Organizational Learning and Transformational Leadership for Sustainable Education: A Colombian school Case Study.: Learning for the transformation of the basic education system in Latin America
2025 (English)Independent thesis Advanced level (degree of Master of Fine Arts (One Year)), 10 credits / 15 HE credits
Student thesis
Abstract [en]
In the emergence of new educational approaches that address social, economic and environmental considerations, this paper investigates the relationship and impact of organizational learning and transformational leadership approaches into the integration of sustainable education practices in Latin America. The aim of this study is to analyse the Colegio La Fontaine (CLF) in Cali, Colombia through the lens of organizational learning, leadership and Education for Sustainable Education (ESD) in order to get a comprehensive overview of how the school, as an organization, learns from its own experiences and context, shares knowledge among its members and community, as well as how it is organized at the individual, organizational and network levels to integrate sustainability considerations into its educational approach. The narrative utilized as a premise on this study conceives education as an agent of change, change for improve quality of education in Latin America as well as breaking away stereotypes in basic education that fail to provide children with capacities to address contemporary societal issues such as environmental crisis, social inequality in along with promoting self-realization, self-love, and resilience to the challenges children face later on in their lives as inhabitants of Latin America. In this light, this research developed an analytical model that integrates organizational learning, leadership and ESD approach to analyse the CLF school in regards these three frameworks. The analytical model aims to provide the academic field and the educational community in Latin America with a tool to analyze and assess basic education institutions that adopt approaches oriented toward sustainable education. The methodology used in this research consisted in an interpretative qualitative approach based on a case study. The findings showed that the CLF school demonstrates key features of a learning organization: it reflects on its experiences, adapts its practices, and collaborates actively with its partners and allies. These learning processes are embedded in the school’s structure, culture, and internal organization, which allows for the meaningful integration of sustainability principles into its practices.
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
2025. , p. 57
Keywords [en]
Keywords: Organizational Learning, Leadership, ESD, Educational Institutions, Colombia
National Category
Development Studies
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:mau:diva-76851OAI: oai:DiVA.org:mau-76851DiVA, id: diva2:1967029
Educational program
KS US Leadership for Sustainability
Presentation
2025-06-02, OR:F409, Nordenskiöldsgatan 10, 211 19 Malmö, Malmö, 08:30 (English)
Supervisors
Examiners
2025-07-012025-06-112026-04-29Bibliographically approved