This study, drawing on the Progress in International Reading Literacy (PIRLS) Literacy 2016 learner achievement data, aimed to examine the relationship between teacher profiles in terms of teachers’ age, years of experience and formal qualification, teachers’ participation in formal and informal professional development activities and South African Grade 4 learners’ reading literacy achievement when controlling for the socio-economic status of the learners. To accommodate all the variables used in the study, a new conceptual framework was developed. This study was initiated as a result of the PIRLS Literacy 2016 results which revealed that South African Grade 4 learners achieved the lowest reading literacy scores out of the 6 participating countries. This study is a secondary analysis utilising standard multiple regression analysis of the PIRLS Literacy 2016 achievement data and the contextual data from the teacher and school questionnaires. The study’s results revealed that there is no statistically significant relationship between South African teachers’ participation in either formal or informal professional development and learners’ reading literacy achievement. Based on the literature however, the emphasis was placed on the educational significance of teachers’ participation in effective professional development activities. / Dissertation (MEd)--University of Pretoria 2020. / Science, Mathematics and Technology Education / MEd / Unrestricted

This study investigated teachers' perceptions of African- American principals' leadership and the extent to which those perceptions varied according to their race, gender, years of teaching experience, and years working with the principal. The results of this exploratory study are intended to enhance the empirical data reflecting the leadership characteristics of the African-American principal and to contribute to the research on leadership in general. The participants in this study consisted of 32 African-American principals and 164 teachers in schools representing 12 states during the 2004-2005 school year. Each teacher participant completed either an electronic or paper version of the Leadership and Management of Schools Survey Instrument (LMSS) which addressed the leadership and management traits of the principal and the demographic data on the teachers. The findings indicated that African-American principals are perceived as using high levels of transformational and transactional leadership. Additionally, results indicated that race influences the leadership credibility of the African-American principal. There did not appear to be a significant relationship between teachers' perceptions and gender of a teacher, gender of the principal, or both, and no relationship was found between the years of teachers' experience and their perceptions of the African- American principals. However, teachers' perceptions of African- American principals' leadership and management qualities increased positively with the number of years of experience working with the principal. Indications from these findings can be useful to universities, colleges, and school districts in making informed decisions concerning the training, recruitment, and placement of African-American principals.