Financial accountability: the principal or the school governing body?

The Schools Act 84 of 1996 prescribes how a school should manage its funds. It also provides guidelines for the school governing body and the principal on their roles and responsibilities in managing the finances of the school. However, there are school governing bodies and principals that have little knowledge of the contents of the Schools Act or are simply interpreting it incorrectly and this has led to many schools being victims of mismanagement or misappropriation of funds in the form of embezzlement, fraud and theft. Although the Department of Education provides training for school governing bodies in financial management, financial problems in many schools have not abated. The principal or members of the school governing body (SGB) may choose to sweep these financial problems under the carpet for fear of being implicated. In instances where financial problems have been taken up with school districts in the Department of Education, many of these problems remain unresolved. Who is accountable for the school's finances, the principal or the governing body of the school? In the case Schoonbee and others v MEC for Education, Mpumalanga and Another (unreported case No. 33750/01) (T), the issue of accountability was raised. Should the principal or the SGB be held responsible and accountable for the school funds? The decision in this case has far-reaching implications for the various role players in school financial management. This article explores the role functions of the SGB and the principal and determines to what extent these parties are accountable for the financial school management. Guidelines have been developed that will ensure schools are managing their funds effectively and efficiently. South African Journal of Education Vol.24(2) 2004: 126-13

Continuing professional development for principals: A South African perspective

No Abstract.South African Journal of Education Vol. 27(3) 2007: pp. 477-49

The leadership role of campus managers to improve student achievement in colleges

no abstrac

Leadership development: A lever for system-wide educational change

The continuous poor performance of South Africa’s learners is detrimental to its developing economy. The need for education change prompted two universities to initiate a system-wide change strategy in a poorly performing school district. The leverage for change was leadership development, involving school principals and district officials. The global impetus for driving leadership development is based on the positive association between high-quality leadership and effective schools. The change strategy was a three year leadership development intervention programme. An evaluative case study was used to investigate the experiences of the participants during the implementation of the programme. Research methods included individual interviews, observation, and a survey by means of a questionnaire. Using systems theory as a theoretical framework, various disconnections were identified in the school district. These disconnections concern the interrelationships between the educational leaders which hinder organisational learning. Changing the culture of the school district through system-wide collaboration could be the key to systemic improvements. Strategies such as collective capacity building, joint problem-solving, networking and system leadership, might provide the essential ‘glue’ for strengthening the interconnections within the school district.Keywords: collective capacity building; district officials; education change; educational leadership; leadership development; principals; school district; system leadership; system-wide chang

Importance of emotional intelligence in conceptualizing collegial leadership in education

We focus on the importance of emotional intelligence (EI) in conceptualizing collegial leadership in education. Research findings, both nationally and internationally, strongly suggest that a technocratic (managerial) approach to leadership is in conflict with the visionary, people-centred approach of modern organisations, including educational institution s at school level. Research on leadership over the past two decades indicates that the emotional intelligence of leaders matters twice as much as cognitive abilities such as IQ or technical expertise. EIis not in opposition to IQ bu t it is an extension of the human’s potential to succeed in a people-orientated environment. Traditional cognitive intelligence (IQ) is combined with no n-cognitive intelligence (EI) to help leaders perform at their best and inspire their followers to be successful and happy. Although the principal’s leadership is an essential element in the success of a school, current research indicates that the complexities o f schools require a new focus on collaborative (collegial) leadership. This research on EI, collegial leadership, and job satisfaction is illustrated in the Triumvirate Leadership Grid. It strongly suggests th at a personal and emotional accountability system is essential for positive human development within the learning environment

The role of configurality in the Thatcher illusion: an ERP study.

The Thatcher illusion (Thompson in Perception, 9, 483-484, 1980) is often explained as resulting from recognising a distortion of configural information when 'Thatcherised' faces are upright but not when inverted. However, recent behavioural studies suggest that there is an absence of perceptual configurality in upright Thatcherised faces (Donnelly et al. in Attention, Perception & Psychophysics, 74, 1475-1487, 2012) and both perceptual and decisional sources of configurality in behavioural tasks with Thatcherised stimuli (Mestry, Menneer et al. in Frontiers in Psychology, 3, 456, 2012). To examine sources linked to the behavioural experience of the illusion, we studied inversion and Thatcherisation of faces (comparing across conditions in which no features, the eyes, the mouth, or both features were Thatcherised) on a set of event-related potential (ERP) components. Effects of inversion were found at the N170, P2 and P3b. Effects of eye condition were restricted to the N170 generated in the right hemisphere. Critically, an interaction of orientation and eye Thatcherisation was found for the P3b amplitude. Results from an individual with acquired prosopagnosia who can discriminate Thatcherised from typical faces but cannot categorise them or perceive the illusion (Mestry, Donnelly et al. in Neuropsychologia, 50, 3410-3418, 2012) only differed from typical participants at the P3b component. Findings suggest the P3b links most directly to the experience of the illusion. Overall, the study showed evidence consistent with both perceptual and decisional sources and the need to consider both in relation to configurality