Please give us a brief overview of your career to date
Regan began her working career in the mining industry with a BCom degree but shortly thereafter left the business world to embark on a career in the non-profit world. Regan has a passion for people development and facilitating people’s learning about self, others, and systems, which is enhanced by her background in social work, coaching, and systems psychodynamic training. She employs a process-oriented approach in her workshop facilitation and brings a systems perspective that considers group and organisational dynamics that might be taking place ‘beneath the surface’. Her experience in facilitating groups and workshops spans the corporate and non-profit, private and government, adult and adolescent space. Regan has over a decade of experience in supporting township school improvement and transformation with a focus on leadership and team development. Her passion and commitment to social justice was what led her to her doctoral study aiming to construct a framework to facilitate the holistic transformation of South African township schools.
Please provide us with a blurb on the purpose of your research and its contribution
The purpose of my research was to address the continued challenge of the quality of schooling we are faced with in South Africa by conducting an in-depth study of the transformation journey of a township primary school. I aimed to construct a framework to facilitate the holistic transformation of South African township primary schools. I offer a theory of change that specifies what should be changed, how it should be changed, and why this approach should work in township schools, drawing on three systems theories: Ecological Systems theory, Spiral Dynamics theory, and Systems Psychodynamic theory. I address a gap in South African basic education literature by using Systems Psychodynamic literature to offer new insights into the intractable problem of township school transformation by highlighting possible unconscious dynamics that could be obstructing processes of change. I explained how social defences are built into the school system to protect against the overwhelming anxiety and challenges in township schools, and how these defences hinder the primary task of learning and teaching. My study offers a practical and accessible contribution to school improvement literature and provides insights into how to provide containment, creating a sense of safety, to enable thinking, teaching, and learning to take place.
What would you say your three greatest attributes or characteristics are as a person that aided you on your journey?
Curiosity and a deep thirst for knowledge aided the academic part of my doctoral study journey and my passion for social justice and empathy aided the relationships I cultivated with the school community in Alexandra which was the focus of my study.
In a few words, describe your journey to completing your qualification.
My doctoral journey emerged from my collaboration and support of the transformation journey of a township primary school in Alexandra. After travelling across the country to meet with and have conversations with several supervisors my journey led me to Da Vinci and Dr Rica Viljoen. I am grateful for the freedom and flexibility that Da Vinci provided and the beautiful way Rica enriched my study by exposing and introducing me to elements I had not considered including autoethnography as a data-gathering method and spiral dynamics as an additional systems theory which I added to my theoretical framework. Trying to develop a greater understanding of another systems theory in my theoretical framework, systems psychodynamic theory led me to a two-year group facilitation training on unconscious dynamics in groups recognised by the Tavistock Institute. These two systems theories provided me with insights into the challenges, strengths, and possible obstacles in township school transformation that have not been considered in South Africa.
How did your journey impact your way of thinking and (or) life?
This doctoral journey and study has enriched, deepened, and stretched my thinking. I learned about the importance of “negative capability” a term coined by Wilfred Bion (Bion, 2014; French, 2001) which entails having space and capacity to tolerate ambiguity, paradox, and uncertainty being open to learning from others, and being open to allowing one’s mind to be changed by other’s and their ideas. And paradoxically growing in confidence and being willing to own and defend my own developing ideas and theory. I learned to be comfortable with not knowing as I wrestled with ideas and concepts and allowed my study to unfold, in a way that I had not imagined or planned it would. This was crucial as my study took place over the COVID-19 pandemic and had to be adjusted and expanded to collect data on the impact of this worldwide pandemic on township schools and township communities. I think through this study and the insights gained I have a greater appreciation for the complexity and the impact of systems and particularly unconscious dynamics on people, organisations, systems, and industries.
What is next for you on your path of remarkability?
To take the learning and insights from this study and determine how to apply it to other township schools, beginning with a high school in Alexandra where together with colleagues we have embarked on a journey to support, equip, and empower the leaders of the high school on their quest to transform that school. The plan is to scale up the learnings from my study to ensure the insights are shared with more township schools across the country. I plan to build on the foundational research I undertook to develop insights into the unconscious dynamics of township schools and basic education in South Africa.
If you could give advice to a student embarking on this journey, what would it be?
You will require tenacity and courage as you embark on an epic journey. Be curious and open to any path your study may take you and know that your moments of deepest learning might be in the most challenging times of your study. You are in for a rich, fulfilling but incredibly stretching learning experience so ensure you cultivate a broad, deep network of support around you as you begin this study and ensure you engage in self-care as a doctoral journey is not a sprint but more closely resembles an ultra-marathon.
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