THE ROLE OF SCHOOL MANAGERS IN CHANGE MANAGEMENT

Get Complete Project Material File(s) Now! »

CHAPTER 3 THE ROLE OF SCHOOL MANAGERS IN CHANGE MANAGEMENT

INTRODUCTION

Credora (2001:7) emphasizes that the management of educational changes in schools has become virtually essential during the post apartheid era in South Africa. Effective organizational leadership and handling changes appropriately are thus crucial. Members of SMTs today are not only expected to be aware of the changes, but more significantly, to understand the role that they are required to play in managing these changes.
Implementation of current educational changes such as the OBE and IQMS do not only increase the managerial responsibilities of school managers, they have also led to a shift in the roles that the latter are expected to play. However the roles that members of SMTs are supposed to play today, as stipulated in education policy documents such as the Employment of Educators Act (Act 76 of 1998) and in Resolution No.8 of 2003, are no longer the same as they were prior to the present democratic South African society.
Contemporary school managers do not only find themselves faced with the challenges of managing a diverse of stakeholders in the form of educators, parents, learners and the other personnel within and outside the school (Zatman et al, 1997:29), but they are also expected to implement and manage educational changes such as the implementation of OBE and NCS, the present policies like admission and school funding as well as other changes that are experienced in schools.
The changing societal needs and expectations have also impacted on the roles and responsibilities of managers in schools.

THE ROLE OF SCHOOL MANAGERS

In response to the present increasing education changes in schools, school managers are required to pay attention to these changes and strive to play their management roles effectively. In the following section focus will be placed on the role that school managers are supposed to play in their efforts to manage some of the changes that have been outlined in section 2.5 of this study.

Professional development

Before one embarks on discussion about the roles that school managers are supposed to play in employing professional development as a strategy for managing educational changes in schools, it is necessary to give a brief description of what professional development entails.
Professional development in education has many facets. This is evident from numerous terms found in the literature to describe this concept. The terms used to describe professional development include in-service training, professional growth, continuing education, on-the-job training, human resource development and staff development.
According to Fenstermacher and Berliner (1993:3), in the past professional development was understood to refer to an activity that involved planning workshops on different topics, for which individual educators were selected. It was described as a training activity that required more comprehensive efforts in improving staff at different levels.
More recently Lombard (2003:31) defines professional development as a vehicle for improving the education of teachers and thereby the education of children. Fullan (1991:27) refers to professional development as staff development that intends to enhance the skills, attitudes, understanding and performance of teachers in their present and future roles.
•School managers as staff developers
Burns (2002:45) states that it has been realized that the efforts to bring about improvement in education often focus on several aspects such as curriculum rather than the people (the teachers and school managers) in the education system. In addition to this view, Evans (1993:121) stresses that the transformation of the education system in South Africa is aimed at addressing the poor culture of teaching and learning in schools. However for these endeavours to succeed in bringing about change effectively, members of SMTs are required to develop the stakeholders who are regarded as the key to effective improvement and quality in schools. Steyn (1999:206) stresses that focusing on people, or investing in “human capital” is the key to effective improvement and quality in schools. He further highlights that the dividends yielded include enhanced learner achievement and greater job satisfaction as well as higher morale among staff.
Members of SMTs, are expected to play a key role in identifying and planning ongoing staff development programmes and processes, within and outside the school. These programmes should aim at supporting, developing and empowering the staff so that they can keep abreast of educational trends.
If the programmes are planned well, they should offer educators a sense of renewal. These programmes need to be seen as an inspiration which is an essential ingredient for meaningful learning. School managers today are expected to plan development programmes that will make educators aware of educational challenges that require them to evoke the need for improvement of their skills.
According to Lombard (2003:3), previously improvement of teaching and the development of educators were through pre-service training. This implied that the knowledge and skills of educators were expected to be fully inculcated before their entry into the classroom. For this reason Burns (2002:47) points out that staff development initiatives by school managers were not only insufficient but often inappropriate
Lombard (2003:40) further notes that school managers used to develop educators` knowledge through strategies like organizing seminars, peer-coaching, workshops, circulars and memoranda. However current school managers need to be aware of resent continually-altering educators` needs. They are required to take cognisance of the changing educational expectations as well as the changing circumstances in schools which have created a pressing need to approach the professional development of educators differently. School managers of the post apartheid era should therefore ensure that educators are not regarded as spectators but rather as partners in both the planning and implementation of staff development programmes in schools.
Steyn (1999:200) emphasizes that if the approach chosen for the development of staff is to deal with the current problems being experienced in the South African education system, school managers are required to ensure that some of the following aims are encompassed in the development programmes for educators:
•Identification of staff needs and improvement of the performance of staff in their present positions.
•Changing teaching methods (especially with regard to OBE)
•Creating opportunities for personal fulfillment and institutional effectiveness in order to enhance creativity and facilitate changes to the system.
•Enabling staff members to co-operate in order to achieve their personal aims and those of the system.
•Providing meaningful programmes in which the strengths and talents of each individual in the system can be utilized.
•Encouraging the promotion and attainment of quality teaching and learning.
Dufour and Berkey (1995:2) state that programmes and materials do not bring about change, people do. When one talks about change, one talks about people. The members of SMTs are therefore expected to become aware of the importance of their human resource base and always aim at increasing the quality of human resource in schools. If they are to manage the present educational changes with success, their first priority is expected to be to assist educators to alter their attitudes and beliefs about change.
It is therefore necessary for members of SMTs to make efforts to develop stakeholders in the school itself, for it is only when people within organizations such as schools change that the organization can be transformed. It is the responsibility of SMTs to encourage educators to be engaged in lifelong learning. Development programmes are expected to enable educators to keep pace with the continuous changes that take place in education and to prepare learners appropriately for the future.
To this effect, Dulpan (Lombard 2003:147) asserts that teacher education can no longer end with educators` entry into the profession. Educators in the present era need to be empowered in order to meet the needs of the transforming school and workplace expectations.
According to Badenhorst (1997:21), professional development also emphasizes the importance of considering the needs of the beginner educator. It is vital for these educators to be solidly grounded in the content area as well as in understanding the teaching and learning process. School managers are supposed to see to it that appropriate development programmes are organized to assist these educators build a firm foundation in their career.

CHAPTER1: INTRODUCTION
1.2 AWARENESS OF THE PROBLEM
1.3 PROBLEM STATEMENT
1.4 AIM OF THE STUDY
1.5 MOTIVATION
1.6 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
1.7 EXPLANATION OF CONCEPTS FOR THE STUDY
1.8 PROGRAMME OF STUDY
1.9 SUMMARY
CHAPTER 2: THE NATURE OF CHANGE AND EDUCATIONAL CHANGES
2.1 INTRODUCTION
2.2 CHANGE DEFINED
2.3 THE NATURE OF CHANGE
2.4 THEORIES OF CHANGE
2.5 EDUCATIONAL CHANGES IN SCHOOLS
2.6 SUMMARY
CHAPTER 3: THE ROLE OF SCHOOL MANAGERS IN CHANGE MANAGEMENT
3.1 INTRODUCTION
3.2 THE ROLE OF SCHOOL MANAGERS
3.3 SUMMARY
CHAPTER 4: RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY
4.1 INTRODUCTION
4.2 RESEARCH DESIGN
4.3 SELECTION OF SCHOOLS
4.4 DATA COLLECTION
4.5 DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATIONS
4.6 ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS
4.7 BIOGRAPHICAL DATA
4.8 SUMMARY
CHAPTER 5: EMPIRICAL RESEARCH AND FINDINGS
5.1 INTRODUCTION
5.2 CONDUCTING INTERVIEWS
5.3 DATA PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION
5.4 EMPIRICAL FINDINGS
5.5 SUMMARY
5.6 CONCLUSION
CHAPTER 6: SUMMARY, RECOMMEDATIONS AND CONCLUSION
6.1 INTRODUCTION
6.2 OVERVIEW OF THE STUDY
6.3 LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY
6.4 RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FURTHER STUDY
6.5 CONCLUSION
GET THE COMPLETE PROJECT
THE ROLE OF SCHOOL MANAGERS IN MANAGING EDUCATIONAL CHANGES IN SCHOOLS IN MOGODUMO REGION IN LIMPOPO PROVINCE