1.5.3 Organizational Health Inventory (OHI)
Organizational Health Inventory (OHI) was created by Hoy et al in 1991 as a tool to measure organizational health of schools. This scale looks at a school’s health from the perceptions of the teachers and their relationship and interaction with the principal and the students. The theoretical base on which this questionnaire has been developed is theoretical analysis of Talcott Parsons and his colleagues (1953).
All social systems must solve four basic problems if they are to survive, grow, and develop. Parsons and his colleagues refer to these as the imperative functions of adaptation, goal attainment, integration, and latency. In other words, schools must solve the problems of accommodating to their environments, attaining goals, maintaining the solidarity of the work force, and developing a value system. Parsons (1967) also noted that schools have three distinct levels of control over these activities -- the technical, managerial, and institutional.
The technical level of the school is concerned with the teaching-learning process. The primary function of the school is to produce educated students. Moreover, teachers and supervisors have immediate responsibility for solving the problems associated with effective learning and teaching.
The managerial level controls the internal administrative function of the organization. Principals are the administrative officers of the school. They allocate resources and coordinate the work effort. They must find ways to develop teacher loyalty, trust, and commitment as well as to motivate teachers and to influence their own superiors.
The institutional level connects the school with its environment. Schools need legitimacy and support in the community. Both administrators and teachers need backing if they are to perform their respective functions in a harmonious fashion without undue pressure from individuals and groups from outside the school.