Organizational Behavior in the Classroom

As globalization continues to increase among companies, management styles and beliefs will begin to shift and in return so will the environment of the workplace. Employers need to learn how to adapt in this ever-changing environment and ensure they are not only hiring the right employees but retaining top talent as well. Organizational Behavior or the study of how and what people think, feel, and act in and around organizations is imperative to learn and comprehend when leading a team, no matter the size. 

Organizational Behavior is also tied to an organization’s survival and overall success, meaning that by not implementing the theories and ideologies, organizations will begin to struggle and experience problems in the workplace. These best practices coupled with a global mindset can help prepare employers all around the world for predicting workplace events and influencing the organization as a whole. The focus will be on the importance of utilizing Organizational Behavior theories and principles in assisting teachers with understanding their students and driving value within the classrooms and teaching organizational citizenship at a young age. Organizational Citizenship or the variations of cooperation and behavior to others that support an organization’s values and beliefs is key to molding young minds by preparing them for the workplace and to consistently better themselves and those around them. By understanding the student’s perspectives, values, and individual behaviors, teachers can focus on teaching materials and mentoring specific to their values and beliefs. The solution is simple, through understanding and instilling a set of values onto the students along with the ethical principles of Organizational Behavior, teachers can ensure that each student they come in contact with can understand and identify situations where moral sensitivity is needed. As early as middle school, students are highly impressionable and need to define themselves with the assistance of their teachers and utilizing the Johari Window technique, which provides people with a better understanding of themselves and relationships with others.

Organizational Behavior

            Organizational Behavior or the study of how and what people think, feel, and act in and around organizations is imperative to learn and comprehend when leading a team, no matter the size. While the application of these principles can be used for any organization, it is most useful within the classroom as teachers can influence and drive students in their journey through life and often leave impressions that mold them. The employer-employee relationship mirrors the student-teacher relationship in the fact that while teachers may not employ students, they are responsible for managing and leading them throughout the school year. In a time of globalization or the process where economic, social, and cultures connect with those around the world, it is important for students to expand their understanding of the world and how they fit into it. By focusing on deep-level diversity or the attitudes, beliefs, and values of a person, teachers can influence how students see one another which can reduce bullying and stereotyping. By establishing a common set of values within the students, teachers can then prepare them for understanding how human and relational capital can be harnessed to propel them into the fundamentals of corporate social responsibility. 

• Human Capital is defined as the overall knowledge that people possess and generate from their personal experiences
• Relational Capital is defined as the overall value that is acquired from those around you such as other students, teachers, and other adults that a student may interact with

Both of these roll up into what is known as corporate social responsibility. Within a corporate structure, corporate social responsibility (CSR) is seen as activities within an organization that is intended to benefit the community and surrounding environments outside of an organization’s financial interests or any legal obligation. Planning community events and instilling the impact that it has can drive value for the students and can result in instant gratification which can influence millennials and any younger generation to get involved. Another way to drive CSR is by creating lesson plans that distinguish and understand how students acquire and share their knowledge, teachers can begin relating everyday life examples rather than just touching on the textbook. Through focusing on global topics, teachers can bridge the knowledge gap and show each student that they can have an impact globally as they continue on their educational journey.

Individual Behavior and Work Motivation

            Every student is different. They all come from different walks of life; experiences, cultures, traditions, etc. Indeed, you cannot paint each student with the same brush in terms of teaching styles (some are visual, hands-on, etc.), however, you can still manage them from a backend perspective. As mentioned above, deep-level diversity is the attitudes, beliefs, and values of a person. Teachers have the ability to leave impressions on their students and the first step is to identify the differences in the students and develop a baseline set of values such as caring for others, honesty, responsibility, and leadership. These values will be key to developing the students’ sense of worth, passion, and drive also known as motivation.

            Motivation is a common force within people that can affect their direction and persistence through voluntary behaviors. In many school districts, focusing within the Dallas Fort Worth area, there are a lot of low-income areas that can have an effect on a student’s motivation from wanting to progress in the education system to showing up to school (understanding the importance of schooling versus a place they have to attend as directed by a parent, etc.). Students may feel that due to their background or other internal factors that they cannot progress compared to their peers, however by teachers continuing to invest in showing the students that one’s background has little to no impact on their final destination in life. Teachers are tasked with ensuring students have the learned capabilities [physical and mental skills acquired through experience] and aptitude [natural talents that assist students in learning specific tasks and provide them the ability to perform tasks better] to set them up for success in the corporate world. These are part of the MARS model of Individual Behavior and Results which are important to a person’s voluntary behavior and performance. Conducting this model and sharing with students can also help break down the five types of individual behavior within the classroom.

Task Performance

• Goal-directed behavior that contributes to an overall objective. By giving students a mid-year and end-of-year goal, teachers can help motivate students to achieve scaled goals which in return can boost self-esteem and self-concept, or a person’s self-belief and evaluations, and lead to them setting larger goals not only for the year but their entire schooling career.

Organizational Citizenship

• Touched upon earlier, organizational citizenship helps drive behaviors that are derived from cooperation and helping others to support a common goal. In the classroom, this can be used as setting a team goal and driving values of helping others succeed as well such as students tutoring others in classes they excel in.

Counterproductive Work Behaviors

• Counterproductive work behaviors are any voluntary behaviors that can have either a direct or indirect effect on the classroom. These can consist of students taking shortcuts that can undermine the quality and learning, such as reading summaries for book reports or only studying a test bank for an exam thus allowing them to miss out on the value and knowledge learned through reading the actual chapters. Bullying is another counterproductive work behavior that has an impact on both parties. In its literal definition, bullying is unwanted behavior where a person seeks out to harm and intimidate another individual. By adhering to a strict code of ethics within the classroom and the creation of a mission/vision statement will allow the teacher to shape the behaviors both within and outside the classroom.

Intrinsic Motivation

• As millennials make up 35% of the U.S. workforce teachers must learn to adapt to a new way of teaching students who may not be motivated by extrinsic rewards in the classroom; Students studying for an exam with the sole purpose to pass, rather than learn the subject. Intrinsic motivation, or where a student performs a task for the sole purpose of personal satisfaction or positively impact others. Rather than teachers ruling with an iron fist in the classroom and threatening students to study and get good grades or risk facing serious consequences both in the present and future, they need to focus on building and encouraging learning within the classroom. By breaking the mold of standard teaching models, intrinsic motivation also aligns positively with affecting student’s self-esteem.

Moral Sensitivity

• Teaching students about moral sensitivity, or the ability to identify a situation pertaining to an ethical issue and determine its importance, allows them to empathize with others who may be going through a hard time. As previously stated, the teacher’s role in the classroom is to do more than teaching the subject but to educate and guide them into being prepared for college and the workplace. Being morally sensitive also aides in building relationships and how to manage the emotions of those around you.

Conclusion

While these principles were originally made for the workplace, there is a clear translation between how a manager leads an employee and how a teacher educates students in a classroom. Teaching students the importance and principles of Organizational Behavior can set them up for further success and define goals not only for those teaching but the students as well. Finally, teaching students the Rational Choice Decision-Making Process, or the calculation of the best alternative can help them make better choices in the classroom, at home, and in the workplace. Creating an environment where students can identify and provide solutions to a problem or opportunity will allow them to be vigilant and aware of the choices they make daily. As David Logan said, “As people see the world, so do they behave” (Logan, 2009). Teachers play a critical role in the classroom and have a duty to mold and challenge the minds of every student that walks in their door.

Resource List

?McShane, S., & Von Glinow, M. (2018). Organizational Behavior and Theory. Retrieved September 16, 2019. 

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