Abstract
D.Ed.
The objective of this thesis was to investigate, both qualitatively and
quantitatively the school governance capacity building of school governing
bodies in the Witbank district, Mpumalanga province, for the effective
management of schools.
A literature survey was undertaken and it is evident that, against the
background of effective school governance, there is a definite need for more
specific and up to date capacity building for school governing bodies.
Furthermore, the importance of capacity building as an aspect of school
governance capacity building and its implications for effective school
management as a process, is emphasized.
An empirical study was undertaken. In this research a questionnaire and
focus group interviews were used. The research design is discussed in chapter
four. In chapter five the analysis and interpretation of both the questionnaire
and the focus group interview has been discussed.
The literature study undertaken in chapter two discusses the problems
regarding school governance capacity building tried in other countries. The
two instruments were used to gauge the opinions of the school governing
bodies' capacity in respect of school governance. Their responses to the
questionnaire were analysed by means of multivariate and univariate statistical
tests.
From the sixty two questions, twenty were selected for the purpose of further
qualitative analysis. The sixty two questions were then reduced to three factors
using two consecutive factor analytic procedures:
Factor 1- competent school governance.
Factor 2- accountable collaborative school governance; and
Factor 3- selection criteria.
The competent school governance factor consists of 39 questions with a
Cronbach - Alpha reliability coefficient of 0,9412. The accountable
collaborative school governance factor consists of 20 questions with a
Cronbach-Alpha reliability coefficient of 0,8684. Selection criteria consist of
three questions with a Cronbach-Alpha reliability coefficient of 0,559.
Multivariate and univariate statistical analyses were used to test the various
hypotheses regarding school governance capacity building. Significant
statistical differences between the mean score of two independent groups were
investigated using Hotelling's T2 test and the Student t-test. Three or more
independent groups were first tested at the multivariate level using MANOVA
(multivariate analysis of variance). Any differences found at this level were
further investigated using the ANOVA (analysis of variance) test at the
univariate level. Pair-wise differences were investigated using the Dunette T3 or
Scheffe test.
Focus group interviews were also conducted because of the poor response to
the questionnaires. Ten questions were developed around school governance
capacity building which were used during the focus group interviews. The
analysis of the data obtained from the focus group interviews clearly indicated
a lack of capacity on the part of the three main components of the school
governing body namely - parents, non-educators and learners.
The following important recommendations emanated from this research:
School governance capacity building is a crucial necessity.
According to the findings of the research, respondents exposed a lack of
capacity in their governance. Respondents also believe that they would have
been better SGB's if they had the necessary training workshops.