Teachers' Professional Accountability in a Context of High Inequality: The Case of South Africa

• In Event: Enacting Accountability in Education: Consequences for Teaching Professionalism and Practice

Abstract

Objectives and purposes

South Africa’s Apartheid system ended in 1994, but the legacy of segregating people according to four racial groups is still present. Various forms of professional accountability have been introduced over the years to improve teaching quality and learning outcomes but within a predominantly hierarchical system and overall high inequality across the country. This paper aims to understand the feasibility of the concept of professional accountability in improving education under such conditions.

Theoretical Perspectives

In the logic of professionalism, members of an occupation control the work, have the power to regulate entry into their profession based on expert knowledge and specialised skills and set the standards of their work and the moral code to which they adhere. In education, professional accountability is often understood in a narrower sense in developing and using professional and performative standards for teaching by and for teachers, but within a bureaucratic system where qualifications are regulated by the state. Teachers are held accountable for those standards and expected to improve their work where necessary, such as through peer review and self-development reviews, while complying with criteria determined by national registers of accredited teachers.

Methods

Our study is part of a larger project that examines accountability, trust and capacity among school actors in South Africa. For this paper, we draw on findings from case studies in eight schools.

Data sources

We selected eight high- and low-performing schools in Gauteng and Kwa Zulu Natal. All staff were interviewed and asked to describe internal accountability and decision-making in the school and whether/how they collaborate with peers. All 165 interviews were transcribed and analysed for excerpts in which staff described their understanding of accountability and how it informs their work.

Results

Our findings indicate how national policies to improve professionalism play out differently in schools in rural, remote and disadvantaged areas compared to schools in more affluent and urban regions. Across the two contexts, we found a great variety in teacher professionalism and professional accountability. The differences reflect wider inequalities (e.g. in access to resources and support, poverty of communities) that affect teacher agency, including their understanding of roles and responsibilities. A common approach to improving professionalism in the context of high inequality has not successfully improved learning outcomes for all.

Scientific/scholarly significance of the study

Teachers’ professional accountability is considered important by educational authorities for improving learning outcomes and reducing inequalities. In many countries, national governments have taken an active role in promoting professional accountability by introducing professional and performative standards. This paper shows how logics and discourses of professional accountability as a means of coordinating educational improvement do not sit well in hierarchical school systems located in communities characterised by high inequalities.

Author

• Melanie Ehren, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
  Presenting Author