Why Schools Need More Than Just Rules to Survive

Ever wonder why some schools feel like cohesive, living communities while others feel like a collection of disconnected offices checking boxes? Or why setting up a satellite campus abroad can face invisible, frustrating resistance even when all the legal paperwork is flawless?

To understand how educational institutions survive, thrive, and earn true social acceptance, researchers at the University of Bath—notably Tristan Bunnell, Michael Fertig, and Chris James—fused two powerful sociological ideas: W. Richard Scott’s Three Pillars of Institutions and the concept of the Institutional Primary Task (IPT).

Together, they offer a brilliant framework for understanding what actually holds a school together.

Part 1: The Three Pillars of a School

According to institutional theory, an organization doesn’t just survive by being efficient or profitable. It survives because society views it as legitimate. That legitimacy is built on three distinct pillars:

    +--------------------------------------------------------+
    |                 INSTITUTIONAL LEGITIMACY               |
    +------------------------+-------------------------------+
                             |
         +-------------------+-------------------+
         |                   |                   |
         v                   v                   v
   [ REGULATIVE ]       [ NORMATIVE ]    [ CULTURAL-COGNITIVE ]
     The Rules           The Values         The Understandings
 "Because I have to" "Because it's right" "Because it's how it is"

1. The Regulative Pillar (The Rules)

This is the explicit, formal structure of education. It operates on the logic of compliance: “We do this because we have to.”

• The Drivers: Government policies, national curricula, employment laws, health and safety regulations, and formal inspections (like Ofsted).
• The Stakes: If a school breaks these rules, it faces legal sanctions, fines, or the loss of its license to operate.

2. The Normative Pillar (The Values)

This introduces a moral and ethical dimension. It operates on the logic of social obligation: “We do this because it’s the right thing to do.”

• The Drivers: Professional teaching standards, codes of ethics, a collective duty of care, and the school’s stated philosophy (such as fostering “global citizenship”).
• The Stakes: If a school violates its normative pillar, it loses the moral respect of its staff, parents, and community.

3. The Cultural-Cognitive Pillar (The Deep Understandings)

This is the deepest, most invisible layer. It consists of the shared internal mental frameworks and symbols that dictate how people make sense of reality. It operates on the logic of orthodox routines: “We do this because it’s simply how things are done.”

• The Drivers: Ingrained school traditions, daily assembly rituals, the unspoken definition of “good student behavior,” and even the shared expectation of what a classroom looks like (desks, whiteboards, uniforms).
• The Stakes: This pillar is why change is so hard. When an initiative clashes with deep cultural-cognitive beliefs, the community instinctively rejects it.

Part 2: The Engine in the Middle — The Institutional Primary Task (IPT)

This is where the Bath researchers made their critical contribution. They argued that these three pillars don’t just float in a vacuum. They need an anchor—an engine that gives them purpose.

That engine is the Institutional Primary Task (IPT).

Borrowed from open systems theory, the “primary task” is the fundamental, non-negotiable thing an organization must perform if it is to survive. In the context of international and specialized education, Bunnell, Fertig, and James identified that the delivery of the core curriculum (such as the International Baccalaureate or a specific national program) acts as this primary task.

When a school clearly defines and executes its IPT, it acts as a catalyst that locks the three pillars into place:

• IPT to Regulative: Delivering the curriculum requires formal accreditation and meeting authorization standards. The primary task satisfies the legal rules.
• IPT to Normative: The curriculum dictates the professional standards, training, and educational values expected of the faculty.
• IPT to Cultural-Cognitive: Over time, the daily rhythms, exam seasons, vocabulary, and shared identity of the entire school community become completely structured around that curriculum.

The Takeaway for School Leaders

The “Bath Insight” is a vital warning for educational leaders, especially those navigating school mergers, international expansions, or major structural changes.

You cannot build institutional legitimacy through the Regulative pillar alone. You can write the perfect policy handbook and clear every legal hurdle, but if your core Institutional Primary Task does not align with the Normative values of your teachers or the Cultural-Cognitive expectations of your local community, the institution will experience deep, systemic friction.

True educational leadership isn’t just about managing the rules; it’s about ensuring your primary task feeds the culture, values, and mindsets of the people inside the building.