Factors Affecting School Development Associations' participation in the governance of secondary schools in Zimbabwe: A case study of secondary schools in Highfield, Harare.

Abstract

A lot has been said and written about decentralization in the education sector. Many studies on education systems in Zimbabwe show urgent need for the country to increase the internal efficiency of the education system, which is the foundation of children's future. The promulgation of the Statutory Instrument 87 of 1992 and 70 of 1993 introduced a new model of school governance that had for the first time involvement of parents with the support of legal powers. Objectives of this new innovation were to foster tolerance, discussion and collective decision-making. It was hoped that this model would bring about the required rehabilitation of schools. The introduction of the stakeholder participation paradigm in decision-making was a radical shift from the norm. It became critical to examine its implications for the system and School development associations (SDAs) representing parents in the governance of schools. One had to establish whether SDAs were making any meaningful contributions in the governance of schools. It was the concern of this study to find out if the establishment of SD As has made any meaningful changes in the governance of secondary schools in one educational circuit.