One of the greatest cultural factors in school is by far the existence of peers and the hierarchy in which children exist. While overplayed and dramatic for television, the tight-knit groups of girls and jockey boys clubs aren't far from reality. These social structures greatly affect the way a child develops, and they often compete with the actual academic part of school. The culture of after school groups, talent competitions and extracurricular activities plays a great deal into the atmosphere and experience a school can provide. Involvement in such activities even help students do better in school (ascd.org).
What a child's parents expect of him or her is another factor that affects the culture in schools. If the school has many students whose parents expect a lot from their children, then there is an added pressure to perform well in the activities and classes they take part in (psychcentral.com).This can be reflected in the demands of the teachers who may want the same things that the child's parents desire. This multiples the amount of expectations and therefore changes the culture of a school by affecting the group dynamic and channeling the students towards more academic or high performance modes of conduct.
Parents are overall a very important part in the school ecosystem. The amount of parental involvement at school also affects the way children are treated and therefore the social fabric at the institution.One example is the Hillcrest Knights School, where parents are expected to be encouraging and involved (hillcrestknights.com). PTA committees that are more involved with the sports, education, and social activities that happen at school foster a more friendly and proactive environment where children are safe and happier. Ultimately having parents involved also makes teachers accountable for their actions in the classroom, and promotes education of the whole student instead of just presenting simple didactic lesson plans.
Finally, community and social pressures from the media and world create an added dimension to the culture at schools. While pop culture has long thrived on the minds of the young and innocent, school has become an increasingly great home to the multitudes of fashions, accessorizing and behaviors exhibited on TV and other forms of media. The expectations for young girls to look sexy, and for boys to be motivated by a partying and lackadaisical lifestyle, are higher in modern times, adding to the culture of social norms in the academic place (The Impact of Pop Culture on Youth).