South African public schools in disadvantaged areas are experiencing serious levels of under resourcing which negatively impact the educational experiences of learners. Attempts to lessen such negative impact include involving alumni who know the school‟s context, history and ethos. Unfortunately, the concept of alumni support in terms of mentoring and motivating learners is not the norm in many under resourced schools. This research focuses on fostering partnerships with alumni using participatory action research (PAR), because it is holistic, relationally driven and inclusive. Embedded in complexity theory that views the school community as a nonlinear system of different interacting parts functioning to improve the school context, the research follows actionreflection cycles of a group of ten past pupils and five educators from various backgrounds, levels of education and expertise collaborating with and mobilizing other alumni. Data were generated using drawings, photo voice and interviews. Thematic data analysis was used to build patterns and form categories. The following themes emerged namely, the importance of establishing a collective vision for sustained alumni engagement for alumni‟s personal and professional aspirations to serve the vision of the school, the importance of creating an alumni culture that reinforces the concept of „paying it forward‟. Lastly, establishing a sustainable alumni association through sustained actions and interactions and by creating an organisation of excellence The newly developed alumni structure as a „resource fountain‟ generating and cascading energy around the school emerged as an anchor for sustainability. The cascaded energy evolved into a structured „Alumni Week‟ providing ongoing motivation for current learners to sustain alumni engagement.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:nmmu/vital:27438 |
| Date | January 2017 |
| Creators | Rensburg, Cheryl Dawn |
| Publisher | Nelson Mandela University, Faculty of Education |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis, Doctoral, DEd |
| Format | xv, 223 leaves, pdf |
| Rights | Nelson Mandela University |
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