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Exploring orientation speeches of school principals : inspirational invitations to student teachers.Naidoo, Somadhanum. January 2011 (has links)
The purpose of this study was to gain a deeper understanding of the messages conveyed by
principals in one context, that of well resourced schools. The contents of the messages and
how these messages are influenced by the context of the schools were interrogated. Also of
relevance are principals presenting a desirably, inviting message about the teaching
profession. This study is part of the TP120 project that is being conducted by the University
of Kwa-Zulu Natal to evaluate the placing of context at the centre of a learning to teach
approach. The school environment has become diverse and dynamic since the
implementation of changes after 1994. Teacher training institutions are faced with trying to
adequately prepare teachers to adapt and adjust. The thinking therefore, is to include diverse
contexts as one of the major components in the teacher education curriculum. One initiative
to achieve this is to enlist the help of principals, who are the experienced counterparts in
schools, to assist university personnel with the training of student teachers. This is done when
first year student teachers are taken to schools of varying contexts and where principals are
given an opportunity to address these students. The belief is that, what principals say prepares
students teachers for the world of work in a particular context. A case study using the
interpretivist paradigm was conducted with the participants being principals in well resourced
schools. The participating schools and the participants were selected by pre-determined
criteria in keeping with the requirements of the TP120 project. The principals’ speeches were
recorded and transcribed. Thereafter a discourse analysis was embarked on. The theories that
underpin this study are the invitational theory of Purkey and Novak (1996) and the learning
to teach approach of Amin and Ramrathan (2009). The findings show that a well resourced
context is established and maintained through hard work, dedication, commitment and
support of all stakeholders. The messages conveyed by the principals prepare the student
teachers for the teaching profession in general and for the well resourced context in
particular. The main conclusion of this study is that principals can be an invaluable source of
knowledge to student teachers and can assist in teacher training. They articulated a sense of
purpose and direction and inspire the student teachers by motivating, encouraging, guiding
and inviting them to the teaching profession. Recommendations of the study were that the
universities should continue to provide student teachers with the opportunity of experiencing
different contexts, principals can be provided with guidelines on what to talk about in their
orientation speeches, student teachers should prepare questions to get clarity on issues in
particular contexts and principals can be provided with professional development around
communicating motivational and inspirational orientation speeches. Recommendations for further research are that a variety of contexts be researched or the student teachers can be
interviewed to gauge the exact message that they go away with. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Edgewood, 2011.
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Teachers teaching in adversarial conditions : a narrative inquiry.Varathaiah, Moses Krishnamurthi. January 2011 (has links)
This study explores the concepts of adversity, the facets of adversity and the nature of
adversity and how teachers cope under these adversarial conditions. Adversity is a
phenomenon that is challenging to grasp yet it affects people daily. In this study, “those
people” are the teachers whom I have engaged with. Adversity comes in different forms and
under different circumstances and is very much a part of every persons life. These forms
include physical structures, emotional inter-relationships and social interaction with teachers,
learners and the community. Adversity in the context of this study means to have a great
measure of misfortune, hardships, difficulty, danger, harsh conditions and hard times as these
have negative connotations to it.
The participants in this study share, impart, reveal and disclose both their personal
experiences at home, with their families and professional experiences at school with the main
stakeholders being the learners. The professional experience of adversity includes teacher
intensification, for example, more administrative work, large class sizes, teaching second and
third language learners, lack of promotion opportunities, educators with HIV/ AIDS, lack of
educational resources such as computers and overhead projectors, changing curriculum,
multicultural educational challenges, more meetings during school time and school fund
raising. Educators salaries and their qualifications were another issue that needed to be
addressed. Teachers reflect on their efforts to pursue tertiary studies, the cost they have
incurred and the sacrifices they have made to achieve their diplomas and degrees. With this in
mind teachers find that the remuneration they receive for the sacrifices they have made
certainly do not match the efforts of their endeavors. Years of studying and the intellectual
capacity needed to acquire a teaching diploma and degree remain unrewarded. Teachers
continue to compare the salaries of employees in the private sector to those of the public
sector. Teaching therefore, seems to more of a service than that of a ‘job’. The financial
rewards for teachers continue to allude them. The state does not provide sufficient incentives
for teachers to remain in the profession. Therefore, many teachers look for ‘greener pastures’
.Teachers find employment outside the teaching profession in the private sector or even
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emigrate to cities like London to seek better financial rewards. Teachers acknowledge that to
teach, one requires passion and dedication and zeal for it.
This study concentrates on how teachers cope, manage, handle and deal with such
conditions in the school setting. These conditions include high volumes of administration,
learner apathy, miscommunication with senior management and the employer, handling
difficult learners and parents and coping with limited resources. This study reveals how
teachers survive these difficult conditions. It further explores the reasons and factors that
motivate these teachers to continue teaching. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Edgewood, 2011.
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Teacher involvement in decision-making in finance and curriculum matters.Chili, Johnson Mpiyakhe Johnny. January 2011 (has links)
Since 1994, South Africa has experienced a focus on transformation. The National
Department of Education has refocused the vision and direction of the South
African education system through a series of policy initiatives. As a result of new
legislation in South Africa, considerably more authority and responsibility for
decision-making has been devolved to the school level than was the previously
the case (Lumby, Middlewood&Kaabwe, 2003). This study investigates teacher
involvement in decision-making in finance and curriculum matters in 16 selected
rural schools in Maphumulo circuit. . The study sought to investigate the extent to
which teachers’ actual and desired involvement in decision-making in Finance
matters and Curriculum.
Through the interpretive paradigm of the situation quantitative and qualitative
approaches were used to provide rich and picture. The study utilized a
questionnaire and focus group interviews to investigate the finance area in eight
issues: budgeting, purchasing, record keeping, financial reporting, fundraising,
monitoring, auditing and accounting. The second area was curriculum with seven
issues: selection of books, year plans, work schedules and lesson plans, assessment
(tests and projects) time tabling, language policy and instructional methods. Findings
show that in both decision-making areas teachers tend to experience less
decisional involvement than they desire. However, teachers do not necessarily
desire to be involved in every aspect of the selected areas. I therefore conclude
that school leaders need to invest in understanding what teachers desire to be
involved in and what they do not. / Thesis (M.Ed.) - University of KwaZulu-Natal, Edgewood, 2011.
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Teacher attrition : experiences of four school principals in the Umlazi District.Meyiwa, Nompumelelo Priscilla. January 2011 (has links)
Teacher attrition is common in developed, developing and underdeveloped countries. School
principals are tasked with a responsibility to oversee that teaching and learning takes place as
smoothly and efficiently as possible and to handle whatever disturbance that takes place in a
school including teacher. Teacher attrition affects them directly as it interferes with planning
and daily routine in the school. There are many factors which influence teacher attrition such
as poor working conditions, poor pay, stress, pursuit of “greener pastures” and many others.
This study seeks to explore and document the experiences of school principals regarding
teacher attrition. It is a case study of four school principals from Umlazi district. The main
research question is: What are the experiences of school principals with regards to teacher
attrition? The purpose is to document the experiences of school principals and; to identify
factors which influence teacher attrition. I intend to examine challenges experienced by
principals with regards to teacher attrition and to find out how principals manage these
challenges.
This is a qualitative study from an interpretive approach. It explores the experiences of school
principals after a teacher transfers, resigns or even dies. Case study is used because of the
nature of the study (small scale). Semi-structured interviews were used to collect data. These
recorded and transcriptions were done personally. Data was coded according to emerging
themes during analysis then interpreted in order to make meaning. Sampling is purposeful
and school principals both at Primary and Secondary school level are the respondents as I
believed their experiences would not be the same. The findings revealed that the common
experiences of school principals during teacher attrition were frustration and stress;
disruption of learning and compromised student performance and lack of support of the
Department of Education. Resignations were influenced by job dissatisfaction and jobrelated
stress. These forced teachers to pursue “greener pastures” in the business sector as
well as private sector. It also emerged that school principals were experiencing a lot of
frustrating and stressful challenges during teacher attrition and most of them found it hard to
cope with these challenges. They also complained about the lack of support from the
education department. The findings are based only on data collected during interviews.
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These findings are going to help the Department of Education to devise new strategies that
will help school principals cope better with teacher attrition and also find ways of speeding
up the teacher replacement process in order to prevent loss of contact time. Principals also got
a platform to voice their concerns whilst they shared their experiences. / Thesis (M.Ed.) - University of KwaZulu-Natal, Edgewood, 2011.
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Transforming township schools into learning organisations : the challenges of leadership and management.Dlungwane, Bongani Johannes. January 2012 (has links)
The purpose of this study was to establish challenges associated with leadership and
management in transforming township schools into learning organisations. The study examined
the leadership and management styles that promote schools into learning organisations. Post
apartheid South Africa heralded changes in society and the educational system as a whole.
Both transition from the apartheid era and the advent of a democratic government in 1994
resulted in the restructuring of education in this country. School managers and leaders are faced
with situations in which effective and efficient school management requires new demands and
challenges. During the apartheid era educational managers were subjected to many forms of
suppression, which favoured the previous government. The education system was characterized
as being authoritarian, non-consultative and non-participatory. Educational leadership focused
on technical and bureaucratic functions of the school, and greater emphasis was placed on
vertical structures. Leadership and management in South Africa today calls for a different
mindset. The challenge is for leaders to recreate schools as learning organisations that focus on
results and accountability. Real transformation will depend upon the nature and quality of
internal management and how principals execute, delegate, consult and participate with all
stakeholders. Self-management is accomplished by an internal distribution of power within the
school and in transformational leadership. School principals need to adopt a new paradigm of
leadership in which leaders are intuitive and visionary. Democratic South Africa places
emphasis on transformational leadership. The study recommends that principals need to align
themselves with the values of the constitution of the country bearing in mind democracy,
equality, human dignity, freedom and justice. The challenges and need for leadership and
management are great if education is to be uplifted and transformed. One of the main findings
of the research in the researched schools was that there was an understanding of
transformational leadership and learning organisations. The study also showed that the
understanding of these concepts help to translate school activities into better performance. / Thesis (M.Ed.) - University of KwaZulu-Natal, Edgewood, 2012.
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An exploration of grade 11 teachers' conceptions of practical work in physical sciences within the national curriculum statement (NCS) curriculum.Ngema, Sebenzile Helga. January 2011 (has links)
The introduction of the National Curriculum statement (NCS) in Further Education and Training
(FET) phase in 2005 had a great impact on classroom practice, resulting in a shift to Outcomes
Based Education (OBE). The Physical Sciences curriculum created challenges for Physical
Science teachers. The Learning Outcome (LO)-1 recommends that scientific inquiry and inquiry
based practical work be taught in Physical Sciences lessons. However, much remains to be
understood regarding teachers’ pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) in inquiry based practical
work. This study explored the conception of practical work by Grade 11 Physical Sciences
teachers within the NCS curriculum. Using the PCK as a theoretical lens, the study explored how
the Physical Sciences teachers used practical work in their teaching. Furthermore, the exploration
sought to ascertain whether there was any relationship between teachers’ perceptions of the
purpose of practical work and their use of practical work.
The data was collected by interviewing two Grade 11 Physical Sciences teachers and also by
conducting some classroom observations involving practical work to ascertain teachers’ actual
practice. The sample was drawn from two high schools at Empangeni District, in Northern
KwaZulu-Natal. The findings revealed that teachers value using practical work in teaching of
Physical Sciences. Qualitative data analysis enables recommendation to be made for the
improvement of the use of inquiry-based practical work in the teaching of Physical Sciences.
Both teachers held the view that the most important aim of practical work was to promote
conceptual understanding. During their teaching, both teachers use practical work to verify
theory through non-inquiry practical instructional practices and strategies. However, there were
limiting factors which do not provide opportunities for teachers to engage learners in inquirybased
practical work. Amongst the factors that were reported by the teachers as limiting their use
of inquiry-oriented practical work are limitations of resources, time constraints, large classes and
pressure to complete the prescribed curriculum.
It is recommended that curriculum developers through the use of subject education specialist
(SES), facilitate teachers’ transformation from expository to inquiry instruction. More
discussions on how to design and conduct inquiry-based practical work are recommended. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Edgewood, 2011.
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Exploring teacher leadership and the challenges faced by post level one teachers as they operate as leaders : a case study of two primary schools.Gumede, Knightingale Siphelele. January 2011 (has links)
Post 1994, the vision of the South African education policy terrain is to transform schools into more effective places of teaching and learning. To achieve this vision, policy suggests a shift in management practices from traditional autocratic headship to more participatory leadership practices, including the leadership of teachers.
Theorizing from a distributed leadership perspective, the aim of this study was to explore the concept of teacher leadership and the challenges that are faced by post level one teachers as they operate as leaders in their schools in the South African context. The study sought to investigate how the concept of teacher leadership was understood, how post level one teachers lead in their schools and what challenges to teacher leadership are in schools. The study was conducted in one rural and one semi-urban primary school and it was qualitative in nature. A case study methodology was suitable for this study since it was aimed at gaining teachers understanding and perceptions of teacher leadership. Different methods of collecting data were used and these included interviews, questionnaires, and document analysis. Data were analyzed thematically using Grant’s
(2008) model of teacher leadership.
The findings indicated that teacher leadership as a concept was still new to certain teachers, even though research on the topic in the South African context is increasing. Some teachers did not think of the roles they played in a school as teacher leadership. The findings further indicated that teacher leadership was experienced differently across the two schools with teacher leadership in the rural school being more restricted than the
teacher leadership in the semi-urban school, where it was more emergent. In the rural school, leadership could, at best, be described as authorized distributed leadership while in the semi-urban school, leadership could be described as dispersed distributed leadership.
In addition, the findings showed that the major barrier to teacher leadership in the rural school was resistance from the School Management Team while in the semi-urban school the major barrier to teacher leadership was a lack of time. A further barrier to teacher leadership in both schools was teachers themselves who were lazy and did not want to
take on additional leadership tasks. The study also found that the major enhancing factor to teacher leadership, particularly in the semi-urban school, was a collaborative school culture where teachers trusted each other and worked together in professional learning communities. / Thesis (M.Ed.) - University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2011.
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Leadership and professionalism : a case study of five teacher leaders in an urban primary school in Pietermaritzburg.Alexander, Bronwyn Kim. January 2012 (has links)
The main aim of educational institutions is to ensure that effective teaching and learning is
achieved. My personal ontological disposition is that in order to reach this ideal, teacher
leadership and professionalism needs to be a reality in all schools. It is for this reason that I
embarked on this study to gain a meaningful understanding of how teachers felt they could
lead schools better to ensure that they are professional places of teaching and learning. In
developing this study I focused on two key areas, which were to examine teachers
understanding of professionalism and I attempted to identify what factors enhanced or
inhibited teacher leadership and professionalism in schools.
The research methodology that I employed was a case study which was conducted in a
secondary school. I employed five data collection tools to obtain the information I required.
The first was a survey which was conducted among the entire staff of the school. The second
tool was individual interviews that focused on five teacher leaders of the school who were the
unit of analysis. The next data collection method involved all five teacher leaders in a focus
group interview. The fourth tool was observations that were carried out throughout the
research process. The final data collection tool was document analysis, which included a
range of documents varying from staff meeting minutes to department policies. In addition, I
kept a reflexive field note journal as a tool to enhance the validity of my study.
This study revealed several key findings which I feel are vital for educational success to
become a reality. At first this study revealed that teacher leadership was a reality in the case
study school and was occurring in four zones: in the classroom, collaboration, whole school
and with surrounding schools. Next this study revealed that teaching is a profession that is
underpinned by key characteristics, namely: you have to study, uplift the name of the
profession and behave and dress in a professional manner. Furthermore, this study revealed
that there were several factors that promoted teacher leadership and professionalism, like
incentives, school culture and relationships. Finally, this study revealed that there were
various barriers to teacher leadership and professionalism, like, unions, formal leadership and
teachers’ dispositions. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2012.
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The professional knowledge base and practices of school-based mentors : a study of two schools in Pietermaritzburg.Pillay, Vasantha. January 2012 (has links)
This study examines the knowledge-base of mentors in two South African schools.
Working within an interpretivist paradigm this study gained an in-depth
understanding of the knowledge, strategies and the sources of mentoring knowledge
the mentor teachers draw on to inform their mentoring practices. Data was collected
using questionnaires and semi-structured interviews from school-based mentors. The
study seeks to construct an understanding of the mentors professional knowledge
base in relation to Shulman’s (1985) model of teacher knowledge and Jones’s (2006)
model of mentoring knowledge.
The study provides a rich, holistic perspective of the mentoring knowledge mentor
teachers say informs and underpins their mentorship practices. Firstly, the findings of
this study suggest that the majority of mentors draw on their professional practice
and personal experience as teachers when enacting their mentoring roles. A central
message conveyed is that mentors must have a deep knowledge of subject matter,
curriculum issues and teaching strategies to mentor effectively. Secondly, the
findings suggest that mentor teachers draw from their personal values and
interpersonal skills to inform their practices. Since the mentors works with adult
learners careful nurturing of another’s personal and professional growth in a
collaborative and reciprocal partnership based on trust, respect, equality,
encouragement is key to the cultivation of healthy mentoring relationships.
These findings also suggest that it is important that the mentors’ practices are
effective, consistent and underpinned by a knowledge base that can serve as a point
of reference when training mentor teachers. In order to ensure this, it is necessary
to provide mentors access to adequate formalized training programmes that will
equip them with a sound knowledge base for mentoring. Mentor teachers also need
to be provided with conditions and resources within their schools that allow them to
work collaboratively with each other to construct and extend their knowledge base as
mentors. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2012.
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The factors promoting parental involvement at a secondary school in KwaZulu-Natal.Naicker, Kalavani. January 2013 (has links)
This study explores the factors that promote parental involvement at a secondary school in Kwa-Zulu Natal. The study was conducted with twelve learners from grades 10 to grade 12, six educators and six parents. The theories on parental involvement that guided the study were the ecological theory of Bronfenbrenner and the role theory. The methodology used to obtain data were interviews with learners, teachers and parents.
The literature review looked at the extent of parental involvement, the barriers experienced by parents and the benefits of parental involvement. The literature also looked at views of how parents can be encouraged to become more active in schools. The qualitative method was utilized to determine the factors promoting parental involvement. The focus group was used with the learners and the semi structured interviews was used with the teachers and parents. Themes were formed using the collected data that was organized and analyzed
The findings of the data showed that there is a need for greater parental involvement. Parents and teachers agreed that there are certain barriers that prevent parents from becoming more involved in the education of their children. There is a need for a concerted effort amongst parents and teachers to communicate and work as a team for effective teaching and learning to take place. Schools need to consider that parents face problems and they need to work with parents to overcome these barriers. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2013.
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