Sharing wisdom: lessons from five successful schools

Abstract
This paper investigated factors that contribute to successful schools with particular focus to Botswana. The paper drew upon commentaries elicited from different groups of school actors. In this case, upon the experiences and reflective practices of heads; experiences and perceptions of senior teachers; and upon perceptions of students on management practices. The analysis of these reflections, experiences and perceptions was derived and grounded in the semi-structured protocol used as a data collecting tool. The paper concluded that disciplined teamwork characterizes successful schools.

Theoretical framework

Education, world wide, is universally linked to the socio-economic development of countries. “The aim of education is to cultivate persons who can be of service to the state and nation” and this aim can be achieved by ‘the school system that takes part of a locomotive pulling the whole of the society towards modernization’ (Bottery, 1993:47). This aim of education is buttressed in the Report of the National Commission on Education (1993:vi) as:

‘It is based on the fundamental assumption that the nation’s major resource is its people and that investment in their education and training is a necessary condition of national development. The current demands of the economy and the plans for its future development are important determinants of the strategy for education and training.’

To the ordinary person, however, education is meant to afford learners future jobs that would earn them a decent living. Limkokwing, 2008: T3) puts it:

‘And education, I am convinced, is the most effective way to eradicate poverty quickly. This is because education empowers people and expands their range of choice; educated people are more likely to be employed. The better qualified they are the higher their income is likely to be’.

Human capital theory argues that, individuals can increase their lifetime earnings by investing in themselves through education and training, and governments can use these for economic growth (Harold, 1985; Cruikshank, 2008). But do schools have the ability to carry out the universally accepted mandate of education? What should they do to be able to face to this challenge? The answer to the first question can be a ‘yes’, schools do have the ability depending on how they utilize the resources available to them. Despite general skepticism about examination results as criteria for measuring successful schools, they primarily remain evaluation criteria from the point of view of society and government. The Botswana General Certificate in Education examination results are publicized every year in a national league table in both the air, internet and print media showing the individual schools’ performance in rank order. Headlines such as: ‘School X has done it again’ have influenced public’s perceptions of good schools. This has given parents reason to prefer certain schools over others for their children (Moswela, 2004) despite a centralized school admission system. The second question should get answered later by responses to the research questions.

The concepts participatory decision making; democratic administration; transparency; staff development; delegation and others have been used in describing institutions that have been successful. These ‘ingredients’ of successful schools are deeply embedded and are embodiments of the concept ‘teamwork’. To this end, the literature in this paper predominantly draws from the literature on teamwork. Beare et al. (1989) have argued that an effective school in not necessarily a successful one. Be that as it may, the two terms are used in this paper to convey the same meaning of ‘the school’s ability to accomplish something or bring something about’ (Beare et al., 1989:12). Accordingly, a school cannot be said to be successful unless it has achieved something. The school management team, teachers and students in particular, are together engaged in a core value of cooperative teaching and learning processes to achieve the National Curriculum goals or goals they set for themselves (Moswela, 2005). The extent to which these goals have been achieved relative to similar goals in other schools separates successful schools from the rest. Goal achievement is therefore an indicator or criteria to measure school success. But because schools pursue many goals at the same time, the problem becomes which of the many goals determine real success. Can a school which excels in sports but performs badly in academic work or vice versa be said to the successful?

It has become an accepted fact the world over that the ultimate success of a school is determined by its achievement in public examinations. The view by Whitaker (1989) that successful schools are those that show open emphasis on academic achievement, have a formal reward system to high achievers and a strong co-consultancy among its teachers seems in accord with the fundamental sense that public examination results serve as a barometer to measure school success. Basing on this logic, success therefore is about achieving in literacy and numeracy (Beare, et al., 1989). However, success in examination results should be measured in terms of framework and not recipe, for there is no one best way of doing things. Examination results are ends and not means. Some schools achieve through emphasis on discipline, others through the wise utilization of resources and so on. A study by Moswela (2004) revealed a correlation between discipline and performance. Relationships in a work place on the other hand have been found to influence a school’s success in one way or another (Naidu, et al., 2008).

Because the different members of a school are tied to a common goal of meeting the demands of quality education (Naidu et al., 2008), this makes schools complex organizations (Dalin, 1993). An important structural property of teams is that of centrality, that is, the extent at which an individual is connected to others in a network of relationships. By virtue of the heads’ position in the hierarchy, they are the best people to foster a nodal convergence of all the members (Van der Westhuizen, 2003; Ball, 1987). If the head is perceived by teachers not to work in harmony with others, in behaviour and attitude as teachers expect him/her to, he/she is creating barriers to successful teamwork in the school (Whitaker, 1989). Highlighting this sense, Hart and Bredeson (1996:191) hold: ‘In schools where achievement was high . . . invariably the principal made the difference’.

Bell (1992:45) defines teamwork as ‘a group of people working together on the basis of shared perceptions, a common purpose and agreed procedures’. Dunham (1995) says this about teams; that their strength is based on relationships between people pursuing a common goal and that if they do not have unity of purpose and cannot think collectively and utilize their skills in a united front (synergy), goal achievement cannot be realized (Whitaker, 1989). Rossi (2008:338) similarly speaks of teams as social ‘networks’ of ‘groups collaborating as entities that are related to one another; each participant is called an actor and is depicted as a node within a group’. Whitaker (1989) envisages successful schools as those that have a whole school policy that promotes teamwork. This policy, he holds, should seek to help all members of teaching and non-teaching staff to become aware that effective teamwork is essential if the school is to achieve its target. ‘Clearly defined goals specifying what is to be done; by whom; and by when’, are the hallmarks of cohesive teams (Bell, 1992: 53). Although this is how a team should work, it is often found that a group of people brought together to form a team, such as the head, senior teachers and junior staff, do not really ‘gel’, and a good deal of time is wasted because the organizational conflicts are not handled effectively (Everard & Morris, 1990).

Once the relationships within the group have been negotiated and established, they need to be managed and this again is the prime role of the head and senior staff (Bell, 1992). This can be achieved by constant communication with and among the staff and this builds consensus on how staff get things done (Hoy & Miskel, 2001). This then can become the school’s culture, referred to by Hunt (1992) and Owens (2004) as the glue that unites members in the school together; the benefits of which are: ‘sharing expertise and skills, relations improvement, increased participation and realization of individual potential’ (Bell, 1992:46).

Aim of the study
This paper investigated the principal ‘ingredients’ of successful schools. The following research question guided the investigation: What strategies does your school use to achieve good examinations results?

Methods
The specific questions: “What do you do”? and “How do you do it”? require descriptive and narrative responses which renders the study qualitative in nature (Punch, 1998; Cohen et al., 2000).

Sampling
The schools that participated in the survey were pre-determined by their standing in the national examinations results analysis as good performance over a continuous period of five years. Schools that had fluctuating results were not part of the sample. The sample can be described as purposive because the schools were chosen for a specific purpose (Cohen et al., 2000). Six out of 27 senior secondary schools in the country were involved basing on the above criteria.

In order to obtain balanced views that are free of bias, a sample of all critical players in a school setting needed to be consulted. The informants of the study therefore not only included the school heads but a teacher from each school who had been at the school for not less than five years and two final year students (boy and girl) from each school. The population therefore comprised 24 participants. In order to avoid what is sometimes referred to as ‘his/her master’s voice’, where people echo the leader’s sentiments, the participants were randomly selected by a teacher who was also randomly selected. This teacher coordinated and administered the questionnaires. This method of selecting respondents is referred to by Oakland (1993:142) as ‘quality sampling’ that elicits unbiased responses.

Data collection
A semi-structured questionnaire was used to elicit respondents’ views, reflections, experiences and practices on three strategies that help the school to achieve good results.

Analysis
The qualitative nature of the study, lead to a descriptive analysis of the results. The heads, teachers, and students each identified and explained how each factor contributed towards school success. In analyzing the data, similar approaches that bolstered performance were grouped together and these were to be the focus of the discussion.

Findings
The heads were excited in seeing their schools in the category of top schools. To them it was a rare recognition of their efforts. One head remarked: ‘At least some people out there recognize our efforts’. Five of the six targeted schools responded to the questionnaire:

St Joseph’s College
Head

The main strength of success at this Roman Catholic Church school lies in the spirit of oneness in implementing schools goals:
‘The head and staff together agree on a school development plan at the beginning of the year. Targets are set and everybody’s effort is driven towards the main target. Parents and students are expected to show commitment to the school plan. Commitment to the plan is ensured by a regular monitoring system that involves lesson observation’.

The head provided a car sticker with an inscription of the school’s vision, mission and values which read:

Vision: To be a world class provider of quality; accessible and equitable lifelong education.
Mission: To provide quality education and training that is accessible to all learners through efficient and effective management of resources to enable learners to attain their potential and contribute to national development.
Values: Spirituality, customer values, team work, excellence, dedication, transparency and education.

The head also volunteered a record of his school’s examination results from 1980 to 2007. The school obtained first position nine times and obtained between positions two and five 13 times during the period.

Teacher
The school values discipline; excellence and commitment as narrated above in the head’s comments. School has a conducive work environment for students.

Girl student
‘The quality results by the school can be attributed partly to the supervised Saturday study period. Also, fortnightly tests in subjects like Mathematics and Science have resulted in the school topping other schools in these subjects. This is coupled with a high standard of discipline.’

Boy student
‘There is monitoring of students’ projects by following up teachers who do not perform to expectation.’

Gaborone Secondary School
Head
The head adopts a collaborative strategic in achieving results:
‘Academics is clearly defined in our strategic plan by emphasizing discipline and teamwork. Teachers as a team enforce strict discipline upon students. Enforcement is backed by the school rules and regulations. Measures are taken against those who fail to comply. Compliance is expected in all the areas particularly in punctuality, truancy and any misbehaviour. The school not only punishes bad behaviour, every morning before lessons class teachers conduct counseling lessons. Individual or group cases are referred to the guidance and counseling unit for reinforcement.’

Teacher
Emphasis is on discipline as related by the head:
‘There is a prefect system that supports teachers’ efforts. Student prefects are involved in hearings on other students’ cases of misconduct. Orientation programmes are mounted for the new students and staff at the start of the school year.’

Girl student
‘We have a well grounded prefect body which is committed to regular communication with the rest of the students’ body on matters of discipline. We at GSS believe that with discipline comes respect and handwork; a key towards our excellence. Discipline defines moral uprightness and excelling schools.’

Boy student
‘He has similar sentiments about discipline. We have a hands-on head. He tackles student issues head on and takes time to wander around the school to see what is happening.’

Shashe River School
Head
The head believes in consultation and in a system of rules that must be complied with.
‘Swift action and consistent action is taken against incidents of indiscipline and offenders. I consult with parents, teachers, non-teaching staff and students on matters relating to school discipline. School has a clearly defined and detailed list of offences, their classification and probable action of these offences. This helps to have a common understanding of the school’s expectations.’

Teacher
‘There is a high sense of discipline among students and between students and staff. School prefects are empowered to conduct hearing procedures of cases of students’ indiscipline. Teachers act promptly to cases of indiscipline. Important programme implementation involves teachers, parents and students. This has resulted in ownership of the school’s programmes.’

Girl student
‘We have enough furnished classrooms and labs are well stocked up. There are also adequate extra-curricular resources for the students to break away from academic work. We also have the best team of teachers dedicated to the academic needs of the students.’

Boy student
‘The administration (past & present) play a positive role in dictating the direction the school adopts. The administration gives teachers a platform to showcase their teaching prowess and the rewards have always been lucrative. There is an effective link between the students and the administration. There is a high level of discipline that has made Shashe River a giant of all times.’

McConnel College
Head
The school has a vision shared by the staff and the parents. The leadership plays a critical role in driving this vision.
Teacher
‘School sets targets to be followed by everybody. Senior teachers monitor targets implementation and students’ performance through tests and analysis of these if followed by remedial action.’

Girl student
‘Learning in our school is student-centred. Students are encouraged to research and engage in group discussion to enhance maximum understanding of content. They do this under the close supervision of the teachers. At the house level, student leaders guide and counsel other students, ensuring a high standard of discipline and commitment to school targets.’

Boy student
‘The house system introduced contributes to curb discipline problems as housemasters have only a few students to monitor. Wrong doers are easily identified and appropriate action taken immediately. Also, teachers have a teamwork approach to teaching the syllabus. For example, a mathematics teacher can be asked to assist with the mathematics in physics.’

MaterSpei College
Head
MaterSpei is another Roman Catholic Church school. From the head’s comments, the school among other strategies emphasizes religion as a tool that can contribute towards academic achievement. The new students and teachers are oriented to the school’s culture each year. The orientation is on among other things:

(a) School rules and regulations from the school prospectus (students) and from the staff manual (teachers).

(b) Christian values by the Chaplain and members of the church. This is meant to shape the character of both staff and students. Yes this can lead to good results if they believe. The school assembly plays an important role in this respect.

Performance targets are set when at the beginning of the year and made known to all members who are expected to work towards these targets. Also, teachers are encouraged to conduct lessons following clear lesson plans and to set standardized exams and marking keys. Assessment is analyzed and used as a basis for remedial action.

Teacher
Similar sentiments of engendering values and attitudes through religion as:
‘Instilling Christian values in the learners minimizes misbehaviour and instills hope in the learner. Christian Religious Education is compulsory to all students. The subject emphasizes moral conduct. Students read verses from the bible. In the end students are grounded on Christian and spiritual ethics and grow up responsible. The parents are involved in the school at ‘parents consultation days’ where the teacher, parent and student sit together and discuss the latter’s school performance. Students always work harder so as not to embarrass their parents at such meetings.’

Girl student
‘The study groups initiated by students and monitored by teachers, regular test, a focus on discipline and a free learning classroom environment have made our school to take the lead in examination results.’

Boy student
‘Our school has values, among them we have prayer. We are encouraged to include God in our daily activities as this will guarantee the success of our school.’

Discussion
Three themes prominently emerged from the findings, namely; ‘teamwork’ ‘discipline’ and ‘religion’.

Teamwork
The data analyzed suggest that by and large, there is teamwork spirit prevalence in all the five ‘successful’ schools. The schools value participative school management as an approach that can bring results. That is, the much espoused management theory that ‘together we can achieve more’. Teamwork, according to Dalin, Ball, Whitaker, Naidu et al. and others, is about striking common agreement and committing individual and group effort to the agreement. The setting of school targets, through for example, the school development plans, appears to be a common feature of all the schools. This participative involvement of all stakeholders stands out in the use of phrases like: targets are set; head and staff together agree; our strategic plan; teachers as a team enforce discipline; student prefects are involved in hearing discipline case; I consult with my staff; teachers have a teamwork approach to teaching the syllabus etc. What is not clear from the findings, however, is the extent of the different groups’ involvement in school decisions. The comments “. . . head with staff agree on school plans . . . parents and students . . . expected to show commitment” and “performance targets are set . . . and made known to . . . members who are expected to work towards . . . targets”; do not suggest that all groups in the school are involved in the planning process.

Discipline
The strength of all the schools lies in a disciplined work environment. The schools emphasize discipline as a conduit for qualified success in academic performance. Students, teachers and parents are all involved in tackling discipline problems. The schools’ investment in good discipline gets support from Moswela (2004) who in his study, concluded that schools with little discipline problems tend to perform better. This reminds one of a professor who always reminded that discipline came first in a class and that if we cannot exercise discipline, we will teach nothing of substance and students will in turn learn nothing of substance. In confronting discipline problems, teachers not only punish behaviour; they educate students through counseling sessions and involve them in extra-curricular activities that encourage responsible behaviour.

Religion
A striking feature of one school is the belief in the power of prayer and the bible to achieve results. And this seems to have worked for the school. Undoubtedly the school is the best, judged by the examination results criteria. All parents would like to send their children to that school. This argument should, however suggest that the school is successful solely due to religious activities. The comments from the school do not even suggest this. The issue of forcing all students into taking Christian Religious Education (CRE) needs teasing as it has ethical and moral implications. The school’s arrangement discriminates against and excludes from attendance children who are not Christians; the atheists, the Muslim and others who also have the right to attend any school? To the authors such schools go against the much espoused view of a school as a place where students from all walks of life, irrespective of their creed, colour or religion are integrated. Making CRE compulsory in a school, and comments such as ‘shaping the character of both staff and the students’ it can be debated; have indoctrination connotations on people who do not necessarily belief in Christianity.

Conclusion
While success is the aggregation and the interplay of various factors in the school, but the significant aspect which makes the difference is one of how the heads marshal and channel the resources at their disposal and not in their quantity or quality. This therefore suggests that in-as-much-as some schools are more successful than others there are heads who are smarter than others. In other words, a school is as good as its head; an argument corroborated by Hart and Bredeson (1996). One lesson from this study is that, if school leaders can have the staff on their side (teamwork), everything else will automatically fall into place. Students tend to get motivated when they see teachers and administrators working together in concert, whether in religious, discipline or other matters. The researcher notes it as somewhat surprising and interesting that no mention of the library as knowledge centre was made and wonder whether schools ‘teach to the test’ only and not to improve the students’ knowledge base through the effective use of libraries. This is probable the case because of the emphasis attached to examination results even at government level.

Future research could consider focusing on the coincidence (in this study) that all the schools except one are located in and around cities and find out why urban schools seem to perform better than rural schools..

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Dr Bernard Moswela is a senior lecturer in the Department of Educational Foundation, University of Botswana. Prior to joining the university in 2002, Dr Moswela was a senior secondary school head from 1982 to 2002. His research passion in research is in student discipline, effective schools and educational law.