The success of every school rests on the shoulders of its headmaster, according to Deputy Minister of Education Mosibudi Mangena
Speaking at the national conference of the South African School Principals’ Association, Deputy Minister of Education Mosibudi Mangena said principals assume the role of parents once children enter the school premises and should be responsible for the well-being and safety of learners.
“Not only do you as principals have to assume leadership and management roles in your respective schools; you must also act as parents because when the children enter the schoolyard, their parents entrust you with the responsibility to look after them,” he said. Addressing more than 500 heads in Cape Town last month, Mangena said principals and the school management teams are entrusted with the responsibility of providing leadership and management to schools. “Their leadership and management styles determine the future direction and quality of our education system.”
“It is an indisputable fact that the success of every school rests upon the principal taking first ownership of the process. Through the example that she/he sets, everyone involved in that school ultimately takes full ownership of every activity,” he added.
Mangena said that in the coming months the Education Ministry would visit provinces and some of the rural nodal areas to listen to inputs and collectively formulate solutions to ensure that the School Effectiveness Programme materialises. “This programme is an initiative which encapsulates the essence of adding value to the programmatic activities of the ministry and its role-players in educating our society. We will also utilise the opportunity to assess the impact of our programmes in the schools.”
Central to the School Effectiveness Programme, Mangena said, is the implementation of the Whole School Evaluation policy, which is fundamentally different from the school inspection system of the past. “The role of principals in this regard and the value they add to our education system can never be adequately captured.”
Mangena also told the principals: “As a part of the executive authorities of your respective schools you are tasked with the responsibility of carrying out internal evaluations of your schools and facilitating the process of external evaluation. In collaboration with your school governing bodies you will be expected to produce school improvement plans. It is your responsibility to oversee and manage the process of implementation of the plans and communicate progress or otherwise to the parents, district and other relevant role-players.”
He said the ministry is convinced that this policy is the best model of self-management by schools. “I trust that we all have the diligence, insight, stamina, courage and leadership skills to firmly establish self-managing schools.”
School effectiveness, he said, demands innovative and creative leadership styles. He added that the safety of schools needs serious attention and dedication. “Effective and efficient school governance depends entirely upon a collaborative and collective leadership system, which you inculcate in your schools. Not only do you as principals have to assume leadership and management roles in your respective schools, you must also act as parents, because when the children enter the schoolyard, their parents entrust you with the responsibility to look after them.”
– The Teacher/M&G Media, Johannesburg, October 2001.