A principal's management of an urban secondary school in a turbulent environment : with special reference to KwaZulu schools.
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Date
1993
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Abstract
The crisis in Black Education has dramatically influenced the manner in which
principals manage their schools.
What is clear is that for more than a decade school principal's have been faced with
a complex task of managing schools in a changing environment, which is
characterised by many upheavals.
It would seem that every school principal will inevitably have to reconceptualise the
school as a management structure and perhaps, accept certain guidelines for
effective management of his school.
Therefore, the specific purposes of the study were:
to investigate the problems encountered by principals, who are
assigned the duty of managing the schools in an unstable
environment;
to put forward proposals for effective management in a changing
environment.
In this study special attention was paid to the management of urban secondary
schools under the Department of Education and Culture, KwaZulu.
The major findings which emerged from the study are that :
from 1976 to 1991 the school environment has not been stable enough
for the principals to be able to practise their management and
leadership skills effectively.
that a number of factors within and outside the school have contributed
to the disorder encountered in the schools;
although principals continued in their positions as heads, they had
almost no authority to suppress the unrest that threatened the normal
functioning of their schools;
that principals have to be innovative and flexible enough, to deal with
the situation as it presents itself;
that as long as the legitimacy of the KwaZulu Education System
remains questionable to the communities, teachers and the pupils it
servers, unrest in schools, under this Department, will never be
eliminated and therefore principals will always remain deprived of their
opportunity to manage their schools effectively.
The study concludes with several recommendations arising out of the study. The
most important being :
the establishment of a single based purely on academic considerations
rather than political considerations;
as the school is part of its surrounding environment, recognition must
be given to the norms, values and attitudes of the community from
which its pupils are drawn;
unrest related problems, that affect both the home and the school, can
be overcome if parents meet regularly with principals and teachers and
have discussions on matters of common concern, such as reducing the
incident of truancy, methods of curbing drug abuse, methods of
handling adolescent problems and selection of subject packages;
maintenance of firm, fair and consistent discipline is essential for
effective management of a school.
Description
Thesis (M.Ed.) - University of Natal, Durban, 1993.
Keywords
School management and organization--KwaZulu-Natal., High school principals--KwaZulu-Natal., Theses--Education., High schools--KwaZulu-Natal--Administration.