In many ways, curriculum change was not well comprehended, implemented and managed proficiently by the basic school management teams and teachers to deliver the desirable quality of teaching and learning in basic schools in Zambia (Ministry of Education 1996:27). This factor created a critical management gap in the way the basic school curriculum was managed. Furthermore, the education policies were not interpreted effectively in terms of responding to the demands of the national curriculum. The management of the national curriculum did not reflect the basic knowledge development, attitudes, understanding, skills, values and required lifelong learning (Ministry of Education 1996:27).
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Most of the basic school managers in Zambia did not, at the time of changing the national curriculum, possess satisfactory professional qualifications and competencies to hold managerial positions despite the fact that they were academically soundly qualified as degree holders. It was proved countrywide that the academic qualification of the head teachers did not match with the professional qualifications to allow them to handle management issues in the basic schools. They were required not only to sharpen their academic skill but also the professional competencies. Thus, basic school managers had inadequate management skills to manage change processes, which created difficulties in managing curriculum change (Ministry of Education 1996:27; Ministry of Education 2010:22). The Mongu Township basic school managers were no exception in this managerial dilemma.
There was a noted concern from the government concerning the inadequate management skills and the inappropriate application of job descriptions amongst the basic school management teams and teachers that resulted in low standards with regard to the delivery of quality education in the education system down the line (Ministry of Education 2005a:45; Ministry of Education 2010:22). Classroom teachers appeared to circumvent the imposed curriculum change which resulted in their work in schools becoming unsatisfactory. Classroom performance, learning achievements and the levels of subject attainment became low, principally, because both school managers and classroom teachers did not comprehend the rationale behind the management of curriculum change (Examinations Council of Zambia 2008:15, 25; Ministry of Education 2005a:45).
The inadequate teaching and learning materials or resources/aids, such as text books, the misapplication of teaching and learning methods, the approaches and techniques in the classrooms, the inadequate financial support coupled with the noted ineffective financial management skills created a large gap in the management of curriculum change (Ministry of Education 2005a:35). The insufficient involvement and participation of teachers as change agents at the planning stage reduced their strong feeling of ownership of the curriculum change, which resulted in resistance to manage change. Significantly, inadequate practical training and support systems amongst school managers and teachers contributed to the difficulties in managing curriculum change (Ministry of Education 2005a:25, 35).
Teachers were not comfortable with new teaching methodologies in managing the changed curriculum and that aspect of discomfort resulted in teachers’ unsystematic adherence to
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curriculum change. The teaching methodologies that were put in place made the classroom teachers develop a negative attitude towards curriculum change. Furthermore, the classroom teachers had insufficient commitment to teaching and that resulted in irregular adherence to classroom assessment procedures. In addition, a large number of teachers in the basic schools had inadequate knowledge about the diversities of the learners’ learning contexts (Ministry of Education 2005a:35; 2005a:25).
Most of the teachers misapplied the philosophy of subject integration enshrined in the newly changed curriculum. The educational ideology underpinning the policy interpretations on curriculum implementation was misunderstood by most school managers and classroom teachers (Higgins 2007:23; Ministry of Education 2007a:15; 2005b:27). To a great extent, donor funding and political influences affected the implementation of the education policies in schools, which in turn contributed considerably to the difficulties in managing curriculum change by the school management and teachers.
The above problems highlighted in this problem statement relate mainly to issues concerning:
• the interpretation of the educational policies provided to the managers and class teachers.
• the identification of the basic challenges that really influenced the effective management of curriculum change and change processes.
• the key assessments of how the teaching and learning materials, the teaching methods, techniques, approaches and strategies impact on curriculum change and change processes.
• the full utilisation of classroom teaching and learning resources by the class teachers. • the extent to which the studied basic school management teams’ and the class teachers’ job descriptions were fully applied in managing curriculum change and change processes.
The noted inability of school managers to handle uncertainties during the change process, the increased work pressure, irreconcilability of cultural characteristics with the proposed change and the incomprehensible purpose of the change processes made it difficult for school
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managers to manage change. In support of this belief, Blandford (1997:179-180) attests that the following factors affect the effective management of curriculum change in schools:
• inadequate support by the management of the school during the change process. • weak strategies for managing resistance to change.
• the absence of participative decision making. • the high level of organisational conflict.
• the insufficient communication or dissemination of the formulated curriculum between the school (staff) and the community.
Against the above background the research questions were formulated.
1.4.1 Research questions
The basic research question of this study reads as follows: How do the school management and
class teachers manage curriculum change in basic schools in Mongu Township in Zambia?
The research sub-questions below are the summary of what was expected to be achieved in the study as a whole. The research questions narrowed the study down to the research essentials, inter alia so that the researcher could avoid collecting irrelevant field information. The research questions facilitated the development of research methods (see discussions in Chapter 4) and helped to orient the collection, analysis, interpretation and utilisation of data (Mutombo & Mwenda 2010:1).
The following research sub-questions were formulated to direct the study:
1. What is the role of managers in managing curriculum change? (Chapter 2) 2. How is curriculum change managed internationally? (Chapter 3)
3. How is curriculum change managed in the Mongu Township of Zambia? (Chapter 5) 4. What recommendations can be made regarding the management of curriculum change
21 1.4.2 Research aim and objectives
The research aim of this study is to investigate the management of curriculum change provided by the basic school management and class teachers in the two basic schools in Mongu Township in Zambia.
The research objectives of the study are formulated as follows:
1. To investigate the role of managers in managing curriculum change. 2. To investigate how curriculum change is managed internationally.
3. To determine how curriculum change is managed in the Mongu Township of Zambia. 4. To determine what recommendations can be made regarding the management of
curriculum change in Mongu Township.
The following paragraphs comprise the research design and methods of the study.