A Narrative Inquiry into Rural School Leadership in South Africa

This article attends to rural school leadership in two South African schools through the lens of the concepts of relational leadership and emotional labour. The inquiry draws on five years of guided conversations and observations that speak to leadership experiences of hope and anticipation as well as despair and disillusionment. I worked with one black male principal and one black female school principal from two rural schools in South Africa. Over time, the tone of their narratives changed from hope to hopelessness and resignation. The findings spoke to how commitment and care were overcome by the educational challenges, which involved hunger and poverty, orphaned learners, teen pregnancy, rape, departmental criticism and lack of support. Theoretically, this inquiry draws on the theories of relational leadership and emotional labour in rural education and empirical evidence was drawn from narrative inquiry.

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Coming Into Mindfulness: A Practice of Relational Presence to Cultivate Compassion in One Rural School

LEARNing Landscapes ◽

10.36510/learnland.v14i1.1033 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 14 (1) ◽

pp. 189-202

Author(s):

Sonal Kavia ◽

M. Shaun Murphy

Keyword(s):

Narrative Inquiry ◽

School Leadership ◽

Teacher Identity ◽

School Setting ◽

Rural School ◽

Children And Youth ◽

Mindfulness Practice ◽

Loving Kindness ◽

Educational Spaces

This narrative inquiry explores personal and professional stories of two educators, nurtured and supported by their school leadership, in a rural school setting, who have had diverse experiences with the contemplative practice of mindfulness. Our research primarily focused on the following wonders: How does the experience of mindfulness practice shift teacher identity and awareness, and the quality of time educators spend with children and youth? As educators, how can the practice of mindfulness expand our experience of listening, loving kindness, and compassion within educational spaces? We explore how their unique experiences of mindfulness are woven into the fabric of their school and a mindful pedagogy.

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Understanding Relational and Responsible Leadership for School Leaders

Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Education ◽

10.1093/acrefore/9780190264093.013.521 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Brigitte Smit ◽

Mapula Mabusela

Keyword(s):

Educational Leadership ◽

Narrative Inquiry ◽

School Leadership ◽

Research Methodology ◽

Leadership Practices ◽

Quantitative Research ◽

School Leaders ◽

Relational Leadership ◽

Responsible Leadership ◽

Leadership Studies

Relational leadership and responsible leadership are important subjects in the literature, and more attention can be paid to these leadership practices in educational leadership. Most educational leadership studies focus on distributed, instructional, teacher, and transformational leadership using mostly quantitative research. The aim is to explore and describe relational and responsible leadership in the context of educational leadership. Qualitative research methodology such as narrative inquiry is not often used for inquiries into educational leadership studies. Moreover, the scholarship on narrative inquiry as a relational methodology for relational and responsible educational leadership is scant, and there is a need to broaden the discussion to include appropriate the concepts of relational leadership and responsible leadership for educational leadership in a context of relational narrative inquiry. Relational and responsible leadership theories can be appropriated through a relational research methodology using narrative inquiry. These scholarly lenses may add value to school leadership research and to school leaders who wish to transform and change leadership practices, specifically in diverse school communities with challenging and problematic educational landscapes.

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What is the Rural School Leadership Context?

Developing Rural School Leaders ◽

10.4324/9780429464553-1 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 3-25

Author(s):

Hans W. Klar ◽

Kristin Shawn Huggins

Keyword(s):

School Leadership ◽

Rural School ◽

Rural School Leadership ◽

Leadership Context

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DEVELOPING FEMALE SCHOOL LEADERSHIP IN DISADVANTAGED SCHOOLS

International Journal of Educational Developement in Africa ◽

10.25159/2312-3540/22 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 2 (1) ◽

pp. 62-69

Author(s):

Brigitte Smit

Keyword(s):

South Africa ◽

Educational Leadership ◽

School Leadership ◽

South African ◽

Traditional Approach ◽

Division Of Labour ◽

Female Leadership ◽

Relational Leadership ◽

Educational Context ◽

Control Hierarchy

What can we learn from female leadership scholars that can be appropriated in the South Africa educational context? Little research is conducted to trace the qualities that characterise a feminine approach to leadership in contrast to the characteristics of the traditional approach of control, hierarchy, authority and division of labour. This conceptual article draws theoretically on relational leadership as a feminine approach to educational leadership. I argue that educational leadership in disadvantaged settings in South African schools requires strengthened collaboration and development, particularly for female school leadership. Such collaboration and development is possible through relational leadership.

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