Curriculum Leadership Role of Subject Advisors for Mathematics Improvement In South Africa

Abstract

The aim of the study was to explore the curriculum leadership role of Mathematics subject advisors for Mathematics improvement in South Africa. Researchers in developing countries have struggled to describe and capture the curriculum leadership role of Mathematics subject advisors and the way it influences learner achievement results in Mathematics. In the same vein, their counterparts in developed countries also continue to struggle to document actual success stories of the curriculum leadership role of Mathematics subject advisors in improving the teaching and learning of Mathematics. To the best of the researcher's knowledge, not many studies focusing on curriculum leadership and the role of subject advisors for Mathematics improvement have been conducted in the South African context. This qualitative case study convenience and purposively sampled Mathematics subject advisors and ten Mathematics educators in all the five districts of the Free State province in South Africa. Data were collected through in-depth semi-structured interviews, observations and document analysis. Data was coded according to the eight steps of Tesch (1990). The study established that the curriculum leadership role of subject advisors includes but is not limited to providing support and guidance to educators, educator appraisal, monitoring, controlling educators and learners' work books, mentoring and developing educators' professionally. In addition, subject advisors are tasked with carrying out administrative work including the provision of resources and paper work such as using monitoring tools. While all subject advisors tried to get the best possible learner achievement in Mathematics, they managed and led their schools differently. Some reflected on previous strategies while others worked according to the availability of resources. In addition, the individual educational philosophies of the subject advisors played a role. Besides this, the study established that subject advisors do not operate in isolation. The interactions amongst subject advisors, principals, educators, learners and the context are important in promoting subject advisors' effective curriculum leadership. Lastly, none of the subject advisors that were interviewed knew everything that was going on in his or her subject area. Some of the interviewed subject advisors did not major in Mathematics or a science-related subject. The subject advisors in this study each pointed out that they need training in vi specific areas such as the management and leadership of supporting progressed learners. It is in this vein that the findings of this study may be used by scholars in future to assist in the development of a standardised model, which can be used to inform leadership training of Mathematics subject advisors wishing to improve subject advisors' curriculum leadership role, and which would then influence educators' classroom and teaching practices and learners' performance.