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An investigation into the promotion opportunities for women educators in the KwaZulu Department of Education and Culture with particular reference to high schools in Umlazi.

In education women outnumber men as teachers, but the top positions

are almost entirely dominated by men. Shakeshaft (1987:20), using data

collected for education systems in the United States of America noted

that in 1984-5, only 3,0 percent of the district superintendents were

women, although 50,1 percent of all secondary school teachers and 83,5

percent of all elementary school teachers were women. According to

Blampied (1989), the data obtained from the 1987 statistical returns from

government schools under the Natal Education Department indicated that

the number of women in education administration was disproportionately

lower than the number of men in congruent positions. It was decided that

the situation deserved to be tested in schools administered by the

KwaZulu Department of Education and Culture. According to the survey

of secondary schools administered by the KwaZulu Department of

Education and Culture, in respect of the 230 Junior Secondary schools in

the sample, 86,5 percent of the school principals were male and the

incidence of male principals was even greater in high schools (Thurlow

1993:32).

The study of selected literature led to the finding of possible barriers to

the career advancement of women educators. The barriers were

classified into two broad categories - internal barriers, relating to

psychological factors; and external barriers, which related to institutional,

societal and organizational structures.

A questionnaire was designed to attempt to ascertain if any congruency

could be identified between the barriers perceived by other researchers

and those which according to the respondents existed in schools

administered by the KwaZulu Department of Education and Culture.

The most commonly cited obstacle to the upward mobility of women was

discrimination against them. There were suggestions that women were

generally valued less than men. Women were treated as inferior in law,

politics, religion and education as well as in society generally. Other

barriers to promotion which were frequently alluded to related to the

perception that some women were not interested in vertical career

mobility but preferred to remain in the classroom rather than seek a

position which would distance them from teaching.

The evidence also suggested that although the larger proportion of the

respondents were keen to receive a promotion, they thought they would

not be promoted because they considered the allocation of promotions to

be unfair. It was however noted that women educators who have made

some progress on the promotional ladder perceived fewer obstacles to

their advancement than unpromoted respondents. / Thesis (M.Ed.) - University of Natal, 1994.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:ukzn/oai:http://researchspace.ukzn.ac.za:10413/3057
Date January 1994
CreatorsNzimande, Hettie Nomthandazo.
ContributorsThurlow, Michael.
Source SetsSouth African National ETD Portal
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
TypeThesis

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