World Journal of Educational Research
Vol. 1(1), pp. 002-007, October, 2014. © www.premierpublishers.org, ISSN: 2326-7221
WJER
Case Study
Teacher participation in organisational development
efforts: the case of secondary schools in Bulawayo
province of Zimbabwe
1*
Thembinkosi Tshabalala and 2Alfred Champion Ncube
1*,2
Educational Management, Faculty of Arts and Education, Zimbabwe Open University, Zimbabwe
The study examined the extent of teacher participation in different areas of decision-making in
secondary schools in Bulawayo Province of Zimbabwe and the impact of this involvement on
school improvement through organisational development. A survey using self-administered
questionnaires with a Likert-type scale assessing teachers’ actual and preferred participation in
decision-making was employed. The sample comprised 200 teachers and 20 school heads. Of the
sample respondents, 78% were female and 22% were male. Data were collected through semistructured questionnaires. Descriptive statistical analysis was used to interpret data. The study
indicated that the actual teacher participation in decisions concerning learners was fairly high, but
quite low in respect of managerial decisions. The difference between the actual and the preferred
levels of participation showed high levels of deprivation. Greater involvement in issues
concerning learners and the lower levels of participation in respect of managerial issues were
attributable to such dimensions as failure to adopt new decisions, passive resistance by teachers,
bureaucracy and lack of knowledge by heads. The significance of the results of this study lies on
the implications for school improvement practice: heads of schools should enhance teacher
participation not only in issues relating to pedagogy but managerial issues as well.
Key Words: Organisational development, school improvement, decision-making, climate, secondary schools, province,
staff motivation
INTRODUCTION
In recent years, a great deal of focus has been made on
the concept of Organisation Development as a process of
school improvement. Across the diverse bodies of
research, one factor consistently seems to be vital:
people. According to Robbins (2010), there is an
increasing amount of evidence that successful
organisations put people first. Organisations that put
people first have a dedicated and committed workforce
which then in turn translates into higher employee
productivity
(Wilkinson,
2011).
Schools,
as
organisations, are bureaucracies and their organisational
structures are not always flexible such that planned
change may be difficult.
As Bridges (2007) aptly
observed, most schools have experienced high staff-
turnover, low staff morale and professional ennui, poor
communication among teachers and between teachers
and their school administrators. This, according to Mpofu
(2012) may result in low-pass rates in schools and
general ineffectiveness.
*Corresponding Author: Dr Thembinkosi Tshabalala,
Educational Management, Faculty of Arts and Education,
Zimbabwe Open University, P.O .Box MP1119 Mount
Pleasant Harare Zimbabwe
Teacher participation in organisational development efforts: the case of secondary schools in Bulawayo province of Zimbabwe
Tshabalala and Ncube
002
Madziyire (2007) found that in most Zimbabwean
schools, (particularly rural schools) heads did not take
decisions to the lower levels of teachers, and as a result,
teachers were left out in making important decisions and
simply coerced to implement decisions made by the top
management. This has resulted in the demotivation of
teachers in most schools and some talented teachers
end up leaving the profession altogether. Organisational
development, therefore, becomes the approach to
changing schools so that they can develop problemsolving and self-renewal capabilities to cope with the
external problems of survival in their environments
(Schein, 2010). Planned change is therefore imperative
in schools. It enables schools to survive in harsh and
turbulent external environments (Madziyire, 2007). The
schools should therefore be built around OD efforts to
bring about the much cherished organisational renewal or
rebirth (Mudawarima, 2004). This study therefore, set out
to establish the impact of organisational development on
participatory decision-making in Zimbabwean secondary
schools.
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
According to Chung (2009), managers in all organisations
(schools included) are constantly bombarded and
overwhelmed with more ideas, new products, new
challenges than ever before emanating from new
technology, turbulent environments and the impact of
globalization. In the face of the accelerating rate of
change in technological, socio-cultural, political and
economic environments managers and academics alike
are increasingly concerned about the adaptive and
learning capacity of organisations (Schmuck and Runkel
2012). As Bardwick (2007) argued that organizational
change is of paramount importance for a school to
survive a turbulent environment.
As Christiano (2012) posited that organisation
development becomes the approach to changing schools
so that they develop problem-solving and self-renewal
capabilities to cope with the external problems of survival.
OD is increasingly valued because work issues are now
much more complex, making it highly unlikely that a
single leader would possess all the information needed to
make sound decisions. This has led to the realisation
that having engaged employees and possessing an
enabling culture are crucial factors for a high-performing
organisation (Blunt et al., 2006). As Craig (2011) found
out, employees increasingly expect more than just a fair
wage for their work; they want recognition, a sense of
achievement, fulfilling assignments and meaningful
relationships with their managers and colleagues. When
the foregoing needs are not met, the teachers’ levels of
motivation to perform declines. The goal of OD is
therefore to help organisations improve, and even
transform, such that they can attain sustained
organisational effectiveness (Jones, 2012).
Hall (2007) posits that the objective of OD is to improve
the organisation’s capacity to handle its internal and
external functioning relationships.
This includes
improved interpersonal and group processes, more
effective communication, and enhanced ability to cope
with organisational problems of all kinds. It also involves
more effective decision-making processes, more
appropriate leadership styles, improved skill in dealing
with destructive conflict, as well as developing improved
levels of trust and cooperation among organisational
members. As Jones (2012) postulated that in such
instances, trust and support should be given to teachers.
This is because an effective and healthy school is
characterised by trust, authenticity, openness and a
supportive climate. OD also means power equalisation,
which means that effective schools should de-emphasise
hierarchical authority and control over teachers (Jones,
2012).
As Muza (2006) observed that OD also requires that
there be constructive confrontation; which means that
educational problems identified in the school should not
be swept under the carpet. They should be openly
confronted in a joint problem-solving approach. OD
promotes participation by all organisation members who
are affected by the change in decision making to make
them more committed to the implementation of change.
As Ncube (2013) aptly observed that participative or
shared decision-making, if it is built into the school
system, will help teachers to release their energy and
make them more committed towards achievement of the
school goals in a synergistic manner.
French and Bell (1999) asserted that OD interventions
are deliberately designed to increase involvement and
participation by organisation leaders and members. For
example, autonomous work groups, quality circles, team
building, survey feedback, quality of work life
programmes, search conferences and the culture audit
are all predicated on the belief that increased
participation will lead to better solutions, involve all those
who are part of the solution and have decisions made by
those who are closest to the problem, direct leaders to
push decision-making lower in the organisation, treat
those closest to the problem as the relevant experts and
give more power to more people (French and Bell, 1999).
The whole field of OD is about empowerment and
participation by all people in a school organisation. Most
initiatives as Ncube (2013) argued that it should be
designed to give teachers a significant role in decisionmaking so as to enhance their contribution to the
organisation.
Robbins (2010) states that a school which is striving to
implement OD effort should use participatory decision
making in order to support humanistic and democratic
values. In such a set up, the school puts teachers first so
that they become motivated. For example, meetings
should produce shared decisions and teachers working in
teams become the focus in the agenda for change.
Teacher participation in organisational development efforts: the case of secondary schools in Bulawayo province of Zimbabwe
World J. Educ. Res.
003
Table 1. Category of respondents (N=220)
Category
Head of schools
Teachers
Total
Frequency
20
200
220
Percentage Frequency
9
91
100
Table 1 shows that the vast majority of respondents (91%) were teachers. This is a true reflection of what obtains in the sc hools as
each school has one head and many teachers.
Table 2. Distribution of respondents by sex (N=220)
Category
Male
Female
Total
Frequency
48
172
220
Percentage
22
78
100
Table 2 reveals that there were more female respondents that male ones. The datum was considered statistically significant t o the
extent that it confirms that most urban schools in Zimbabwe had more female educators than male ones.
Table 3. Composition of respondents by professional qualifications (N=220)
Professional Qualifications
Certificate in Education
Diploma in Education
Bachelor’s Degree
Master’s Degree
Total
Frequency
40
152
22
6
220
Percentage
18
69
10
3
100
The information in table 3 shows that the majority of the respondents (69%) were holders of the Diploma in Education qualific ation,
followed by the Certificate in Education (18%) and the Bachelor’s Degree (10%) respectively. Those who were in possession of
Master’s Degree qualifications constituted 31% of the respondents.
According to Robbins (ibid), there is a high correlation
between group decisions and commitment or creativity. In
amplification, Robbins (2010) asserts that groups are
very effective tools for implementation and groups gain
commitment from their members so that group decisions
are likely to be willingly and more successfully carried
out.
STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
Most heads in secondary schools in Zimbabwe find it
difficult to take decisions to the lower levels of teachers
and as a result, teachers are left out in the
implementation of OD strategies. In the majority of
instances, teachers are simply coerced to implement the
decisions made by the administrators. It was in this
context that this study sought answers to the following
questions:
1.
Are teachers willing to participate in school
decision-making?
2.
Are there avenues for participatory decisionmaking for teachers in the schools?
3.
What are the challenges faced in shared
decision-making in schools?
METHODOLOGY
The study employed the quantitative paradigm and made
use of a survey research design. The questionnaire used
comprised ten close-ended questions and two openended questions.
All respondents were given the
questionnaires by the researchers in their schools. The
researchers also collected the questionnaires personally
in order to increase on the rate of return of the instrument
as non-returns introduce a bias (Phillips and Pugh, 2012).
The data collected produced descriptive statistics around
the variables under study.
These statistics were
computed and inferential implications then deduced and
recorded.
Findings and Discussion
In this section, the authors present the findings on the
extent to which organisational development can be
applied through participatory decision making in
secondary schools. The section is presented in two
parts, namely; actual findings and discussion.
The questionnaire had two open-ended questions. The
first question wanted respondents to state the
committees that existed in their schools. A number of
committees were listed.
The most commonly-cited
included the following:

Disciplinary committee

Sports committee
Teacher participation in organisational development efforts: the case of secondary schools in Bulawayo province of Zimbabwe
Tshabalala and Ncube
004
Table 4. Composition of sample by teaching experience (N=220)
Experience in Years
1–2
3–5
6 – 10
10 – 15
20 and above
Total
Frequency
4
9
66
115
26
220
Percentage Frequency
2
4
30
52
12
100
Table 4 above shows that the majority of teachers (64%) had ten years or more of teaching experience. Only 2% of the teachers had
less than 3 years of teaching experience. This trend was to be expected as, in Zimbabwe, the newly qualified teachers are gen erally
posted to rural schools before they later make their way into urban schools.
Table 5: Responses to the statement: “Teachers like to participate in decision-making”.
Category of responses
Agree
Disagree
Not sure
Totals
Heads (N=20)
nf
%f
18
89
2
11
0
0
20
100
Teachers (N=200)
nf
%f
170
85
20
10
10
5
200
100
Totals (N=220)
nf
%f
188
85
22
10
10
5
220
100
Table 5 shows that the majority of both heads and teachers (89%; and 85%) respectively, believe that teachers like to participate in
decision-making. Only 10% of the respondents indicated that teachers do not like to participate in decision-making. Only 5% of the
teachers were not sure about what to say.
Table 6. Responses to the statement: “Heads and teachers hold problem-solving meetings regularly (N=220)”
Category of responses
Agree
Disagree
Not sure
Totals
Heads (N=20)
nf
%f
18
90
2
10
0
0
20
100
Teachers (N=200)
nf
%f
40
20
158
79
2
1
200
100
Totals (N=220)
nf
%f
58
26
160
73
2
1
220
100
Table 6 reveals that most heads (90%) indicated that they held problem-solving meetings with teachers, and yet 79% of the teachers
disagreed with the statement.
Table 7. Responses to the statement: “Heads and teachers jointly solve educational problems through constructive
confrontation (N=220)
Category of responses
Agree
Disagree
Not sure
Totals
Heads (N=20)
nf
%f
5
25
15
75
0
0
20
100
Teachers (N=200)
nf
%f
10
5
187
93
3
2
200
100
Totals (N=220)
nf
%f
15
7
202
92
3
1
220
100
The majority of heads and teachers disagreed with the statement that teachers jointly solve educational problems through constructive
confrontation (73%). However, 26% of the respondents agreed with the assertion.




Examinations committee
Staff fund committee
Procurement committee
Finance committee
However, the majority of teachers stated that although
these committees exist, most of the time the head forgets
to utilise them and instead, comes up with decisions
without involving the committees.
The second question sought to find out from teachers the
specific areas in decision-making where they would have
liked to be involved in decision together with their heads.
The most common responses include the following:
curriculum issues; pupil discipline; school duty roasters;
fund raising activities; running examinations; class
Teacher participation in organisational development efforts: the case of secondary schools in Bulawayo province of Zimbabwe
World J. Educ. Res.
005
Table 8. Responses to the statement: “The head builds trust in the entire staff and establishes clear communication patterns
which are essential to change (N=220)”
Category of responses
Agree
Disagree
Not sure
Totals
Heads (N=20)
nf
%f
19
95
1
5
0
0
20
100
Teachers (N=200)
nf
%f
10
5
188
94
2
1
200
100
Totals (N=220)
nf
%f
29
4
189
85
2
1
220
100
The information in table 8 reveals that there is a discrepancy in responses from heads and teachers regarding the establishment of
trust and clear communication. Whereas the vast majority of heads (95%) stated that they built trust in the entire staff and established
clear communication patterns, 94% of the teachers indicated that heads did not build trust and establish clear communication. A
similar number of heads and teachers (5%) respectively disagreed and agreed with the statement.
Table 9. Responses to the statement: “Head creates an open climate using a democratic leadership style to facilitate shared
decision-making (N=220)”
Category of responses
Agree
Disagree
Not sure
Totals
Heads (N=20)
nf
%f
20
100
0
0
0
0
20
100
Teachers (N=200)
nf
%f
1
1
196
98
3
1
200
100
Totals (N=220)
nf
%f
21
10
196
89
3
1
220
100
Table 9 shows that all the heads (100%) indicated that they created open climates using a democratic leadership style to facilitate
shared decision-making. On the other hand 98% of the teachers disagreed with the assertion that heads created an open climate.
Only 1% of the teachers were not sure about what to say.
Table 10. Responses to the statement: “The head creates committees in the school to promote participatory decision -making
(N=220)”
Category of responses
Agree
Disagree
Not sure
Totals
Heads (N=20)
nf
%f
20
100
0
0
0
0
20
100
Teachers (N=200)
nf
%f
15
93
15
7
0
0
200
100
Totals (N=220)
nf
%f
205
93
15
7
0
0
220
100
All the heads (100%) indicated that they created committees to promote participatory decision-making in their schools. The majority of
teachers (93%) agreed with their heads on this statement.
allocation; school policy; administration issues and
strategies for improving pass rates at public
examinations.
DISCUSSION
Information from the study reveals that most heads and
teachers hold relevant professional qualifications and
have served as educators for a long period of time. The
implication is that the heads in the schools work with
teachers who are qualified and experienced to be
involved in decision-making on issues affecting their
professional lives. Among others, this involvement could
be in policy issues, curriculum, finance, discipline and
instruction. Failure by heads to involve experienced
teachers may result in the demotivation of teachers. This
finding tallies with observations made by Madziyire
(2007) who found that in most Zimbabwean schools,
teachers resist most decisions taken without their input.
Data in this study also reveal that both heads and
teachers would appreciate the participation of teachers in
decision-making. This finding tallies with the argument
put forward by Craig (2011) who found that employees
(teachers included) increasingly expect more than just
fair wage for their work; they want recognition, a sense of
achievement, participation in decision-making, fulfilling
assignments and meaningful relationships with their
managers and colleagues; and when these needs are not
met, their motivation to perform declines. It therefore,
behooves all heads to create conditions that will enable
teachers to partake in decision-making on issues that
affect their lives in the schools.
The study shows that heads and teachers do not hold
problem-solving meetings regularly; neither do they jointly
solve educational problems through constructive
confrontation in order to share ideas on various issues
affecting the heads and teachers. Meeting regularly to
discuss ways of solving difficult issues affecting the
Teacher participation in organisational development efforts: the case of secondary schools in Bulawayo province of Zimbabwe
Tshabalala and Ncube
006
school provides platforms for teachers to complement the
head teacher’s ideas on solving school problems. As
Muza (2006) observed, organisational development also
requires constructive confrontation; this means that
educational problems identified in the school should not
be swept under the carpet. They should be openly
confronted in a joint solving approach.
Information from the study reveals that heads do not build
trust in the entire staff and do not establish clear
communication patterns, both of which are essential to
change. Trust between heads and teachers as well as
clear communication channels are the necessary
ingredients for an effective organisation such as a school.
As Hall (2007) postulated, trust includes improved
interpersonal and group processes, more effective
communication, enhanced ability to cope with
organizational problems of all kinds. Hall (2007) and
Jones (2012) argued that trust and support should be
given to teachers since an effective and healthy school is
characterised by trust, authenticity, openness and a
supportive climate.
This study also reveals that heads do not create an open
climate using a democratic leadership style to facilitate
shared decision-making. An open climate depicts a
situation where teachers work together without bickering
and griping. In this regard, Ncube (2013) believed that
teachers in an open climate will not be burdened by a lot
of routine reports; the head’s policies will facilitate the
teachers’ accomplishments of their tasks.
Robbins
(2010) further stated that a school which is striving to
implement organizational development efforts should use
participatory decision-making in order to support
humanistic and democratic values. In such a set up, the
school puts teachers first so that they become motivated.
Findings in this study also show that heads put
committees in place to promote participatory decisionmaking in their schools. However, these committees are
not made use of by the heads. Such committees only
existed on notice boards in the heads’ offices to
hoodwink the education officers. Committees play a very
critical role in fostering collaboration among teachers. On
this issue, Robbins (2010) advised that groups and not
individuals are the ideal building blocks for an
organisation.
Groups are very effective tools for
implementation of policies and programmes.
CONCLUSIONS
Given the background of the above findings, the
researchers make the following conclusions:

Heads and teachers are in possession of relevant
professional qualifications.

Teachers generally appreciated to participate in
decision-making.

Heads did not hold problem-solving meetings
regularly; and did not jointly solve educational problems
through constructive confrontation.

Heads do not build trust in the entire staff and do
not establish clear communication patterns which are
essential for a healthy organisation.

Heads do not create an open climate using a
democratic leadership style to facilitate shared decisionmaking.

Heads do not make use of committees that they
create for making decisions on certain issues within the
schools.
RECOMMENDATIONS

In light of the findings of this study, the
researchers would like to make some recommendations
as follows:

Head should involve their teachers in decisionmaking processes since most teachers in schools are
experienced and in possession of relevant qualifications.

Head should delegate some of their duties to
senior members of staff so that they are allowed to make
independent decisions since most teachers, particularly
senior teachers like to participate in decision making.

Some means of institutionalizing constructive
confrontation should be devised so that teachers can
freely debate educational issues identified in the school
without sweeping them under the carpet.

Head should work through committees or groups.
Committees should not just be there in theory. They
ought to work to improve the school.

Head should also build trust in their entire staff
and establish clear communication channels. All teachers
should feel trusted by the head. Information meant for
members of staff should not be communicated to a select
few as this breeds unnecessary suspicion and conflict at
the expense of cooperation.
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Accepted 29 September, 2014.
Citation: Tshabalala T, Ncube AC (2014). Teacher
participation in organisational development efforts: the
case of secondary schools in Bulawayo province of
Zimbabwe. World Journal of Educational Research 1(1):
002-007.
Copyright: © 2014 Tshabalala and Ncube. This is an
open-access article distributed under the terms of the
Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits
unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any
medium, provided the original author and source are
cited.
Teacher participation in organisational development efforts: the case of secondary schools in Bulawayo province of Zimbabwe