This study explored the complex world of nursing at a time of humungous change in the delivery of health care services. The initial focus of the research was registered nurses' use of knowledge in professional practice; however this was largely displaced by contextual issues, which emerged from the data. Eraut's (1992,1994) concepts of professional knowledge informed the data generation and the analysis. A broadly qualitative approach drawing on grounded theory and constructivism provided the methodological framework and the research methods involved observation and interview. The sample comprised registered nurses undertaking a four-year part-time degree in nursing studies. Twenty-seven were observed in a variety of clinical settings: sixteen of this group were subsequently interviewed. Six of their managers were then interviewed. Data analysis followed a pattern of literal, interpretive and reflective coding and revealed a number of key issues for registered nurses working in the United Kingdom at the time of the research. The nurses fell into three categories, the survivors, the battle weary and the battle hardened; the largest group being the battle weary. The key causes of the weariness originated from organizational constraints such as low staffing levels, poor teamwork and an inability to give appropriate care to their patients. The effects of battle weariness included low morale, which affected their motivation, tearfulness and a general fatigue. The 'survivors' (a minority) were characterized by a sense of purpose and a fulfillment from their work. The contexts in which the battle weary worked were likened to a war zone with a clearly defined battlefield. Significant changes to the traditional role of the ward sister/charge nurse have left the majority of nurses in this study feeling unsupported and with a lack of clinical leadership. The nurses, often only working at 'D' or 'E' grade, frequently found themselves trying to cope with conflicts in practice with nursing colleagues, with patients and with doctors.Professional knowledge used in practice included communication and interpersonal skills, teamwork, delivering 'hands on' care to patients and coping with the ever changing demands on the nursing time. A number of recommendations are made and include an 'enabling curriculum' for educating nurses at initial and post registration level, a return of the clinical leadership role for ward sisters and charge nurses and a renewal of the focus of nursing practice.

This study was carried out in Lebow a Bantustan, situated in the Northern Transvaal Region of the Republic of South Africa. This study covered the period 1989 to 1992. This period was marked by considerable unrest and upheaval in Black education. The Black education crisis was compounded by a political climate created by the unbanning of political parties, release of political prisoners and the return of exiles in 1990, whereby several petitions for demands were handed over to the LED's Head Office and Circuit Offices, among others, by teachers (LED Annual Report, 1990: 20). The following factors were, inter alia, identified as having contributed to the educational crisis in Lebowa bantustan (LED Annual Report, 1990: 22): - * * * * * * * general campaign waged by some teachers for lawlessness, defiance and intimidation of authority; the influence of external organisations on the schools; backlogs in the provisioning of basic educational facilities; irrelevant school curriculum; teacher's low morale; lack of meaningful parental involvement in education; and limited participative decision-making and management in the schools. The mentioned factors aroused dissatisfaction and discontent among teachers. Furthermore, teachers considered education provided by the LED as perpetuating apartheid, characterised by vast disparities and uneven distribution of resources. The protesting teachers started to share this discontent. In the words of Jenkins and Perrow (1977: 250) when widespread and shared discontent increases, collective efforts to alleviate this state of affairs occur. In the case of protesting teachers the South African Democratic Teachers' Union was founded. The focus of this study, therefore, will be to describe and analyze the occurrences and effects of teacher protest activities in Lebowa for the period between 1989 and 1992. The more specific research questions will concern: * Socio-political, administrative, demographic, physical, financial and educational conditions existed, in which a teacher protest movement could take root. These factors aroused discontent and a resultant general belief among some teachers that the education received by blacks was inferior; * Transformation of collective beliefs into collective actions and mobilisation. * Teachers became convinced that movement participation was an effective way of redressing grievances. As such SADTU attempted to mobilise consensus among the protesting teachers. Consensus mobilisation was done through the aid of frame alignment processes (e.g. bridging, amplification and transformation) and four group processes (e.g. consciousness-raising, collective empowerment, polarisation and collective decision-making). The latter created a willingness to sacrifice personal welfare for a collective cause; and the impact of teacher protest activities on the Lebowa government, the LED's official duties, pupil/student performances and the parents. Not only did the disruptions and protests retard the learning process in schools, but also contributed towards the poor std 10 examination results. The LED officials were adversely affected by these actions. Some teachers and principals were intimidated and threatened (Case Register no's: 123/11/91 at Police stations and 48/10/92 at Gompies Police Station). Protesting teachers advocated for defiance campaigns against LED's authorities, inspectors and principals (TUATA, 1990: 26). Parents and community at large lost trust and confidence in the teachers for the education of their children. / Dissertation (MA)--University of Pretoria, 1995. / gm2014 / Humanities Education / unrestricted

The purpose of this qualitative study was to construct a theoretical framework explaining the connection between principal leadership practices and the phenomenon of teacher morale. The study also focused on principal leadership practices and the perceived effects that style has on how teachers feel about themselves and their jobs. First, a review of extant literature defined what constitutes effective leadership in school related environments. Second, the researcher defined teacher morale, both high and low, and how it relates to work performance. Third, the researcher attempted to explore how teacher morale and the leadership style of their principals relate. This qualitative study was conducted using interviews of teachers from 7 public elementary schools. Post interview journaling was also conducted by the researcher to capture immediate author perspective. The teachers were interviewed to gain their perceptions of leadership practices that motivate them to enjoy their jobs and work beyond status quo. With information gleaned from teachers, the desired outcome of this research was for principals to self-evaluate their leadership strategies and style and to find importance in building high teacher morale for the betterment of everyone. The researcher coded transcripts into themes, patterns, and the following theoretical constructs: (a) change, (b) leadership practices, (c) mandated testing, (d) stress, (e) communication, (f) acknowledgment, (g) professionalism (h) identifying with teachers, and (i) building community.

Rationalisation and redeployment of educators in South Africa negatively affects teaching and learning in schools. The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of educators and stakeholders on rationalisation and redeployment as a policy. The study was conducted in schools of the Mopani district in Limpopo Province. Limpopo schools experience redeployment every year as the learner enrolment fluctuates. This increase or decrease of learner enrolment causes compulsory transfer of educators from the school with low enrolment to the school with greater enrolment. A legal framework, social justice and transformational leadership theory underpinned this study. The study used a qualitative research framework and methodology located within the constructivist paradigm to explore the experiences of educators and stakeholders on rationalisation and redeployment as a policy. This qualitative study employed a case study design, the case being redeployment of educators. Principals, educators, secretaries of school governing bodies, union members and circuit managers were selected as stakeholders to participate in the study. Semi-structured, face-to-face interviews were conducted with principals, secretaries of governing bodies, union members and circuit managers. Two focus groups with educators, who were once redeployed, were used, one from a primary school and the other from a secondary school. Observations and document analysis were also used in this study for triangulation. Data were coded and analysed through qualitative content analysis. The study found that rationalisation and redeployment affect the morale of educators It was also revealed that principals use the process for their personal advancement. Again, rationalisation and redeployment hinder the school performance as it takes place in the middle of the year. This study recommended that rationalisation and redeployment be done once within a three-year cycle. It was also recommended that redeployed educators should be counselled to boost their low morale. / Educational Management and Leadership / Ph. D. (Education Leadership and Management)