Teachers teaching in adversarial conditions : a narrative inquiry.
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Date
2011
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Abstract
This study explores the concepts of adversity, the facets of adversity and the nature of
adversity and how teachers cope under these adversarial conditions. Adversity is a
phenomenon that is challenging to grasp yet it affects people daily. In this study, “those
people” are the teachers whom I have engaged with. Adversity comes in different forms and
under different circumstances and is very much a part of every persons life. These forms
include physical structures, emotional inter-relationships and social interaction with teachers,
learners and the community. Adversity in the context of this study means to have a great
measure of misfortune, hardships, difficulty, danger, harsh conditions and hard times as these
have negative connotations to it.
The participants in this study share, impart, reveal and disclose both their personal
experiences at home, with their families and professional experiences at school with the main
stakeholders being the learners. The professional experience of adversity includes teacher
intensification, for example, more administrative work, large class sizes, teaching second and
third language learners, lack of promotion opportunities, educators with HIV/ AIDS, lack of
educational resources such as computers and overhead projectors, changing curriculum,
multicultural educational challenges, more meetings during school time and school fund
raising. Educators salaries and their qualifications were another issue that needed to be
addressed. Teachers reflect on their efforts to pursue tertiary studies, the cost they have
incurred and the sacrifices they have made to achieve their diplomas and degrees. With this in
mind teachers find that the remuneration they receive for the sacrifices they have made
certainly do not match the efforts of their endeavors. Years of studying and the intellectual
capacity needed to acquire a teaching diploma and degree remain unrewarded. Teachers
continue to compare the salaries of employees in the private sector to those of the public
sector. Teaching therefore, seems to more of a service than that of a ‘job’. The financial
rewards for teachers continue to allude them. The state does not provide sufficient incentives
for teachers to remain in the profession. Therefore, many teachers look for ‘greener pastures’
.Teachers find employment outside the teaching profession in the private sector or even
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emigrate to cities like London to seek better financial rewards. Teachers acknowledge that to
teach, one requires passion and dedication and zeal for it.
This study concentrates on how teachers cope, manage, handle and deal with such
conditions in the school setting. These conditions include high volumes of administration,
learner apathy, miscommunication with senior management and the employer, handling
difficult learners and parents and coping with limited resources. This study reveals how
teachers survive these difficult conditions. It further explores the reasons and factors that
motivate these teachers to continue teaching.
Description
Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Edgewood, 2011.
Keywords
Curriculum change--South Africa., Teachers--Job stress--South Africa., Teaching--South Africa., Classroom management--South Africa., Theses--Education.