Excellence in Secondary School Leadership Winner: Renate van der Westhuizen

Apex High School, Eerste River, Western Cape Renate van der Westhuizen became a teacher by sheer chance; once the teaching bug bit her she has never looked back, and today she is one of the admired leaders of her school.

For her, winning this category represents a culmination of a long journey epitomised by hard work and commitment. “I feel honoured and humbled,” she says, adding that this is also an indication that “what we are doing at Apex is actually working and that instructional leadership is a model that can actually change education”.

Van der Westhuizen, who started her career 14 years ago, says she was inspired by her late school principal, who subscribed to very high ethical standards; she was disciplined and did not tolerate any mediocrity.

She says she gets satisfaction when she sees her learners grow and succeed, and when she develops her staff. But she says what she enjoys the most is to be part of a school that will show the rest of South Africa that it is possible to be a no-fee school and provide an excellent education — one marked by high values, achievement and discipline.

As a leader she tries all she can to ensure her community pulls in one direction. She says she sees herself as an instructional leader and bases this on seven levers. These include:

- Data-driven instruction

- Instructional planning

- Observation and feedback

- Professional development

- Student culture

- Staff culture

- Managing school leadership teams.

Van der Westhuizen says they always struggle to find competent teachers who are mission-aligned, so that their learners can produce the same results as the top schools in South Africa. But she vows they will lower their recruitment standards as a way of resolving the problem. She advises new teachers to remember that they are not only impacting the lives of a few children, but the future of an entire nation.