1. Tshwane University of Technology
Faculty of Humanities
Department of Education Studies
Educational Management
(EDU401T & EDU402T)
Presenter:
Dr Muavia Gallie (PhD)
Session 6
Week: 14 - 15 March 2011
Content
1. Assignment;
2. Introduction (defining);
3. Legal requirements for meetings;
- Role of chair;
- Secretary;
- Members attending;
- Formal documents;
- Requirements for valid meetings
- Procedural rules
4. Miscellaneous aspects in administration
5. Conclusion.
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2. Assignment 1.2
You have been approached by your principal to assist
him/her in drafting a manual for meeting procedures in
your local school. Interview the principal on the current
document, if any, the current practice/procedure in the
school during meetings, and the reason for a new
document. Reflect critically on these
practices/procedures, and then draft a new document,
taking into account their current practice and the
procedures as stipulated in your handbook. Share the
new document with the principal, the deputy principal (if
any), a Head of Department, and a post level 1 teacher.
After a day or two, go and interview then on what they
think about your document. Write a two pages report on
your interview process and findings. Make
recommendations on your findings to the principal of the
school.
Administration, Management, Leadership
• Administration - rules and
regulations;
• Management - relationships
and networking;
• Leadership - vision building
and systems setup.
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3. Introduction - Administration
• Executive activity which functions within the
structures of an organisation;
• Is subject to certain legal and policy
requirements
• Finalisation of programmed and routine
activities and decision making;
• Systemically executed in a well-ordered manner by
supporting personnel and mechanical resources
under the supervision of manager
Legal requirements for meetings
• Role of the chairperson (vice-chairperson in absence;
principal chair smt and staff meetings; not chair of SGB);
- Rights and duties of a chairperson (1. check notice of meeting; 2.
quorum [%] before start; 3. control meeting; 4. maintain order; 5. conducted
within the rules; 6. one to speak at a time; 7. resolutions express the will of
meeting; 8. act impartial and give sufficient opportunity; 9. avoid digress;
10. may call on persons; 11. announcements and submission of reports
subject to chair; 12. rule out of order motion which is contrary to procedure,
illegal, frivolous or policy; 13. chair’s point of order rule is final; 14. remain
member of meeting; 15. vacate chair to express personal opinion; 16. right
to propose and vote for themselves; 17. second or casting vote [to break
tie]; 18. can vote to make a tie; 19. impartially summarise the various views;
20. views can be disputed and rejected; 21. may adjourn a meeting; 22.
warn a misbehaving member; 23. meeting may take decision against a
disorderly member; 24. exclude member from meeting);
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4. Legal requirements for meetings … cont.
• Role of the chairperson
- Rules to be observed by chair (1. Participation in discussion and
the proposal of motion; 2. Tactic; 3. Separation of functions);
• Secretary (1. Draft agenda with chair; 2. Keep register of members; 3.
Draft notices of meeting and dispatch; 4. Provide requirements and
requisites for meeting; 5. Draw attention of chair on quorum; 6. Read
notice sent to meeting; 7. Draft minutes, read and amend them; 8. Act as
chair; 9. Read correspondence; 10. Compile draft annual report with
chair);
- 1. Be impartial and loyal to chair; 2. Should not express opinion unless
…; 3. Avoid clash of interest, serve association, work behind scenes)
• Role of members attending a meeting (convenient time;
adequate and timely notice; time to arrange and prepare for meeting;
agenda in advance; resolutions adopted should be valid; non-attendance
record in writing; rules of engagement: (i) address the chair as ‘chair’; (ii) refer
to others in indirect form; (iii) stand while addressing unless … ; (iv) permission for
chair before speaking; (v) interruption only through ‘point of order’; ensure
professionalism; respect leadership positions and your own area of
expertise);
Legal requirements for meetings … cont.
• Formal documents of a meeting
- Agenda [things to be done] (1. Matters to be discussed are dealt with in
particular order; 2. Members can prepare for and contribute; 3. Meeting stay on
track) - points should be clear; deviation from sequence only with permission of
meeting; 4. text of motions should appear in full on agenda;
- Minutes (1. Content - concise, accurate, unambiguous and impartial report; 2.
Record names of members present or absent and resolutions adopted; 3. Minutes
are for future reference; secretary should report on: (i) date, time and venue; (ii) names
of secretary and chair, and members in attendance and absent, and observers; (ii) proposals
made with proponents and seconders; (iv) report of the meeting; (v) important rulings made by
chair; (vi) names of persons voting for and against - may ask for special recording; minute
keeping: (i) write in present tense; (ii) not word-for-word account; (iii) proposals, motions and
amendments must be in exact words; (iv) kept in book with page numbers; (v) not tamper with
pages; (vi) if typed, chair must initial each page and sign the last page;
* Approval of minutes (at next meeting; circulate copy before meeting - deem as
read; sub-committee meeting minutes must be approved by management committee;
secretary present minutes, chair ask for approval as correct reflection; approved by
someone who was present in previous meeting; may debate incorrectness of
minutes but not content; if correct, chair dates and signs minutes; secretary my
voluntarily amends or be compelled by resolution to amend minutes);
* Evidential value of minutes (legal standing; prima facie proof);
* Safekeeping of minutes (confidential; give to principal at end of SGB term);
* Access to minutes (may refuse if possibility of misuse)
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5. Legal requirements for meetings … cont.
• Requirements for a valid meeting (cont.)
- Convening a meeting (1. By an authorised official; 2.
Dispatch a written notice of meeting to all registered members;
3. Procedure rules of body will determine how long before and
in what matter to send notices;4. Sometimes the information is
in the constitution;
- Constitution of the meeting (1. There should be a chair
and quorum of members; 2. Quorum should be present for the
entire duration of meeting; 3. Wait for 15 minutes to make
quorum - if not, adjourn and reconvene (normally 7 days later at
same time, venue; 4. Members present will be the quorum; 5.
Quorum sometimes a problem when convening SGB meetings;
- Constitution of organisation (should contain
procedural rules for meetings);
Legal requirements for meetings … cont.
• Procedural rules relating to proposals
- Proposals (1. Any member can make a proposal [except chair]; 2. A seconder
is necessary when stated by procedural rules; 3. Just to determine whether there is
prima facia support for proposal;4. Can’t withdraw seconded proposal without
meeting permission; 5. Deal with one proposal at a time);
- Motions (1. First a motion, then resolution when adopted; 2. Motions are place
on table for discussion and vote; 3. Procedural motion deals with conduct of meeting;
4. Substantive motion is when something needs to be done);
- Counter-proposal (when opposite motion is put on table for discussion -
members vote for one of the two);
- New proposal (when counter-proposals are not entertained by rules);
- Debating (when proposal is on the table, members debate the issue; proposer
normally makes the last comment);
- Amendments (to adjust the original proposal or motion; proposer must accept
the amendments, otherwise a new proposal; if amendments are accepted, it is put to
vote as an amended and substantial proposal);
- Formal motions (intended to end discussion; could indicate that issue
should be voted on; formal motions is then open for discussion);
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6. Legal requirements for meetings … cont.
• Procedural rules
- Voting (1. Chair put proposal for voting after it has been properly discussed; 2. Request
members to vote FOR or AGAINST; 3. Voting can be by (i) show of hands,(ii) by verbal assent,
(iii) by ballot ;4. Chair announce the results which is final and closes the voting; 5. Any member
can object to the results and demand recount; 6. Subsequent announcement of results will be
final and conclusive; 7. A motion is either accepted or defeated; 8. Voting works on one-person-
one-vote; 9. An ordinary majority will carry a motion unless otherwise stated in rules; 10.
Resolution results are deemed to be binding on all; 11. Can rescind a decision from previous
meeting; 12. Voting might be problematic in schools with people of unequal status);
- Validity of resolutions (1. Certain procedural rules have been followed; 2. Other rules
and/or principles from constitution must also be taken into account);
- Validity of resolutions subsequent to irregular procedure (1. Sometimes a
decision made during an irregular procedure might not be valid; 2. Example, when the decision
represents the will of the majority in meeting; 3. When irregular, it can be corrected through a
‘point of order’; 4. Chair must follow procedures meticulously);
- Subsequent approval (1. Sometimes a decision can be attained without having a
formal meeting; 2. Such unanimous assent must be approved at a subsequent formal meeting;
3. If a single member was missed, it could render the decision invalid);
- Amendment and recall of resolutions (1. Resolutions may neither be amended
nor repealed during same meeting; 2. Procedure to recall and amend an adopted resolution: (i)
after conclusion of vote, member give verbal notice that the resolution will be reviewed at
following meeting; (ii) notice of review is automatically placed on agenda of next meeting; (iii)
member gives notice of review also - must be timeously);
- Suspension of procedure (1. To save time, members can suspend a procedure; 2.
Example, where the constitution requires a vote through ballot);
Legal requirements for meetings … cont.
• Miscellaneous procedural rules
- Order motions (1. Example: (i) members present do not
constitute a quorum,(ii) proceedings are contrary to the
procedural rules, (iii) discussions deviates from the subject at
hand, (iv) a speaker or member misbehaves);
- Adjournments (1. Meeting may be adjourned to any
time and venue under certain circumstances; 2. Example: (i)
there is no longer a quorum, (ii) decision made by the chair or
the meeting);
- Postponements (1. Meeting may be postponed after
notice of meeting has been given, but before it has been
convened);
- Closure (1. Chair closes the meeting after all matters have
been dealt with);
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7. Miscellaneous aspects of Administration
• Contracts
- Ascertain the exact responsibility of the school;
- Nature of assets and equipment in the contract;
- Type of contract: instalment sale, lease, HP;
- Manner of payment (negotiate interest-free
payments);
- Software contracts: clear specifications;
• Copyright
- Don’t copy software illegally;
• Documents and electronic media
- Original document has to be produced;
- 2. Duplicate (carbon copy) is also regarded as
original;
Thank You!
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