The South African Council for Educators point system policy in promoting teacher professional development: Critical analysis of the case in South Africa

The professional development of teachers has been an interesting area for educational researchers. The educational transformation initiated in South Africa since 1994 due to the new democratic dispensation necessitated a process of reskilling the entire South African teaching corp. For schools to achieve their goals of effective teaching and improve learning, professional development should be at the top of the pedagogical agenda. Drawing from teacher professional development theory, the study explored how the Council for Educators' point system policy functions and whether the policy promotes teacher professional development. For the researcher to explore and understand the views of participants, a qualitative approach, which was analytic, descriptive and interpretive, was deployed. Data was collected through the use of semi-structured interviews. The findings of the study show that there is a discrepancy between what the policy aspires to do and the teachers' praxis. In addition, the findings conclude that in the main, most teachers in this study demonstrate inadequate comprehension despite the fact that the policy has been in operation for five years. Based on these findings, it can confidently be argued that the policy does not enhance teacher professional development.