Circuit managers’ views on quality education at selected public schools in the Limpopo province, South Africa

Abstract

This article is premised on the notion that the success of an education system depends entirely on the strong leadership and synergy at all its levels. The intention with this article was to assess the extent to which the circuit managers’ views on quality education is affecting its provision at public schools. A Systems Thinking Approach to Leadership guided the study reported on here in which a qualitative research methodology was used. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, observation and document analysis to ensure data triangulation and guarantee the trustworthiness and credibility of the study. Ten participants were purposively selected from 5 districts in the Limpopo province. The findings reveal that circuit managers’ varied views on quality education negatively influence their curriculum delivery, support, and responsibilities entrusted to them. As there is little improvement in the provisioning of basic quality education, I argue for the strengthening of the circuit offices and suggest ways in which they could be utilised to improve the quality of basic education in public schools. The implications of the findings suggest capacity building of effective supervision and monitoring of the provision of quality support by circuit managers.