the principals management development programme (pmdp) does it really work?

The Principals Management Development Programme

(PMDP)Does it really work?

PMDP Rollout Progress Report December 2010.ppt

PMDP Research November 2011.ppt

The Matric Results and School Principals

• Matric results and the debate about quality and standards?

• High school Principals and accountability for their schools’ results

• Primary school Principals and ANA

• Principals are being placed on the carpet!



Principals, Accountability and Training

• Principals are held accountable worldwide, but…• They must be personally capable, qualified,

experienced• If we point fingers…• We must also question their preparation for the

job…• At present training is largely left to Universities

(with a focus on qualification and certification – rather than skills development and application)



Leadership and management skills

• Leadership/management skills are required for effective schools

• Very little has been done to prepare SAs principals

• The Provincial DoE/NGO efforts are minimal• The most visible and large scale training for

principals is the ACE – School Leadership• But, the Jury is still out on whether it ‘works’



The ACE – School Leadership

• Aimed at future principals (a long-term strategy)• The Evaluation of the ACE (Bush et al, 2009)

–Two ambitious and different aims• Mentoring• Networking

–A surprisingly positive response from participants?• Inconsistencies across Provinces• ‘Mentoring’ not understood• ‘Networking’ confused with collaborative study

–Effect on learner results largely negative



The ACE (SL) – Some personal observations

• The ACE is conceptually different in design–It correctly identifies mentoring and on-site support

and networking• But…Universities are not geared for delivery• Competent, trained Mentors are in short supply

–Has a paradigm shift happened?• Who is providing the funding?

–…when they don’t pay?• ACE is a long-term strategy – we don’t know yet if it

works



Another Intervention? PMDP

• The Principals Management Development Programme (PMDP)–An innovation in Education (modelled on corporate

sector development training)–Currently underway in KZN–On-going tracking is very positive–Great potential to make meaningful and

sustained change in management–Improving results quickly



Some comments on the PMDP

‘…the work of the PMDP is exceptional in its scope and

impact on school performance in South Africa.’ Mary Metcalf (DBSA)

‘…fixing the education challenge starts with the most important person in the school – the principal – and this initiative is aimed at equipping schools with the skills that enable the whole school to benefit…the initiative proves that partnerships between private and public sector can make a tangible difference in society where it is most needed’. Jay Naidoo (J&J Development Projects Trust



So, what are the PMDP objectives?

• Rapidly upgrading the management skills of principals in selected schools through a highly applied methodology

• Strengthening the work relationship between the four critical layers in the functioning of a school (Ward manager/ Principal/ SMT and SGB)

• Improving the coaching and support skills of Ward Managers and other DoE officials

• Developing sustainable professional learning communities and building a public/private funding and delivery model

(PMDP Research Report, 2011)



PMDP and Partnerships

• A strong multiple partner initiative–Professional Solutions Africa (PSA)–PriceWaterhouseCooper (PWC)–University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN)–KwaZulu-Natal Department of Education

(KZNDoE)• PMDP is aimed at both Primary and Secondary

schools as well as the Ward/Circuit managers, to assure sustainability



How PMDP is delivered

• Monthly weekend residential workshops, followed by:

• Mentoring/ Coaching in the Principal’s school to support the application and assimilation of learning into practice

• The submission of 24 outputs directly related to the work a principal should be doing



Does it work – and how do we know?

The empirical facts:The pilot group (50 schools) – in grade 12,• An average improvement on previous year – 12%

(against a national decline)

• The same schools achieved a further 9% the next year

• Of the first full cohort 573 schools in 2010, 197 offering matric averaged 15.8% improvement on matric results



How is it happening?

• This looks good on paper, but why, and how is it happening? Can it be sustained?

• Further Research:–A large scale survey of 2009 and 2010 schools–Included principals and SMT members–Responses from 550 schools



The Survey Data

• 70% - PMDP is not a duplication• 91% - learner attendance and punctuality has

improved since PMDP• 95% - teachers more conscious of and

managing punctuality and attendance (including their own)

• 76% - Weekend workshops were different from other workshops they attend (NB Methodology)

• 87% - Positive changes to management were strongly influenced by the PMDP



More Survey Data

• 95% - felt facilitators had sufficient skill and knowledge to meet principals’ needs

• 88% - felt Ward Managers were supportive of PMDP practices

• 78% - reported Ward Managers now working in similar ways to PMDP facilitators

• 95% - PMDP has provided skills to run good schools

• 95% - the requirement to complete outputs (with support from mentors) helped make actual changes in practice



Perhaps the most important?

• 96% - confirmation that the Curriculum Management Tracker has made significant changes to the way curriculum is implemented.



In Summary…The PMDP seems to have brought about:

• More learners and teachers in class and on time

• Innovative, personalised learning of skills by the Principals

• Support of the Ward Managers• Better management of Curriculum

implementation and control

Hence, better results??



PMDP and current thinking in SA?

• SAFM’s ‘Forum at Eight’ (14 May 2012)

–Prof Mary Metcalf (DBSA)–Prof Ihron Rensburg (NPC Commissioner)–Yoliswa Dwane (Head of Policy, Equal Education)

• Pannelists reflected on Trevor Manuel’s paradigm shift that is called for in the NPC’s Development Plan for Education (which focuses on Principals’ competencies) and noted….



NPC’s Development Plan for Education noted specifically the poor performance of schoolswith regard to:

• Curriculum coverage (as little as one third in many schools)–PMDP Curriculum Management Tracker

• Time on Task ( as low as 3.5 hours in some schools as opposed

to required 6 hours)–Teacher and learner absenteeism reduced by PMDP

• The perceived lack of support for teachers and schools from District Offices.–Direct involvement of Ward managers in PMDP

the principals management development programme (pmdp) does it really work?

Documents

pmdp research

pmdp rollout progress

training principals

primary school principals

high school principals

future principals

ana principals

sas principals