The interactions between district-and school-based instructional leadership practices for the history subject in the Zaka district of Zimbabwe

Abstract

This study investigated the interactions between district- and school-based instructional leadership practices for the subject of History in the Zaka district of Zimbabwe. The purpose of the study was to establish the nature of the relationships that exist between district- and school-based instructional leadership by exploring the research puzzle on how schools and districts interact in pursuit of instructional improvement for the subject of History in Zimbabwe, what policies and structures guide the interactions and what practices define the interactions. Conducted against the backdrop of separate and isolated studies of district instructional leadership on the one hand and of school instructional leadership on the other, the present study sought to examine instructional leadership structures and practices at the intersection of the two agencies of education, viz. the schools and the districts. A mixed methods approach was used, with a sequential explanatory research design adopted, in which quantitative and qualitative data was gathered and presented. In the quantitative phase of the study, 28 History leaders responded to a questionnaire on the dominant practices of instructional leadership at the point of intersection by schools and districts, while in the qualitative phase, 5 purposively selected History leaders were interviewed in addition to observations of 5 key instructional leadership events within the district. Data was presented sequentially starting with qualitative analysis, then the observation and interview data, with mixing at both the analysis and synthesis stages. Unsurprisingly, the study established that most instructional leadership practices for the History subject in Zimbabwe’s Zaka district are often limited to the traditional activities of the workshop type and that these practices are often narrow in scope and circumscribed in terms of time-duration. More importantly, it emerged from the study that the most unresolved issue for district- and school-based instructional leadership interactions for the improvement of History teaching and learning lies in the coordination and control of the leadership activities for supporting teachers. There was a clear contestation between what I have called the “bottom-up” approach which most teacher leaders advocated, versus the dominant and current practice of “top-down” district leadership approach. Most leaders in the Zaka district favour an increased role of the non-formal or non-positional leaders in the coordination of instructional leadership activities. The study concludes that instructional leadership interactions at the intersection of schools and districts have a great potential for improving classroom practice, especially if they are initiated and coordinated from the ground up, where contextual and locational conditions are taken into account. The success of instructional leadership interactions at the interface of districts and schools is strongly dependent on the level of involvement by all leaders at both levels, where leaders can become followers, interchangeably, at different times. On the structures of leadership, the study established that districts are rather ill-prepared to lead on instructional leadership, in part because of the lack of subject specialists at that level to provide expert knowledge and skills for subject based instructional leadership and guidance. A key recommendation is for the relocation of collaborative instructional leadership activities to the school level, in order to improve both capacity and commitment by the practitioners. More specifically for the case study district, the recommendation is for the district inspectorate to be reconstituted in terms of its composition in order to enhance its instructional leadership role. Subject specialisation should a key consideration for the inspectorate. Furthermore, it is recommended that school leaders should be continuously inducted and kept abreast on the developments in the field of subject based instructional leadership. Further research on the provincial structures and practices of instructional leadership is recommended with a view to suggesting possibilities for alignment of all structures that have a role in subject-oriented school leadership for the improvement of teaching and learning.

Afrikaans: Hierdie studie ondersoek die interaksies tussen distrik- en skoolgebaseerde onderrigleierskapspraktyke vir die vak Geskiedenis in Zimbabwe se Zaka-distrik. Die doel van die studie was om die aard van die verhoudings tussen distrik- en skoolgebaseerde onderrigleierskap vas te stel, deur die volgende te verken: die navorsinglegkaart van hoe skole en distrikte in wisselwerking tree in die najaag van onderrigverbetering vir die vak Geskiedenis in Zimbabwe; watter beleide en strukture die interaksies lei; en watter praktyke die interaksies definieer. Teen die agtergrond van aparte en geïsoleerde studies van distrikte se onderrigleierskap aan die een kant en van skole se onderrigleierskap aan die ander kant, het die huidige studie onderneem om instruksionele leierskapstrukture en praktyke by die kruising van die twee agente van onderrig, d.w.s. die skole en distrikte, te ondersoek. ’n Benadering van gemengde metodes is geneem, met ’n opvolgende verklarende navorsingsontwerp wat gebruik is, waarin kwantitatiewe en kwalitatiewe data versamel en aangebied is. In die kwantitatiewe fase van die studie het 28 leiers in Geskiedenis ’n vraelys beantwoord oor die dominante praktyke van instruksionele leierskap by die kruisingspunt van skole en distrikte, terwyl in die kwalitatiewe fase 5 geselekteerde leiers in Geskiedenis ondervra is, terwyl 5 belangrike onderrigleierskapsgebeurtenisse binne die distrik waargeneem is. Data is opvolgend aangebied, beginnende met kwalitatiewe analise, gevolg deur die waarneming en onderhouddata, met vermenging op beide die analise- en sintesevlak. Soos verwag het die studie vasgestel dat die meeste onderrigleierskapspraktyke vir die vak Geskiedenis in Zimbabwe se Zaka-distrik dikwels beperk is tot die tradisionele aktiwiteite van die werksessie en dat hierdie praktyke dikwels ’n noue bestek het en nou voorgeskryf word in terme van tydsduur. Van groter belang is dat die studie getoon het die mees onopgeloste kwessie vir distrik- en skoolgebaseerde onderrigleierskap is interaksies vir die verbetering van Geskiedenisonderrig, en dat leer bepaal word deur die koördinasie en beheer van die leierskapaktiwiteite vir ondersteunende onderwysers. Daar was duidelike konflik tussen wat ek noem die “van onder na bo”-benadering wat die meeste onderwysers voorstaan, teenoor die dominante en huidige praktyke van die “bo na onder”-benadering tot distrikleierskap. Meeste leiers in die Zaka-distrik is ten gunste van ’n verhoogde rol vir die informele of nie-posisionele leiers in die koördinering van instruksionele leierskapaktiwiteite. Die studie kom tot die gevolgtrekking dat instruksionele leierskapinteraksies by die kruising tussen skole en distrikte groot potensiaal het vir verbeterde klaskamerpraktyk, veral indien hulle van stapel gestuur en gekoördineer word van die grond af op, waar toestande van konteks en ligging in ag geneem word. Die sukses van onderrigleierskapinteraksies by die koppelvlak van distrikte en skole is sterk afhangend van die vlak van betrokkendheid van alle leiers op albei vlakke, waar leiers wisselbaar op verskillende tye as volgelinge kan optree. Ten opsigte van die strukture van leierskap het die studie vasgestel dat distrikte ietwat onvoorbereid is om met onderrigleierskap leiding te neem, deels weens die tekort aan vakspesialiste op daardie vlak wat kundige kennis en vaardighede vir onderwerpgebaseerde onderrigleierskap en begeleiding kan voorsien. ’n Sleutelaanbeveling is vir die hervestiging van samewerkende onderrigleierskapsaktiwiteite op die skoolvlak om kapasiteit en toewyding van die praktisyne te verbeter. Spesifiek vir die distrik in die gevallestudie is die aanbeveling dat die distriksinpektoraat hersaamgestel word in terme van sy samestelling om sy onderrigleierskaprol te verbeter. Vakspesialisering moet ’n sleuteloorweging vir die inspektoraat wees. Verder word aanbeveel dat skoolleiers deurlopend ingelig en op datum gehou word ten opsigte van die ontwikkelinge op die gebied van vakgebaseerde onderrigleierskap. Verdere navorsing oor die provinsiale strukture en praktyke van instruksionele leierskap word aanbeveel, met die doel om moontlikhede vir die gerigtheid van alle strukture wat ’n rol speel in vakgeörienteerde skoolleierskap vir die verbetering van onderrig en leer voor te stel.