Social dialogue through the rationalisation and redeployment policy process in education post 1994 : an analysis of perceptions and experiences of key policy actors within the Gauteng province.'

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT:Since 1995, despite the consultative processes with regards to Rationalisationand Redeployment, many stakeholders did not accept, nor understand therationale behind the government's drive to redistribute human resources. It iswidely known that there existed immense tensions and conflicts betweeneducators and bureaucrats on the issue, which played itself out in the GrovePrimary School case, as well as the withdrawal of regulations because of a'threatened strike', due to government's disregard for participatory democracy.Using a case study, within the Gauteng province, this research investigatedthe experiences and perceptions of key policy actors on the policy planningand implementation processes by tracking the development of social dialogueduring this process.The conceptual framework for this study was provided in the work of Chengand Cheung (1995), who provided a generic empirical education policyanalysis model, which tracks the policy processes within linear phases. Fiftyindicators were identified, which were used to measure the efficacy of thepolicy-making process, as well as the evolution of social dialogue in the policydiscourse. This study argues that in an endeavour to implement redress andequity, the policy employed had its inherent weaknesses. The researcherused a structured questionnaire to measure key policy actors (formulators andimplementers), experiences and perceptions of the process employed.The qualitative methodology, which was supported by the quantitative dataanalysis approach, exposed that bureaucratic attitude towards socio-politicalparticipation, a technocratic approach to educational imperatives, strong unionorganisation, empowered parents, and the lack of capacity at certain levels ofadministration to deal with resistance directly and indirectly, contributed to theambiguous success of this policy intervention. The purpose of this research was to assist in improving the efficacy of thepolicy pathways, by proposing a modified strategy, which includes dialoguewith all relevant role players.In focusing primarily on the analysis of the Rationalisation and RedeploymentPolicy process, the findings of this empirical research have therefore shownhow opinions and perceptions about the efficacy of a policy process aredirectly linked to the experiences of policy actors with regards to socialdialogue during the process. As any interventionist policy is a negotiatedresponsibility of all educational role players, in order to promote an enablingeducative environment, the consultative, as well as the policy processesproposed in this study, are based on principles grounded in research whichmakes optimal use of existing structures.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University