The role of school managers in managing violence in high schools : a Swaziland case study

Abstract

Children are guaranteed the right to education by various domestic, regional and international laws. Basing on the daily media reports and the violence witnessed by the investigator during his teaching career, the researcher set out to investigate the role played by the school senior managers – hereafter School Management Team (SMT) in managing violence in Swaziland schools. A qualitative multiple case study design was chosen to gather information pertaining to the perceptions on management of school violence by interviewing a principal, a deputy principal and a senior teacher in three schools. The legal obligation of educators’ duty of care was used as a conceptual framework to guide the study. Document analysis was used to triangulate the interview findings. The data gathered was analysed in line with the accepted procedures for processing qualitative data. The data revealed that 70% of the respondents indicated witnessing various forms of learnerdirected violence in schools. All respondents cited corporal punishment as the most frequently observed form of punishment in addition to sexual harassment, bullying, gender-based violence (GBV), and fighting. Educators supervised learners in class and during school excursions. Basing on the study findings, the investigator concludes by suggesting possible recommendations.