How do school leaders manage their time? narratives from school practitioners in Masvingo, Zimbabwe

Abstract

Time management is a critical factor in school leadership and management. Without school leaders who manage time effectively schools are likely to decay. Good people do not need laws to tell them to act responsibly or to manage their time effectively. This study investigates how school leaders manage time for effective teaching and learning in schools. The qualitative research approach as it is informed by the interpretivist paradigm was employed in this study. Purposive sampling was done to select school heads, deputy heads, teachers, college lecturer and parents in the School Development Committee from both primary and secondary schools in Masvingo Province. I employed semi-structured interviews for data generation. Results show that some heads fail to manage their time in schools by not scheduling activities, lack of goal setting, attending to unplanned activities, failing to prioritise tasks, lack of delegating work to subordinates, failing to manage unnecessary interruptions and do not schedule time to attend to subordinates. The study recommends the need for courses and workshops that introduce school leaders to time management skills, conduct seminars to in-service school heads and thus equip them with skills, knowledge and proper attitude on effective time management practices and prioritising tasks.