showed that a culture of learning did not exist at home. Thirdly, newly qualified teachers from long-distance Higher Education Institutions were not of the requisite standard as many of them did not major in teaching subjects and thus lacked the content knowledge to effectively deliver the lesson. Fourthly, findings suggested that teacher unions posed serious barriers to teaching and learning as their labour actions cut across curriculum time. Lastly, one of the most notable observations from the findings was the barriers posed by the Department of Basic Education (DoBE). This specifically referred to problems regarding the shortage of specialist subject advisors and the bureaucratic nature of appointing teaching staff.
instructional leaders to be effective in large schools with many teachers and varied subjects.
With this in mind, there should be a reconceptualisation of school leadership whereby there is an infusion of strong organisational management skills with traditional instructional leadership practices in order to enhance school improvement and maximise learning outcomes.
Furthermore, it is essential that the Department of Basic Education (DoBE) train School Management Teams (SMTs) in order to equip them with skills and expertise to deal with important issues such as the hiring of teaching staff.
Recommendation Three
Findings from the study showed that there were high levels of distributed instructional leadership practices in the researched schools. It involved many role players such as the principal, deputy principals, Heads of Department (HoDs) and teachers, and was very effective in supporting pedagogical practices and dispersing skills and expertise throughout the school. It is therefore recommended that distributed instructional leadership practices be expanded to incorporate other stakeholders such as parents, the community and Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) in order to further enhance teaching and learning.
Recommendation Four
Another recommendation of this study would be that school principals promote the concept of teacher reflection in order to enhance professional dialogue and communication. Msila (2013) contends that teachers should use journal writing in order to be more self-critical and reflect on their professional practice. Consequently, this innovative strategy would help to improve pedagogical practices in schools.
Recommendation Five
It is recommended that all school principals use Management by Walking Around (MBWA) as an additional tool to monitor teaching and learning. More specifically, principals should follow the Three-Minute Walkthrough (TMW) model as conceptualised by Downey, et al. (2004). The goal of this model is for principals to gather valuable data in a short space of time. Thereafter, feedback is provided to teachers and they are encouraged to express their views about the observational data.
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Recommendation Six
It is further recommended that all schools should have a strategic professional development programme to develop novice teachers. This would entail the SMT and experienced teachers working alongside novice teachers to impart their knowledge and skills in order for novice teachers to improve their professional practice. This is in contrast to the ubiquitous ‘once-off’
Department of Basic Education (DoBE) workshops where there is little time or opportunity to engage in instructional practices.
Recommendation Seven
Findings from the study showed that Professional Learning Communities were not present at the researched schools. It is therefore recommended that all principals explore the positive spin-offs of having Professional Learning Communities in their schools. According to DuFour (2004), this will ensure that teaching practices and learning outcomes would be enhanced in their schools.
Recommendation Eight
With regards to rewards and recognition, it is recommended that all school principals use rewards and recognition as a strategy to enhance their instructional leadership practices. This basically entails principals focusing on their human resources (teachers and learners) in order to boost their morale and emotional well-being. The consequence of this would be a greater buy-in from these stakeholders for overall school improvement.
Recommendation Nine
The principals cited numerous barriers that made it difficult for them to discharge their instructional leadership practices. Firstly, they used various turnaround strategies to improve learning outcomes. These successful strategies should be continued, however schools should also utilise Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) that specialise in teaching English to second language speakers. Further, schools should network with social organisations in order to improve the well-being of the child. Secondly, it is essential that schools liaise with parents to build a culture of learning and also utilise the Short Messaging Service (SMS) system to keep parents informed. Thirdly, schools should mostly recruit teachers from reputable institutions such as the University of KwaZulu-Natal instead of disreputable long-distance Higher Education
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Institutions. Fourthly, all school principals should keep abreast with current educational policies and adhere to the Personnel Administrative Measures (PAM) document when dealing with recalcitrant teacher unions. Lastly, the Department of Basic Education (DoBE) should secure the services of more subject advisors and each one of them should be responsible for a reasonable number of schools. In addition, the teacher database should be more efficient and the process of appointing teachers should be streamlined for convenience. Thus, there should be synergy between the Department of Basic Education and principals to enhance teaching and learning.