Education within South Africa has undergone significant change within a short period of time. This change has primarily been written in terms of human rights and the equitable distribution of educational resources. This has necessitated a paradigm shift for many teachers and the study explores some of the factors that have prevented teachers from experiencing a paradigm shift. The introduction of the South African Schools Act of 1996 heralded the start of the complete abolition of corporal punishment within all South African schools. The object of this investigation was to explore teachers' attitudes towards the abolition of corporal punishment and the factors that would contribute towards their attitude. The research explored whether the attitude of teachers, in relation to corporal punishment, had been influenced by the disruptive behaviour of pupils and their perceptions of the efficacy of alternate methods of behaviour management.

A research report submitted to the Faculty of Education, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Education degree. / Educationalists throughout the ages have supported the belief that corporal punishment creates harmful effects and should be avoided at all costs. Furthermore, corporal punishment has been found to be neither effective nor permanent in stopping undesirable behaviour in the classroom. Despite the evidence however, South Africa frequently used corporal punishment for the sake of discipline, social control and even 'moral education'. In the not too distant past, it was sanctioned by law, by parents and by teachers (Rice, 1987). However, in 1994 judicial corporal punishment was outlawed and corporal punishment at schools became unconstitutional (clause 3(n) of the National Education Policy Bill, 1995; clause 22 of the Gauteng Schools Education Bill). While policy and legislatlon must play their role, this is not enough to bring about a change in the practices and perceptions of teacher's at the grass roots. An understanding of its harmful effects, and recognition of alternatives is necessary in order to bring about its complete abolishment. This study investigates teachers' and pupils attitudes to corporal punishment as well as what discipline strategies are being used and are considered effective. A sample of teachers and pupils were randomly selected from private, oommunity and public high school types. A total of 602 subjects participated in this study (240 teachers and 362 pupils). Responses to an anonymous questionnaire were tabulated and analysed. Findings demonstrated that teachers are ambivalent towards corporal, punishment, while pupils are clearly anti-corporal punishment; and support its abolishment. Teachers do report Key Words: corporal punishment , classroom discipline. alternative discipline strategies used in the classroom. / AC2017

Education within South Africa has undergone significant change within a short period of time. This change has primarily been written in terms of human rights and the equitable distribution of educational resources. This has necessitated a paradigm shift for many teachers and the study explores some of the factors that have prevented teachers from experiencing a paradigm shift. The introduction of the South African Schools Act of 1996 heralded the start of the complete abolition of corporal punishment within all South African schools. The object of this investigation was to explore teachers' attitudes towards the abolition of corporal punishment and the factors that would contribute towards their attitude. The research explored whether the attitude of teachers, in relation to corporal punishment, had been influenced by the disruptive behaviour of pupils and their perceptions of the efficacy of alternate methods of behaviour management.

MPM / Oliver Tambo Institute of Governance and Policy Studies

MPM / Oliver Tambo Institute of of Governance and Policy Studies

This study assessed the implementation of learner discipline policies in the Graaff Reinet District in four township Secondary schools. The study arose as a result of the decline of learner discipline in secondary schools. This study is located in the interpretive paradigm and adopted a qualitative research approach in the collection of data. It employed triangulation to collect data and obtained valuable information on the implementation of learner discipline policies. Four township secondary schools in the Graaff Reinet District were purposively selected for the sample in this study. Semi-structured interviews, focus groups of learners and parents Data has revealed that schools were using different strategies to implement learner discipline such as Code of Conduct, Disciplinary hearing, Safety and Security Committee, Educators, Corporal Punishment, Alternative methods to Corporal Punishment and the role parents. Data revealed that there has been no success in implementing learner discipline strategies. There were a number of limitations in implementing policies to maintain learner disciplines which were identified in the study. There were inconsistencies like educators not supervising learners in detention classes, some of the educators were sabotaging the system by not putting into practice the measures and strategies which were put in place to maintain discipline and so forth. The School Management Teams did not capacitate the Representative Council of Learners so as to assist in the monitoring of discipline. The Department of Education is not supportive in the maintenance of discipline in the schools under study in Graaff Reinet District. To address disciplinary problems, the study has the following key recommendations Policies should be crafted by all stakeholders for ownership and there should be collaboration in implementation of those policies.. The Code of Conduct should be issued to all learners at the school at the beginning of the year in the language of preference, with school rules. Learners should know the consequences of transgressing the Code of Conduct. SMTs should adopt different management styles so as to take action against educators who are failing the system of maintaining discipline. Educators should realise that it is their duty to maintain discipline in schools; therefore they should stop complaining about disciplinary problems. Educators should engage the Department of Education to conduct workshops in building capacity of educators to maintain learner discipline. Schools should establish partnerships with other sister Departments such as SAPS, Social Development, Correctional Services, Health to, maintain learner discipline.

Department of Curriculum Studies and Education Management / MEd

MEd / Department of Education Management

South Africa's education management system has undergone a long history of transformation from the promulgation of the Bantu Education Act of 1953 to the realisation of democracy, and in this context, the South Mrican Schools Act (SASA) of l996. Apartheid legislation and the new democratic legislation have had a profound impact on the education leadership and management of schools, in which authoritarian management practices have been replaced by democratic management practices. However, democratic management practices have not yet had a significant effect in the leadership and management of schools, especially in the schools of previously disadvantaged areas. This thesis seeks to examine perceptions held by education stakeholders in the light of the rights of students as stipulated in the discipline provisions of the Schools Act of 1996, in one of the rural high schools in the Northern Region of the Eastern Cape Province. One of the most important discipline provisions is the ban on corporal punishment in schools. My intention in carrying out this research was not to generalise my findings but to understand the experiences and perceptions of the stakeholders in this school regarding the discipline provisions of the SASA. The data suggest that authoritarian education practices, especially corporal punishment, are still a factor in the maintenance of student discipline in this rural school. Stakeholders still believe in the use of corporal punishment as the only way of maintaining discipline and an orderly environment for teaching and learning. Such beliefs, assumptions and values concerning the use of corporal punishment are held by the principal, teachers, students and parents and have not changed since 1996. Beliefs, assumptions and values on the exclusive use of power by the principal on issues of suspension and expulsion are still being held by the above stakeholders in the school. The vision of the SASA that schools become autonomous institutions with democratic leadership and management practices does not seem to be practical because of the centralisation of power in the hands of the Provincial Head of the Education Department. This centralisation of power denies the principal and other stakeholders of the school the power to decide on crucial matters like the expulsion of misbehaving students, because it is the provincial Head who decides on the seriousness of offences committed by misbehaving students and subsequent expulsions. Apart from the location of power in the Provincial Head of the Education Department, the stakeholders of this school are also powerless on expulsion of students, or any other form of punishment because of the implication of the "right" to education in the Bill of Rights in the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa. The education department has to devise programmes that change the beliefs and assumptions of stakeholders on corporal punishment and decision-making on expulsions and suspensions. Unfortunately corporal punishment persists because parents use it in the home and support its use in school. Programmes on alternatives to corporal punishment are required for the smooth implementation of the SASA.

While some research has been done on the use of corporal punishment in South African schools, there is a dearth of research on other forms of punishment and little has been done to research the meaning of punishment. This study explores the meaning of punishment in a high school context and focuses on the different attitudes of parents, teachers and pupils, with a view to identifying, in particular, how they justify the use of punishment. A sample of 50 pupils, 30 teachers and 30 parents were selected for the study. Focus groups and a questionnaire with closed and open-ended questions were used to collect the data. The questionnaire was constructed to explore themes which emerged in the focus group discussions . Results were grouped into themes and arranged by tables , and the Chi-square test of statistical significance was used to analyze some of the data. The results show that the meaning and the approach to punishment is differently construed by participants. Parents construe punishment as an educative instrument and a disciplinary measure used for the good of pupils and the society. Teachers see it as a discip1inary measure, a strategy used for effective learning, and a negative stimulus used to inflict pain towards the goal of an orderly school environment. To pupils the punishment scene provides an opportunity for what they perceive as sadistic enjoyment and as something negative which is used by teachers to vent their own frustrations. Participants agree that clear, consensually agreed upon rules should be set to regulate school behaviour and that there should be clear and consensually agreed upon ways of ensuring that these rules are adhered to; and constructive ways of dealing with violation of these rules. The central concern seems to be to move away from a retributive, punitive mode of thinking about punishment, towards a purposeful one. The implications of the research findings are discussed in the context of existing literature in the area and in relation to policy development.