The purpose of the Advanced Certificate in Education (ACE) (School Leadership) is to empower school principals to develop the skills, knowledge and values needed to lead and manage successful schools. The study sought to achieve three objectives. Firstly, to find out if the school principals were able to use the learning from the ACE (School Leadership) programme in establishing the Professional Learning Communities (PLCs). Secondly, to find out if the school principals have succeeded in establishing and sustaining PLCs in their schools. Thirdly, to find out the extent to which school principals are succeeding in transforming their schools through PLCs. The theoretical framework used in the study were Leadership Development Theory and PLCs drawing from the Community of Practice (CoP). The study was located in the interpretive paradigm using the qualitative approach. A case study methodology was employed. Semi-structured interviews, focus group interviews and document analysis were the data production techniques. I sampled three primary schools led by school principals who successfully completed the ACE (School Leadership) programme between 2007 and 2009 in the Ilembe District of KwaZulu-Natal based on convenience. The school principals of each of the three primary schools were interviewed using semi-structured interviews. In sampling teacher participants, five teachers were sampled in each of the three schools. Two senior teachers from the foundation phase, two senior teachers from the intermediate phase and one senior teacher from the senior phase were selected. I also reviewed staff minutes for the period starting from January 2012 to June 2013. The data generated was thematically analysed. The study found that two school principals were able to establish PLCs in their schools and sustain them. The study also found that PLCs had massive impact in transforming the school. I conclude that the establishment of PLCs in schools promotes learning together and sharing of ideas and teaching techniques, among the teachers supported by school principal. / M. Ed. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban 2013.

Thesis (MComm (Industrial Psychology))--University of Stellenbosch, 2010. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Researchers have labelled call centres as the modern equivalent of the ‘factory sweatshops’ of the industrial era, and refer to them as the ‘satanic mills of the 21st century’. A review of the literature revealed the lack of employee engagement amongst call centre representatives (CCRs) to be a central concern in this fast-emerging global industry. Consequently, the current study was undertaken to identify and investigate various antecedents of employee engagement. The objective of the study was, firstly, to gauge the level of employee engagement amongst a sample of CCRs in South Africa and, secondly, to track the paths through which salient antecedents affect this engagement. More specifically, the relationships between sense of coherence (SOC), leadership effectiveness (LE), team effectiveness (TE) and employee engagement (E) were investigated. A quantitative research approach was followed whereby a positive psychology paradigm underpinned the examination of specific personal and job resources that could enhance engagement within the call centre environment. A cross-sectional survey design was used and a non-probability convenient sample of 215 CCRs was selected. The measuring instruments comprised the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale of Schaufeli and Bakker (2003) to measure engagement, the Team Diagnostic Survey of Wageman, Hackman and Lehman (2005) to measure team effectiveness, the Leadership Practices Inventory of Kouzes and Posner (2001) to gauge leadership effectiveness, and the Orientation to Life Questionnaire of Antonovsky (1987) to measure sense of coherence. A series of structural equation modelling analyses were performed. Contrary to the ‘electronic sweatshop’ image and its attendant symptoms of depression, emotional exhaustion, anxiety, demotivation and dissatisfaction attached to call centre jobs (depicted in the literature), the results show a high level of employee engagement for the CCRs in the sample. Also, personal resources, such as SOC, and job resources, such as TE, related significantly to E. A non-significant relationship was found to exist between LE and E. The implications of the results for the practice of human resource management in call centres are elaborated upon. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Oproepsentrums is al deur navorsers bestempel as die moderne ekwivalent van die ‘hongerfabrieke’ van die industriële tydvak, en as die ‘sataniese meule van die 21ste eeu’. ‘n Oorsig van die literatuur toon dat die gebrek aan werknemerverbintenis onder oproepsentrumverteenwoordigers (call centre representatives (CCRs)) ‘n sentrale kommer is in hierdie vinnig ontluikende globale bedryf. Gevolglik is hierdie studie onderneem om die verskillende antesedente van werknemerverbintenis te ondersoek. Die doelwit van hierdie studie was eerstens om die vlak van werknemerverbintenis in ‘n steekproef van oproepsentrumverteenwoordigers in Suid-Afrika te meet, en tweedens om die weë waardeur die pertinente antesedente hierdie verbintenis beïnvloed, op te spoor. Meer spesifiek is die verhoudings tussen samehangsin (sense of coherence (SOC)), leierskapdoeltreffendheid (leadership effectiveness (LE)), spandoeltreffendheid (team effectiveness (TE)) en die werknemer se verbintenis (engagement (E)) ondersoek. ‘n Kwantitatiewe navorsingsbenadering is gebruik in terme waarvan ‘n positiewe sielkundige paradigma die ondersoek van spesifieke persoonlike en werkhulpbronne onderstut het wat verbintenis in die oproepsentrum-omgewing kon verhoog. ‘n Deursnee- opname-ontwerp is gebruik en ‘n nie-waarskynlikheidsgerieflikheidsteekproef van 215 oproepsentrumverteenwoordigers is geselekteer. Die meetinstrumente het die volgende behels: die Utrecht Work Engagement Scale van Schaufeli en Bakker (2003) om verbintenis te meet; die Team Diagnostic Survey van Wageman, Hackman en Lehman (2005) om spandoeltreffendheid te meet; die Leadership Practices Inventory van Kouzes en Posner (2001) om leierskapdoeltreffendheid te meet; en die Orientation to Life Questionnaire van Antonovsky (1987) om samehangsin te meet. ‘n Reeks ontledings van struktuurvergelykingsmodellering is uitgevoer. In teenstelling met die beeld van ‘n ‘elektroniese hongerfabriek’ en die gepaardgaande simptome van neerslagtigheid, emosionele uitputting, angstigheid, demotivering en ontevredenheid wat met werk in oproepsentrums gepaard gaan (soos in die literatuur uitgebeeld), toon die resultate ‘n hoë vlak van werknemerverbintenis vir die oproepsentrumverteenwoordigers in hierdie steekproef. Persoonlike hulpbronne soos samehangsin, en werkhulpbronne soos spandoeltreffendheid, het ‘n noemenswaardige verband met verbintenis getoon. ‘n Nie-betekenisvolle verhouding is gevind tussen leierskapdoeltreffendheid en verbintenis. Die implikasies van die uitslae vir die menslike hulpbronnepraktyk in oproepsentrums word ook bespreek.

Thesis (MCom)--Stellenbosch University, 2015 / ENGLISH ABSTRACT :This study arose due to the costly and harmful effect that negative behaviours have on organisations and society alike. This study is therefore undertaken to understand the determinants of these negative behaviours as well as to identify constructs that can defer these types of behaviour. The aim of the study was to study the constructs that is expected to significantly affect the occurrence of counterproductive workplace behaviours (CWB) in South African organisations. Therefore the purpose was to investigate the relationship between leader integrity, ethical leadership, interactional justice, leader trust and CWB. A theoretical model was subsequently developed to explain the structural relationships between the latent variables and counterproductive behaviours. Propositions were formulated regarding the postulated relationships found between these variables in the literature study. These hypotheses were tested to determine the validity of these propositions to subsequently test the proposed structural model. The sample encompassed employees from four organisations in the Western Cape. The respondents completed the Leader Trust Scale (LTS), the Justice Scale, Leadership of Ethics Scale (LES), Ethical Integrity Test (EIT) and the Deviance Scale. The proposed hypotheses and structural model were empirically tested by means of Partial Least Squares Analysis (PLS). These analyses included reliability analysis to determine the reliability of all the measurement scales. Satisfactorily reliability were found for all measurement scales. The structural model and the hypothesised relationships were analysed by means of the PLS path coefficients, R Square values and Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient. The results indicated that support could be found for the relationship between leader integrity and ethical leadership, leader integrity and interactional justice, leader integrity and leader trust, ethical leadership and interactional justice, and leader trust and interactional justice. Only partial support was found for the relationship between ethical leadership and leader trust, leader trust and CWB, interactional justice and CWB, ethical leadership and CWB and leader integrity and CWB. Subsequently conclusions were made from the results as well as recommendations made for future research. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING : Hierdie studie het ontstaan as gevolg van die duur en skadelike effek wat negatiewe gedrag op beide organisasies en die samelewing het. Die studie is dus uitgevoer om die oorsake van hierdie negatiewe gedrag te begryp sowel as om konstrukte te identifiseer om hierdie tipes gedrag uit te skakel. Die doel van die studie was om konstrukte te ondersoek wat waarskynlik ‘n substansiële invloed op die verskynsel van teenproduktiewe gedrag in organisasies in Suid-Afrika kan hê. Die doel was dus om die verband tussen leier-integriteit, etiese leierskap, interaksionele geregtigheid, leier-vertroue en teenproduktiewe gedrag te ondersoek. ‘n Teoretiese model is ontwikkel om die strukturele verband tussen die latente veranderlikes en teenproduktiewe gedrag te verduidelik. Hipoteses is geformuleer rakende die gepostuleerde verwantskappe tussen hierdie veranderlikes soos in die literatuurstudie geïdentifiseer. Hierdie hipoteses is getoets om die geldigheid van hierdie proposisies te bepaal om uiteindelik die voorgestelde strukturele model te toets. Die steekproef is saamgestel uit werknemers van vier organisasies in die Wes-Kaap. Die proefpersone het die Leader Trust Scale (LTS), die Justice Scale, die Leadership of Ethics Scale (LES), die Ethical Integrity Test (EIT) en die Deviance Scale voltooi. Die voorgestelde hipoteses en strukturele model is empiries getoets deur middel van Partial Least Squares (PLS) ontleding. Hierdie analises sluit in ‘n betroubaarheidsanalise om die betroubaarheid van die metingskale te bepaal. Bevredigende betroubaarheid is vir al die metingskale gevind. Die strukturele model en die gepostuleerde hipoteses is ontleed deur middel van PLS path coefficients, R Square values en Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient. Die resultate het aangedui dat ondersteuning gevind is vir die verband tussen leier-integriteit en etiese leierskap, leier-integriteit en interaksionele geregtigheid, leier-integriteit en leier-vertroue, etiese leierskap en interaksionele geregtigheid, en leier-vertroue en interaksionele geregtigheid. Slegs gedeeltelike ondersteuning is gevind vir die verband tussen etiese leierskap en leier-vertroue, leier-vertroue en teenproduktiewe gedrag, interaksionele geregtigheid en teenproduktiewe gedrag, etiese leierskap en teenproduktiewe gedrag, en leier-integriteit en teenproduktiewe gedrag. Daarna is afleidings gemaak op grond van die resultate, sowel as aanbevelings gemaak vir toekomstige navorsing.

This study explores and attempts to shed light on what motivates teachers and how teacher motivation is affected by a principal's leadership style. The worldviews of pragmatism and critical realism were used as the basis for exploring teacher motivation in a South African school. A primary school in the Eastern Cape of South Africa was chosen for the case study. Three data gathering tools, a leadership questionnaire, teacher survey, and interviews were used to generate data on teacher motivation and the interaction between leadership style and teacher motivation. In regards to teachers, religion, social justice, and self-efficacy were all identified as motivators. The principal was strongly charismatic in her leadership and along with transformational and social justice leadership played a major role in influencing teacher behaviors. Self-determination theory was identified as helping to explain different levels of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation and thereby to better understand varying degrees of teacher motivation. There are many difficulties in South African education and around the world in general and this study is premised on the belief that if teacher motivation can be studied and advanced there will be an improvement in education and learning. This thesis was limited in its scope and ability to fully explore the different levels of ontology as outlined by the critical realist and this is identified as a possible future course of action for not only studying teacher motivation but getting to the 'heart of the matter'.

During the apartheid era, that is, before 1994, the education management system in South Africa was fragmented, authoritarian and top-down. Principals were expected to manage schools on their own without consulting the rest of the staff. The birth of political democracy in 1994 resulted in many changes in the education system. These changes include the creation of one national department. In line with this democratisation came the concept of school management teams (SMTs). Because of the democratic nature of this kind of a structure (SMT), it is required that educators work co-operatively and as a team. This has been problematic in some schools where the principal has traditionally felt comfortable taking decisions on his or her own without any input from relevant stakeholders. Furthermore, through the legacy of apartheid, teachers themselves have dogmatically been oriented to being the recipients of instructions and to view management as the prerogative of the principals only. The formalisation of SMTs thus brings new challenges to both principals and staff members, essentially the notion of democratic or team-management. The object of this study is to find out how the concept of democratic management is being received. This study includes all the government-aided high schools in Grahamstown (ten of them). Studying all 10 high schools - 6 from the local township, 3 ex-model C schools, and 1 from the coloured township – has produced a broad and varied picture of how SMTs are being received in Grahamstown secondary schools. The study was framed within the interpretive approach, and sought to unpack the perceptions of SMT members with regard to SMTs. An interpretive paradigm made it possible for me to gain an in-depth understanding of SMT members’ perceptions of team-management within their contexts. I used questionnaires, interviews and observation as research tools to gather data. This study has found that, although the concept of team management is well-received, there are significant obstacles to the acceptance of teamwork as an alternative form of management. Many of these may be the result of decades of disempowering governance strategies, resulting in impoverished notions of school ownership and joint responsibility. Some relate to the political nature of schools as organisations. Despite these problems, the study has confirmed that team-management is the preferred approach for a variety of reasons. Team-management usually results in enriched decision-making, the sharing of responsibilities and higher levels of support. A major systemic shortcoming highlighted by the study is the absence of meaningful training in democratic educational management.

Although the word “participation” has been with mankind for a long time and is widely used by writers on management areas, it still remains difficult to define precisely what it means. As a result, “participation” is one of the most misunderstood and confusing ideas that have emerged from the field of human relations. This study seeks to explore the perceptions and understanding that the various stakeholders have about participative management. The purpose is to find out the meaning and interpretations the stakeholders attach to the idea of participation. This study is an interpretive case study of a Senior Secondary School in the Cala District of the Eastern Cape. A phenomenological approach was employed in data gathering using two data collection tools namely questionnaires and interviews. The collected data provided insight into stakeholders’ views on participative management, highlighted challenges around the implementation of participative management, and revealed strategies to be utilized in promoting participation. The findings reveal that participation is a controversial idea that is easier said than done. There is no recipe for the implementation of a participative approach; it depends on the situation and nature of the subordinates. Furthermore, organization members need to adopt new thinking patterns in order to be responsive to change. Open communication emerges as the key to having genuine participation. However, participation still brings anxiety and fear of losing power to those managers who do not take kindly to it. It is recommended that good interpersonal relations should be maintained at all times to promote participation and that for schools to be effective, partnership with parents and stakeholders is essential.

Management development in educational contexts is a relatively recent development in South Africa. The Task Team Report on Education Management Development of 1996 drew pertinent attention to the need for education management development in South Africa, and set an agenda for such development. Since then many management development programmes have been launched by both National and Provincial government. However, very little research seems to have been conducted on these programmes, especially on how they have been received. This study seeks to address that need. The study is a qualitative phenomenological investigation of how four secondary school principals experienced and perceived the management development programmes they have attended. In line with a phenomenological approach, the study sets aside preconceived ideas and attempts to describe the phenomenon through the eyes of the participants. Findings suggest that management development programmes are perceived as having a big role to play in the development of school managers, but that the programmes on offer suffer from various shortcomings. These include poor planning, lack of organisational and facilitating skills in presenters, lack of commitment, monitoring and support from the bodies offering the courses, and especially the failure of training programmes to bring about increased confidence and self-awareness among participants. Increased selfawareness can help in personal and organisational renewal and growth, and help to minimise the dependency syndrome among principals. Particular needs highlighted by the findings include training in the new curriculum (Outcomes Based Education), holistic development by experts in all facets of school management, training of School Governing Bodies and development of all educators in management as future managers. These findings may prove helpful to education departments and other bodies in the planning and delivery of programmes for new and incumbent school managers.

For the past thirty years, leadership theories have focused on the importance of the individual within the school organisation. The shared assumptions and beliefs of the individuals working in the same organisation shape the school’s organisational culture, and organisational culture is a salient factor which should be considered when understanding educational leadership. The focus of my study is to explore the relationship between organisational culture and leadership. In the same context, new approaches to the study of leadership have explored the issue of gender in leadership. Female leadership studies - the second focus of this study - seek not only to restore the place of the individual but also argue a place for women in educational leadership. Based in the interpretive paradigm, this is a case study of a Catholic all-girl secondary school called the Loreto Convent School of Pretoria. Historically, the Loreto schools have aimed at promoting and empowering girls’ education and female leadership. It was therefore an appropriate site in which to explore organisational culture and its relationship with leadership, particularly female leadership. I purposefully chose three of the school’s female leaders - the school’s principal, the High school Head of Department and the High school head girl - focusing on their perceptions and experiences of their leadership and the school’s culture. My research findings show that an understanding of the relationship between organisational culture and leadership cannot be complete without acknowledging the importance of the leader as an individual, with his/her personal background and values, taking into account gender as well as the multiple roles that the individual has in society. Furthermore, the ‘humane’ characteristic of educational leadership leads to an understanding that the leader is often confronted with conflicting situations where he/she is caught between personal/organisational values and the need to achieve the task. Finally, my findings show that contemporary leaders are now called upon to work and participate in the promotion of social justice in order to fight against society’s socio-economic inequality and improve the quality of education and life.

African women in academia face various career advancement challenges. Employers’ support interventions need to be reinforced to promote an increase of African women in leadership positions. This study on the career advancement experiences of African women in leadership positions within an academic institution is exploratory in nature and based on the qualitative research method. The purpose of the study is to document the challenges, supporting factors, and strategies used by African women in academia in order to guide universities and the African women employed there who aspire to advance their careers. The data collection methods involved were in-depth interviews and a focus group. Purposive and snowball sampling methods in the form of convenience sampling were used to identify potential research participants. The sample for the study consisted of African women who were academics in leadership positions working at the Medunsa campus of the University of Limpopo. Data was analysed using thematic analysis. The results of the study suggest that African women who are academics experience career advancement challenges. Such challenges include family demands and lack of leadership training. Family support and their dedication contribute towards their advancement. Leadership training programmes and supporting structures should be established to reinforce their advancement. / Psychology / M.A. (Psychology)

The objectives of this study were to identify leadership competencies required by health services leaders, determine the role of mentorship in leadership development and, make recommendations for succession planning in the public health sector. A quantitative approach using an exploratory and descriptive design was used, with the intention of conducting a census survey. Respondents were managers in positions 11 and upward. Findings revealed that experience assisted managers in improving the technical competencies of human resources, financial and strategic planning, but not that of leadership skills and behaviour, and communication and relationship management, which required development in the form of mentorship. It is recommended that leadership development for future leaders be embedded in succession planning, based on policy guidelines. Limitations of this study were that a response rate of 30% was achieved and due to the narrow geographical coverage, the findings could not be generalised. / Health Studies / M.A. (Health Studies)