Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic has provoked greater focus on schooling and results and the reconsideration of school leaders’ roles. Improved school leadership will provide leaders with the necessary innovative approaches essential when implementing change. During the COVID-19 pandemic, leaders were expected to ensure teaching and learning took place whilst at the same time ensuring the well-being of everyone in the school. Leaders are expected to calm employees and take appropriate mitigating action in times of crisis. The global disruptions of the COVID-19 pandemic severely impacted on South African schools, particularly the poorly resourced ones with high numbers of vulnerable learners who could not shift to online learning. Despite the heavy load placed on them, these leaders managed to engage their transformative leadership practices to protect lives and provide continuous learning. They had to work very hard to effectively lead these changes, with no guidance, preparation, development programmes or exemplars to help them. In this single qualitative case study, insights into the power bases that the transformative leader exploited during the COVID-19 pandemic could inform the power practices that would facilitate a future-fit leadership. Future fit leaders are those leaders who support the reforms needed to deliver the next generation education agenda.
Through the thematic analysis of data generated through semi-structured interviews of the school’s teachers, Heads of Department and deputy principal, the following themes transpired: Leadership practices and legitimate and expert power bases implementation; Productive and meaningful transformative power; Support for principals’ and all school leaders’ future fitness; Lead change and communication through information power; Harness the collectives’ ideas through connection power; and Promote and support stakeholders’ wellness.
The findings reveal how the transformative leader drew on legitimate, expert, information and connection power to guide school stakeholders through the difficulties of COVID-19. Aligning with the assumptions underpinning transformative leadership of respect for human dignity and serving the social justice agenda, the principal used power with consideration, steering clear of coercive power use. In this way, continuing to create a harmonious space where stakeholders embraced change and could trust to share their ideas, explore their innovation, work collaboratively while feeling the care and compassion of the principal.