Housing facilities and teachers' performance in government aided primary schools in Arua district, Uganda

Abstract

The study set to investigate, analyse conditions of housing facilities and assess their effects on teachers' performance in government aided primary schools in Arua District. Despite the acute need to increase the number of teachers to handle large pupil enrollments in well constructed classrooms, teachers' core need of decent housing facilities has not been catered for adequately, to date, in most government aided primary schools in Uganda in general. This has been a challenge to most teachers in government primary schools. The researcher was prompted to investigate if housing facilities had an influence on teachers' performance in government primary schools in Arua District. The study objectives set to: find out conditions of housing facilities for teachers, assess their influence on teachers' performance, establish strategies to provide decent housing facilities for teachers and establish challenges faced in providing good housing facilities for teachers. Data were gathered through Questionnaires, Interviews and Observations. The study findings revealed that most houses for teachers had bad conditions, characterized by small grass thatched huts with most roofs destroyed by termites and rats, causing leakage during rains. The huts had poorly ventilated short walls with door and window shutters loosely fitted. Few old, dilapidated houses with corrugated iron sheets were spotted in some schools. A few permanent semi-detached houses, newly constructed in some schools to accommodate head teachers and deputy head teachers. In conclusion, teachers need improved housing conditions with better facilities for increased performance at work place. The study therefore, recommended that: all stake holders should have collective responsibility to support construction of teachers' houses. The Ministry and Local Government officials should use the findings to address the housing challenges for teachers in government aided primary schools in the country as a whole and Arua District in particular. Government pledges to improve teachers' poor living conditions should be fulfilled.