Firm systems thinking: unifying educational problem solving

Theorists and practitioners have debated the nature of educational systems and the most appropriate conceptualization of educational problems. Although terminology is idiosyncratic, both hard and soft systems thinking (SST) are evident in educational discourse. However, given that the school system has precise required outcomes (i.e. student achievement) coupled with subjective interpretation of those requirements (i.e. definition of an educated person), defining educational thought as either a hard or soft seems inappropriate and counter‐productive. Based on the assumption that human activity includes equally consequential objective and subjective realities, firms systems thinking is proposed as a unifying paradigm of educational problem solving. Firm systems thinking (FST) begins with the assumption that elements in a system are interconnected and interdependent. FST is appropriately applied to systems that: (1) have objective elements that are subject to individual interpretation; (2) have both precise and imprecise requirements and specifications and (3) focus on both micro (i.e. specific situation) and macro (e.g. general situation) improvement. FST is proposed as the logical progression of problem solving strategies in educational systems.