Browsing by Author "Adze, Emmanuel Tebe"

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    A hermeneutic inquiry of school improvement in an independent and public school
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2022-04) Adze, Emmanuel Tebe; Van Wyk, Berte; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Education. Dept. of Education Policy Studies.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: School improvement is one of the fields in education policy studies that enjoy a significant degree of academic debates. Given that most schools are still in the process of development, a school improvement plan is regarded as one of the key tools that each school must have. The two schools that participated in this study witness tremendous progress in every area of school life. Drawing from my own personal experience in the education arena, and having seen these schools flourish in person, I was prompted to find out why these schools that were termed as dysfunctional schools had miraculously become great. My key purpose then was to ensure that such findings will open a completely new discourse about school improvement. I therefore decided to use hermeneutics as the philosophical lens through which I would study, interpret, analyse, and understand the key factors that catapulted the schools under study to such heights. Two schools in the Western Cape that had been branded dysfunctional schools by the Department of Basic Education were selected for this study because of their dramatic growth. Findings have shown that these schools made noticeable changes in the governance, fiscal management, parental involvement and the quality of education. It emerged from the research that progressive schools are not necessarily those that select the best learners, but those schools that support even weaker learners to achieve academic excellence and moral rectitude. The support is done without any regard for race, colour, or creed. The literature revealed that most learners in township schools also come from poverty-stricken homes. To most educators, investing in such learners translates into changing the community. This work bears great significance because it has brought to the fore some of the hidden truths which the Department of Education could not uncover during its investigation at one of the schools. These findings can be used to inform or encourage the school improvement plans of other schools in similar situations.