Case Study: The Organic Learning Organization

A learning organization can be understood as an organization that takes steps to chart is future. The implicit understanding in the definition of a learning organization is that it is a belief that learning is a continuous process that grows and evolves and is adaptable and transformative. The organic learning organization responds to the needs and general concerns of and objectives of individuals within and outside of the organization. A learning organization is not too preoccupied with the ideas of management but incorporates the ideas of each employee in the decision making process. The idea of the learning organization in the context of school administration is supported by the open system model that looks at feedback and contribution with

The three basic postulates of theory X are as follows: (1) The average human being has inherent dislike for work and will avoid it if he can. (2) To get most people to work towards an organization’s goals, they must be coerced, controlled, directed and threatened with punishment. (3) The average human being prefers to be directed, wants to avoid responsibility, has very little ambition and seeks security above all. Theory X accords management complete control of human effort. School administrators using Theory X would seek to control the actions of both teachers and students, discourage participation, and work according to book, leaving little or no room for individual initiative. The proposition of theory Y are directly opposed to those of theory X. Its assumptions of man are positive. They are as follows: (1) Physical and mental work are as natural as play and man will enjoy work providing it is satisfying. (2) Man will exercise self-direction and control in achieving the organizations goals if he is committed to them. (3) One’s commitment to objectives is a function of rewards. The most significant rewards are the satisfaction of ego and self-actualization. (4) Man’s lack of ambition, avoidance of responsibility and emphasis on security are not inherent but learnt, hence if the proper conditions are provided he can also learn to accept and seek responsibility. (5) Creativity, imagination and ingenuity are widely distributed in the population and are not the privilege of a few. Theory Y assumes that people have a psychological need to work and deserve achievement and responsibility; if management creates the necessary conditions to meet the needs of organization members, then they will be motivated to work towards the organization’s goals (pp.