Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic as the global tsunami of an era of Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, and Ambiguity (VUCA), presents school leadership with a forced opportunity for adaptive leadership. The assumption is that much of the adaptions adopted due to the COVID-19 pandemic will dissipate, bringing into question the sustainability thereof. The research project intended to ascertain the implications of forced opportunities for adaptive leadership on sustainable leadership.
Utilizing a qualitative comparative multiple case study, the researcher explored school leaders’ experiences from three different vantage points: one no-fee public school, one fee-paying public school, and one independent school. The purpose is to establish the similarities and differences among the school leaders’ experiences of leading through four different junctures. These are: before the COVID-19 pandemic, at the inception of the COVID-19 pandemic, as the COVID-19 pandemic progressed, and beyond the COVID-19 pandemic. This is vital on two accounts. Firstly, it provides insights into the shift in leadership practices over the noted periods. Secondly, as a comparative multiple case study, it reflects the experiences of South African school leaders from polarizing realities.
The researcher utilized two data collection tools. The first tool implemented was open-ended face-to-face, semi-structured interviews with two school leader respondents from three purposively sampled schools respectively. The second tool was the observation of the school and the participant’s. The outcomes of the research emphasized that the school leaders of the three different educational settings demonstrate an understanding of sustainable leadership. Two schools exhibited evidence of sustainable leadership practice pre-COVID-19, while the other demonstrated significant growth in sustainable leadership because of the influence of disruptors like the COVID-19 pandemic.
Much of the adaptive leadership practices adopted had a limited time frame and were only intended to ensure continuity of leadership practices through the COVID-19 pandemic. There is, however, evidence of professional and personal growth arising from the last two years in three areas: emotional intelligence, technological ability, and innovative thinking. The readiness of school leadership to drive digital and technological transformation within their respective schools was raised, with socio-economic realities as the most prominent inhibitor or propellant.
The outcomes of the research generated several recommendations for the Department of Basic Education. The first one is for the Department to consider ways to intentionally build capacity within teachers and school leaders regarding the use of digital and technological tools. Here, the objective should be to incorporate leadership practice on a digital and technological spectrum. This can be explored by considering tools like the Microsoft package for education or Google Classroom. Such testing for suitability is vital before one considers introducing digital and technological tools at a whole-school level.