South African Principalship, Agency &amp; Intersectionality Theory

Michèle Schmidt,Raj Mestry

doi:10.5206/cie-eci.v43i1.9241

Abstract

Gender bias towards South African female principals remains a problem and compelling issue for research. The Constitution policy addresses gender equality, yet women still do not experience equal rights in practice. This study uses a theory of intersectionality to examine two Black South African women’s leadership experiences in their roles as principals in two South African schools. The goal of the paper is to examine how these women negotiate obstacles in their work that may constrain their agency as leaders in South African schools. The project involves semi-structured interviews and the results provide a significant contribution to the small body of literature around female principals experiences in the role of the principalship in South Africa. The following themes emerged to illustrate the challenges these women face and the actions they take with which to negotiate these challenges: gender discrimination; lack of respect by parents; stereotyping of the women in motherhood roles; violence; and, lack of funding and resources.

Highlights

Scholars (e.g., Blackmore, Thomson, & Barty, 2006) cite examples of gender bias among female leaders in Western schools; in South Africa, the issue is more of a pandemic
In the principalship, current statistics (2014) from the Gauteng Department of Education (GDE), as shared by The Deputy Director General in personal conversation with one of the authors, revealed that less than 50% of principal posts are held by women (i.e., 84 women out of 201 principals)
This paper focused on the impact of intersecting identities of race, class and gender with further intersecting components that emerged in relation to the women’s biographies and work lives

Summary

Introduction

Scholars (e.g., Blackmore, Thomson, & Barty, 2006) cite examples of gender bias among female leaders in Western schools; in South Africa, the issue is more of a pandemic. Researchers (e.g., Mahlase, 1997) found that both South African female teachers and principals face triple oppression, namely race, class, and gender that strongly define women historically and to this day. The Constitution (South Africa, 1996) has allegedly addressed gender equality, yet women still do not experience equal rights in practice (Cotter, 2004). South Africa continues to promote the state’s transformation agenda with little evidence as to its effectiveness regarding neither the enhancement of gender equality nor an open plan of action to meet democratic and transformational imperatives (Naidoo, 2004)

Methods

Findings

Discussion

Conclusion