climate and academic results.