School leadership in high-performing schools in Gauteng: Voices of SMT members

Abstract: The article presents the findings of a qualitative study on the characteristics of school leadership and management in two high-performing schools (HPSs) in Gauteng. The schools selected for the study had achieved over 90% overall pass rates from 2019 to 2021. Data were collected through document reviews from the Education Labour Relations Council (ELRC), and semi-structured interviews were conducted with school management team (SMT) members. Data were thematically analysed, and the study’s findings indicated that high performance in schools is driven by several factors, including school managers’ role in shaping the direction and managing the school as an organisation; managing teaching and learning and assuring accountability; and working with and for the community. While these elements contribute to schools’ quality, the article suggests that effective school leadership is contingent on the school’s context, and various leadership styles can be employed to enhance schools’ performance.摘要：本文呈现了针对豪登省两所高绩效学校（High-Performing Schools, HPSs）的学校领导与管理特征开展的质性研究结果。本研究选取的两所学校在2019至2021年间的整体通过率均超过90%。研究数据通过查阅教育劳资关系委员会（Education Labour Relations Council, ELRC）的文献收集，并对学校管理团队（School Management Team, SMT）成员开展了半结构化访谈。研究采用主题分析法对数据进行分析，结果显示，学校的高绩效由多重因素驱动，包括学校管理者在明确办学方向、将学校作为组织进行运营管理中的作用、管控教学活动并确保问责落实，以及与社区协作并服务社区发展。尽管上述要素均有助于提升学校办学质量，但本文指出，有效的学校领导需契合学校自身的具体情境，且可通过采用多元领导风格以进一步提升学校办学绩效。