In this chapter, the research methods and research design adopted in an attempt to answer the research question is presented. A detailed explanation of the research design, research methods, sampling techniques, the selection of participants, data collection procedures, data processing and the ethical consideration is provided. The main research question that the study intended answering is: What is the role of the principal as an instructional leader in improving the performance of the school?
3.2.1 Research Paradigm
As indicated in Chapter 1, according to Basit (2010:14), a research paradigm is “a model or perspective that helps in the organising views, thoughts, and practices into a whole that inform the research design”. In this study, an interpretivist paradigm was adopted. The interpretivist paradigm is premise on the relativist ontology which assumes that reality is constructed through meanings and understandings developed through social interactions and experiences. It also has a subjective epistemology which assumes that one cannot separate oneself from what one knows. This means that one is part of reality as reality is part of one. The interpretivist paradigm is deemed most appropriate for its advantages, one being that it relies heavily on naturalistic methods. The naturalistic methods like interviews ensure that there is adequate dialog between the researchers and participants. Carson et al. (2001) point to the fact that interpretivists use a more flexible and personal research structure which is more receptive in capturing meanings of human interaction to make sense of what is perceived as reality. In the interpretivist paradigm, knowledge is socially constructed
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and perceived which means that it is the social context that constructs what reality is.
The other feature of interpretivism, as pointed by Carson et al. (2001), is that the researcher and the participant are interdependent and mutually interactive. This means the researcher gets very close to the participants to be able to get the meaning that the participants attach to form reality. The researcher and the participants influence each other during the research which means that researcher cannot afford to remain detached from the participants as in a positivist paradigm. Flexibility is important because of the unpredictability of human emotions and motives. The context might also dictate that the researcher be flexible. Hudson and Ozanne (1988) further indicate the fact that reality is multiple and complex, making it difficult to develop a fixed design. The authors further argue that an interpretivist has to understand the motives, the meanings, the reasons, and other subjective experiences of the participants, which are time and context bound. Therefore, reality in an interpretivist perspective is context and time bound.
3.2.2 Research Design
Research design refers to the plan or structure followed to arrive at the answers to the questions posed in the research question. McMillan and Schumacher (2010:20) define a research design as a plan that describes the conditions and procedures for collecting and analysing data. This covers areas such as when, where, and from whom the data will be gathered. In other words, the research design addresses the context of the study. The design answers questions on how information will be gathered from the participants. A research design is the road map that guides the researcher on the routes to take to arrive at the satisfaction of the research question. As a map, it helped me not to deviate on the way or to be distracted by issues that were never meant to be given any attention. It thus ensured that I remained focused.
For this study, a case study research design was chosen. Cohen et al. (2000:181) describe a case study as a study of a specific instance, which represent a bounded system with unique examples of real people in real situations. Investigating the role of the principal’s instructional leadership task in improving school performance presented a case that needed to be studied in-depth to understand the complexity and dynamism of interactions between humans, events and the context in which the principal, the school, learner performance and other factors occur.
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The choice of a case study was motivated by the relevancy to the study, but also by the many advantages that it holds. Hitchcock and Hughes advanced the following as some of the advantages derived from case study:
• Case studies are concerned with the vivid and rich description of events relevant to the case.
• It focuses on individual actors or groups of actors and seeks to understand their perception of events.
• Case studies are bounded, have boundaries that facilitate for their definition.
• Case studies have a temporal characteristic, which help to define their nature.
In a case study, the researcher is involved in the case (1995:317-319).
3.2.3 Population and Sampling
Kothari (2004:153) describes a population as the total items about which information is desired. In this study, the population comprised the 26 school principals in the Lehukwe Circuit of Bohlabela District, Bushbuckridge, Mpumalanga Province.
Secondary schools in the Lehukwe Circuit have been underperforming in the National Senior Certificate examinations for the past five years. The principals have been in the leadership position in the schools for more than five years. Some started as Deputy Principals and Heads of Department in the same school before being promoted to the position of Principal. Information on the practices of principals as they lead in the school was sought from these participants.
A sample is a small group or subset of a population from whom data is obtained in such a way that the knowledge gained is representative of the total population. Cohen, Manion & Morrison (2007:114) advise researchers to consider four key factors when deciding on the sample.
• The size of the sample
• The representativeness of the sample
• The accessibility of the sample and
• The sampling strategy.
Purposive sampling, which is a form of sampling whose strength lies in selecting information-rich cases for in-depth study (Patton, 2015:264) was used to determine the sample. Patton (2015) further asserts that information-rich cases are those
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participants from whom more insights and knowledge about the research question can be gained. Cohen et al. (2007:114) indicate that researchers handpick participants based on their possession of information sought by the researcher, thus the sampling is deliberate and selective. The subjects in this study were purposefully selected because they hold the information that is of interest to the study.
In this study, seven principals of schools in the Lehukwe Circuit in Bohlabela District were purposefully sampled. As they have been in their schools for more than five years, it was thought that these principals hold the information on instructional leadership that was needed to answer the research question. Kothari (2004:56) cautions that the sample size should neither be excessively too large nor too small but must be optimum to satisfy the criteria of efficiency, representativeness, reliability and flexibility. All the sampled schools were easily accessible and within travelling distance of the researcher.
Secondary schools in the Lehukwe Circuit have been underperforming, with only one school lately showing signs of turning around its performance. Four principals were chosen from the primary schools and three from the secondary schools. Each secondary school was chosen with its feeder primary school. The rationale behind the inclusion of primary school leadership is that the quality of the primary school learners has a bearing on the quality of performance of learners in the secondary school. A small sample has been chosen because of the cost in terms of time, accessibility and the design of the study. Furthermore, the purpose of the study is not to generalise the findings to a wider population.
3.2.4 Data Collection
Data collection addresses the procedures, methods, and instruments used to collect the data for the research. Collection of data for this study involved in-depth interviews.
3.2.4.1 Interviews
An in-depth interview was used as a method of data collection for this study. Cohen et al. (2000:270) regard an interview as a sharing of views between two or more people on a topic of common interest. A semi-structured interview was conducted with each of the participants to develop and understand their perceptions of the role of the principal as an instructional leader in improving school performance.
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Semi-structured questions which McMillan and Schumacher (2010:206) describe as questions that are open ended but specific in intent were created. The semi-structured questions allow for individual responses but also for follow-up questions or probes for further understanding. The advantage of using a semi-structured interview guide is that it prevents the interview from veering off course, but still allowing more information to be given without restraint. The semi-structured interview guide ensures that participants are asked the same questions without constraining the response, and the interviewer can reframe the question so as to elicit more information when the need arises.
During data collection, a voice recorder was used. McMillan and Schumacher pointed out that audio tape recording ensure completeness of the verbal interview and provide material for reliability checks. However, Cohen et al. (2000:281) caution that the audiotape is selective as it filters important contextual factors, neglecting the visual and non-verbal aspects of the interview. This is compensated for by the word-for-word recording of the interview, capturing the expression, emotions and gestures of the participants. Care was also taken to ensure that the instrument does not become a distraction in the data gathering process by intimidating the participants. An explanation was given to the participants so that they understood that a voice recorder was necessary to capture the verbatim account of their lived experiences.
3.2.5 Data Analysis
Data analysis is one of the procedures and processes in qualitative research design.
McMillan and Schumacher (2010) describe data analysis as a systematic process of coding, categorising and interpreting data to provide explanation of a single case. The inductive approach was used to analyse the data. This entails analysing single data and gradually going to groups and categories until a pattern with a plausible explanation is found. It is a case of moving from the micro to the macro, from the concrete to the more abstract. Qualitative research is inductive, moving from the data and ending with the categories and patterns.
3.2.5.1 Data transcription
Data transcription involves transitioning the spoken words into text. The notes taken during interview and the audio taped voice recordings were changed into a format that lends itself to visual analysis. Poland (1995) defines verbatim transcription as a word-
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for-word reproduction of verbal data, where the written words are an exact replication of the audio recorded words. Mishler (1996) pointed to the danger of assuming that the spoken word parallels the written one. Mishler (1996) further pointed out that participants neither speak in paragraphs nor signal punctuation during their speech.
This made it important to share the transcription with the interviewee to make sure that the meaning was accurately rendered in the transcribed account of the words. The participants were approached to confirm the correctness of the transcription. In order not to miss meaning of the participants’ words, an iterative approach to data analysis was adopted.
3.2.5.2 Data coding
McMillan and Schumacher (2000:370) assert that data coding starts with identifying small pieces of data that stand alone. This forms part of organising the data into manageable units. The codes that bear some commonalities formed the categories to avoid creating too many codes that would end up confusing the researcher.
3.2.5.3 Forming of categories.
During this step, codes that relate to a common theme were grouped. These codes then formed the category. Different codes formed different categories and each category was given a label that explains the codes. These labels formed parts that have a bearing on the research problem or research topic.
3.2.5.4 Pattern seeking
Emergence of a pattern from the categories was identified and links between categories were established. The patterns formed were checked to see if they offered indisputable and justifiable explanation to the research question.
3.2.5.5 Data presentation and reporting
Reporting was done in written form and is presented in Chapter 4.