Pictured are Prof. Kuzvinetsa P Dzvimbo (Executive Dean: College of Education), Prof. Brigitte Smit (College of Education: Department of Educational Leadership and Management), Prof. Rita Maré (Vice-Principal Academic: Teaching and Learning), and Prof. Vusi Mncube (CoD: Educational Leadership and Management).
The experiences of female leadership in South African schools remain largely under-researched, and given that educational training is dominated by male thinking, managerial positions are mostly understood from that perspective. But is this perspective adequate for female school leaders as they work diligently to address the inequalities and complexities of the various educational landscapes in South Africa?
Professor Brigitte Smit from Unisa’s College of Education believes there is no single answer to this question, but what is important is the need to conduct more narrative inquires into these female leaders’ experiences. This, she said, plays a pivotal role in understanding how they negotiate their roles in disadvantaged school communities, and seek to develop a leadership style essential for South African schools.
Smit, a NRF C2 rated researcher and professor in the Department of Educational Leadership and Management, was speaking at her inaugural lecture on 20 February 2013. A passionate educator and internationally respected researcher, Smit’s lecture, Female school leadership as a relational narrative, focused on the importance and necessity of giving a voice to South African female school leaders whose various experiences are rarely documented and analysed. The intent of her research is to broaden the scope of this topic by placing greater emphasis on female leadership in both rural and urban schools.
Finding different ways to lead
Her research points to the fact that relational knowing, which draws on feminist attributes, could shed light on a different way of leading in schools, particularly in disadvantaged schools. The problem however, said Smit, is that not many texts speak to relational leadership in disadvantaged schools, specifically on the African continent. She urged academics to conduct more inquiries into the experiences of female leaders from a relational perspective as these are critical to advance new contextual understandings of leadership.
Working ethnographically as an observer for a period of four years in a rural school about 80 km outside of Pretoria, Smit’s research was designed narratively, sourcing data from guided conversations and non-participant observations with the school’s principal, Naledi (alias).
“This inaugural lecture is an interpretive inquiry that seeks to understand the experiences of a female school principal from a critical feminist perspective, specifically an ethics of care and relational leadership, in order to reveal the complexities of school leadership in disadvantaged schools … The intent of this inquiry was to serve female school principals and to show that educational leadership is best served by those who work with attentiveness to feminist theories.”
Defining relational leadership
The relational perspective and approach is an emerging trend in female leadership theories, said Smit. And while the term relational leadership is “quite new”, the concept of relation-oriented behaviour is not so new in leadership studies.
“… Leadership as relational influence can be performed by anyone; it is not a person or a place or a thing, instead it is a verb. Leadership is the action of influence, it is relation, and it does not exist by itself.”
Smit said concepts such as care, vision, collaboration, courage and intuition are seen as feminist attributes of leadership, and while they are not new attributes, they provide new conceptualisations for the practice of relational leadership.
“… These attributes of leadership differ greatly from the traditional administrative language of control, hierarchy, authority and division of labour. Whilst relational and traditional language is at opposite ends, it does not mean that relational language is only meant for female school principals. Instead it is meant for all genders. What is enlightening is that the increased presence of women administrators, as well as the emerging feminist scholarship in this field, is corollary to the widening acceptance of the idea of leadership as relational.”
After reading a letter from Naledi that related her experiences as a school principal in a rural area plagued by poverty, inequalities and unpleasant behaviour, Smit says Naledi’s story is evidence that relational leadership speaks clearly to the potential of leading schools in a caring manner.
“A relational leader sees the world differently, with vision, with care and with collaboration. Naledi conducts her work with a moral code of conduct, she empowers others to achieve and leads by example in and out of school. Responsibilities reach far beyond of what is traditionally known as school. She is indeed everything to everybody – narrative of all things to all people.”
Developing vital research through narrative inquiries
Smit said research that includes narrative accounts coupled with detailed observations is vital for student teachers who are studying teacher education and educational management. Narratives such as Naledi’s experiences aid in developing important research in female leadership studies which seeks to draw attention to the limitations of dominant male perspectives.
“The intent of this inquiry was to continue to make sense of leadership from a position that recognises the value in attending to its social and cultural roots, that views female school leadership as a relational process and that moves away from leader-centric perspectives. Therefore, I contend that what is needed is future research that makes visible female school leadership experiences that occur in various educational landscapes.”
The challenge, she said is to find the language that articulates the females’ experiences while simultaneously forming contextual understandings that are accessible, and acceptable, for the academic community and a male dominated leadership discourse.
“Narrative inquiry, which is interested in lived and told stories is a form of feminist research to facilitate meaning and knowing. This is a compelling reason why knowledge constructed from female leaders’ experiences must be disseminated. Perhaps one could ask other female leaders what they would like to have passed on to the young principals following them. I venture that the feminist attributes could be mentioned. The question remains though, will this relational way of knowing in educational settings be positively received by those in power … I unfortunately do not have all the answers, and my research poses additional questions, but in my view, that is more important in the academic journey.”
