School-university partnership’s contribution in rural teacher development: experiences of teachers.
Date
2023
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Abstract
The achievement of quality teaching and learning in rural schools depends to a large
extent on the quality of teachers. This study aimed to investigate rural school teachers'
experiences of the contribution of school-university partnerships to teacher development.
It sought to find from teachers’ perspectives the strategies that can be used and what
contributions the Department of Education, school leaders and universities can make to
strengthen and sustain teacher development through school-university partnership in rural
schools. To generate data, this study adopted an interpretative paradigm and qualitative
approach, using a case study methodology. Data was generated using semi-structured
interviews that were conducted with all the participants. A total of seven teachers from
two rural schools in one District of the Province of KwaZulu-Natal participated in the
study. The selection of these teachers was purposive and convenient, based on the
premise that they were participating in school-university partnership programmes. The
study found that the contribution of teachers to school-university partnerships in rural
schoolteacher development is well understood. The role that has been played by schooluniversity
partnership (SUP) programmes made a huge contribution to rural school
teachers’ development by equipping them with skills and knowledge to perform better in
the profession. It was also revealed that despite numerous challenges, rural school
teachers are working under, through SUP programmes teachers are able to establish
different strategies that assist them to deal with the challenges of rural school settings.
The study further revealed that what enhances these partnerships, is the role played by
school and universities’ management and leadership.
Description
Masters Degree. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg.