Organizational Routines in Flux: A Case Study of Change in Recording and Monitoring Student Attendance

Using an organizational theory to study how people can actually change routines, this study examined alterations made to two aspects of a high school's attendance procedures over 5 years. The authors drew primarily from interviews and school documents to describe and analyze changes made by administrators, faculty, and staff. Organizing questions derived from Feldman's typology of change responses considered how individuals can elect to repair routines when problems occur, expand on new possibilities, and strive toward desired ideals despite routinized actions. The findings describe striving toward a faster, more efficient attendance system and shifting between teacher- and administrator-controlled tardy monitoring. Implications are drawn for school administrators seeking to understand and change school organizations.