Learners’ perceptions as to what contributes to their school success: a case study

K.C Moloi,F.J Potgieter,J.L Van Der Walt,K.P Dzvimbo,C.C Wolhuter

doi:10.15700/saje.v30n3a365

Abstract

Some historically black schools manage to do quite well despite their circumstances, such as dire poverty. We aim at explicating some of the causal factors regarding the effectiveness of three schools in deep rural Mpumalanga, South Africa by tapping the perceptions of their learners. Data were collected from learner samples (four girls and four boys from each school, all of them black) by means of semi-structured focus group interviews. The results lead to the conclusion that the perceptions of disadvantaged black learners in this area, with respect to what contributes to their educational effectiveness, may also be understood in terms of hierarchical insights and awarenesses, the ontological basis of which seems to be successful pedagogical dialogue, with mutual acceptance as its fountainhead. Keywords : educational effectiveness; learner perceptions; pedagogical dialogue; rural South Africa; school success

Highlights

A large percentage of South African schools are failing as institutions of teaching and learning (Johnson, 2009:461-462)
There are, among the historically black schools some that succeed against the odds, and the question is: ‘What are they doing right?’ The entire South African education system could benefit from the answer to this question
Findings and discussion Consensus was reached among the researchers that the themes that emerged as a result of the coding process seem to carry within themselves the ontological genes of successful pedagogical dialogue1 as intimated during the discussion of the conceptual framework: exposure to learning (Creemers et al, 2002:294-295, 300; Department of Education and Employment, 2000), instructional activities, motivation, support, discipline, vision, care, trust, interpersonal relationships among staff, collaborative partnerships and school leadership

Summary

Introduction

A large percentage of South African schools are failing as institutions of teaching and learning (Johnson, 2009:461-462). There are, among the historically black schools some that succeed against the odds, and the question is: ‘What are they doing right?’ The entire South African education system could benefit from the answer to this question. The research reported in this article was aimed at identifying and explicating the learner-related causal factors of educational effectiveness at three effective historically black schools. This was done to find an answer to the question above as well as in response to calls to explore the perceptions of learners when studying educational effectiveness This was done to find an answer to the question above as well as in response to calls to explore the perceptions of learners when studying educational effectiveness (e.g. Busher, 2007; Rudduck et al, 1996; Howard & Gill, 2000)

Objectives

Results

Conclusion