Abstract:

The purpose of this study was to explore department heads’ management of teaching in primary schools in South Africa. The study was grounded in the Hersey-Blanchard Situational Leadership Model. It answered the following research question: How do department heads manage teaching at primary schools? The researchers adopted concurrent triangulation mixed-methods research design which combined the positivist and interpretivist paradigms. Simple random sampling was done to select sixty department heads who responded to a questionnaire. Purposive sampling was employed to select ten department heads who were interviewed. The findings reveal that department heads share ideas with teachers through monitoring reports with suggestions and recommendations for teachers to complete tasks as expected. They ensure that teachers use formal assessment tasks advocated by the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement for accuracy and fairness. Contrarily, some department heads conduct less classroom visits. Moreover, department heads are less responsible than principals and deputy principals for the drawing of department budgets. Factors such as inadequate infrastructure, lack of parental involvement and inadequate financial support impact management of teaching. There should be sufficient time allocation for department heads to balance management of teaching with other roles as outlined in the Personnel Administrative Measures. Department heads should be trained in the management of teaching to advance classroom practice. They must share classroom challenges with the parents as school-parent collaboration enhances teaching and learning.

Keywords:

Department head, head of department, management, management of teaching, primary school, school management team, teaching.