Abstract:
Rural school reform in South Africa is largely driven by frameworks that are
insufficiently sensitive to the realities of rurality. Twenty-three years into democracy,
the government’s approach to the challenges of rural schools has been top down,
excluding rural school stakeholders’ ideas and proposals regarding reform in these
schools. This approach has failed. This article explores the application of an assetbased
approach as an alternative for rural school improvement. It establishes the
conditions that are conducive to the application of an asset-based approach and the
factors hindering or enabling this approach. A qualitative case study employing
discursive oriented interviews with the participants from a rural school was used. Data
analysis followed inductive and deductive approaches. The findings suggest that the
kind of leadership that exists in schools is critical for the application of the asset-based
approach. From the findings, I conclude that rural schools cannot be distanced from
their communities and the school and the community must be treated as one entity.
Further, the empowerment of all potential contributors is crucial for the success of an
asset-based approach. This empowerment requires schools to create space for every
stakeholder to lead.
