Assignment

How can schools become more ‘'people-ceentred'?

ADDITIONAL GUIDELINES:

1. Your response must be presented in the form of an academic essay. The content part of the essay must contain a brief summary of the ideas and constructs related to people centred schools as an approach to improve school effectiveness. These ideas and constructs are taken from the readings in Creating People-Centred Schools: School Organisation and Change in South Africa. Edited by Gultig, Ndhlovu and Bertram (1999). Your summary of THREE of these ideas or constructs should also include a reflection or contextualisation on the relevance of the idea or construct to your school context. Here is the list of constructs from which you have to choose three:

- Changing management to manage change: a new plan for South African schools (Department of Education in Gultiget al. 1999: 3-8)
- Structures: flow, not boxes by McLagan &Nel in Gultiget al. (1999:19 - 23)
- Why bureaucracy no longer works by Pinchot & Pinchot in Gultiget al. (1999:24 - 31)
- The five disciplines of a learning organisation (Senge in Gultiget al. 1999:32-38)
- The spirit of African management by L. Mbigi in Gultiget al. (1999: 39 - 47)
- Leadership and management in building ‘learning' schools by Davidoff & Lazarus in Gultiget al. (1999: 64 - 72)
- Why reform fails in Getting school reform right by Fullen& Miles in (Gultiget al. 1999:74-77)
- The complexity of the change process by Fullen& Miles in (Gultiget al. 1999:78 - 92)
- Resilient schools: a South African study by Christie &Potterton in Gultiget al. (1999: 93 - 98)
- Organization development: an argument for South African schools by Davidoff, Kaplan and Lazarus in Gultiget al. (1999: 100 - 109)
- It takes a community to educate a child: a school-as-community strategy by Schofield in Gultiget al. (1999:110 -118)
- Managing personal change by Marris in Gultiget al. (1999:85 - 90)

2. Your response to the task will therefor include the following sub-headings for every idea or construct in the list:

- A sub-heading identifying and contextualising the particular construct

- A very brief summary of the main ideas contained in the construct focused on making schools more ‘'people-centred'' and therefor more effective

- A brief reflection / contextualisation indicating the relevance of the construct to the school context

3. You would have to describe the context of the school / schools in your area to provide the background against which your responses to the task can be interpreted.This description of the school context should be presented before you present the literature study, and include the following:

- Describe a few school/s in the area where you live and / or teach / would teach

- Use fictitious names for the schools for confidentiality reasons. Also do not use the names of any office-bearer or employee at these schools for the same reason.

- Primary / Secondary / other

- Size of the school in terms of learner numbers and staffing

- Facilities (buildings) and educational resources

- Community it serves (predominant socio-economic status)

Note that your responses to these descriptors should be concise and factual

- General comment on current effectiveness including pass rates, cultures of learning and teaching, management styles and typical concerns / challenges

Note that this part may be more qualitative and descriptive and would include your opinion of the schools effectiveness, rather than substantiated statements of fact. Bear in mind in this regard that Part B of the assignment would be focused on finding the facts rather than stating unsubstantiated opinions, not so?

4. Write the essay in line with the requirements of academic convention, including the following:

- Provide the essay with an appropriate topic / title

- Provide a table of contents reflecting FIVE main headings only

- Show the relevance of the topic / title in a concise introduction

- Structure the essay along a logical argument, using sub-headings and proper paraphrasing

- Refer to sources EVERY time such sources are used in the text of the report, using the Harvard method

- Draft a concise conclusion to your arguments presented and refer specifically to using the literature study done in conducting limited research related to school effectiveness in your context.

- Provide the essay with a detailed list of references

5. Length requirements:

Your response (essay) should be about 15 - 17 pages in length and should meet the following requirements. Using 11pt. letter size using Arial font the following apply:

Title page One page

Table of contents 1/3 of a page One page

Introduction 1/3 of a page

Description of the school contexts 2/3 of a page to 2 pages Two pages

An overview of constructs:

Summary about ½ a page

Reflection / contextualisation about ½ a page One page per construct

X 12 (Twelve pages)

Conclusion ½ a page One page

List of references One page

Maximum 20 pages

Remember: Your ability to read academic literature with insight is assessed here. You have to identify the essence of every reading / article in the list. Once you have done this, you have to reflect on how relevant the idea or construct (theory) is with regard to the reality of the schools in your context (practice). All of this will provide evidence of your understanding and your ability to apply such understanding.

Also bear in mind that every idea / construct may contribute to improving school effectiveness if applied properly, and some or all of them collectively would result in what is understood as ‘'people-centred schools'' - an approach to improve school effectiveness in schools in the South African context where change is an imperative.