Cases of Principal Leadership Responses in a Volatile, Uncertain and Complex School Environment

Abstract

The findings of a small-scale qualitative study of school leadership responses to the volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous (VUCA) school environment performed among secondary schools in the Mpumalanga Circuit are presented in this paper. The article looks at how principals were responding to the pandemic’s disruptive effects and how they were planning to mitigate the effects on school operations. It employed qualitative, multiple case-study approaches to collect data from to secondary sample schools in Mpumalanga Circuit, using 10 principals as respondents. The findings illustrate how principals dealt with the issues posed by the implementation of the social distance and COVID-19 regulations in a VUCA-oriented school environment. Teacher leave applications contributed to the intricacy, with unexpected results such as teacher shortages and subjects not being taught. Despite these challenges, the principals were able to achieve their goals.

Crisis Management, School Leadership in Disruptive Times and the Recovery of Schools in the Post COVID-19 Era: A Systematic Literature Review

“…An inability to manage uncertainties coupled with a pronounced lack of scenario planning in the case of health pandemics were similarly reported by school principals in Turkey, as documented by [85], forcing them in most cases to resort to short-term solutions to ensure a continuity in school operations within this uncertain environment. Such strategies usually involved the adoption of social media and communication apps (e.g., WhatsApp) to minimize the distribution of false information and confusion and to maximize support for their school community [77] and the enforcement of defined policies and procedures at a school level, as well as efforts to enhance cooperation with the local health agencies to stabilize school organizational culture [86].…”