Abstract
D.Ed.
The aim of this thesis was to establish what constitutes productivity in South African
schools, and to make recommendations to assist schools on their journey to higher
levels of productivity.
The historical background, problems and changes in South Africa, coupled with the
lack of current research in the field made it imperative for further research to be done
in the field to identify current tendencies linked to productivity within the South
African school context.
A literature study was undertaken to gather background and to explore various aspects
linked to productivity within a school. The literature study revealed that productivity
improvement does not just happen, but that management leadership and the
effectiveness of the individual educator is vital to continually increase productivity in
South African schools. The information gathered from the literature study was also
used to develop guidelines for productivity, which can be implemented in school's to
achieve higher levels of productivity.
An empirical study was undertaken. A standard questionnaire was used to elicit
opinions of respondents in the teaching profession on aspects which lead to/make a
school productive. Their responses to the questionnaire were discussed and analysed
by means of multivariate and univariate statistical analyses.