The importance of education innovation and degree of innovative practices by principals in rural secondary schools in South Africa

After the inception of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in 2000, education emerged as a pivotal concern on the global agenda. The significance of education innovation lies in its ability to enhance the caliber of instruction and bolster school performance. In spite of the various obstacles faced by rural schools in South Africa, certain institutions are exhibiting indications of exceptional performance and advancement in terms of educational innovations, the provision of high-quality education, and the academic achievements of their students. The objective of this study is to investigate the impact of principals' comprehension of the significance of educational innovation and their level of implementation of innovative practices on student achievement. The research employed a descriptive case study approach inside a quantitative research framework. A sample size of 108 secondary school principals in the Vhembe District, located in the Limpopo Province, was obtained through the utilization of random sampling procedures. Data collection was conducted through the utilization of questionnaires, while the analysis of the collected data was performed using descriptive statistical techniques. A total of 70 questionnaires were collected and deemed usable, resulting in a response rate of 64.8% for the study. The outcomes of the study indicate that principals within the Vhembe district had a comprehensive understanding of the imperative nature of educational innovation. Additionally, the research revealed that principals are utilizing many new leadership and management approaches in order to improve student achievement. This project aims to contribute to the enhancement of learner performance and the quality of education in secondary schools located in rural parts of South Africa through the promotion of educational innovation. The recommendations of the study hold potential value in the development of policies, the improvement of learner performance, and the provision of education of superior quality.


Introduction
Education has emerged as a prominent concern on the global agenda subsequent to the endorsement of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in the year 2000.Significant advancements have been made globally in relation to the attainment of MDG 2, which pertains to the goal of ensuring universal primary education (United Nations, 2015).As per the report published by the United Nations, education is recognized as a potent catalyst for development and a significant tool in combating poverty and unemployment.
Since the establishment of democracy in 1994, the school system in South Africa has undergone a diverse array of educational reforms.The modifications have led to a substantial enlargement of the duties and obligations of diverse stakeholders engaged in the field of education, with the objective of enhancing student performance and the overall quality of education.In light of the aforementioned reforms, educational institutions are anticipated to adopt an ethos of innovation in order to effectively tackle the various societal and economic difficulties that arise.The enhancement and evolution of the education system are intricately linked to the broader concept of innovation, with a particular focus on advancements in teaching and learning methodologies (Sein-Echaluce, Fidalgo-Blaco, & Alves, 2017).
In the contemporary day, there is a pressing demand for individuals who possess the capacity to effectively employ critical and creative thinking skills in order to collaboratively address and overcome various difficulties.According to Findikoglu and Ilhan (2016), it is imperative for education to foster the development of individuals who possess the capacity for creativity and critical thinking, enabling them to effectively address the demands of the social and economic spheres.In a similar vein, Zhao (2015) posits that there is a need for a fundamental reformation of educational systems to effectively cultivate critical and creative thinking skills, with a specific emphasis on fostering contributions to a knowledge-based society.The pillars of contemporary education systems should encompass innovation, problem-solving, knowledge acquisition, proficient communication, inventive leadership abilities, cooperation, and the integration of technology for instructional purposes.
The new role of schools is to ensure that social value creation is achieved when there is an integration of societal needs into school activities.Thus, knowledge creation through education and innovation can be used to solve real-life societal problems.Therefore, managing the prevailing challenges and enhancing the engagement of schools in education innovation practices require an integrated approach by all stakeholders in the education system (West & Meier, 2020;Zhao, 2015;Ramasimu, 2023).
The National Planning Commission (NPC) (2012) indicates that quality education is not acceptable for many black learners, especially those in rural areas.This prevents learners from accessing job opportunities, thereby reducing learners' earning potential and career mobility.Therefore, to enhance the quality of education and learner performance in South Africa, schools should be encouraged to be innovative in their teaching and learning activities.
In secondary education, innovative practices in schools refer to the implementation of new methods, techniques, and strategies that promote the creation of new knowledge and practices.These activities are characterized by their ability to adapt and respond to the changing needs and requirements of the educational system (Mansor, Halim, & Rahim, 2017).Innovation in education can be divided into two categories: primary innovation and secondary innovation.Primary innovation in education refers to the application of completely new methods or approaches that have never been used before in a particular educational setting.Secondary innovation, on the other hand, involves improving or strengthening existing practices or approaches to make them more effective and efficient (Mansor, Halim, & Rahim, 2017).Some scholars contend that innovation in education leads to quality education and better learner performance (Zhao, 2015;Findikoglu & Ilhan, 2016).In view of this, this paper seeks to explore how principals' understanding of the importance of education innovation and their degree of innovative practices affect learner performance in rural areas of South Africa.This paper will therefore focus on both primary innovation and secondary innovation.It is the view of the researcher that education innovation in rural secondary schools is critical to ensuring improved learner performance and quality education.
With this background, this paper seeks to answer the following research questions: How do principals 'understanding of the importance of education innovation in rural secondary schools affect learners' performance?What are the innovative measures implemented by principals to improve learners' performance?What should possible policy recommendations be?
The subsequent section of the article provides a concise overview of the education sector in South Africa, followed by a comprehensive examination of the existing literature on innovative leadership.Finally, this paper presents an overview of the methodology, the findings of the research, the subsequent debates, and concludes with policy recommendations.

Literature Review
Before 2009, the education sector in South Africa had one department responsible for both basic education and tertiary education.After 2009, the department was divided into two ministries, namely the Department of Basic Education (DBE) responsible for primary and secondary schools, and the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET), which is responsible for tertiary education and technical and vocational education (Mhlanga & Moloi, 2020;Green, 2011).The mandate of DBE is to oversee the issues on ordinary schools (public schools and private schools) and special needs schools.Ordinary schools constitute approximately 97% of schools in South Africa.The DHET is responsible for technical and vocational education and training (TVET) colleges, adult basic education and training (ABET) centers, and higher education (HE) institutions (Mhlanga & Moloi, 2020;Ntombela, 2011) There are nine provinces in South Africa, namely Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, Limpopo, KwaZulu-Natal, Northern Cape, Northwest, and Western Cape.Each province has a provincial education department responsible for the implementation of the policies of the national department, as well as dealing with local issues (Green, 2011;Ntombela, 2011;Mestry & Singh, 2006).

Leadership and Management
Leadership and management are different, but more often are used interchangeably (Ali, 2013).Leadership is associated with vision, the ability to influence and inspire others, and to implement innovations.Managers are concerned with the administration, planning, organising, leading, and controlling.In support of the above statement, Heystek (2007) defines management as "a process of planning, organising, leading and controlling with the view of improving organisational effectiveness".Therefore, in the school context, principals focus on daily managerial tasks regarding the implementation of educational policies, regulations, and rules.Whereas leadership as Maponya (2015) asserted, put more emphasis on the relationship with people on communication, motivation, and emotional intelligence.Schools require appropriate leadership, a culture embracing innovation, and an innovative-friendly learning environment (West & Meier, 2020).Therefore, principals as leaders in schools are expected to be creative and innovative, develop techniques and ideas that can be well received by the teachers, learners, and support staff and propel them to work towards achieving organisational goals (Abu-Shreah & Zidan 2017).Abu-Shreah and Zidan (2017) further argue that the roles of school principals are no longer routine, they are now characterised by innovation and creativity to provide conditions appropriate to "students' mental, spiritual, social and physical growth and prepare them for the future responsibilities".This will ensure that learners 'performance improved.Orapeleng (2012) asserts that principals should create conditions that promote and embodies creativity and innovation by both stakeholders to ensure improved learner performance.
It is imperative to define the concept of leadership to broaden the understanding of how leadership impacted learner performance.Northouse (2013) indicates that the literature is full of different and sometimes differing definitions of the term leadership.According to the Department of Education (2009), leadership is "the ability and the potential to influence any group of people or organisation towards the attainment of the stated goals".Nel et al, (2011) define leadership as "the ability to influence others to work enthusiastically towards organisational goals".On the same vein, Can (2009) argues that leadership is the capability to rally individuals about specific goals by inspiring them to reach organisational objectives through collaboration.To achieve these, leaders should have qualities such as "vision, confidence, and firmness".Principals, as innovative leaders should be concerned about the long-term success of the institution, quality education and improved learner performance.
For schools to be successful, effective, and innovative leadership is imperative.Principals are expected to provide such kind of leadership which is regarded as the main engine that enables schools to achieve educational objectives.Principals should take a lead in determining the professional development of educators and provide platforms for innovation where all stakeholders are actively and creatively participating in school activities (Abu-Shreah & Zidan 2017).Abbas (2004) indicates that principals should be creative and able to think and reason about the educational process based on creativity and innovation.Therefore, principals should provide an atmosphere that encourages staff members to work to the best of their creativity and innovation, by giving employees free roles to develop and apply their innovative ideas, develop, and apply effective instruction techniques.Principals should try to develop skills of innovation, cooperation, collaboration, and teamwork among staff members to ensure improved learner performance and realise the educational objectives of the school in general.

Innovative Leadership practices
Buchner and Horth (2009) define innovative leadership as that kind of leadership that brings inspiration to others and motivates them to think "outside the box".Orapeleng (2017) asserts that innovative leaders are visionary, promote collaboration, and lead by example.To display innovative leadership, leaders use various leadership styles to address any situation in an organisation.According to Spahr (2015), innovative leaders show open leadership characteristics and create an environment conducive to innovation.Furthermore, Orapeleng (2017) corroborates that innovative leader promote creative thinking and problem-solving skills and encourage followers to innovate, create, implement, and evaluate new ideas.Spahr (2015) indicates that innovative type of leadership differs from one leadership style to another.The differences are: i.
The bureaucratic style uses the traditional process of concentrating on known facts.The thinking process in the innovative style encourages innovative connections. ii.
Bureaucratic' s management is top-down.This kind of leader wants unconditional respect from their subordinates.Innovative leaders are more collaborative. iii.
Bureaucratic leaders work in a structured environment while innovative leaders work best in the group structure.

iv.
Bureaucratic leaders are more directive whereas innovative leaders are non-directive.Orapeleng (2017) outlines innovative strategies which principals can use to create an environment conducive to teaching and learning in their schools.These strategies are: Create trust: Principals should encourage open communication through sharing information and knowledge with all relevant stakeholders.They must encourage educators, learners, and parents to share their thoughts and feelings.
Communication and listening: Principals should listen far more than they speak.They must be able to encourage their follower to make suggestions on school issues.
Provide feedback: Principals should set performance targets, set goals, set due dates, and communicate these expectations regularly.They must provide regular feedback to their subordinates and encourage them to work hard and take risks.
Give recognition and praise to the subordinates: Principals should recognise and praise educators and learners for good performance and show appreciation by providing them with additional responsibilities to enhance their skills.

Introduction of new learning opportunities:
Principals should provide training and development to educators for both content and technical skills and soft skills.Empower them by assigning them tough jobs, tasks, and assignments to enhance their skills and creativity.
Conduct regular one-on-one meetings with educators: Principals should allow educators to share their views and create a friendly work environment.They should conduct regular meetings with educators to have a proper understanding of their followers.
In schools, principals are leaders whose role is to influence the educators, the learners, admin staff, and parents towards the achievement of the goals and objectives of the school.The style of leadership and innovation provided by the principal has an impact on the effectiveness of the school in educating learners to attain better performance (Maponya, 2015).Prew (2007) indicates that school management is pivotal to the improvements of the education system.The role of principals is critical in determining the acceptance of innovation and creativity in schools.Principals are expected to be effective in adopting and sustaining innovation in schools.Therefore, to ensure that schools are effective, principals should: communicate goals; shared decision-making; support staff; create and articulate school vision; foster the process of innovation; promote teaching and learning; promote parental involvement; and delegation of tasks.This will ensure that there is an improved learner performance and enhanced quality education.Maponya (2015) indicates that principals as innovative leaders should ensure that staff development programs are designed to enhance educator efficiency and learner performance.Principals should be at the core of providing vision, organising, leading, and evaluating progress.Girvin (2005) corroborates that principals must promote and develop a school's goal and objectives to ensure improvement in learner performance.
In the same vein, Gumus and Akcaoglu (2013) indicate that principals should provide the following: goal setting, promote a positive school environment, coordinate curriculum activities, and supervise teaching and learning.Also, Maponya (2015) indicates that principals should distribute their leadership responsibilities with their teachers and collaborate on curriculum, instruction, and assessment issues to improve the quality of teaching and learning.Moreover, principals are expected to gather data on learner performance and analyse and use it to enhance the quality of teaching and learning in schools.
Van Deventer and Kruger (2003) argue that principals' core activities involve "beliefs, decisions, strategies, and tactics" that they use to ensure classroom effectiveness.Thus, principals should provide direction, resources, and support to educators, learners, and parents to improve teaching and learning.A good principal's innovative leadership propels good learning and teaching and ensures the development of a sound culture of learning and teaching in the school.Maponya (2015) corroborates those principals when discharging their leadership roles should do the following: create a shared sense of purpose in schools; nurture continuous improvement through school development planning; develop the culture of innovation and improvement of teaching and learning; coordinate curriculum and monitor learner performance; shape the reward structure of the school; organise and monitor a wide range of activities and be a visible presence in the school.Green (2011) indicates that leadership is associated with the school's vision and the principal's understanding of curriculum matters, programs, and educational thinking.Furthermore, Green (2011) outlines the following aspects that are within the sphere of principal's leadership: establish routine start-up and end -up of lesson procedures; provide clear classroom instruction; develop learners' code of conduct with learners, teachers, and parents; manage learners' behavior; implement policies fairly; mediate; develop school culture; integrate learning technologies into classroom activities; give considered attention to literacy development in the class; develop and implement educational plans; counsel and support learners; incorporate drug education; assist the teachers to prepare lessons and homework assignments; plans for and hold successful meetings with parents; encourage entrepreneurial education; encourage diversity of learners; and encourage parents' participation in learners' education.

Creation of positive learning environment
According to Maponya (2015), the school environment is defined as the "feelings and attitudes that are evoked by the climate and the atmosphere in the school as experienced by the educators, the learners, the parents, and any other person".Allensworth (2012) indicates that the school environment refers to the beliefs, values, and everyday interactions among the school personnel, the parents, and the learners.It comprises basic needs, like safety and order at school, which have a strong impact on the motivation and learning of both learners and teachers.Loukas (2007) indicates that there are three vital dimensions of the school environment namely: the physical environment of the school, which is concerned with the attractiveness of the school infrastructure, order, safety, and comfort; the social environment, which refers to the kinds and quality of the relationships among all relevant stakeholders, distributed decision-making, and fair and just treatment; and the academic environment, which entails the quality of teaching and learning, assessment and reporting learner performance.Furthermore, Maponya (2015) outlines the following types of school environment: Open environmenta dynamic school that is moving towards its goals, and the staff members are satisfied with their personal needs.
Autonomous environmentthe school in which leadership emerges primarily from different groups and the formal leaders exerts little control over the staff members.
Control environmenta highly personal, but over-controlled environment in which the personal needs are satisfied, but with little attention being paid to the taskaccomplishment.
Paternal environmentoccurs when the leader tries to do everything alone thereby constraining other leaders to emerge.
Closed environmentoccurs when there is a demonstration of apathy by all the stakeholders.Therefore, it is critical to creating a positive school environment as it has a direct impact on the motivation and performance of the educators and the learners.Thus, principals should continuously strive towards the creation of a positive school environment that supports innovation and creativity.Principals have the ability and the potential to change and reshape the school environment through understanding the history and the current culture of the school.In doing so, principals need to identify the core values, beliefs of the school, and healthy aspects and these that are unhealthy (Mullen, 2006).Van Deventer and Kruger (2003) outline the following components of the principal's task as initiator and caretaker of a positive school environment: i.
Principals should put in place all professionally oriented school structures to enhance teachers' job satisfaction. ii.
Principals should involve all stakeholders when formulating and articulating the vision and mission of the school to improve cooperation. iii.
The principal should allow educators autonomy and more responsibilities to ensure that they are empowered and accountable.
According to Maponya (2015), the school environment has a powerful influence on educators' willingness to change, teaching practices, and the emphasis they give to learners.Furthermore, Maponya (2015) identifies the following educators' behaviors having a positive impact on the school environment: relationship with colleagues and learners; high morale and commitment to teaching; and openness among educators.Principals in their leadership roles have a powerful influence on the culture of the school environment and the ability of the educators to take risks.A positive school environment provides opportunities for educators and learners to teach and learn effectively.In support, Despress (2008) asserts that educators become creative and innovative when they are safe and secured to take risks.In providing leadership, principals must improve the learning environment and teaching and learning practices in their schools.Therefore, principals should display their innovative leadership by concentrating more on curriculum and instruction and less on management tasks (Gumus & Akcaoglu 2013).Principals should inform teachers about new strategies, technologies, and other tools that enhance effective teaching (Maponya, 2015).According to Nelson and Sassi (2005), principals must fulfill the following leadership roles to ensure that there is a positive learning environment at schools: supervise educators effectively, monitor the quality of teaching and learning in schools, communicating with parents, education officials, and any other relevant stakeholders, and bringing in new curriculum innovations.
The integration of technology into educational practices pertains to the utilisation of technology for the purpose of facilitating learner discovery, teacher-driven design and empathetic support, effective utilisation of computers for problem-solving, and the contented use of computer-based programs for directed learning outcomes (Adelabu, Ngwabe & Alex, 2022;Callaghan, Long, Van Es, Reich & Rutherford, 2018).As such, technology has a positive impact on teaching and learning, both within and outside the classroom.Furthermore, the integration of technology is linked to self-motivated factors, such as active forms of teaching and learning, hightech aspects of new tools, and the potential for transformative learning (Adelabu, Ngwabe & Alex, 2022;Viberg, Grönlund & Andersson, 2020).The integration of technology in education is of critical importance and is increasingly being developed as it is associated with improved learner performance (Adelabu, Ngwabe & Alex, 2022).

Methodology
This paper seeks to explore how principals' understanding of the importance of education innovation and their degree of innovative practices affect learner performance.Various scholars, such as Creswell (2014), Leedy and Ormrod (2015), and Salkind (2012), define methodology as a set of methods that a researcher must follow to produce meaningful results from data collected on the topic under study.The quantitative study was chosen because it improves the accuracy of the findings of the study through statistical analysis (Berndt & Petzer, 2011;Babbie, 2011) and circumvents the elements of subjectivity accompanying the qualitative approach (Du Plessis & Rosseau, 2007).

Research design, population, and sampling
This study used a quantitative research method based on the positivist research paradigm (Saunders et al., 2012).It used a descriptive cross-sectional design to collect data from all secondary school principals (n=156) in the Vhembe district of the Limpopo province of South Africa at a specific point in time.Furthermore, a representative sample size (n = 108) from the study area was chosen using simple random sampling.The sample size of 108 principals was determined using Krejcie and Morgan's (2018) sample size calculator.However, 70 usable questionnaires were returned, thereby giving the study a response rate of 64.8%.

Data collection
To measure how the principals' understanding of the importance of education innovation and their degree of innovative practices affects learner performance in rural secondary schools in the Vhembe district, the researchers used a self-designed questionnaire.The questionnaire consisted of three sections: Section A solicited demographic data (namely gender, age, qualifications, and years of experience), section B contained attitude and perception items about the understanding of the importance of education innovation and has ten items.While section C contained 19 items about the principals' innovative practices.

Validity and reliability
To check the validity of the research instrument, a questionnaire was presented to the supervisor and 10 district education officials.They were requested to evaluate the quality of the questionnaire and provide inputs regarding the linguistic phrasing and soundness, the extent to which the items match the domain under which they are listed, and to provide inputs on what to delete, add, or combination of both.Their inputs and suggestions were considered when drafting the final questionnaire.The values of the stability coefficient were found to be between 0.893 to 0.760 and are shown in Table 1 below The study utilized the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) to analyse the data that has been compiled.Frequency distribution and descriptive statistics were carried out.The mean and standard deviation were analysed., 33,8% (70) were between the ages of 41 and 50, 32%(67) were between the ages of 51 and 60, 19,8% (41) were between the ages of 31 and 40, 12,6% (26) were between the ages of 20 and 30 and 1.4% (3) were above 60 years old.Thus, the majority (66,2%) of the respondents were between the ages of 41 and 60.
Table 2 also shows the highest professional qualification of the teachers.The findings reveal that 51.7% (107) of the respondents had Bachelor's degree/Advanced diploma or Bachelor of Technology, 30% (62) had Honours degree or Postgraduate diploma, 16% (34) had National diploma or Diploma and 1,9% (4) had Masters' degree.Thus, the majority of the respondents had Bachelor's degree or Advanced diploma.

Descriptive statistics
Table 3:  Table 3 shows the descriptive statistics and spread of responses for understanding the importance of the education innovation factor.This section of the questionnaire had the highest mean score of 1,900 (Item B1) and the lowest mean score of 1,5429 (Item B5), giving a range of 0,3571.The standard deviation ranges from .51560 to .69440.The factor consists of 10 items and their central tendencies are analysed hereunder.
Of the ten items for understanding the importance of education innovation in rural secondary schools, all were found to be reliable.These factors are: Innovation encourages collaboration among colleagues, innovation encourages the use of technology to empower learners, innovation encourages principals, teachers and learners to explore and research, innovation involves different ways of looking at problems and solving them, innovation helps learners to develop their creativity and problem-solving skills, innovation promote active and deep learning, innovation makes learning interesting and engaging, innovation allows for faster and more efficient delivery of lessons, innovation allows collaboration of various stakeholders in education, and innovation encourages lifelong learning.All the items are reliable as they have Cronbach's Alpha value greater than 0.6.
Further data analysis using descriptive statistics reveals that principals in the Vhembe district understand the importance of education innovation in rural secondary schools.The findings show that the mean score of the items ranges from 1.900 highest (item B1) and 1.5429 lowest (item B5).Their standard deviation ranges from .51560 to .69440.The findings indicate that principals agree with all the items.The findings support the results of the studies by Orapeleng (2017) and Spahr (2015), who found that the principals' understanding of the importance of education innovation such as the promotion of collaboration; the use of different techniques to identify and solve problems; promote creative thinking and problem-solving skills; encourages life-long learning has positive effects on learner performance and the quality of education.Furthermore, the findings are consistent with the results of the studies conducted by (Abu-Shreah & Zidan, 2017;Orapeleng, 2017;Maponya, 2015;Gumus & Akcaoglu, 2013), that education innovation is important as it encourages the use of technology; encourages exploration and research; promotes active and deep learning and allows for faster and more efficient delivery of lessons which then impacted on improved learner performance and quality of education.Table 4 shows the descriptive statistics and spread of responses for the innovative measures implemented by principals' factor.This section of the questionnaire had the highest mean score of 2,000 (Item C3) and the lowest mean score of 1,2714 (Item C8) giving a range of .7286.The standard deviation ranges from 2,57047 to .44791.The factor consists of 19 items and their central tendencies are analysed hereunder.
The question of innovative measures implemented by principals to improve school performance has 19 items.14 items were found to be reliable.The items are: I communicate school vision and mission to all stakeholders, I develop clear strategies to achieve the vision of the school, Staff members support the vision of the school, I implement distributed leadership style, I encourage innovation in school, I encourage teamwork among staff members, I properly plan my work, I develop school year plan with all stakeholders, I monitor the implementation of school strategies, I protect teaching time, I encourage teachers to develop learner support strategies, I provide resources to staff members, I monitor the work of school management team regularly, and I ensure that school has a code of conduct for both teachers and learners.Although item C3 has a Cronbach's Alpha of .570, the item was not deleted.The findings show that 13 items have Cronbach's Alpha value greater than 0.6.
Using descriptive statistics, the findings reveal that principals in the Vhembe District are implementing innovative measures to improve learner performance and quality of education.The data analysis shows that the mean score of the items ranges from 2.000 the highest (C3) and 1.2714 the lowest (C8).The standard deviation of the items ranges from 2.57047 to .44791.The findings indicate that principals strongly agree with items (C7, C8, C10, C14, C16, C19) and agree with the remaining items.Therefore, the findings highlight the important of education innovation in rural schools to ensure that there is improvement in learner performance and the quality of education offered.The findings agree with the results of the studies by (Maponya, 2015;Green, 2011;Despress, 2008;Loukas, 2007;Nelson & Sassi, 2005) which found that the innovative roles of principals in leading and managing schools have an impact on the improvement of learner performance and quality education.

Reliability of the importance of innovation in the education factor
This factor consists of 10 items.The Cronbach's alpha for these items ranges between 0.722 and 0.773.All items have a Cronbach's alpha greater than 0.6 and are therefore acceptable for further analysis.The overall Cronbach's alpha for this factor was 0.762 and considered acceptable for further analysis.Although there is one item with Cronbach's alpha greater than the overall Cronbach's alpha, namely Innovation helps learners to develop their creativity and problem-solving skills, with Cronbach's alpha .773,deleting it will lead to a minor change to the overall Cronbach's alpha.Therefore, no item is deleted to increase the overall Cronbach's alpha.
The scale means, scale variance and Cronbach's alpha, if any item is deleted, are indicated in Table 5 below.The overall mean (16.7714), variance (11.135) and standard deviation (3.33698) for the ten items are shown in Table 6 below.

Reliability of the innovative measures implemented by principals' factor
This factor consists of nineteen items.Fourteen items were found to be reliable.The Cronbach's alpha for these items ranges between 0.578 and 0.665.All items have a Cronbach's alpha greater than 0.6 and are therefore acceptable for further analysis.The overall Cronbach's alpha for this factor was 0.653 and considered acceptable for further analysis.Although the item staff members support the vision of the school has a Cronbach's alpha of .578which is less than .60, it is retained for further analysis as Su and Yang (2010) advise and justify the inclusion of items with a Cronbach's alpha of greater than .5.Although there are three items with Cronbach's alpha greater than the overall Cronbach's alpha, namely "I encourage teamwork among staff members, I properly plan my work and I monitor the work of school management team regularly" with Cronbach's alpha .661,.657and .665respectively, deleting them will lead to a minor increase to the overall Cronbach's alpha of this factor.
Therefore, no item is deleted to increase the overall Cronbach's alpha.The scale means, scale variance and Cronbach's alpha, if any item is deleted, are indicated in

Discussion
Learner performance and educational quality were found to be influenced by the perception of principals regarding their understanding of the importance of education innovation.This means that school principals were not only able to increase teachers' working capacity and make them aware of the school's vision and goals, but they were also able to create a favourable climate for improved learner performance and high-quality education (Sitthisomjin et al., 2020).Furthermore, through school innovation, organizational learning, and resource management, innovative transformational leadership practices indirectly aided learner performance and quality education.Researchers (Abu-Shreah & Zidan, 2017;Orapeleng, 2017;Maponya, 2015;Gumus & Akcaoglu, 2013) backed up this finding, claiming that education innovation is important as it encourages the use of technology; encourages exploration and research; promotes active and deep learning and allows for faster and more efficient delivery of lessons which then impacted on improved learner performance and quality of education.
Innovative strategies implemented by principals were found to have a substantial indirect effect on school innovation, thereby influencing high learner performance and better educational quality directly.This finding revealed that the implementation of various innovative strategies by principals is critical in improving learner performance and quality education, and it was backed up by by (Maponya, 2015;Green, 2011;Loukas, 2007;Nelson & Sassi, 2005), who noted that the innovative strategies implemented by principals when leading and managing schools have an impact on the improvement of learner performance and quality education.This means that principals should improve their ability to deal with proactive visions and distinctive learning settings to increase the schools' manageability, which has an impact on learner performance and quality education (Despress, 2008).

571
Innovative practices have been shown to significantly contribute to positive learner performance by promoting or enhancing their motivation and ability to learn independently.These hands-on activities create opportunities for learners to engage in independent, pervasive learning where they can take ownership of their education and actively seek out information and resources.

Conclusions
The present study has uncovered that within rural secondary schools in the Vhembe district, the comprehension of principals regarding the significance of educational innovation, as well as their innovative leadership and management practices, play a crucial role in facilitating enhancements in learner performance and the provision of high-quality educational opportunities.Moreover, based on empirical evidence, the study reveals that secondary school principals within the Vhembe district possess a comprehension of the significance of educational innovation in enhancing learner performance and the overall quality of education provided in schools.
One weakness of this study is its reliance on data collected just from the Vhembe district, which restricts the generalizability of the findings to other districts within the province or the country.Moreover, due to the limited scope of the study, the sample size was quite small.Consequently, the generalizability of the findings is precluded.The utilization of a methodically designed questionnaire also precluded the incorporation of contextual variables, which may have contributed to a more comprehensive understanding of the study's outcomes.
It is anticipated that conducting a future study encompassing a broader range of districts within the province and country, coupled with the utilization of a mixed-methods approach involving questionnaires and interviews to capture qualitative data, will result in the acquisition of comprehensive data that can be extrapolated to a larger population.
The results of this study have the potential to provide valuable insights for policymakers and other key stakeholders in the field of education.Specifically, they shed light on the ways in which the comprehension and application of diverse innovative leadership and management strategies can contribute to enhancements in educational quality and student achievement within school settings.In practical terms, it is imperative to empower and enhance the capabilities of principals with regards to the effective implementation of new practices inside educational institutions.It is recommended that educational authorities provide workshops focused on creative practices, with a particular emphasis on equipping principals with the necessary knowledge and skills to effectively allocate resources in order to foster innovation within schools.
In conclusion, it is imperative for school leaders to comprehend the significance of educational innovation and employ diverse inventive approaches to enhance student performance and ensure the provision of high-quality education.
The researchers propose that the Department of Basic Education and schools should consider offering training to school administrators in order to effectively apply education innovation initiatives, thereby enhancing learner performance and promoting high-quality education.
Descriptive statistics for the principals' view on the importance of education innovation allows for faster and more efficient delivery of lessons 1.8429 0.69440 70 B9: Innovation allows collaboration of various stakeholders in education 1.7000 0.52059 70 B10: Innovation encourages lifelong learning 1.5714 0.55355 70 This section analyses the descriptive statistics of the factor understanding the importance of education innovation in rural secondary schools.The section answers the question "what are the principals' views on the importance of education innovation in rural secondary schools?"A Likert scale ranging from Strongly Agree (1) to Strongly Disagree (5) was used.

Table 1 :
. Summary of reliability test results for all the factors

Table 2 :
Distribution of study sample members according to its variablesTable 2 above indicates the biographical information of the respondents in terms of gender, age, experience, and qualification.Table reveals that 49,3% (107) of the respondents were males and 50,7% (102) were females.Thus, most teachers who participated in this study were females.This clearly shows the population was almost evenly distributed.Table 2 also indicates that ages of the teachers who responded

Table 4 :
Descriptive statistics for innovative measures implemented by principals

Table 5 :
Item total statistics for the importance of innovation in education

Table 6 :
Scale statistics for the importance of innovation in education Table 7 below.The overall mean (22.6286), variance (11.222) and standard deviation (3.34998) for the seven items are indicated in Table 8 below.

Table 7 :
Item total statistics for the innovative measures implemented by principals

Table 8 :
Scale statistics for the innovative measures implemented by principals