Governance in South African schools: Democratic advancement or hindrance?

2020 ◽  
pp. 174114322093730
Author(s):  
Nuraan Davids
Keyword(s):  
Parental Involvement ◽  
South African ◽  
Daily Functioning ◽  
Parental Participation ◽  
Roles And Responsibilities ◽  
Democratic Discourse ◽  
School Governing Bodies ◽  
Current Practices

The introduction of school governing bodies in South African schools has largely been motivated by a democratic discourse of communal participation, belonging and accountability. How this has been interpreted has seemingly been limited to understandings of parental participation in the daily functioning of schools. In turn, research on school governing bodies has focused extensively on two contrasting narratives, underscored by an imbalance of power – that is, either the incapacity of parents to fulfil their mandate, or a dominance of parental involvement, which often undermines the principal’s authority. Very little, if any, attention has been afforded to the role of school governing bodies in relation to democratising and diversifying schools. By paying particular attention to the roles and responsibilities of parents on school governing bodies, this article considers two inter-related questions. Do current practices and actions of school governing bodies promote or hamper the democratising agenda, necessary for the transformation of schools? How can school governing bodies, and specifically parents, contribute to the transformation of schools that extend beyond parochial conceptions of parental involvement?

scholarly journals “I’m not a teacher”: A case of (dys)functional parent-teacher partnerships in a South African township

2021 ◽  
Vol 41 (3) ◽  
pp. 1-13
Author(s):  
Rockie Sibanda
Keyword(s):  
Parental Involvement ◽  
South African ◽  
Teaching Role ◽  
Role Of Parents ◽  
Teachers And Parents ◽  
Children's Schooling ◽  
Successful School ◽  
Pedagogical Function ◽  
South African Township

Teachers collaborating with parents is an axiom of successful school programmes. The parents’ role should be supportive and complementary to the teachers’ pedagogical function. A functional or dysfunctional parent-teacher partnership is a predictor of children’s success or failure in school. The functionality of parent-teacher partnerships is often measured through student achievement. The aim of this article was to illuminate how a coordinated parent-teacher partnership can be supportive to children’s schooling. Focus is on teachers’ teaching role complimented with the supportive and monitoring role of parents. Data were collected through interviews with parents and teachers at a township primary school. I engage the concern that a lack of parental involvement affects parent-teacher partnerships in township schools. Findings of this study demonstrate teachers’ lack of understanding of the sociocultural and economic circumstances constraining parental involvement, resulting in a chasm of understanding between teachers and parents on how to collaboratively support children’s learning positions at school and at home.

scholarly journals The South African national school curriculum: Implications for collaboration between teachers and speech-language therapists working in schools

2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna-Marie Wium ◽  
Brenda Louw
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
Inclusive Education ◽  
School Curriculum ◽  
White Paper ◽  
Main Stream ◽  
Close Collaboration ◽  
Barriers To Learning ◽  
Roles And Responsibilities ◽  
National School

This critical review addresses the implications of the Curriculum and Assessment Plan Statement (CAPS) for collaboration between teachers and speech-language therapists (SLTs) in schools. A historical perspective on changes in the roles and responsibilities of SLTs is provided, reflecting a shift from supporting the child to supporting the teacher. Based on the role of SLTs and audiologists in schools, an innovative approach to the support of teachers is conceptualized. The curriculum content and methods support learners who experience challenges and barriers to learning in main stream classrooms. The implementation of the curriculum necessitates close collaboration between teachers and SLTs in order to ensure the best possible outcomes for all learners. This collaboration is reviewed by identifying the benefits of, and barriers to, the process, as well as crucial areas of collaboration. Inclusive education is mandated by White Paper 6, and collaborative support of teachers by SLTs is presented from the learners’ perspective within the context of the curriculum. An example of teacher support through the response to intervention (RTI) approach is described.

scholarly journals Revisiting the roles and responsibilities of speech-language therapists in South African schools

2013 ◽  
Vol 60 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Maria Wium ◽  
Brenda Louw
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
Position Statement ◽  
Policy Changes ◽  
Roles And Responsibilities ◽  
Level 3 ◽  
Level 1 ◽  
Four Levels ◽  
Support Programmes ◽  
Level 2

The role of speech-language therapists (SLTs) in schools in South Africa needs to be revisited based on the changing educational needs in the country. Th is article builds on a paper by Kathard et al. (2011), which discussed the changing needs of the country with regard to the role of SLTs working in schools. South African policy changes indicated a shift from supporting the child to supporting the teacher, but also place more emphasis on the support of all learners in literacy in an eff ort to address past inequities. Th is paper addresses several of the questions that emerged from Kathard et al. and explores the collaborative roles played by SLTs on four levels in the education context. Collaboration at the learner level (level 1) focuses on prevention and support, whereas collaboration at the teacher level (level 2) is described in terms of training, mentoring, monitoring and consultation. Collaboration can also occur at the district level (level 3), where the focus is mainly on the development and implementation of support programmes for teachers in areas of literacy and numeracy. Collaboration at the level of national and provincial education (level 4) is key to all other roles, as it impacts on policy. Th is last level is the platform to advocate for the employment of SLTs in schools. Such new roles and responsibilities have important implications for the preparation of future SLTs. Suggestions for curricular review and professional development are discussed. It is proposed that SASLHA responds to the changes by developing a position statement on the roles and responsibilities of SLTs in schools.

scholarly journals Experiences of parents during the hospitalisation of their child in a private paediatric unit

Curationis ◽  
2008 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
M Verwey
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
Parental Participation ◽  
South African Government ◽  
The South ◽  
African Government ◽  
Paediatric Unit ◽  
The Family ◽  
Per Se

A change in the health of a child is regarded as a major stressor for parents which further increases when the child is admitted to a hospital (Kaplan & Sadock, 1998:799). The role of the family in a child’s illness is slowly being recognised (Kibel & Wagstaff, 2001:544), but the South African government per se has not yet issued any formal reports on parental participation in the hospitalisation process.

scholarly journals Managerial guidelines to support parents during the hospitalisation of their children in a private paediatric unit

Curationis ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 32 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Verwey ◽  
K. Jooste
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
Parental Participation ◽  
African Government ◽  
Individual Interviews ◽  
Paediatric Unit ◽  
The Family ◽  
Open Coding ◽  
Field Notes ◽  
Design And Methods

The purpose of this article is to describe managerial guidelines to support parents with the hospitalisation of their child in a private paediatric unit. The hospitalisation of a child is regarded as a major stressor for both parents and child. The role of the family in participating in a child's illness is slowly being recognised (Kibel & Wagstajf, 2001:544), but the South African government per se has not yet issued any formal reports on parental participation in the hospitalisation process. The study explored and describedthe nursing care experiences of parents regarding the hospitalisation of their child in a paediatric unit;managerial guidelines to support parents with their lived experiences of their child’s hospitalisation in a paediatric unit. To achieve the purpose and the objectives of the research, an interpretive-phenomenological qualitative approach was used in the research design and methods. Research was conducted through unstructured individual interviews, narrative diaries and field notes and data were analysed through open-coding (Tesch,1990). Parents were asked to respond to the question “How did you experience your child’s hospitalisation in the paediatric ward”, followed by probing when the responses of the parents were ambiguous.

The role of deputy principals: Perspectives of South African primary school principals and their deputies

2020 ◽  
pp. 174114322097576
Author(s):  
Christa Jansen ◽  
André du Plessis
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
Primary Schools ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
High Performing Schools ◽  
High Performing ◽  
Roles And Responsibilities ◽  
Primary School Principals ◽  
Management Positions ◽  
Rich Data

Education leadership literature indicates that relatively little attention has been given to the specific duties and responsibilities of South African deputy principals in comparison with other leadership and management positions in schools. As a result, their roles and responsibilities remain vague. The purpose of this study was, therefore, to explore the roles of deputy principals in selected well-resourced fee-paying primary schools. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with the principal and two deputy principals of each of the five participating schools. The participating schools were selected for having a reputation of being high-performing schools and being most likely to provide rich data. The findings suggest that the sub-context of a school is an important factor influencing the role of a deputy principal. In addition, principals play a key role in determining the job description of individual deputy principals. This is often accompanied by purposeful leadership distribution and a reconfiguration of conventional management structures. In addition, deputy principals were generally viewed as ‘principals-in-training’ and their relationship with their principals characterised by shared leadership practices.

scholarly journals The Role of Parental Involvement in Youth Sport Experience: Perceived and Desired Behavior by Male Soccer Players

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (16) ◽  
pp. 8698
Author(s):  
Valerio Bonavolontà ◽  
Stefania Cataldi ◽  
Francesca Latino ◽  
Roberto Carvutto ◽  
Michele De Candia ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Parental Involvement ◽  
Sport Participation ◽  
Training Session ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Soccer Players ◽  
Parental Participation ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Active Involvement ◽  
Directive Behavior

Parents play a key role in the youth sports educational experience. They are responsible for the introduction of their children to physical or sporting education and their involvement has been associated with sport participation in early stages. The aims of this cross-sectional study were, first, to assess the perceived and desired parental involvement by children and, secondly, to examine their satisfaction or dissatisfaction with any specific behavior. 80 male soccer players filled the Parental Involvement in Sport Questionnaire (PISQ) before or after a training session in presence of a coach. PISQ results revealed excessive active involvement and pressure, insufficient praise and understanding and satisfactory directive behavior from children’s parents. Our findings suggest that excessive parental involvement can cause pressure on children who would prefer parental participation characterized by praise and understanding. A balance between a supporting involvement without putting too much pressure is needed by the parents. To prevent burnout and dropout and to facilitate future practice, parents should be counseled (possibly by a sport educator) on how to positively support their children concerning their sport experience.

scholarly journals Revisiting reviewing: The need for a debate on the role of arts journalism in South Africa

Literator ◽  
2004 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 139-158 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. Wasserman
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
Cultural Context ◽  
South African Society ◽  
Roles And Responsibilities ◽  
Artistic Production ◽  
Arts Festival ◽  
The One ◽  
The Relationship

The assault on the editor of a publication at a South African arts festival by an artist who disliked a review of his concert again highlighted an age-old rift between artists and critics. However, the response that this incident elicited among readers of this and other publications, showed surprising support for the artist rather than for the journalist. If this is read as an indication of a disillusionment among readers with regard to the standards of arts journalism in South Africa, the relationship between arts journalists and society should be re-examined. Ethical journalism rests upon a relationship between journalist and audience, and a sensitivity for the context in which journalism is practised. This article examines arts journalism within changing societal contexts, with a specific focus on the South African situation, where artistic production still bears witness to cultural and ethnic divisions of the past. Against the background of the changes that have occurred in society on a local and global level, it is argued that a re-evaluation of the roles and responsibilities of arts journalists is needed – especially in the light of the formation of new cultural identities after apartheid. In conclusion, an ongoing and indepth debate about the ethical responsibility of arts journalism is suggested in order to ensure its continued relevance within an increasingly commercialised cultural context on the one hand, and within a changing South African society on the other.

scholarly journals James House BEST Proactive Parenting Programme: experiences of South African parents

Argumentum ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 213-229 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zainab Kader ◽  
Nicolette V Roman
Keyword(s):  
Parental Involvement ◽  
South African ◽  
Parental Support ◽  
Parent Child Relationship ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Parenting Programme ◽  
Child Relationship ◽  
Adolescent Relationship ◽  
Challenging Behaviours

The parent-child relationship often becomes challenging during the period of adolescence and it is community-based organisations, which take on the role of educating parents to improve the parent-adolescent relationship. The contribution of these interventions or programmes is not documented in South Africa. The James House BEST Proactive Parenting Programme prepares parents to manage the challenging behaviours of their adolescents. This was a qualitative study exploring the experiences of 24 parents living in at-risk resource-constrained communities who had attended the training workshops. Four themes emerged from the data (a) experiences of attending the proactive parenting workshops; (b) meaning of being a parent; (c) approaches to parenting and (d) the role of the father. In general, parents had a very positive experience and found that their relationships with their adolescents had improved. In particular, the results suggest that children require parental support, guidance, and parental involvement.

Learning Zulu

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Sanders
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Cultural History ◽  
South African ◽  
Press Coverage ◽  
African History ◽  
African Culture ◽  
The Past ◽  
Correct Form ◽  
Linguistic Purism

When this book's author began studying Zulu, he was often questioned why he was learning it. This book places the author's endeavors within a wider context to uncover how, in the past 150 years of South African history, Zulu became a battleground for issues of property, possession, and deprivation. The book combines elements of analysis and memoir to explore a complex cultural history. Perceiving that colonial learners of Zulu saw themselves as repairing harm done to Africans by Europeans, the book reveals deeper motives at work in the development of Zulu-language learning—from the emergence of the pidgin Fanagalo among missionaries and traders in the nineteenth century to widespread efforts, in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, to teach a correct form of Zulu. The book looks at the white appropriation of Zulu language, music, and dance in South African culture, and at the association of Zulu with a martial masculinity. In exploring how Zulu has come to represent what is most properly and powerfully African, the book examines differences in English- and Zulu-language press coverage of an important trial, as well as the role of linguistic purism in xenophobic violence in South Africa. Through one person's efforts to learn the Zulu language, the book explores how a language's history and politics influence all individuals in a multilingual society.

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