D.Ed. (Educational Management) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

Schools, like all organizations, are undergoing radical changes in the way that their business is conducted. "One of the most significant of these is that leadership, rather than management, needs to be seen as the most crucial focus for institutional development and growth in the years ahead," (Whitaker, 1993). In these projects I focus on three dimensions of leadership. First, a critical review of literature on the expected roles of principals in schools. Second, a case study of change management at a South African senior secondary school; and finally, a situational analysis of my organization with regard to organizational structure, leadership, decision making, communication and interpersonal relationships.

A dissertation submitted to the FACULTY OF EDUCATION at the UNIVERSITY OF ZULULAND in fulfilment or partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF EDUCATION in the Department of Educational Planning and Administration, 1986. / What this research is about, is contained in the title. It is thus essential to analyse concepts in the title in order to establish a common understanding of the study.

Dissertation submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF EDUCATION in the Department of Educational Planning and Administration at the University of Zululand, 2003. / The purpose of this study has been to determine the challenges facing female managers in the schools that they manage in the Emondlo circuit of the Nqutu district. Literature, strategies and models were used to determine empirically how the female managers manage their schools effectively. Little has been documented about the challenges facing female managers in the new dispensation in South Africa. In addition, little attention is paid to support them in their management roles in schools. In this study, a self-administered questionnaire method was used to gather data. A 31-item questionnaire was developed to determine the perceptions of respondents regarding the challenges facing female managers at Emondlo circuit. A random sample of 11 schools managed by females were chosen. In each school, the questionnaire was filled in by the female school manager only. The empirical investigation conducted revealed that the female managers experienced problems including discipline and absenteeism among both educators and learners. The study also revealed that some of them lacked relevant management skills and knowledge. The study finally revealed that some female managers have greater barriers to overcome than their male counterparts and that discrimination is a major obstacle to their advancement. Finally, conclusions were drawn with regard to data gathered from the literature as well as from empirical research findings. In this study, some recommendations are made with regard to research findings. It was found that workshops, staff development programmes and seminars are some of the best strategies in helping the female managers to perform their duties effectively.

Submitted in partial fulfilment of a Masters Degree in the Department of Educational Planning and Administration at the University of Zululand, 2005. / Educational policy reform such as South African Schools Act, No. 84 of 1996 and the National Education Poiicy Act, No. 27 of 1996 require all educators to participate actively in the governance and management of their schools with the view to providing better teaching and learning environments. Educators must participate in the management processes of their schools to bring about deliberate, meaningful and effective management. This study provides both a literature review and an empirical study of strategies that principals may adopt to facilitate participative management among educators. The following key findings emanated from the study: • There is a lack of educator involvement in the management process. • Principals do arrange formal meetings with educators frequently enough but do not structure meetings tightly enough. • There is a general lack of communication between the school management team and educators. • Educators are not involved in the implementation of educational policies. The following recommendations were extrapolated from the above findings: • Principals should encourage networking between schools so as to promote interschool communication, resource sharing, staff and learner collaboration and information exchange. • Principals should conduct staff training programmes and should promote teamwork among educators in their schools. • Effective management strategies should be made explicit in training workshops and policy documents such as the South African Schools Act, No. 84 of 1996, should be discussed in educator forums. It is the fervent hope of the researcher that this study will alert principals to pitfalls of authoritarian management styles and equip principals with practical strategies and techniques to effectively facilitate participative management in their respective schools.

The research centres on the degree to which the no-fee-paying policy is influencing the financial management of schools in Soshanguve. The no-fee-paying policy stems from the Education Laws Amendment Act 24 of 2005 according to which the levying of mandatory fees was abolished at public schools that are declared no-fee-paying institutions. The state funded these newly declared no-fee-paying schools in order to create greater access to quality education and to improve the educational resources and equipment in impoverished schools. According to the findings of this research, there is little or no financial management in the former underprivileged schools in Soshanguve. This lack of proper financial management in these schools appears to be due to the lack of capacity within both the schools and the school governing bodies themselves. In addition, there appears to be a lack of equality and equity between the formerly underprivileged schools and the advantaged schools. In the words of Fiske and Ladd (2004b:248), equality and equity seem to be elusive. Schools in the cities are still advantaged since the parents are paying fees and schools are managing their funds, while parents in the township schools (especially in Soshanguve) have been found to be unsupportive financially. This is probably because communities around the schools are, in the main, poverty stricken. / Public Administration / D. Litt. et. Phil. (Public Administration)

Full Thesis / Education in South Africa has undergone numerous changes in recent years, all of which contributed to an increase in the workload of educators and school leaders. New ideologies that impacted on the education system, concurred with democratisation. The implementation of new curricula which were underpinned by Outcomes Based Education (OBE), led to many changes. The decentralisation of authority to school-based management increased the responsibilities of principals. Principals are not necessarily professionally equipped to perform their task. The workload of school principals is becoming increasingly unmanageable and many principals, especially those in secondary schools, are constrained by insufficient time as well as a proper understanding of their leadership task. They frequently encounter situations which demand from them new and improved skills, knowledge and attitudes in order to cope with the wide range of demands and changes. The primary purpose of this study was to determine the level of managerial and leadership skills of principals in selected secondary schools in the Lejweleputswa education district. Fifteen schools were selected as a convenient sample from all secondary schools. Of these, five were classified as dysfunctional (grade 12 pass rate of below 50%), five were “at risk” schools (pass rate between 50 and 60%) and five “passing” schools. From the literature review, nineteen critical management and leadership skills were identified and used as basis for the self-compiled questionnaire. The data collected from the questionnaire was used to determine the management competencies of principals. In turn, this information was analysed to determine the training needs of principals which were subsequently compared to the contents of the new Advanced Certificate in School Management and Leadership (ACE:SML). The aim of this comparison was to determine whether the ACE: SML responded adequately to the identified training needs of principals. The data revealed the substantial inadequacy of managerial and leadership skills of principals in the Lejweleputswa Education District. It was further found that the Advanced Certificate in Education: School Management and Leadership did not cover all essential skills identified in this study. The recommendation was made that a comprehensive needs analysis which covers the entire country, is done and to subsequently use the results it yields to implement corrective measures. It was also recommended that the ACE: SML be revised to include the development of all identified skills.

Thesis (Ph.D.) - Central University of Technology, Free State, 2010 / Newly appointed principals are facing enormous challenges as managers of their schools today. When they are first appointed, many begin their work with a lot of uncertainty, anxiety and frustration due to lack of assistance, guidance and support. As principals of schools, newly appointed principals are expected to perform to the best of their ability in order to ensure that their schools succeed and achieve the best possible results. The constant changes in education require the newly appointed principal to adapt to these changes and to acquire the necessary knowledge and skills in order to implement the policies, regulations and procedures. Without proper guidance and support most newly appointed principals are unlikely to succeed. It is therefore necessary that these principals are exposed to induction and mentoring opportunities in order to capacitate them and enhance their performance and their competencies. Newly appointed principals should first be exposed to an induction programme after their arrival at work. The induction programme should subsequently be followed by a mentoring programme whereby a mentor is assigned to the newly appointed principal. The purpose of this study is to develop an induction and mentoring programme to assist newly appointed principals in selected education districts in the Free State province. The qualitative approach is used in this study as it seeks to represent reality from the perspectives of the participant, without interfering with or biasing that perspective, in their own words and using their own concepts. To analyse data for this study the researcher used coding in order to categorise data into themes. The findings of this study reveal that all the schools do not have a policy for the induction and mentoring of newly appointed principals. The study also revealed that schools did not have a formal induction and mentoring programme and as a result, there were not enough induction and mentoring opportunities for new principals in their first year as principals. It was also found that no monitoring and evaluation was done due to lack of formal programmes in the schools. It is recommended that a policy for the induction and mentoring programme be formulated in schools. Those responsible for inducting and mentoring newly appointed principals must ensure that the programme is properly managed in order for it to succeed. The induction and mentoring programme should be thoroughly planned in order to meet the needs of the newly appointed principals. Before implementing any programme it is essential that the training needs of newly appointed principals are identified. These needs should then be prioritised in relation to the needs they are intended to serve. The induction programme should have carefully formulated objectives so that the programme can address the needs of newly appointed principals appropriately. It is important therefore that this programme be monitored at all times in order to ascertain whether it is meeting the objectives of the programme. The induction and mentoring programme for newly appointed principals should be evaluated at the end in order to determine the success and impact of the programme on newly appointed principals.

This study describes the research that was carried out at a boys-only primary school in the Pinetown District of Kwazulu-Natal. The study was conducted with the purpose of investigating the management duties undertaken by the principal regarding time, staff and curriculum. In order to achieve the aim of this study the main research question was formulated, that is: How does the principal of X primary boys-only school manage the administrative and instructional programme in the process of executing his duties? Chapter One orientates the reader regarding the purpose, research problem, motivation and design of the study. Chapter Two provides the theoretical framework in terms of the types of school management models with particular focus on the democratic management model and the systems theory. Qualitative research in the form of in-depth interviews and participant observation was undertaken in an attempt to answer the research question. Interviews were conducted with the school principal and four educators. Chapter Four presents the findings of the study which highlight the role of the principal in managing the aspects of the school while he delegates the various areas of management to the members of staff. The findings further reveal the principal’s involvement in all the processes from inception to end. Chapter Five concludes the study summatively. The chapter includes a brief account of what the study covered, assumptions made in the theoretical framework, and draws important conclusions and makes relevant recommendations about the management duties of the school principal. / Educational Studies / M.Ed. (Education Management)

Die bestuursverantwoordelikhede van die skoolhoo ten opsigte van skoolsport is vanuit 'n juridies-opvoedkundige perspektief ondersoek. Sport is eerstens in 'n opvoed­ kundige perspektief geplaas en daar is onder andere gewys op die plek van sport binne die onderwysstelsel en die waarde van sport vir die kind as opvoedeling. Daarna is vanuit 'n bestuursperspektiebesin oar aangeleenthede wat verband hou met skoolsport, met besondere verwysing na die bestuurstake van die skoolhoof. Die navorsing behels oak 'n bespreking van relevante juridiese aspekte en die implikasies daarvan vir skoolbestuur. In die lig van die navorsing is riglyne neergelen aanbevelings gemaak wat grater doeltreffendheid vir die bestuur van skoolsport tot gevolg sal h . / The managerial responsibilities of the headmaster with regard to sport in schools have been examined from a juridical educational point-of-view. Firstly sport is viewed from an inter alia, its educational perspective in order to show, place and value to the child within the educational system. Secondly sport is considered from a managerial perspective in order to consider managerial responsibilities regarding school sports with special reference to the headmaster as manager of the shcool. Thirdly this research contains a discourse of relevant juridical aspects, and their implications regarding school management vis-a-vis the headmaster. In consequence, this research has led to guidelines and recommendations which should enable a headmaster to effect a more efficient system of management with regard to school sports. / Educational Leadership and Management / M. Ed. (Onderwysbestuur)