Exploring the practices of a head teacher in enhancing community participation in a public secondary school in District Quetta, Balochistan
Date of Award
7-10-2014
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Master of Education (M. Ed.)
Department
Professional Development Centre, Karachi
Abstract
Community participation in schools has been widely advocated by researchers in the developed and developing countries. As schools get overwhelmed with so many innovations, new programmes, and competing priorities, they require more resources and sources of support. Thus communities to which schools serve have become a great source of support and resources, both human and material. This is very true for schools in Pakistan, particularly the public sector schools, which lack in effective governance and management and resources. Therefore there is a dire need for increasing communities’ active and meaningful participation in schools. However it is not known what can really increase communities’ active participation in schools and who can play the lead role in making this happen. There seems to be a consensus amongst researchers, practitioners, and policy makers that the head teacher can play the most crucial role in achieving greater level of community participation in a school. Thus keeping in view the centrality of the head teacher’s role, this study looked into the perceptions and practices of the head teacher in increasing community participation in a public sector secondary school in the district of Quetta, Balochistan. An exploratory qualitative case study approach was used to conduct this study. The data were generated through semi-structured interviews, observations, document analysis, and informal conversations with five purposively selected participants including the head teacher, two teachers, and two community members. The findings of the study revealed that the head teacher did play a key role in bridging the gap between the school and the local community. The head teacher’s perceptions about community participation in school, his leadership approach, and practices in and outside the school determine the level and purpose of community participation. Based on the findings, the study draws a few conclusions having implications for school leadership, community leaders, policy makers and researchers.
Recommended Citation
Ahmed, S. (2014). Exploring the practices of a head teacher in enhancing community participation in a public secondary school in District Quetta, Balochistan (Unpublished master's dissertation). Aga Khan University, Karachi, Pakistan.