Collaborative space in South African schools: A comparative perspective

This article details a study that investigated both the nature and extent of the conceptual and physical space teachers, principals, and other administrators in South African schools devote to teacher collaboration. The schools selected for the study represented a cross-section of urban and rural, primary and secondary schools administered by several of the nation's previously historically racially divided education departments. Through data gathered fi om questionnaires, interviews, and observations, the findings generate important comparative information on how teacher collaboration in South Africa has been influenced by numerous historical and political factors, how it manifests within various school cultures, and how it differs across artificial and real organizational divides.