The Implementation of School-Based Teacher Professional Development in a Selected South African Rural Context: A Need for Change to Deal with Crises
Buhle Stella Nhlumayo 
Issue: Vol.3 No.11 October 2022 Post COVID-19 Special Issue Article 4 pp.51-61
DOI: https://doi.org/10.38159/ehass.2022sp3115 | Published online 28th October 2022.
© 2022 The Author(s). This is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
This paper examines the dynamics experienced by teachers, school principals and the circuit manager in implementing school-based teacher professional development (SBTPD) in a selected South African rural context in dealing with crises such as COVID-19. Teachers, school principals and the circuit manager are not appropriately equipped to meet the challenges and needs of this developing country through the accurate implementation of school-based teacher professional development. The advent of COVID-19 has compounded such challenges, particularly in rural schools. Underpinned in the qualitative interpretive approach and using a multiple case study as a mode of inquiry, this paper employed four schools in one education circuit. It generated data through interviews with the circuit manager and each of the four school principals as well as focus group discussions with all teachers in each school. Data were analysed using thematic analysis. The findings revealed that the researched schools solely relied on the cascade model to implement SBTPD and that there was a lack of collaborative practices among teachers. Considering the findings, this paper suggests that schools initiate their school-based programmes designed to accommodate crises and that teachers, school principals and the circuit manager (CM) undergo capacity-building in appropriately implementing SBTPD, particularly during crises.
Keywords: School-Based Teacher Professional Development, Teacher Professional Development, COVID-19, Rural contexts, Dealing with situational crises
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Dr. Buhle Stella Nhlumayo is currently a lecturer in the Department of Education Management, Policy and Comparative Education at the University of the Free State, QwaQwa Campus. She holds a PhD in Education Leadership, Management and Policy from the University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Her professional career started as a Mathematics teacher at various schools, after which she became a Departmental Head for Mathematics. Her research focuses on educational leadership and management, teacher professional development, teaching practice and rural education.
Nhlumayo, B.S. “The Implementation of School-Based Teacher Professional Development in a Selected South African Rural Context: A Need for Change to Deal with Crises,” E-Journal of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences 3, no.11 (2022):51-61. https://doi.org/10.38159/ehass.2022sp3115
© 2022 The Author(s). Published and Maintained by Noyam Publishers. This is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
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