4.2 Presentation of findings 63
4.2.2 Principals’ enactment and enhancement of instructional leadership practices
4.2.2.3 Monitoring teaching and learning 90
In summarising this sub-theme, the key finding that emerged was that professional dialogue and communication was widely practiced at the researched schools. It lies at the heart of instructional leadership practices, and thus serves as a useful tool to achieve the school’s goals. As such, this sub-theme also focused on critical teacher reflection and good instructional leadership practices.
We have book evaluations where we randomly review learners’ books and teachers’
programmes. We check whether sufficient material is being covered. Thereafter, a report is given to teachers and any shortcomings are addressed. (Mr Ramdin)
In a similar vein, Dr Chetty of Kestrel Secondary added that:
I went into my deputy principal’s class last week and I observed a very interesting lesson on Auto CAD. It is really amazing how much you can learn. (Dr Chetty)
The above voices suggest that Mrs Naicker and Mr Nkosi were deeply engaged in monitoring the curriculum and providing effective feedback to stakeholders. Furthermore, Mr Ramdin used the curriculum tracker to monitor the progress of teaching and learning and Dr Chetty had the school’s curriculum on his computer in order to monitor and evaluate it. Moreover, Mr Ramdin used book evaluations to ascertain whether the curriculum content was covered, and Dr Chetty also observed lessons to get first-hand experience of the delivery of the curriculum. These proactive strategies suggest that the principals had a bird’s eye view of the curriculum and were thus able to have a positive influence on teaching and learning practices in their schools.
Further, the principals engaged in Management by Walking Around (MBWA) to enhance the monitoring process (Grissom, et al., 2013). In this regard, Mr Nkosi of Albatross Secondary said:
My deputy principals and I walk around during the first period and the last period. We only return to the office when all teachers are teaching in the classroom. (Mr Nkosi)
Similarly, Mrs Naicker of Penguin Primary extolled the virtues of Management by Walking Around (MBWA). She said:
MBWA is not about socialising or interrupting the curriculum time. It serves as a key feedback generator. You see the smoke before the fire. In other words, you get to hear the stresses and challenges of teachers. So MBWA is extremely beneficial as it allows me to communicate and resolve issues without using the formal route. (Mrs Naicker)
Mr Ramdin of Robin Primary added that:
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MBWA serves two purposes. Firstly, the visibility helps with the discipline of learners and teachers. Secondly, it gives you a measure of where the school is and what is being done and what is not being done. (Mr Ramdin)
Findings from the interviews seem to suggest that the participating principals used Management by Walking Around (MBWA) to enhance the monitoring process. Mrs Naicker’s comments suggest that MBWA was beneficial because it enabled her to deal with challenging issues in an informal manner. Furthermore, Mr Nkosi and Mr Ramdin indicated that MBWA helped with school-wide discipline. This shows that MBWA was a useful management technique that the principals enacted in order to be up close and personal and have a positive impact on teaching and learning.
Similarly, the perused documents confirmed that the principals monitored teaching and learning.
The 2013 School Improvement Plan (SIP) of Penguin Primary indicated that “there was strategic planning to assist, evaluate and monitor the performance of educators, and ultimately the learners”. Furthermore, the 2013 School Improvement Plan (SIP) of Albatross Secondary indicated that strategic leadership and quality assurance was implemented to improve the learning outcomes. According to the SMT minutes of Robin Primary dated 28/01/2013, the
“SMT have devised a schedule of classroom visits and book checks”. Lastly, the SMT minutes of Kestrel Secondary on 19/05/2014 stated that “all reports regarding continuous assessment moderation should be handed in so that curriculum delivery in the learning areas could be tracked”.
Literature supports the monitoring of teaching and learning as an important instructional leadership practice. The South African Standard for Principalship (DoBE, 2014) states that there should be ongoing monitoring and evaluation of learning outcomes for continuous school improvement. Furthermore, Southworth (2002) posits that monitoring involves principals looking at teachers’ weekly plans, inspecting learners’ work, observing lessons, implementing school policies and analysing test results. Thus, the desired goal of ongoing monitoring of teaching and learning is to improve the organisational structures and functions.
Monitoring teaching and learning falls within the ambit of Weber’s (1987) instructional leadership model. Dimension three of Weber’s (1987) model focuses on supervision and
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evaluation. Weber (1987) postulates that it is crucial for principals to observe teachers, offer advice about problems, and pinpoint areas to improve. In this regard, the strategies that are considered essential are: classroom observations of teachers and learners’ performance, providing feedback to teachers about observations, and encouraging teachers to express their feelings about observational data. Further, the Three-Minute Walkthrough (TMW) model as conceptualised by Downey, et al. (2004) provides a basis for Management by Walking Around (MBWA). The goal of the model is for principals to gather valuable data in a short space of time.
Consequently, the high visibility of principals plays a crucial role in school improvement (Downey, et al., 2004).
In summarising this sub-theme, the key finding that emerged was that the monitoring of teaching and learning was widely practiced at the researched schools. It is a crucial instructional leadership practice that directly impacts on teaching and learning. As such, this sub-theme also focused on Management by Walking Around (MBWA).