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Social Construction of Reality - Bad Request

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This stakeholder went on to say that this type <strong>of</strong> collaboration helps people feel better<br />

about being accountable… because people want to “be right when somebody comes and<br />

looks” at their program (p. 6).<br />

In an <strong>of</strong>f transcript comment, she later elaborated that people simply need<br />

guidance in understanding what it means to be right in this sense and that working<br />

together produces a confidence in the final product which generates this sense <strong>of</strong><br />

rightness. Another stakeholder explained “there are many, many stakeholders involved in<br />

The School District that can really contribute” if only they knew how. This lets them<br />

know and opens up an avenue for their participation. He continued “we all make up the<br />

district and we all have the same goals, but for all the entities to work in concert with<br />

each other they need to know their strengths [and] where they fit in the district as a<br />

whole” (Interview, March 26, p. 4). These observations are supported by Bolman and<br />

Deal’s (2003) assertion: “people’s skills, attitudes, energy, and commitment are vital<br />

resources that can make or break an enterprise” (p. 114). The theme <strong>of</strong> collaboration as it<br />

has surfaced within these interviews supports the importance <strong>of</strong> fostering this element as<br />

an integral part <strong>of</strong> the district’s program evaluation ideals.<br />

Return on investment. Another emergent theme was the importance <strong>of</strong> return on<br />

investment. There was a common thread regarding the fact, expressed by a stakeholder,<br />

that The School District has “limited precious organizational resources. They need to be<br />

diverted to and used as effectively as you can… so you really need to [know] where are<br />

we spending most <strong>of</strong> our money and are we getting value out <strong>of</strong> it” (Interview, p. 2).<br />

Additionally, a different stakeholder spoke <strong>of</strong> the imperative <strong>of</strong> doing everything possible<br />

to express in word and deed that The School District takes stewardship <strong>of</strong> resources<br />

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