A GPE-supported school management program is empowering school leaders and transforming schools in rural Zimbabwe.
It is 4 pm at Zwangendaba High School in Lupane District, about 170 km north of Bulawayo, and school head Daizi Munyoro is sitting in his office, the last rays of sun filtering in. The school has a total of 471 pupils: 262 girls and 209 boys ranging from 13 to 18 years.
Thanks to a school management and leadership training in early 2022, Munyoro believes Zwangendaba High School will become one of the best-run schools in the district, translating to a better pass rate for learners.
“I learned a lot from that program, which improved me as a leader. I lacked skills in managing finances and ways to improve the school system. After the training, I can say there have been some changes, including improving the skills of staff members. The community is seeing those changes too.”
In 2018, the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education conducted a baseline survey and training needs assessment in 1,080 primary and secondary schools from all 72 districts, constituting 10% of schools in Zimbabwe.
Part of the survey’s recommendations was the essential training of school heads, deputy heads, head teachers and school development committee members in education leadership and management for schools to provide quality education and more effective and efficient school management.
In early 2022, the school management and leadership training was implemented by UNICEF and the education ministry with funding from GPE, the Education Development Fund and the United Kingdom.
It aimed to equip school leaders with a holistic framework of managing schools for learning and focused on the latest education policies, human resource management, school and community engagement, learner welfare and disaster risk management.
UNICEF supported the ministry in the development, printing and distribution of 10,000 copies of school leadership handbooks for school heads and 6,670 handbooks for school development committees. The former serves as a reference point for teaching and learning processes, administration, finance and curriculum, while the latter focuses on roles and responsibilities of committees in school management.
“Our leaders can now administer schools for results. There is tremendous progress, based on what we see on the ground. Most school heads have also become technically savvy and are now incorporating ICT in day-to-day management of schools.”
“We have seen a steady growth in our academic achievements as a result, and we continue to grow.”
GPE funding, with implementation by UNICEF, supported the national training of approximately 4,250 school heads using both online and in-person modalities.
Feedback from the training highlighted that school heads found it useful in transforming their schools, as it equipped them on how best to achieve key results for learners in an effective learning environment.
“The training helped me improve my supervision and monitoring. It improved the school’s communication with parents and teachers. Everything is achieved when we work as a team; we came back here and cascaded it down to other teachers.”
Munyoro, who was among 100 school heads who received the training in the province of Bulawayo, has been inspired to share his new knowledge with his teaching staff.
“We empowered the teachers in terms of leadership after the training. With teamwork, we can achieve the objectives that we have set.”
As the sun disappears and the school gates are closed, Munyoro heads home, proud of the transformation of his school.
*Name has been changed
Your email address will not be published. All fields are required.