Department of Educational Studies

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Browsing Department of Educational Studies by Subject "371.200968257"

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    Impact of Teachers in School Management Team to Enhance Learners Academic Performance: A Case of Dzondo Circuit, Vhembe District
    (2025-09-05) Netshisumbewa, Tsakaria; Mashau, T. S.; Muremela, M. G.
    Teachers are essential members of the School Management Team (SMT), with a significant impact on learners’ academic performance. Their experience, guidance, and support help to create a positive and conducive learning environment. However, one major issue with the existing structure is that teachers are rarely actively involved in decision-making processes that have a direct impact on learners' academic and overall development. This lack of involvement impacts the full capacity of teachers to positively influence the school's management and, eventually, the learners' performance in school. Addressing this issue and acknowledging teachers' important contributions to decision-making processes within the SMT is critical for maximising the impact on learner academic performance. This research presented a study that aimed to explore the impact of teachers in SMTs on enhancing learner academic performance. The study adhered to the interpretive paradigm and utilised a qualitative case study approach to answer the research question. The target population consisted of departmental heads, deputy principals, and principals of primary and secondary schools in the Dzondo Circuit, Vhembe District, Limpopo, South Africa. A non-probability sample was adopted in selecting 30 participants using an expert sample. Semi-structured interview schedule instruments were used to collect data. An interview template analysis style was employed, whereby categories were driven by the research questions. Data from the interviews were analysed using thematic analysis to attain answers from the collected data. Three key findings from the research: Teachers play a vital role in school improvement through their participation in SMTs; SMTs contribute to improved academic performance via strong leadership, accountability, and partnerships within the community; and learners' performance is influenced by various interconnected factors. The findings of this study sought to have important implications for teachers, heads of departments, principals, curriculum advisors, and learners in imparting meaningful knowledge to learners. The study provided suggestions on remedial actions to be undertaken by SMTs to ensure that teachers supported the vision and mission of the school.
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    The Role of School Management Team in Improving the Academic Performance of Grade 12 Learner in Malamulele North-East Circuit, South Africa
    (2025-09-05) Yingwane, Foster; Bessong, A. R. O.; Litshani, N. F.
    The aim of this study was to investigate the role of School Management Teams in improving the academic performance of Grade 12 learners. Despite STMs’ roles, articulated in various policies, on learner academic performance, there are challenges facing SMTs in improving the academic performance of learners. The study employed the interpretive research paradigm, which also informed the use of the qualitative research methodology. Exploratory research design was used as a blueprint of the study. The population of the study included principals, deputy principals, departmental heads and teachers. To achieve the objectives of the study, purposive sampling method, as a non-probability sampling, was used to choose ten (10) participants, four (04) principals, two (02) deputy principals, two (02) departmental heads and two (02) teachers who were teaching Grade 12 learners. Data were collected through face-to-face interviews and thematically analysed. The findings revealed that SMTs must lead and manage teaching and learning by monitoring lessons, providing teaching and learning resources, and ensuring stakeholder collaboration. The findings also revealed challenges for SMTs’ roles, such as inadequate knowledge of roles, lack of resources, lack of stakeholder collaboration as well as teacher and learner ill-discipline. Strategies to overcome these challenges were proposed. The study recommended that the Department of Education should provide continuous professional development to SMTs and provide adequate resources to all schools. The findings would contribute to the body of knowledge on the role of SMTs in improving learners’ academic performance.