KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT APPLICATION IN TOWNSHIP SCHOOLS: A CASE STUDY OF EMALAHLENI CIRCUIT 1, 2 AND 3 By BONGANI INNOCENT NKAMBULE Submitted in accordance with the requirements for The degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY in the subject EDUCATION MANAGEMENT at the UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH AFRICA SUPERVISOR: PROFESSOR NRA ROMM DECLARATION I, Bongani Innocent Nkambule, student no. 63552809 solemnly declare that the thesis, Knowledge Management Application in Township Schools: A Case Study of Emalahleni Circuit 1, 2 and 3, submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy at the University of South Africa, is my own original work and has not previously been submitted to any other institution of higher learning. Due credit has been given to all the cited or quoted authors throughout this body of work˗ in a form of a comprehensive list of references. 02-11-2020 ………………………….. ……………………………… Signature Date DEDICATION My heartfelt gratitude goes to my late mother, Ellah Kholiwe Radebe, who nurtured me with love and instilled in me the hunger for education. Despite having two sons at an early age, she did not give up on her studies. I thank her for choosing to go back to school as this made it possible for me to realise my educational dreams and life aspirations. I remember how hard at times it was for her as a single parent to put me through university. Against all odds she endured the ordeal. These are the fruits of her labour of love, and I love her so much for that. To my late maternal grandparents, Gogo- Emmah Sesi Radebe and Mkhulu- Samuel Mhlupheki Radebe, who taught me to be grateful for the little that I have because there are people out there who would do anything to have what I have. They also taught me to be humble and respectful. I now thank them for forcing me to attend Sunday School because there I learned to be prayerful and to remember always that with God, nothing is impossible. Most of all, I thank them for being my biggest supporters and the beacon of hope for a better future. (Inkuliso yenu iyabongeka nina, bo Radebe, mthimkhulu, bhungane, makhulukhulu, mashiyamahle). As they say “it takes a village to raise a child”, I thank my father, Jacob Moyi Nkambule, my late grandmother, Norma Nkambule, my aunts, Joyce Nomvula Khumalo, Rossy Mabuza and my uncle Andrew Radebe, as well as all my paternal and maternal aunts, uncles and cousins, who each contributed in various ways to my upbringing. Obtaining this qualification is my way of thanking them for all that they have done for me. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ➢ Firstly, I would like to thank uNkulunkulu for the gift of life and for seeing me through this daunting journey. He kept me energised and focused at all times when I set myself to work on this project. ➢ I profoundly thank my supervisor, Professor Norma Romm, for the precision with which she helped me craft this body of work. Her intriguing comments and constructive criticism made me yearn to give it my all to make this academic endeavour a success. Her friendliness put me at liberty to ask questions whenever I needed clarity on something. She did not only supervise me diligently but also honed both my academic writing and English grammar skills. Words are simply not enough to express my gratitude for the nuggets of knowledge I gained from her wisdom. I could not have hoped for a better supervisor. ➢ I thank Professor EM Lemmer in her capacity as the language editor for eloquently capturing the essence of the study. ➢ Many thanks go to Mr Mandisa Sithole and Mrs Lachmy Davids-Ndlovu for editing technical aspects of this thesis. ➢ My wife, Tebogo Molefe (Nkambule), and my two sons, Lethinhlanhla and Oarabile Nkambule, also deserve acknowledgement for their love, patience and forbearance when I was immersed in this study. During challenging times, thinking about them served as a source of inspiration for me to soldier on in this academic pursuit. ➢ Dr Bongi Nkabinde also deserves to be thanked for all the tips and words of encouragement she provided during the course of the study. ➢ I am deeply grateful to all the research participants, for their trust in me, their willingness to invest their precious time in the project and their willingness to open up their feelings, perceptions and experiences. ➢ My colleagues too deserve to be thanked for their words of encouragement and for easing my workload during the period I was away from work generating data in other schools. ➢ Furthermore, I thank the Mpumalanga Department of Education for granting me permission to conduct this study in schools under their administration. ➢ Lastly, I would like to extend my appreciation to UNISA for the financial assistance provided to further this study. Without it I would have had challenges with regard to meeting some of the logistical costs associated with actualising a project of this magnitude. TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER 1: ORIENTATION TO THE STUDY 1.1 Introduction and Background 1 1.2 Literature Review 4 1.2.1 The Concept of Knowledge 4 1.2.2 Schools as Knowledge Organisations 5 1.3 Rationale for the Study 8 1.4 Problem Statement 10 1.4.1 Research Questions 13 1.4.2 Aims and Objectives 13 1.5 Research Methodology and Design 14 1.5.1 Research Paradigm 14 1.5.2 Research Design 14 1.5.3 Data Genaration 16 1.5.3.1 Document Analysis 17 1.5.3.2 Interviews 19 1.5.4 Sample Size and Participant Selection 19 1.5.4.1 Sampling Method 19 1.5.4.2 Sample Size 20 1.5.4.3 Participant Selection 20 1.5.5 Data Analysis 21 1.6 Trustworthiness 22 1.7 Research Ethics 23 1.8 Empirical Justification of the Applied Writing Style 24 1.9 Chapter Summary 26 CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Introduction 28 2.2 Philosophical Discourse and Knowledge Constructs 28 2.3 The Convergence of Indigenous and Western Ways of Knowing 35 2.4 The Difference between Knowledge, Information and Data 36 2.5 The Interface between Knowledge and Organisations 39 2.6 Polanyi’s Contribution to the Knowledge Discourse 41 2.7 Explicit Knowledge 42 2.8 Tacit Knowledge 44 2.9 Knowledge Management in the Public Sector 46 2.10 The Feasibility of Knowledge Management in Education 49 2.11 Knowledge Workers in the Context of Schooling Systems 54 2.11.1 Teachers 55 2.11.2 Administrative Clerks 58 2.11.3 Heads of Department 59 2.11.4 Principals 61 2.12 The Current Outlook in the Context of Township Schools 62 2.12.1 Socio-Economic Background of Learners 63 2.12.2 Learners’ Failure Rate and Teachers’ Skills Gaps 64 2.12.3 Inadequacy of Quality Infrastructure 65 2.12.4 Patriarchy and Gender Stereotypes in School Leadership 66 2.13 Township Schooled Child’s Educational Journey 68 2.14 Chapter Summary 69 CHAPTER 3: THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK 3.1 Introduction 70 3.2 Communities of Practice 71 3.3 Eight Dimensions and KM Enablers and Activators Framework 74 3.3.1 Leadership and Support 75 3.3.1.1 Transformational Leadership 76 3.3.1.2 Instructional Leadership 77 3.3.1.3 Democratic Leadership 79 3.3.1.4 Autocratic Leadership 80 3.3.1.5 Transactional Leadership 81 3.3.1.6 Laissez-Faire Leadership 83 3.3.1.7 Situational Leadership 84 3.3.2 Technology and Infrastructure 86 3.3.2.1 Educational Management Information System 88 3.3.2.2 The South African Schools Administration Management Systems 90 3.3.2.3 Administrative Clerks’ Interface with SA-SAMS 92 3.3.2.4 Principals’ Interface with SA-SAMS 93 3.3.2.5 Efficiencies and Inefficiencies of SA-SAMS 93 3.3.3 Knowledge Creation 96 3.3.3.1 Taxonomy of Knowledge Creation 96 3.3.3.2 The Concept of Ba 101 3.3.3.3 A Critique of SECI Model 104 3.3.3.4 Applicability of SECI Model in Education 106 3.3.4 Knowledge Acquisition and Learning 107 3.3.5 Knowledge Distribution and Transfer 109 3.3.6 Knowledge Exploitation and Exploration 113 3.3.7 People Competency 115 3.3.7.1 People versus Technology in the Workplace 115 3.3.7.2 People as a Leverage for Knowledge Creation 118 3.3.8 Sharing Culture 119 3.3.8.1 Defining Organisational Culture 119 3.3.8.2 Types of Subcultures 120 3.3.8.3 Types of Organisational Cultures 122 3.3.8.4 Barriers to Knowledge Sharing Culture 125 3.3.8.5 Knowledge Sharing in Indigenous Contexts 127 3.4 The Discussed Frameworks’ Relevance to the Objectives of the Study 133 3.5 Chapter Summary 134 CHAPTER 4: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 4.1 Introduction 135 4.2 Research Write Up Monitoring Tool 138 4.3 Research Paradigm 141 4.3.1 A Broad Definition of a Paradigm 141 4.3.2 Philosophical Consideration to Research 142 4.3.2.1 Epistemology 143 4.3.2.2 Ontology 143 4.3.2.3 Axiology 143 4.3.2.4 Methodology 145 4.3.3 Social Constructivism 146 4.4 Research Design 150 4.4.1 Qualitative Research Approach 151 4.4.2 The Research Design as a Case Study 155 4.5 Data Generation 156 4.5.1 How I Positioned Myself to Conduct Interviews 156 4.5.2 How I Positioned Myself to Analyse Documents 159 4.5.3 How I Positioned Myself to Address Emerging Data-Generation Biases 161 4.6 Sampling Procedure 165 4.7 Data Analysis 166 4.8 Trustworthiness 170 4.8.1 Credibility 170 4.8.2 Transferability 172 4.8.3 Dependability 172 4.8.4 Confirmability 173 4.9 Ethical Issues 173 4.9.1 Reciprocity in Research 174 4.9.2 Processes for Acquiring Permission to Conduct the Study 177 4.10 Chapter Summary 178 CHAPTER 5: DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS 5.1 Introduction 179 5.2 Data Analysis Strategy 179 5.3 Researcher’s Preferred Coding Tool 181 5.3.1 Manual Coding 181 5.3.2 Justification for Manual Coding 182 5.4 Researcher Reflexivity 182 5.5 The Profile of Participants 184 5.6 Findings from the Study 186 5.6.1 Theme 1: Participants’ Rationalisation of Knowledge, Knowledge Work and Knowledge Management 188