Staff development by school management teams (SMTs) for implementation of OBE in primary schools

M.Ed.During the 1990s, the newly-elected democratic government in South Africa sought to make redress for the past and strove to implement a single new education system. Outcomes-based education (OBE) was chosen to be the new model by which success would be guaranteed for all recipients. Clearly, this approach constitutes a radical break from the past and has required a great deal of educator training in order to facilitate the process. The re-training of educators in the new OBE curriculum has been undertaken through the cascade model. Time constraints, insufficient funding and poor training of the Education Department's facilitators have hampered this process and have led to the unsatisfactory implementation of OBE in many South African schools. This research focused on the experiences of primary school educators in implementing the new curriculum as well as on the type of training received. The role of the School Management Team in providing and supporting staff development in order to drive the successful implementation of OBE was also explored. The literature study revealed that there is often a disparity between the intended results of policy implementation and what actually occurs. The implementation of OBE in other countries appears to have also been problematic and that many lessons could be learned from these experiences. In order to gain a comprehensive understanding of the reality of OBE implementation, the research design chosen was qualitative, exploratory, descriptive and contextual, using the following research methods to gather the empirical data: a literature study and individual interviews with practising educators. Four major categories emerged from the data analysis, namely: • The type of training received The quality of Departmental training given to educators appears to have been poor due to inadequately qualified trainers. NGOs are often seen to have better capacity to train than the Department of Education. • Educators' perceptions of OBE These were largely negative due to confusion and initial poor training, although there is a willingness to embrace the concept of OBE. • Problems experienced in implementing OBE The curriculum document is confusing to many educators and has consequently hampered implementation. Constant change as the Education Department has tried to streamline the curriculum, as well as practical issues such as class size, paperwork and discipline, have caused educator stress. Resources have also had a financial implication in the successful implementation of OBE. • The role of the School Management Team in educator development The introduction of OBE has meant that SMTs need to build the capacity of their schools for effective change. The importance of collaboration and the sharing of best practice cannot be underestimated in light of the poor training and lack of resources. However, the use of outside support needs to be weighed against the danger of increasing dependency on external programmes