Abstract
M.Ed.
The staffroom which was once a retreat for a cup of tea, coffee, a breather and a
catch-up of educational talk has become an empty room of silent voices that echo; a
place characterised by unresolved grievances, unmanageable workloads, ignored
opinions, feelings of being excluded, vital information that was withheld, excessive
monitoring, repeated reminders of errors, hostile reaction on approach, persistent
criticism, humiliation or ridiculing and impossible deadlines for completion of tasks.
The voices of educators have become silent and complacent; actions are defined by
what is expected and prescribed by the government.
Bullying in the workplace has largely been regarded as insignificant. This complex
and universal phenomenon, however, is firmly rooted in South African schools.
Changes in an organisation as well as political influences have severe
consequences on educators, as educators are more exposed to diversity, cultural
differences, increased workloads, harassment, and humiliation, unmanageable
workloads in order to meet targets, intimidation, hostility and degradation.
Exposure to bullying in the staffroom and personal experiences as being a victim of
bullying motivated this researcher to improve her qualifications and to conduct
research in downward bullying.
The research, based upon educator perceptions, attempts to investigate whether
downward bullying is taking place, when it is taking place, as well as how often it is
perceived to occur within primary schools in Gauteng. To facilitate this investigation,
the following objectives were set; to investigate the nature of downward bullying, to
probe the perceptions of educators as to the frequency of downward bullying and to
devise strategies to enable educators to recognise and cope with downward bullying.
Completing this research, a set of management strategies for the identification and
reduction of downward bullying were suggested.
Indistinguishable from compliance, control, governmentality and managerialism,
downward bullying, if not addressed, is a concern for the education system in South
Africa. The dynamics presented within this research will shed light on the "dark side"
of legitimate power, exposing the gravitational nature of bullying as an escalating
workplace phenomenon.