Performance management and teacher usage of instructional materials in universal secondary education schools in Mukono district, Uganda

Abstract

The study examined the influence of performance management on the teacher usage of instructional materials in Universal Secondary Schools in Mukono district. The study was concerned with, establishing the extent to which school managers carry out performance planning to promote teacxher usage of instructional materials, the extent to which performance monitoring is carried out in USE schools to ensure teacher usage of instructional material and to establish how far school managers used performance rewards to enforce effective teacher usage of instructinal materials. The respondents included classroom teachers, heads of depmiments,Directors of Studies, deputy headteachers and head teachers. The target population was 595 teachers from which a sample of 234 teachers were randomly selected and only 211 teachers participated (a response rate of 90.1 %). A crossectional survey design was used. Data was collected using self administered questimmaires, face to face oral interviews and observation checklist. The study found out that performance plmming is done regularly in relation to teacher usage of instructional materials, this is through schemes of work that provide for defining the instructional materials to be used. It also found out that supervisors monitor the usage of instructional materials through checking and reviewing the teacher's schemes of works. Random checks of lessons in progress are done and library usage is evaluated. However it was noted that the monitoring is not necessarily specific to usage of instructional materials but rather continuous assessment of teaching activities. Finally it also found that financial rewards motivate the teachers to employ various teaching methods involving the use of instructional materials. The study recommended that USE schools should be supported continuously to conduct formal performance planning for teacher usage of instructional materials, build systems that allow performance monitoring as specific activity and responsibility of heads of departments and design a reward system that rewards specifically teachers who use instructional materials.