Policy intervention and power shifts: an evaluation of South Africa's education restructuring policies

Clercq, Francine De

doi:10.1080/0268093970120302

Cited by 25 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 9 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Generally speaking, it appears that many countries experience difficulty putting policy into practice. De Clercq (1997) argued in this regard that "the evaluation of many World Bank policies has revealed remarkable discrepancy between their policies and what happens on the ground, especially in Africa" (p. 129). Samoff (1999) questioned applicably the following:…”

Section: Policy Implementation: a Conceptual Frameworkmentioning

confidence: 96%

“…Many researchers have been inquiring into teachers and policy, Crossley & Vulliamy, 1995De Clercq, 1997;Eisner, 1999;Finch, 1986;Hargreaves, 1994Hargreaves, , 1998Jansen, 1997Jansen, , 1999Jansen, , 2000Ozga, 2000;Samoff, 1999); however, only a few have analyzed teachers' understanding as local knowledge from an interpretive and constructivist perspective in a developing context, which I address in this article. I argue that teacher voice as local knowledge, through qualitative inquiry for education policy, offers substance and deeper nuanced understandings of the complexities at the various levels of policy implementation.…”

Section: In Additionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Teachers, Local Knowledge, and Policy Implementation

Smit

2005

Education and Urban Society

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

How can teachers'understandings of policy as local knowledge inform policy implementation in schools? This article investigates policy understanding and implementation in urban primary schools and locates the inquiry in the transitional South African context. The author illustrates teachers'understandings of policy in times of transition and shows how such local knowledge affects policy implementation. She argues that although teachers play an important role in our education system, more often than not, they are a silent voice during policy formulation, which implies that local knowledge might be underplayed, discounted, or simply ignored. She discusses the contextual background and how qualitative inquiry can shape and inform policy implementation. The article presents a conceptual framework for policy implementation and thrashes out what policy may learn from teachers at the microlevels, that is, local knowledge. The author discusses the empirical data and the understandings of teachers of policy and concludes with a few implications for policy implementation.

show abstract

Section: Policy Implementation: a Conceptual Frameworkmentioning

confidence: 96%

Section: In Additionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Teachers, Local Knowledge, and Policy Implementation

Smit

2005

Education and Urban Society

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…They need to view it as equally important to and interdependent with all stages of the reform process, rather than as a distinct stage. Planning and implementation, however, continue to be conceptualised as two distinct and separate activities (deClerq, 1997). Dyer (1999, p. 46) suggests a reason for this: she points out that in spite of the general agreement in the literature 'on the desirability of focusing on implementation … educational policy implementation in developing countries has not received suf cient analytical attention, many aspects of the processes involved are not yet well understood'.…”

Section: Educational Reformmentioning

confidence: 96%

Reform Implementation and the Realities within which Teachers Work: A Namibian case study

O'Sullivan¹

2002

Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International Education

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Implementation is currently considered a critical stage of educational reform. This article focuses on the pivotal role of teachers in the achievement of effective implementation. They ultimately implement reforms. The teacher's role in the reform process however, has received little empirical research attention and tends not to be seriously considered by policy makers. This article discusses the ndings of a three-year (1995)(1996)(1997) research study in Namibia which suggests that the failure of policy makers to take into account the realities within which teachers work, their 'classroots realities', led to the development of English Language Teaching reforms that were signi cantly beyond teachers' capacity. Consequently, teachers did not successfully implement them. The article explores this within a framework of objective and subjective 'classroots reality' implementation factors. In view of the paucity of empirical research that explores implementation, this framework can improve our understanding of the depth and complexity of the implementation process and provide useful guidelines upon which policy makers can draw.

show abstract

“…De Clercq (1997) believes that to facilitate successful policy implementation in the policy cycle, it is important to consider the forces in favour of and against change and to keep the management of change in mind from the stage of policy development through to the stage of policy implementation. Specific, well-organised, high-salience stakeholder groups can be a powerful force in supporting or opposing educational change.…”

Section: The Policy Cyclementioning

confidence: 99%