ABSTRACT
Jackson grasps an invisible but essentially generative force that is present in schools. His book is the first attempt to come to grips with the “culture” of the school. A certain “spirit” seems to circulate within institutional life. He is interested in how human beings develop adaptive mechanisms by communicating with this invisible, generative force. He theorizes that these mechanisms have something to do with “knowing.” Jackson tries to distinguish what he calls “the many ways of knowing” because classroom life is very complex. These were newly explored “ways” during his time. Jackson discovers some aspects of institutional knowing that had never been grasped before. His research contributed to new analytical categories about unique forms of life, categories that would form the basis for future analyses of teachers’ thought processes.
