Leadership at the Primary School Level in Bhutan: a Study Of
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LEADERSHIP AT THE PRIMARY SCHOOL LEVEL IN BHUTAN: A STUDY OF THE HISTORICAL BACKGROUND, RECENT DEVELOPMENTS, AND CURRENT CONCERNS OF SCHOOL LEADERS IN A CONSTITUTIONAL MONARCHY AND DEVELOPING COUNTRY Tshewang Dema Bachelor of Education (Secondary) Master of Education (Curriculum and Instruction) This thesis is presented for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy of The University of Western Australia Graduate Research School Faculty of Education 2021 THESIS DECLARATION I, Tshewang Dema, certify that: This thesis has been substantially accomplished during enrolment in this degree. This thesis does not contain material which has been submitted for the award of any other degree or diploma in my name, in any university or other tertiary institution. In the future, no part of this thesis will be used in a submission in my name, for any other degree or diploma in any university or other tertiary institution without the prior approval of The University of Western Australia and where applicable, any partner institution responsible for the joint-award of this degree. This thesis does not contain any material previously published or written by another person, except where due reference has been made in the text. This thesis does not violate or infringe any copyright, trademark, patent, or other rights whatsoever of any person. The research involving human data reported in this thesis was assessed and approved by The University of Western Australia Human Research Ethics Committee. Approval #: RA/4/20/4092. Written participant consent has been received and archived for the research involving participant data reported in this thesis. The following approvals were obtained prior to commencing the relevant work described in this thesis: Ministry of Education, Bhutan. Reference #: DSE/SPCD/SLCU/(01)/2017/1972. This thesis does not contain work that I have published, nor work under review for publication. Signature: Date: 23/11/2020 i ABSTRACT Based on the premise that leadership needs to be understood within the context in which it is exercised, the study reported in this thesis aimed to develop an understanding of leadership at the primary school level in remote regions in Bhutan. It examined the historical background and recent developments in relation to, primary school leadership in Bhutan. It also investigated the current concerns faced by primary school leaders and the strategies adopted by them in order to deal with those concerns. Review of the school leadership literature indicated that this literature has been dominated by perspectives generated from Western and developed countries. At the same time, there has been a dearth of research and associated literature relating to leadership at the individual school level in remote contexts. Similarly, only a limited research base exists on school level leadership in developing countries. This thesis reports a study undertaken as one attempt to address those deficits. The theoretical underpinning of the study was interpretivism. Qualitative methods of data collection including semi-structured interviews, document analysis and unstructured non- participant observations, were used. Maximum variation selection and purposive selection of participants were used for the selection of schools and participants. The latter comprised of principals and teachers who chaired school committees. Data were analysed using grounded theory methods of data analysis, specifically the use of constant comparison through open coding. The ‘open-coded’ data were then analysed using the ‘analytic induction’ technique. The outcomes of the study suggest that, starting from 1961, Bhutan expanded primary school provision in all parts of the nation. Alongside traditional monastic education, modern education was now introduced on a large scale. Most of the teachers were from other countries and the curriculum was borrowed from India. The nation also made a transition from being an absolute monarchy to a constitutional democracy in 2008. The training of national teachers in ii the country, the development of education policies and introduction of a Bhutanese curriculum now took off in earnest. The results pertaining to the current concerns faced by the primary school leaders studied suggest that they encounter problems relating to remoteness of the schools, teachers’ and school leaders’ heavy workload, financial or resource constraints, student attrition, and parental disengagement. In addition, a range of strategies pursued by school leaders to deal with their concerns were revealed. The results and the associated key assertions presented in the final chapter are pertinent to the literature and future research on educational leadership. They also have implications for policy and practice. On this, the study’s results are likely to be useful for educational leadership researchers, school leaders, education policy makers, and those in charge of preparing, developing, and implementing professional development programmes for school leaders and teachers in Bhutan, as well as in other developing countries. iii Table of Contents THESIS DECLARATION .................................................................................................................................... I ABSTRACT ...........................................................................................................................................................II LIST OF TABLES ............................................................................................................................................. VII LIST OF ACRONYMS.................................................................................................................................... VIII ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................................................................ IX CHAPTER ONE..................................................................................................................................................... 1 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................................................. 1 1.1 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................................... 1 1.2 OVERVIEW OF THE CONTEXT .......................................................................................................................... 2 1.3 OVERVIEW OF THE LITERATURE ..................................................................................................................... 5 1.3.1 School leadership................................................................................................................................... 6 1.3.2 The importance of considering context when deliberating on leadership .......................................... 8 1.3.3 Leadership in developing countries in Asia ....................................................................................... 11 1.3.4 Leadership in remote schools .............................................................................................................. 12 1.3.5 Leadership in education in Bhutan .................................................................................................... 13 1.3.6 Leadership in primary schools in Bhutan .......................................................................................... 15 1.4. THE RESEARCH PLAN AND METHODOLOGY ................................................................................................ 17 1.4.1. Theoretical Framework and the Three Research Questions ............................................................ 17 1.4.2 Selection of Schools ............................................................................................................................. 20 1.4.3 Data Collection .................................................................................................................................... 21 1.4.4 Data Analysis ....................................................................................................................................... 21 1.4.5 Trustworthiness of the Research ........................................................................................................ 21 1.5. CONCLUSION ............................................................................................................................................... 23 CHAPTER TWO ................................................................................................................................................. 24 OVERVIEW OF THE CONTEXT .................................................................................................................... 24 2.1. INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................................ 24 2.2 AN OVERVIEW OF THE HISTORY OF BHUTAN AND OF THE COUNTRY’S TRANSITION FROM BEING AN ABSOLUTE MONARCHY TO BEING A CONSTITUTIONAL MONARCHY .................................................................. 25 2.2.1 Gross National Happiness – The country’s development philosophy ............................................... 26 2.3 EDUCATION IN TRANSITIONAL AND DEVELOPING COUNTRIES ..................................................................... 27 2.4 INTERNATIONAL OVERVIEW OF THE PATTERNS OF CENTRALISATION AND DECENTRALISATION IN