LEADERSHIP CHALLENGES FOR RURAL SCHOOL EDUCATORS IN LIMPOPO
Date
2011-04-19
Authors
Mabote, Metse Abel
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Abstract
This study examined the leadership and ethics challenges facing educators which stem from inappropriate behaviours or relationships in a rural school in the Capricorn District in the Limpopo province. Inappropriate relationships as defined in this text relate to those attitudes that are not respectful or professional in an educator-learner relationship and include educator-learner intimate/sexual relationships, embezzlement of funds and the issuing of fraudulent reports, amongst others.
Within the education sphere, the concept of leadership is considered to refer to school principals as managers. Educators look at themselves as mere employees and not as role models to learners and the community at large, and they therefore do not even consider the consequences of their behaviour to their followers, namely the learners. This study further intended to show that educators are leaders in their own right, and that their behaviour, both within and outside the classroom must not be in contradiction to the principles of honesty and trustworthiness as expected of any leader.
The study employed a qualitative approach in collecting data from the respondents. A case study approach was used where one school was identified and five educators and five learners were interviewed. In addition the official from the Provincial Department of Education (DoE) and secretaries of the South African Democratic Teachers Union (SADTU) and the Professional Educators Union (PEU) were interviewed. The study aimed to elicit information from the respondents on whether inappropriate relationships occur, why they occur and their impact on the teaching learning process from the point of view of the perpetrators (usually educators), the victims (usually learners) and of the interveners (provincial DoE and the unions)
Data was analyzed by summarizing the responses into key themes. The findings from the study show that various forms of inappropriate relationships do occur and that such behaviour results in ill discipline which is a challenge to leadership. Taking into account that this study was conducted among Grade ten learners at a high school, it was concluded that inappropriate relationships may be a reason for the high failure rate in many rural high schools
Description
MM - P&DM
Keywords
Leadership in education, Rural education, Education, South Africa