Management and leadership experiences in fostering a culture of teaching and learning in ethnically diverse schools in Johannesburg North District
- Authors: Buma, Anastasia Malong
- Date: 2012-11-14
- Subjects: School management and organization - South Africa - Johannesburg , School improvement programs , Educational leadership , Educational planning , Educational change , Multicultural schools
- Type: Thesis
- Identifier: uj:7392 , http://hdl.handle.net/10210/8199
- Description: M.Ed. , Since 1994, South African schools are increasingly becoming more diverse due to the implementation of new legislation to foster democratization in schools. Many schools whose communities were until 1994 defined along racial lines are increasingly becoming mixed in terms of learner, staff and parent bodies. Other external factors such as the increasing movement of people across the globe as a consequence of increasing globalization may also be contributing to the apparently growing diversity at schools. Such increasing diversity could pose challenges regarding fostering a culture of teaching and learning at these mixed schools. Therefore, school management and leadership, need to have the skills, knowledge and appropriate attitudes that are required in order to ensure that the culture of teaching and learning is advanced in ethnically diverse school. Considering her experience as a teacher at both private and public schools in South Africa over the last ten years, the researcher has observed significant changes in learner population across many schools with resulting implication to teaching and learning. These changes have placed tremendous demands on school principals and teachers who have to deal with the challenges such as, culture mismatch between student-student and student-teacher interaction, social tension and antagonism, communication problems, misinterpretation of values and behaviors that thus influence the process of teaching and learning. Hence, the researcher opted to do an investigation into how school leadership and management in ethnically diverse schools will advance opportunities that encourage a culture of teaching and learning. In order to do the investigation, the researcher firstly employed an extensive literature review to explore how the leadership and management of ethnically diverse schools advance opportunities that cultivate a culture of teaching and learning. The research design and methodology employed involved a mixed method approach consisting of quantitative as well as qualitatative methodologies. During the first phase of the empirical study, the researcher carried out the quantitative method of data collection where a set of questionnaires were filled in by the principal and the HoDs of the selected schools. In order to validate the findings of the quantitative survey, the researcher employed in-depth individual interviews with the teachers and students of the selected schools. Through qualitative analysis of the data, the research findings confirm that the diverse culture of schools in Johannesburg North includes characteristics of both traditional and liberal multicultural education. Also, societies are becoming more complex in terms of social, economic and political needs. Therefore, the implication of the findings are that, in addition to teaching the basic skills of reading, writing and math, school leadership and management should advance a culture of teaching and learning that will involve social justice issues where students will learn to become reflective, moral, caring and active citizens as is inherent in liberal multicultural education. Finally, the researcher recommends that regular survey on different aspects should be carried out in ethnically diverse schools in order to get such schools to open up to the demands of liberal multicultural education.
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- Authors: Buma, Anastasia Malong
- Date: 2012-11-14
- Subjects: School management and organization - South Africa - Johannesburg , School improvement programs , Educational leadership , Educational planning , Educational change , Multicultural schools
- Type: Thesis
- Identifier: uj:7392 , http://hdl.handle.net/10210/8199
- Description: M.Ed. , Since 1994, South African schools are increasingly becoming more diverse due to the implementation of new legislation to foster democratization in schools. Many schools whose communities were until 1994 defined along racial lines are increasingly becoming mixed in terms of learner, staff and parent bodies. Other external factors such as the increasing movement of people across the globe as a consequence of increasing globalization may also be contributing to the apparently growing diversity at schools. Such increasing diversity could pose challenges regarding fostering a culture of teaching and learning at these mixed schools. Therefore, school management and leadership, need to have the skills, knowledge and appropriate attitudes that are required in order to ensure that the culture of teaching and learning is advanced in ethnically diverse school. Considering her experience as a teacher at both private and public schools in South Africa over the last ten years, the researcher has observed significant changes in learner population across many schools with resulting implication to teaching and learning. These changes have placed tremendous demands on school principals and teachers who have to deal with the challenges such as, culture mismatch between student-student and student-teacher interaction, social tension and antagonism, communication problems, misinterpretation of values and behaviors that thus influence the process of teaching and learning. Hence, the researcher opted to do an investigation into how school leadership and management in ethnically diverse schools will advance opportunities that encourage a culture of teaching and learning. In order to do the investigation, the researcher firstly employed an extensive literature review to explore how the leadership and management of ethnically diverse schools advance opportunities that cultivate a culture of teaching and learning. The research design and methodology employed involved a mixed method approach consisting of quantitative as well as qualitatative methodologies. During the first phase of the empirical study, the researcher carried out the quantitative method of data collection where a set of questionnaires were filled in by the principal and the HoDs of the selected schools. In order to validate the findings of the quantitative survey, the researcher employed in-depth individual interviews with the teachers and students of the selected schools. Through qualitative analysis of the data, the research findings confirm that the diverse culture of schools in Johannesburg North includes characteristics of both traditional and liberal multicultural education. Also, societies are becoming more complex in terms of social, economic and political needs. Therefore, the implication of the findings are that, in addition to teaching the basic skills of reading, writing and math, school leadership and management should advance a culture of teaching and learning that will involve social justice issues where students will learn to become reflective, moral, caring and active citizens as is inherent in liberal multicultural education. Finally, the researcher recommends that regular survey on different aspects should be carried out in ethnically diverse schools in order to get such schools to open up to the demands of liberal multicultural education.
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Absent leadership in curriculum implementation
- Authors: Edwards, Graeme Bentley
- Date: 2008-05-09T12:27:57Z
- Subjects: Educational leadership , Educational change , Curriculum change , School improvement programs
- Type: Thesis
- Identifier: uj:7023 , http://hdl.handle.net/10210/352
- Description: Schools are essentially concerned with people and the development of knowledge and skills. Schools require leadership in order to achieve their goals. Furthermore, schools are tasked with being relevant in their contemporary societal contexts as well as for society in the future. Regarding the type of leadership in schools, Sergiovanni contends that schools need special leadership because they are special places, because they are lifeworld intensive and because “school professionals don’t react warmly to the kind of hierarchically based command leadership or hero leadership that characterizes other kinds of institutions” (2000:165 - 166). Against the backdrop of this commonly held belief, this research project undertook to investigate a school where the new curriculum had been successfully implemented in a context where there was absent leadership. In order to gain a deeper understanding of the phenomenon, the school type and context, the human interventions and the school culture were considered. The qualitative approach was selected for this research with a grounded case study as the relevant research design. Epistemologically, this research is located in the constructionist paradigm and an interpretivist theoretical perspective will be employed in the research project. Interpretivist philosophies promote the notion that human action can be distinguished from physical objects by virtue of the fact that they are inherently meaningful. The data were collected by means of some semi structured interviews and a dyad interview. Both convergent and divergent questions were posed to the participants in the data collection strategies. The process of data analysis was approached from a grounded theory perspective. This approach requires that a theory should emerge from the data rather than the data proving or disproving an existing theory. Six themes were identified through the process of data analysis. These themes were then processed into five findings which collectively developed and compiled a substantive theory. The findings of this study revealed that schools require leadership. Leadership should be considered in its broadest sense with all educators possessing the potential to lead. In addition, the appropriate use of power and authority were identified as essential ingredients for successful leadership. School culture was also found to be an essential component of successful schools. Not only is school culture essential for the successful daily functioning of schools, but an appropriate school culture is imperative for dealing with change and the successful implementation of new policies, curriculum and school reform initiatives. A collaborative school culture was identified as the type of school culture that is appropriate and that would support and facilitate the management of change. In light of the findings, implications for policy and practice are presented and suggestions for future research are made. Lastly, the limitations of the study are noted and the conclusions of the study discussed. It is hoped that this study will assist policy makers and school principals to seriously consider their leadership style in terms of sharing power and authority and in the creation of school culture that are empowering and positive, one that considers individual potential as well as group cohesiveness. , Prof. B. Smit
- Full Text:
- Authors: Edwards, Graeme Bentley
- Date: 2008-05-09T12:27:57Z
- Subjects: Educational leadership , Educational change , Curriculum change , School improvement programs
- Type: Thesis
- Identifier: uj:7023 , http://hdl.handle.net/10210/352
- Description: Schools are essentially concerned with people and the development of knowledge and skills. Schools require leadership in order to achieve their goals. Furthermore, schools are tasked with being relevant in their contemporary societal contexts as well as for society in the future. Regarding the type of leadership in schools, Sergiovanni contends that schools need special leadership because they are special places, because they are lifeworld intensive and because “school professionals don’t react warmly to the kind of hierarchically based command leadership or hero leadership that characterizes other kinds of institutions” (2000:165 - 166). Against the backdrop of this commonly held belief, this research project undertook to investigate a school where the new curriculum had been successfully implemented in a context where there was absent leadership. In order to gain a deeper understanding of the phenomenon, the school type and context, the human interventions and the school culture were considered. The qualitative approach was selected for this research with a grounded case study as the relevant research design. Epistemologically, this research is located in the constructionist paradigm and an interpretivist theoretical perspective will be employed in the research project. Interpretivist philosophies promote the notion that human action can be distinguished from physical objects by virtue of the fact that they are inherently meaningful. The data were collected by means of some semi structured interviews and a dyad interview. Both convergent and divergent questions were posed to the participants in the data collection strategies. The process of data analysis was approached from a grounded theory perspective. This approach requires that a theory should emerge from the data rather than the data proving or disproving an existing theory. Six themes were identified through the process of data analysis. These themes were then processed into five findings which collectively developed and compiled a substantive theory. The findings of this study revealed that schools require leadership. Leadership should be considered in its broadest sense with all educators possessing the potential to lead. In addition, the appropriate use of power and authority were identified as essential ingredients for successful leadership. School culture was also found to be an essential component of successful schools. Not only is school culture essential for the successful daily functioning of schools, but an appropriate school culture is imperative for dealing with change and the successful implementation of new policies, curriculum and school reform initiatives. A collaborative school culture was identified as the type of school culture that is appropriate and that would support and facilitate the management of change. In light of the findings, implications for policy and practice are presented and suggestions for future research are made. Lastly, the limitations of the study are noted and the conclusions of the study discussed. It is hoped that this study will assist policy makers and school principals to seriously consider their leadership style in terms of sharing power and authority and in the creation of school culture that are empowering and positive, one that considers individual potential as well as group cohesiveness. , Prof. B. Smit
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