What makesteachers tick?

A policy research report on teachers’motivation in developing countries

VSO317 Putney Bridge RoadLondon SW15 2PN, UK.

www.vso.org.uk

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First published in 2002.Published by VSO.

What makesteachers tick?A policy research report on teachers’ motivation in developing countries

ContentsAcknowledgements i

List of boxes ii

List of acronyms and abbreviations ii

Executive summary 1

Introduction 4

Section 1 International policy context 7

Section 2 The importance of teachers 102.1 Why do teachers matter... to education? 102.2 Why do teachers matter... to VSO? 12

Section 3 Declining status, deficit discourse: the place of the teacher in education 14policy debates

Section 4 Research findings 184.1 Context of the research 194.2 Teachers’ motivation and performance, and quality education 214.3 Teachers as employees 254.4 Teachers as educators 314.5 Teachers as members of community and society 364.6 Teachers’ voice 37

Section 5 Conclusions and recommendations 425.1 Conclusions 425.2 Non-remuneration factors 435.3 Remuneration factors 435.4 Teachers’ voice 445.5 International institutions and international NGOs 45

Appendix 1 Methodology 47

Appendix 2 Education statistics for each case-study country 48

Bibliography 49

Acknowledgements

TextLucia Fry, VSO Senior Policy Advisor.

Field researchSaskia Verhagen, Lucy Tweedie, Marianne Tudor-Craig

Country case-study reportsSaskia Verhagen, Lucy Tweedie, Marianne Tudor-Craig

EditingSara Cottingham, Hilary Coulby, Silke Bernau, Lucy Tweedie

DesignVSO Publications

Cover photoDan Cashdan, VSO volunteer, Zambia

Special thanks to: Kate Greenaway (Former VSO Programme Director, Zambia)

Stephen Chapman (VSO Programme Director, Zambia)

Kapembwa Musenda (Former VSO Programme Officer, Zambia)

Dario Gentili (VSO Programme Director, Papua New Guinea)

Yanny Guman (VSO Programme Officer, Papua New Guinea)

James Agigo, Brian Monie (Policy, Research, and Communications Division, National Department of Education,Papua New Guinea)

Gill Price (VSO Programme Director, Malawi)

Chikondi Mpokosa (VSO Programme Officer, Malawi)

Liz Orton (Former Head of Advocacy, VSO)

Volunteers, national teachers, head teachers, regional and national education officials and other educationcommentators in all three countries

...all of whom gave their already precious time to support the research process and to speak candidly and at length aboutteachers, their motivation and the educational contexts in which this research took place.

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Boxes

Box 1 Education For All commitments – Dakar 2000 7Box 2 Qualities of a good teacher (from Papua New Guinea National Department of Education 11Box 3 The guiding principles of the UNESCO/ILO Recommendation concerning the Status of Teachers 15Box 4 Extract from a VSO placement outline, Zambia 2002 19Box 5 Positive motivation and moral in practice: an example of a rural high school in Papua New Guinea 41

Acronyms and abbreviations

AIEMS Action on Improvement of English, Maths and Science

AusAid Australian Agency of International Development

CDSS Community Day Secondary School

CIE Centre for International Education

DEO District Education Officer

DFID UK Government’s Department for International Development

EFA Education For All

ILO International Labour Organisation

IMF International Monetary Fund

MK Malawi Kwacha

MOE Ministry of Education

MoEST Ministry of Education, Skills and Training

NGO non-government organisation

PNG Papua New Guinea

PNGTA Papua New Guinea Teachers’ Association

PRSP Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper

SIDA Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency

SSTEP Secondary School Teachers Education Project

TOPSUPP Teachers of Primary Schools Secondary Upgrading Project

TUM Teachers’ Union of Malawi

UNESCO United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organisation

UNICEF United Nations Children’s Fund

USD United States Dollars

VSO Voluntary Service Overseas

ZK Zambian Kwacha

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Executivesummary

Education in developing countries is at a criticaljuncture: a potential crisis in the teaching professionthreatens the ability of national governments toreach internationally agreed targets to expand andimprove education. In many developing countries,the teaching force is demoralised and fractured.Teachers, especially in rural areas, are frequently paidlittle and late, their educational and training needsare neglected, and they are mired in bureaucraciesthat support neither their effective performance northeir career progression in their jobs. Teachers,previously benefiting from considerable publicrespect and reasonable financial reward, feel thattheir status is in decline. As a result, the teachingprofession in developing countries is characterisedby high attrition rates, constant turnover, lack ofconfidence and varying levels of professionalcommitment. Teachers very often feel powerlesseither to create positive learning experiences andoutcomes for their pupils or to improve their ownsituations.

Despite the pivotal nature of teachers’ contributionto education, there is a tendency on the part ofnational and international policy-makers to bypassteachers in decision-making, and to neglect theirneeds when considering new policy directions.Teachers are rarely regarded as partners withineducation planning and reform, and are frequentlytreated as passive implementers of decisions, oreven as technical inputs. Academic and policydebates focus on teachers’ deficiencies, and seldomtake into account the difficulties under which theylive and work. The fundamental importance ofteachers’ role in ensuring effectiveness of educationmust be recognised, understood and taken intoaccount if these international efforts to achievedevelopment targets in education are to besuccessful. Further, the rights of teachers must berealised in order to secure and strengthen their owncommitment to achieving quality ‘Education For All’(EFA).

The rationale for this report, then, is that policyanalysis and dialogue on education reform willbenefit greatly from insights on teaching gained fromteachers themselves. VSO sought to gain suchinsights through a research-based advocacy project,Valuing Teachers. The research explored, fromnational teachers’ own perspectives, critical factorsinfluencing their motivation and identified thechanges required in national and international policy,practice and process in order to enhance teachers’

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motivation. A variety of techniques, including focus-group work, questionnaires, interviews andworkshops was used to elicit the views of nationalteachers, volunteer teachers and other educationstakeholders in three developing countries: Zambia,Papua New Guinea and Malawi1. The project took asits starting point the supposition that teachers’motivation had a significant impact on theirperformance and that teacher performance was oneof the major factors influencing education quality, anassumption based on feedback from VSO volunteersand their colleagues, backed up by desk-basedresearch.

This exploration provides an opportunity to developa holistic understanding of the interplay betweenteachers’ remuneration requirements, professionaland pedagogic support needs, and their relationshipto wider society. The findings express the first-handviews of teachers and education professionals andcapture the opinions of those directly affected byeducation policy – an element that is so oftenmissing from more academic research.

The main findings are:

� Teachers’ motivation is fragile and declining.� Teachers have low self-esteem in their

professional role, and feel they are notrespected by others.

� Teachers’ performance in contributing tolearning is strongly influenced by teachermotivation.

� Teachers wish to be enabled to perform well,which in turn influences their motivation.

� Teacher motivation is a critically ignored factor ineducation management and policy formulationat all levels: school, regional, national andinternational.

� There is a strong link between teachers’motivation and performance, and educationquality, but improving teachers’ motivation is notuniformly prioritised as a major concern ofnational and international policy-makers.

� Non-remuneration and administrative issues arealmost as important as the actual level ofremuneration teachers receive. Improvingteachers’ motivation may not, therefore, be asdifficult or expensive as it appears.

� Policy-makers and other stakeholders are awareof the problem of poor teacher motivation, butare not taking appropriate action either to seekteachers’ views or address their needs.

The recommendations of this report contribute to abetter understanding of how policy and practice canbe formulated to strengthen teachers’ motivationand to support effective teacher performance.Without proper recognition of the value andrelevance of teachers’ contribution to education,international aspirations to achieve Education for Allare in jeopardy.

Recommendations for national and internationalpolicy-makers

� Addressing the factors that reduce teachers’motivation should be a major concern of policy-makers. This will create conditions for thesuccess of other education interventions.

� It is essential to improve practices aroundadministration, management and equity ofremuneration as they are key factors in teachermotivation.

� Ministries of Education should establishprofessional representative bodies for teachers,such as general teaching councils, as fora fordebate and discussion of teachers’ needs andcontributions outside the domain of industrialrelations and terms and conditions.

� Decentralisation should be accompanied byeffective measures to ensure successful top-down and bottom-up communications withschools, supported by monitoring andevaluation systems. The appointment of anombudsman to ensure open and operationalcommunications between schools andheadquarters could be an effective measure.

� Reform processes should incorporatemechanisms to ensure participation of teachersand other civil-society actors, such as NGOsworking in education or related fields, inplanning, implementation and evaluation ofchange in education.

� The extent to which teachers have participatedin the formulation of national education plansshould be a key criterion for donors andinternational financial institutions in judgingtheir viability.

� International financing frameworks should notrecommend a single formula for the calculationof teacher remuneration packages. Teachers’salaries are a matter for collective bargainingand negotiation at country level.

� Donors should be willing to support teachers’remuneration in the same way as othereducation interventions.

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1: These countries were selected on the basis that VSO staff, volunteers and colleagues identified teacher motivation as a key issue in thecurrent education policy context, and that advocacy work was feasible and had the possibility of being effective.

� Donor consortia and international workinggroups on education should ensure regularrepresentation of teachers in their decision-making processes.

� International monitoring systems should includeprovision for seeking direct feedback fromteachers on the efficacy of education reform.

Recommendations for non-government stakeholdersand civil society

� International NGOs should support the inclusionof teacher voices in education decision-makingas well as ensuring it in their own planningprocesses.

� Teacher unions, education councils of religiousbodies, civil-society coalitions and teachingservice commissions should work together toensure that teachers are identified, trained andsupported to participate in open decision-making processes.

� Teacher unions should develop well-informedpositions on debates about quality andrelevance of education as well as engaging inindustrial relations negotiations on teachers’terms and conditions.

� All education stakeholders should demonstratethe value of teachers, and take steps to ensurethat wider society develops a more positive andsupportive attitude towards teachers.

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Introduction Education in developing countries is at a criticaljuncture, as international efforts are galvanisedtowards the attainment of internationally agreedtargets to expand and improve education as part ofthe Education For All (EFA) movement. However, atthe same time, a potential crisis in teaching threatensthe ability of many developing-country governmentsto reach these targets. In such countries, the teachingforce is demoralised and fractured. Teachers,especially in rural areas, are frequently paid little andlate, their educational and training needs areneglected, and they are mired in bureaucracies thatsupport neither their effective performance in theirjobs nor their career progression. As a result, theteaching profession is characterised by high attritionrates, constant turnover, lack of confidence andvarying levels of professional commitment. Teachersfeel powerless either to create positive learningexperiences and outcomes for their pupils or toimprove their own situations.

Teachers are the central actors in education,facilitators of learning, bringers of knowledge,brokers of relationships between pupils and thesocieties in which they live. When policy-makersdiscuss dilemmas of pedagogy, educationmanagement and financing, materials and schoolinfrastructures, what they are really askingthemselves is: how can we help teachers to do theirjob effectively?

Yet despite the pivotal nature of their role, there is atendency on the part of policy-makers to bypassteachers in decision-making, and to neglect theirneeds when considering new policy directions.Teachers are rarely regarded as partners withineducation planning and reform, and are frequentlytreated as passive implementers of decisions, oreven as technical inputs. The fundamentalimportance of teachers’ contribution to educationeffectiveness must be recognised, understood andtaken into account if these efforts are to besuccessful. Further, the rights of teachers must berealised in order to secure and strengthen theircommitment to achieving quality education for all.

VSO has 40 years’ experience of placing volunteerteachers and other education professionals to workalongside local teachers in disadvantaged schools inthe developing world. From this experience it is clearthat teachers have been undermined by the publicand policy disregard for their needs and voice. VSO

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teachers and their local colleagues, already workingin difficult situations and with limited resources, findthat morale and motivation in schools is fragile anddeclining. The implications of this are serious. Withthe drive of the Education For All movement, it isnow more essential than ever that teachers aresupported and enabled to engage positively with theprocess of education reform, and to perform well inthe classroom. If they are not supported in this way,education quality will undoubtedly suffer. Teachers,of all people, do not want this to happen.

The starting point for this report, then, is that policyanalysis and dialogue on education reform willbenefit greatly from insights on teaching gained fromteachers themselves. VSO set out to gather suchinsights through a research-based advocacy project,Valuing Teachers. The research explored, fromteachers’ own perspectives, the following questions:

� What is the relationship between teachermotivation and performance?

� What is the current level of teacher motivation indeveloping countries?

� What are the critical factors influencing teachermotivation?

� What changes are required in national andinternational policy, practice and process in orderto enhance teacher motivation?

Motivation was selected as the focus of the researchbecause literature reviews and desk-based researchrevealed that this dimension of understandingteachers’ ability to do their jobs effectively ispersistently neglected. While there is generalagreement that motivated teachers are crucial toquality education (for example, The OxfamEducation Report by Kevin Watkins, 2000, cites‘motivated teachers’ as one of five key elementsassociated with quality education), very few reportsattempt to explore the factors affecting teachermotivation in any depth2. Too often, the discourseabout teachers centres on their deficiencies inpedagogic approaches or subject knowledge, or islocked in industrial relations dialogue.

An exploration of teachers’ motivation provides anopportunity to develop a holistic understanding ofthe interplay between teachers’ remuneration needs,professional and pedagogic support needs and theirrelationship to wider society. It is hoped that this willlead ultimately to a better understanding of howpolicy and practice can be formulated to offerappropriate incentives and support to ensureeffective teacher performance.

The report is based on qualitative research withteachers and does not purport to be an exhaustivestudy of teacher motivation and/or teacherperformance. The findings express the first-handviews of teachers and education professionals in thethree case-study countries and so capture the honestopinions of the people directly affected by educationpolicy – an element that is so often missing frommore academic research. Research techniquesincluded: literature reviews, desk-based research,analysis of volunteer reports, focus-group work withnational teachers and volunteers, semi-structuredand in-depth interviews with national teachers,education officials and policy-makers, and othereducation stakeholders and round-table policymeetings3. The research process used participatorytechniques and approaches wherever appropriateand aimed to respect and empower teachers as faras possible using available time and resources. Themethods used were of a straightforward, simplenature and could be employed by a range of differentpeople.

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‘The social context of the teachers, the teachers’attitudes, and their working conditions are intimatelyrelated in a very complex manner and we need tounderstand them better... What we do not have is a veryclear picture of what motivates teachers, or indeed, whatdemotivates them.’Garrett, R.M., 1999, Teacher job satisfaction in developing countries,

DFID

‘Teachers are often blamed for the problems of theschool system and students’ deficient learningachievements...Teachers, themselves products of a pooreducation system, are often seen as obstacles toeducational change rather than key human resources.’DESO/Sida, 2000, Teacher education, teachers’ conditions and

motivation, Sida

2: The work of the Commonwealth Secretariat, in particular that authored by Coombe and White (1994), is a notable exception.3: See Appendix 1 for details of methodology.

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4. These countries were selected on the basis that VSO staff, volunteers and colleagues identified teacher motivation as a key issue in thecurrent education policy context.5: Many of the general lessons learned could equally well apply to primary schools, where teachers’ status and reward is equallyprecarious. In Zambia and Malawi, researchers also visited at least one primary school to establish areas of common concern. 6: Full texts of these reports are available on request from the VSO Advocacy Department.

Case-study countries were Zambia, Malawi andPapua New Guinea (PNG)4 and focus-group researchwas conducted in schools where VSO works – mainlyrural, disadvantaged, secondary schools withteachers who had a range of educationqualifications, and were in many cases primary-trained5. Stakeholders at regional and national levelwere also consulted through one-to-one interviewsand workshops. Research took place between July2001 and August 2002. For each case-study country,a policy report was prepared drawing conclusionsand making context-specific recommendations6.

This report is a synthesis of findings from all threecase-study countries, and is presented within thecontext of current policy developments andinternationally agreed education goals. It is laid outas follows.

Section 1 describes the international policy contextfor the research and report, drawing out currentissues for the teaching profession and establishingthe timely nature of this research. Section 2 thenexamines the importance of teachers in deliveringquality education and describes VSO’s experience ofworking with them. This is followed in Section 3 withan overview of the status of, and discourse about,teachers and teaching. Section 4 then explores theresearch findings in six key areas:

1. Context of the research, including location, schoolfacilities, pupil profile, qualifications and training,community participation, HIV/AIDS and gender.2. Teachers’ motivation and performance, and qualityeducation explores VSO and national teachers’ viewson the relationship between motivational support forteachers and their performance and educationquality.3. Teachers as employees explores factors affectingteachers’ motivation deriving from theirremuneration and human resource management.4. Teachers as educators demonstrates the impact oftraining, pedagogic support, and pupil achievementand behaviour on teachers’ motivation.5. Teachers as members of community and societyexamines the effect of teachers’ declining publicstatus on their morale and motivation.6. Teachers’ voice looks at the issue of teachers’participation in decision-making from teachers’ ownperspective and that of other stakeholders.

The report concludes in Section 5 by distilling themain trends in factors affecting teachers’ motivationand draws out implications for national andinternational policy-making. It argues that it is timefor national and international policy-makers to maketeachers full partners in education reform. To do this,they must first secure the commitment of teachers totheir profession by ensuring that policy frameworksand budget allocations are optimally structured toenable positive teachers’ motivation and excellencein teachers’ performance. Recognising that there canbe no real policy formula or blueprint solution forsupporting teachers’ motivation in the South, thisreport does not seek to make specificrecommendations on the best approach to doingthis, but will identify themes that should beaddressed by policy-makers. It will call for a newapproach to policy-making at national andinternational level in which teachers are brought intothe dialogue on strategy formulation. Teachers areperhaps better placed and better informed than anyother stakeholders on what does and does not workin education policy. As such, their participation indesign, implementation, adaptation and evaluationof policy and project initiatives is an essentialingredient of success. Without their participation, it isclear that reforms will falter and change will be slowin coming. Indeed, researchers at the University ofEdinburgh concluded that lack of consultation led tothe failure of India’s ‘Operation Blackboard’, agovernment programme that aimed to ensure that allschools had at least two rooms and two teachers,and that all teachers had a package of essentialteaching aids. The researchers found that, in Gujarat,the programme fell apart because, ‘failure to consultteachers, or their representatives, at any planningstage contributed to demoralisation, alienation andpassive resistance.’

The scale of reform and the challenges facingteachers in the 21st century is huge. Withoutteachers’ active engagement in the change processesthis implies, it is likely that the resultant increases inenrolment will be accompanied by a decline ineducation quality and the eventual loss ofcommunity confidence in education.

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Section 1

Internationalpolicy context

The World Conference on Education of 2000 inDakar, Senegal, reconfirmed and refinedinternational commitments to ensuring EducationFor All made in Jomtien, Thailand, ten years earlier.

�Box 1 �

At the time of writing, it appears that at last politicalwill has a chance of being marshalled behind thetarget of achieving universal basic education of goodquality, following a huge effort on the part of globalcivil society. A new Education For All Action Plan hasbeen approved by the Development Committee ofthe World Bank and IMF7, which sets out aframework for mobilising donor resources to allow‘feasible’ Education For All plans to beoperationalised. The Action Plan has also beenbacked by UNESCO, UNICEF and the G8 educationtaskforce.

The fact that the World Bank has taken the helm inthe push to mobilise donor funds for realising theEducation For All targets will lend impetus toeducation policy-making around the world. However,

Education For All commitments – Dakar 2000� expanding and improving comprehensive early

childhood care and education, especially for themost vulnerable and disadvantaged children

� ensuring that by 2015 all children, particularlygirls, children in difficult circumstances andthose belonging to ethnic minorities, haveaccess to and complete free and compulsoryprimary education of good quality

� ensuring that the learning needs of all youngpeople and adults are met through equitableaccess to appropriate learning and life skillsprogrammes

� achieving a 50 per cent improvement in levels ofadult literacy by 2015, especially for women, andequitable access to basic and continuingeducation for all adults

� eliminating gender disparities in primary andsecondary education by 2015, with a focus onensuring girls’ full and equal access to andachievement in basic education of good quality

� improving all aspects of the quality of educationand ensuring excellence of all so that recognizedand measurable learning outcomes are achievedby all, especially in literacy, numeracy andessential life skills.

7: compromising Finance and Development Ministers ofshareholder governments from around the world.

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it remains to be seen how many donor countries willcommit to the plan, and to what extent. What is clearis that the plan reflects and contributes to asignificant shift in the debate about the role that theinternational community plays in supportingeducation in the South. Donors now increasinglycountenance the possibility of disbursing aid in theform of direct budget support, moving away from theproject-based interventions that have dominated thelast 20 years’ work in education in developingcountries. After the 1980s and 1990s, wheneducation was regarded principally as an arena forcost-reduction and efficiency savings, this can onlybe welcome. It seems likely that the availability ofadditional funds for education will mean a reneweddynamism on the part of national governments indrawing up effective education strategies. However,fresh impetus does not, and should not, comewithout due consideration of the implications. It isabundantly clear that donors, governments,communities and civil-society organisations will wantto ensure that the education systems in which theyare investing deliver high quality, cost-effective,inclusive and empowering learning for all.

One key theme that emerged from discussions atDakar was that the issue of access to education hasovershadowed quality in the drive to achieve theoriginal Education For All targets. Thus, despite amodest growth in enrolment rates, there remainedserious doubts about the effectiveness of theeducational experience. Ultimately, it is feared, theefforts of poor countries to increase enrolments ineducation, particularly at primary level, will count fornothing if there is no concomitant improvement inthe quality of education. One of two scenarios ispossible: a generation of learners will leaveeducation with the expectation of participating fullyin society and economy but without the skills and

knowledge needed to do so; or communityconfidence will be damaged to the extent that thegains made in enrolments will gradually recede asparents withdraw their children from school early, orchoose not to send them at all. The Dakar EducationFor All Framework for Action drew attention to thecrucial nature of teachers’ contribution to theachievement of improvements to quality.

However, several issues pertaining to this new era offinancing and planning for Education For All givecause for concern. First, the issue of teachers’salaries remains contentious, with the World BankAction Plan including a recommended ceiling onteacher salaries as a percentage of per capita GDPand proportion of national education budgets. Whileit must be recognised that an appropriate balanceneeds to be achieved between expenditure onsalaries and non-salary inputs, the Bank’srecommendations suggest a worrying tendency tocontinue considering teachers’ remuneration as apotential area of cost-reduction. Quite apart from thefact that this disregards principles of nationalsovereignty and international rights of collectivebargaining, it implies a failure to understand the keyrole of teachers in delivering education strategies inthe 21st century. VSO’s findings suggest that policy-making on remuneration requires a nuanced, well-researched understanding of how to reward andincentivise teachers in order to ensure theirparticipation in the national effort to improve accessto and quality of education. The World Bank plan hasthe potential to undermine governments’ ability toformulate rational, appropriate national policy in thisvital sphere, and in extremis, could become a bluntinstrument for influencing teachers’ salaries by thedonor community.

‘The World Bank is proactively harnessing opportunitiespresented by the increased international support foreducation and has adopted a dynamic strategy to scaleup EFA efforts, going beyond these targets to ensure thelong-term sustainability of quality education. The overallthrust is to use a systematic and integrated approach toeducation encompassing basic, secondary, tertiary andhigher levels of education that would help countriesaccelerate progress from whatever point they are atalong the education and development continuum.’World Bank, 2002, Action Plan to Accelerate Progress Towards

Education For All, World Bank

‘The pre-eminent role of teachers as well as othereducational personnel in providing quality basiceducation needs to be recognized and developed tooptimize their contribution. This must entail measures torespect teachers’ union rights and professional freedoms,and to improve their working conditions and status,notably in respect of their recruitment, initial and in-service teacher training, remuneration and careerdevelopment possibilities, as well as to allow teachers tofulfill their aspirations, social obligations and ethicalresponsibilities.’Dakar Framework for Action, 2000, Building partnerships and

mobilising resources, Working Paper from the World Education

Forum

Second, doubts creep in about the capacity ofeducation systems to absorb and make best use ofadditional aid. During the course of this research, itbecame clear that teachers’ personal andprofessional lives act as a ‘lens’ through which theobserver can understand critical issues in education,including decentralisation, bureaucracy,accountability and transparency, funding, balancingquality and access, curriculum design and availabilityof essential materials. All these issues seriously affectthe lives and work of teachers and the degree towhich innovations can be successfully managed isdecisively influenced by teachers’ ability andcommitment. Teachers’ reflections on the factorsmotivating them in their daily lives and work revealthat years of under-funding and churning reformhave left education systems in a state of vulnerabilityand even disarray. Perhaps most importantly,management capacity at all levels of educationsystems is weak8. Teachers’ accounts of the failure ofadministrative and bureaucratic systems to deliver,for example, teaching and learning materials orinformation about new syllabuses and curricula,point to a deep malaise in education managementthat must be addressed as a priority. Without this, it isdoubtful whether the World Bank Action Plan can beput into effective action.

Third, the implications of the implications ofexpansion of education required to achieveEducation For All are that the demand for teacherswill increase massively over the coming decade.Education International9, for example, estimates thatfive million primary teachers will be needed todeliver the commitment on primary education inAfrica alone. Issues of recruitment, training, retentionand performance of teachers will become matters ofurgent concern if this requirement is to be met.

Fourth, it is evident that despite the fine words of theDakar Framework for Action, teachers’ voices havegone unheard for too long, and it is unclear at thistime that any new period of planning in national andinternational policy fora will support their inclusion.Certainly, the Global Campaign for Education isdoubtful whether the rhetoric of civil-societyconsultation, seemingly so powerfully endorsed byall players at Dakar, has thus far been realised in theformulation of national education plans. Even whereconsultation, has taken place, the degree to whichteachers’ views have been sought is variable. As willbe demonstrated below, this may have seriousimplications for the viability of the plans.

This report concerns itself with the essential role thatteachers will play and have long played in realisingthe aspirations of international society to provideEducation For All. As will be demonstrated in Section2, much has been expected of teachers over the last50 years, and there is more change yet to come.

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8: Commentators on teacher effectiveness have also noted this vital issue. Notably, the Commonwealth Secretariat (1994) has beenconcerned with this matter for some time: ‘There is little doubt that teachers’ morale and motivation, their commitment, and ultimatelytheir performance would benefit considerably if education ministries, as employers, put into practice reliable principles of goodmanagement’. 9: Education International is a worldwide trade-union organisation of education personnel, with 24.5 million members.

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Section 2

Theimportance of teachers

2.1 Why do teachers matter... toeducation?In all education systems, the performance ofteachers is one of the handful of factors determiningschool effectiveness and learning outcomes. Butteachers influence is even greater in the South – theyare the major learning resource in most developing-country schools. In under-resourced educationsystems, teaching with limited resources and indifficult working and living conditions, they play apivotal role in enabling societies to realise theireducational aspirations. While this is true for alleducation systems around the world, it is particularlyso for developing countries, where school-relatedfactors are more important than non-school factorsin determining differences in pupil achievement(Vulliamy, 1987; Heyneman, 1987) Indeed, asacknowledged by the World Bank, this is one of themost easily demonstrable causal relationships everfound in research on school systems (Farrell andOliveira, 1993).

Teachers’ interaction with learners is the axis onwhich educational quality turns, and as has beenhighlighted above, it is quality of education whichwill increasingly preoccupy policy-makers in thecoming years. If school effectiveness can be regardedas being the ‘value added’ to an individual by theirschool experience, it must be acknowledged that thisvalue is added mainly by their interaction withteachers.

Teachers are also the major agents in deliveringeducation reform. The late 20th and early 21stcentury have witnessed a huge number of shifts inthinking about how to improve and expandeducation. Teachers are both the recipients anddeliverers of this change. A massive growth inenrolments, the shift towards child-centredmethodologies, and decentralisation of education

‘A key determinant of student achievement is the qualityof teaching... Governments must design policies andprogrammes aimed specifically at improving theacademic and pedagogical preparation of teachers andproviding incentives to strengthen their motivation andprofessional commitment... Improving teachermotivation is perhaps the trickiest task that governmentsface in their effort to upgrade the teaching force.’Lockheed, M.E. and Verspoor, A., 1991, Improving Primary Education

in Developing Countries, World Bank/OUP

11management are just some examples of educationpolicy trends which not only have major implicationsfor teachers’ jobs and lives, they also depend onteachers for their effective realisation. The UKGovernment’s Department for InternationalDevelopment (DFID) acknowledges this:

More than this, policy-makers rightly believe that thework of teachers should incorporate an element ofnurturing and socialisation, with teachers acting asrole models and counsellors for their pupils. Often,contact with the teacher is one of the fewexperiences that pupils have with an educatedperson in formal employment. This means thatteachers’ work ethic, gender roles, professionalismand relationship with community and society atlarge, have an enormous impact on pupils. Insituations where many pupils are boarders, or travellong distances to reach the schools, teachers need toplay a pastoral role, ensuring that their pupils areemotionally and physically safe and secure.

In many countries, teachers are seen as a conduit ofinformation between governments and remote ruralareas, and are expected to engage in activities suchas immunisation drives or census-taking.Internationally, there is an increasing trend to expecteducation to take on a humanising dimension andenable citizenship and participation in society. Onceagain, the work required to realise these worthyambitions falls largely on teachers.

Teachers are also expected to respond to widersocietal demands. For example, in sub-SaharanAfrica, there is an increasing expectation thatteachers can play an active role in HIV/AIDSprevention and awareness-raising, and to adapt theirpractice and organisation of education in response tothe pandemic. Michael Kelly (2000), for example,posits the view that education must take on a new

role and content in light of HIV/AIDS. This aspirationadds a further dimension to the work of the alreadyover-stretched teaching profession, and does notalways take into account the needs of teachersthemselves as affected by the pandemic.

�Box 2 �

There is of course one further reason why policy-makers should pay attention to teachers: in mostdeveloping countries, teachers’ salaries make up ahuge proportion of education budgets – up to 95 percent in some cases (UNESCO World EducationReport, 1998). Policy-makers need to ensure that thissubstantial investment pays dividends, and to dothis, a rational policy framework must be in place tosupport teacher performance. This situation alsoprovides an opportunity for donors and civil-societyto monitor whether funds within the educationbudget reach their intended targets – teachers areeventually likely to broadcast the fact that theirsalaries are unpaid.

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‘The big educational project of many developingcountries, in the next decade or so, is involvingwholesale change on a level quite unprecedented inthose countries. The successful management of thischange is therefore crucial. However this cannot beundertaken without a clear understanding of the reactionof the professionals to changes in their work and theheightened expectations being made of them.’Garrett R M., 1999, Teacher job satisfaction in developing countries,

DFID

Qualities of a good teacher � Showing respect� Being genuine� Enthusiasm and competence� A professional attitude� Empathy� Encouraging learning� Good work preparation� Developing curiosity� Fairness� Selecting appropriate teaching styles� Interest in the subject and the child� Openness� Recognising student effort� Being consistent� Establishing trust� Updating skills and knowledge� Keeping promises� Sharing humour, warmth and honesty� A good listener, as well as a good talker� Using language the student understands� Setting and maintaining standards of work� Behaviour and attitudes in the class and out inthe community� Seeing the other view(From a poster issued by the National Department of Education

Papua New Guinea, and displayed in all schools)

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To conclude, it would seem that within theinternational policy arena there are some causes foroptimism. Since the status of teachers depends to avery great extent on the status of education, teachersmight be able to anticipate an improvement in theirterms and living and working conditions if the drivetowards realising EFA goals does gain momentum.Yet, concerns about the quality of planning bynational governments and about the potential forconditions to be imposed on release of donor fundsremain. An increasing prioritisation of education willnot benefit teachers if the additional resources aremainly used for the expansion of the educationsystem on the basis of existing conditions. This is thelogical outcome of prevailing trends in economic andfinancial planning in the South from neo-liberaltheories that seek to depress public-sector spending.The latest iteration of World Bank/IMF frameworksfor lending is the new Poverty Reduction StrategyPaper (PRSP) approach. Despite the emphasis onnational ownership, civil-society participation andpoverty reduction, neo-liberal thinking is stillpredominant in the emerging PRSPs, with clearimplications for education spending and, inparticular, teachers’ remuneration packages. From allperspectives then, there will be a renewed need tounderstand the relationship between remunerationand other factors affecting teacher morale,motivation and performance.

2.2 Why do teachers matter... to VSO?

VSO is an international development agency workingthrough volunteers. Its work is based on afundamental belief in international voluntarism,placing skilled and experienced individuals fromanother context and culture (whether that is in theNorth or South), to live and work with nationalcolleagues in similar circumstances and with similarsalaries, in order to share skills and together buildthe capabilities of individuals, organisations andinstitutions. VSO believes that education is a

fundamental human right and a key element in thedevelopment of individuals, communities andnations that enables them to realise their fullpotential. VSO works in education in a number ofdifferent ways: direct service delivery, non-formaleducation, pre-service and in-service teachertraining, curriculum development and policyformulation. VSO’s most recent strategic plan, FocusFor Change, sets out its commitment to improvingquality teaching.

From its earliest days, VSO has supported secondaryeducation in disadvantaged areas through provisionof qualified and experienced secondary schoolteachers to work as classroom teachers. The aim is toenable education systems to expand and improve inthe face of absolute shortages of educated andqualified teachers in countries, or embarking on theexpansion of access to secondary schooling. VSOteachers are expected not only to deliver thecurriculum alongside national colleagues, but toshare skills formally and informally throughcooperation with others and participation in small-scale teacher training initiatives. Typically, VSOvolunteers work in remote, poor rural regions ofdeveloping countries, where national teachers arescarce or non-existent. The absence of teachers insuch regions is due to a variety of reasons, withnational shortages of teachers, lack of localrecruitment and training policies, aftermath ofconflict or political strife, inadequate incentives toattract teachers from other parts of the countries tothese areas being just some of them.

However, VSO has become increasingly concernedabout the failure of education policy frameworks andsystems to attract, retain and motivate nationalteachers, especially in disadvantaged rural areas. VSOis committed to the principle that teachingplacements have a multiplier effect because of theopportunities they present for VSO volunteers toengage in skill-sharing with national teachers. Theemphasis of VSO’s work in education is thereforeabout long-term capacity-building of individuals,schools and education systems at local and national

‘If teachers cannot perform, how can we expect a highstandard in education?’World Bank Project Coordinator, Papua New Guinea

‘We know that teachers are the key factor in contributingtowards any enhanced quality of classroom experiences.’ Garrett, R.M., 1999, Teacher job satisfaction in developing countries

DFID

‘Highly-motivated, well-trained and professionally-supported teachers are crucial for an effective educationsystem. VSO will help to improve the quality andeffectiveness by working at all levels of the educationsystem, from teacher-training to policy-making.’VSO, Focus For Change, 2002

level. Through this work, VSO volunteers and staffhave observed that a lack of appropriate support forteachers results in high turnover, shortages ofteachers (particularly in undesirable postings) and agradual erosion of teachers’ professionalism, whichcould be characterised as ‘virtual attrition’. Theseimpacts will be examined in greater depth in Section4 but the following quotes from VSO educationalistreports demonstrate their concerns.

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‘Low motivation of teachers, poor attendance and thechanging schedules of teachers [were constrainingfactors]. I think the major constraint on this placement interms of sustainability, is the socio-economic situationthat exists across the whole of Cambodia, particularlywith regard to teachers’ salaries. These are so low thatteachers need to have a second, and often third, job justto make ends meet.’VSO teacher trainer, Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport, Cambodia

‘Teachers’ motivation is problematic but understandablegiven their working conditions. In a way it’s easier for us,as VSOs, to maintain enthusiasm when we know we areonly here for a short period of time and are paid enoughto get by. For our Malawian colleagues, it’s easy to seehow demoralising their situation is.’VSO teacher, secondary school, Malawi

Section 3

Decliningstatus, deficitdiscourse: theplace of theteacher ineducationpolicy debates

It is possible that no other profession has beensubjected to so much scrutiny, debate and discussionas the teaching profession. In the UK, for example,where VSO’s head office is based and from where itrecruits most of its education volunteers, debatesfocus on the best way to recruit, reward and retainteachers in a time when there are desperateshortages in classrooms all over the country. In thedeveloping world, a deficit model for understandingteachers’ professionalism and status tends to prevailin academic and policy discourse on teachers. Inother words, discussion and, to some extent, policyinterventions focus on the attributes perceived to belacking in teachers, principally: knowledge of a rangeof pedagogic methods and approaches, subjectexpertise, professional commitment and work ethic.At the same time, the public’s regard for teachers hasdeteriorated. Both these trends have developed inthe absence of recognition that teachers do notreceive the conditions and support to enableteaching to take place, much less learning.

But it is worth noting that this was not always thecase. In the 1940s, 50s and early 60s, the teachingprofession enjoyed an elite status in the majority ofcountries – especially within secondary education,reflecting in part the fact that secondary schoolingwas only available to a tiny minority of thepopulation. Teachers were seen as bringers ofprogress, modernity and development, and wererewarded and respected accordingly.

In 1966, a Special Intergovernmental Conference onthe Status of Teachers adopted the UNESCO/ILORecommendation concerning the Status of Teachers, largelyas a response to the growth of the teachingprofession in developing countries. Thisrecommendation articulated a bold and optimisticvision of the future role and status of the professionin education and society at large.

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15A mechanism for monitoring the implementation ofthe Recommendation was drawn up two years later,when a joint ILO/UNESCO Committee of Experts onthe Application of the Recommendation concerningthe Status of Teachers was established. This bodyinitially based its work on a questionnaire sent outevery three to four years to governments. However,due to a patchy and poor quality response, thispractice was abandoned in 1991. It was replaced by afocused approach that uses a range ofmethodologies to gather information on specifictopics deemed to be of major importance to thestatus of teachers. In 1994, the Committee moved astep further in calling upon UNESCO and the ILO todevelop a set of reliable, internationally comparablestatistical indicators that could facilitate monitoringthe status of teachers. However, mechanisms werenever put in place for the enforcement of theRecommendation, a situation it shares with otherinternational agreements and declarations.

Ironically, the period during which theRecommendation has been in existence has seen adramatic downturn in both the fortune and inperceptions of teachers in developing countries. The1960s and 70s saw tremendous efforts in themajority of developing countries to increaseenrolment amongst the school-age populations,particularly in primary education. This inevitablyresulted in a massive surge in demand for primaryteachers in particular (see, for example,UNESCO/IIEP, 1998). The demand was met to someextent by employing large numbers of unqualified,untrained teachers, often on temporary and poorly-remunerated contracts. In many cases, theseteachers had only completed the level of educationthat they were tasked with teaching. Despite suchmeasures, there were still too few teachers, resultingin large class sizes, multi-shift and multi-gradeteaching and the need for those teachers in school tocover for vacant posts. At the same time as thismassive expansion in primary enrolment, demandfor secondary education increased, with noconcomitant increase in funding. If anything, thestatus of secondary schools, and thus the teacherswithin them, actually declined. These problems randeepest where disadvantage was greater – remoterural areas frequently suffered their impact mostkeenly.

While the qualifications and education of manyteachers, then, was poor, and numbers inadequate,the demands on them, as highlighted in Section 2,

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The guiding principles of the UNESCO/ILORecommendation concerning the Status of Teachers

1. Education from the earliest school years should bedirected to the all-round development of the humanpersonality and to the spiritual, moral, social, culturaland economic progress of the community, as well asto the inculcation of deep respect for human rightsand fundamental freedoms; within the framework ofthese values the utmost importance should beattached to the contribution to be made by educationto peace and to understanding, tolerance andfriendship among all nations and among racial orreligious groups.

2. It should be recognised that advance in educationdepends largely on the qualifications and ability of theteaching staff in general and on the humanpedagogical and technical qualities of the individualteachers.

3. The status of teachers should be commensuratewith the needs of education as assessed in the light ofeducational aims and objectives; it should berecognised that the proper status of teachers and duepublic regard for the profession of teaching are ofmajor importance for the full realisation of these aimsand objectives.

4. Teaching should be regarded as a profession: it is aform of public service which requires of teachersexpert knowledge and specialised skills, acquired andmaintained through rigorous and continuing study; itcalls also for a sense of personal and corporateresponsibility for the education and welfare of thepupils in their charge.

5. All aspects of the preparation and employment ofteachers should be free from any form ofdiscrimination on grounds of race, colour, sex,religion, political opinion, national or social origin, oreconomic condition.

6. Working conditions for teachers should be such aswill best promote effective learning and enableteachers to concentrate on their professional tasks.

7. Teachers’ organisations should be recognised as aforce which can contribute greatly to educationaladvance and which therefore should be associatedwith the determination of educational policy.

�Box 3 �

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have grown in complexity and numbers. The last 50years have seen a barrage of educational innovationaimed at improving quality and accountability ofeducation in the developing world, affecting bothprimary and secondary teaching. Some of theimportant trends have been:

�decentralisation of education management�introduction of pupil-centred approaches into

curricula and methodology�a greater emphasis on assessment and more time

devoted to it�shifts away from long pre-service teacher training

towards shorter pre-service training with ongoingin-service opportunities

�cost-saving and cost-effectiveness measures,particularly multi-shift and multi-grade teaching.

The philosophies and ideas behind these innovationshave very often been developed by Northern donors.This has led to a situation in some countries wheredonor lending and grants for education have almostexclusively taken the form of project funding,whereby aid for education is conditional on thegovernment implementing a particular project orprogramme of work. The projects frequently dependon the ‘expertise’ of highly-paid developmentconsultants, and can result in considerable influenceof these expatriates on decisions about mainstreameducation delivery. Doubts about the efficacy andappropriateness of such projects were voiced duringthis research due to the preconceptions andapproach of the those who usually deliver them.Further, they are often based on the aforementionedassumption that teacher performance is in deficitand must be upgraded through the adoption of aparticular, usually Northern-devised practice, or theuse of a new technology. The sustainability of suchprojects is questionable. One example that was citedduring the research was the British Council AIEMS(Action on Improvement of English, Maths andScience) project in Zambia that had establishedteacher resource centres but had, according to someteachers, become a ‘white elephant’.

And of course, it is not merely changingcircumstances within education and shifts ineducational theory that have had an impact on thelives of teachers. The prevailing trends in macro-economic theory, dominated by the re-structuringand adjustment policies of the 1980s, had majorimplications for the material status of teachers andfor their working conditions (see, for example, ILO,

1996). Governments have been encouraged, orcompelled, to see public expenditure on educationas an arena for cost-saving and cutbacks. Teachers’salaries, comprising the largest proportion of anyeducation budget, have come under particularpressure and in some cases have experienced suchmarked decline in value as barely to constitute aliving income. Teachers’ salaries have suffereddirectly as a result of fiscal parsimony, but teachersare also affected in other ways. Schoolinfrastructures, provision of teaching and learningmaterials, inspectorate and advisory services andprofessional development opportunities withineducation have also suffered as a result of thisexternally-driven financial constraint.

Teachers have responded in a variety of ways. Allcase-study countries in the VSO research hadexperienced teacher strikes within the last five years.It is also clear that the practice of taking second jobshas become commonplace, and that in some cases,teachers’ commitment to educational norms andvalues has been undermined by the difficulties oftheir daily lives. Teachers, confused and ill-informedabout frequent changes in education policy andpractice, can be resistant to innovation in pedagogy.

It is perhaps unsurprising, then, that blame for thefailure of education systems to deliver quality

‘The general picture is that few teachers manage on theirsalary to the end of the month... When all basic costs arepaid, there is nothing left and in many cases the salaryhas already disappeared before these costs are paid. Tomanage, most employees in the education sector have tolook for additional income and have little time left toconcentrate on their job. One difference between teachersand other employees in the public sector is that theteachers have fewer opportunities to generate extraresources.’Education International, 1999, Structural adjustment, education

reforms and trade union strategies: Ghana as a case study, Education

International

‘In the case of Latin America, it is acknowledged that overthe last decade and within the IMF/World Bank structuraladjustment policies, the adjusting variable has been theteachers’ salary, which has experienced a more profoundreduction than that of other public servants.’Torres, R.M., 1995, Teacher Education: from rhetoric to action,

UNICEF

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education for the majority of the population isincreasingly laid at the feet of teachers. Policy-makers, academics and even non-governmentorganisations (NGOs) have tended to cast teachersas conservative, self-serving and reactionary, as partof the problem rather than part of the solution. Anumber of commentators have remarked on thistendency (see, for example, Farrell and Oliveira,1993; DESO/Sida, 2000). While in rhetoric they areoften idealistically portrayed as bringers ofenlightenment to the poor, in reality, thecombination of Northern-inspired education modelsand neo-liberal economics has reduced them to littlemore than factors of production.

In many ways, the lives of teachers, who form thebiggest body of public servants in almost allcountries, exemplify the impact of externally-driveneconomic trends, such as structural adjustment, onthe developing world. They are also the deliverersand mediators of a number of education policytrends and innovations. However, despite the finewords of the UNESCO/ILO Recommendationconcerning the Status of Teachers, little recognitionhas been given to their needs and perspectives. Thisneglect, as will be demonstrated below, has had amarked deleterious effect on levels of teachermotivation, especially in disadvantaged, marginalisedschools. The report will now go on to examine therelationship between teachers’ motivation andperformance, and to detail the specific factorsaffecting teacher motivation.

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Section 4

Researchfindings

As stated, VSO’s starting point for this research wasthe supposition, based on feedback from VSOvolunteers and returned volunteers, that levels ofteacher motivation had a significant impact on theirperformance. It was also assumed that teacherperformance was one of the major factorsinfluencing education quality. In all countries, thereare teachers for whom teaching is a vocation, whohave intrinsic high levels of commitment to theteaching profession. There are also those who havenever wanted to be teachers and have nocommitment to the job. The majority, though, liessomewhere in between. They wish to remain inteaching and want to do a good job, but theirmotivation and thus their performance is criticallyinfluenced by the extent to which their situationsupports and enables them. VSO set out to explorethis belief and to develop understanding of factorsaffecting teacher motivation in three developingcountries: Zambia, Papua New Guinea (PNG) andMalawi (see Section 4.1).

In each case-study country, an average of 60–70teachers participated in focus-group discussionsabout their motivation and performance. Individualteachers and head teachers from every school alsogave in-depth interviews about the issues. In allcases, approximately 30–40 stakeholders wereconsulted, from a wide variety of backgroundsincluding representatives of teacher unions and civil-society organisations, regional and nationaleducation officials, and donors11.

It was abundantly clear that teachers’ motivation is atbest fragile and at worst severely deteriorating in thethree countries. A combination of neglect of thesecondary school sector, scarcity of resources withinthe system and an ever-expanding set of demandson teachers, accompanied by a deterioration in theirsocial standing, has led to a climate of frustration,and in the case of Zambia at least, despondency. Thishas already begun to have an effect on teacherperformance and education quality. Conversely,where teachers’ motivation is good, there arepositive impacts on teachers’ performance and thequality of schooling. This will be demonstrated inSection 4.2, below.

In Sections 4.3 – 4.5, the factors affecting teachermotivation will be elucidated. It is worth noting thatteachers in all cases ranked issues deriving from theirsense of being enabled and supported to operatesuccessfully as professionals at least as highly, if not

11: See Appendix 2 for education statistics from each country.

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more highly, than issues of their remunerationpackage. In PNG, the most prevalent source ofteacher demoralisation was poor schoolmanagement. In Malawi, access to trainingopportunities and issues of complexity of workloaddominated teacher responses to the researchers.Only in Zambia was salary consistently rated themost important factor affecting teacher motivation,but even here it was closely followed by schoolmanagement.

Therefore, the findings on the factors affectingteachers’ motivation divide into three main themes,according to the source of their motivation ordemotivation:

Section 4.3 will focus on motivational factors thatwere associated with teachers’ terms and conditionsof service, including their relationship tomanagement structures within and beyond school.In other words, it will seek to elucidate how teachersfeel about their situation as employees.

Section 4.4 will look at motivational factors relatingto teachers’ performance and professionalism aseducators. It will analyse the impact of access totraining, teaching and learning materials, inspectionsand guidance support, workload and pupilperformance and behaviour.

Section 4.5 will examine teachers’ relationship to thecommunities around them and to wider society, andthe impact of their declining status on theirmotivation.

Section 4.6, following on from the findings onfactors affecting teacher motivation, will examine theissue of teachers’ voice in how far teachers’ concernsare known and addressed by policy-makers atnational level. It will share teachers’ own views onthe extent to which their views, opinions and vitalknowledge are welcomed and acted upon. It willalso highlight the views of other stakeholders on theissue of teacher motivation. Notably, it willdemonstrate that although there is some knowledgeof the issue amongst influential players in educationin the three countries, there is a lack of nuancedunderstanding and a resistance to takingresponsibility for and action on it. This is becausesystems do not support the inclusion of teachers’views as central to decision-making in education, tothe detriment of teachers and of education itself.

4.1 Context of the researchVSO teachers are typically placed in schools that bearthe brunt of teacher shortages and high teacherturnover; these schools therefore provided the forafor the focus-group research. While clearly there arehuge variations both within and between educationsystems, certain generalisations can be made aboutthe characteristics of the schools where the researchtook place, and their contexts.

4.1.1 LocationThe vast majority of the schools studied weresituated in undesirable, disadvantaged locations. Inthe main, this can be interpreted to mean poor, ruralregions, although in Malawi and PNG some of theresearch took place in schools in peri-urban andurban contexts. That said, a generally predominantfeature of the schools where the research took placewas their physical remoteness (either because ofdistance or poor roads or transport) from servicessuch as clinics, hospitals, banks, libraries, shoppingand leisure facilities. Travel to other parts of the

Extract from a VSO placement outline, Zambia2002Kasempa is a very large, very rural district in thenorth-western province of Zambia. It isundoubtedly one of the country’s least developedareas. The journey from Lusaka is just possible ina day with private transport, but takes two dayswith public transport. The roads are good fromLusaka to the Copperbelt, but badly pot-holedfrom there to Solwezi. Kasempa School is adisadvantaged school due its rural location and,like most other rural schools in Zambia, the schoolfinds it difficult to recruit qualified Zambianteachers. Teachers prefer to work in urban areaswhich have better living conditions. At nationallevel, the emphasis is on basic education (Grades1–9), leaving secondary schools to fend forthemselves. As a result, secondary schools arepoorly funded, resulting in poorly resourcedschools. Rural secondary schools are the worst hit.The conditions in which staff live and work arebad and can sometimes be evident in theclassroom. Sadly, government is not in a positionto revamp the schools.

�Box 4�

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country was costly, rare and unreliable. In PNG, thiswas particularly extreme; schools were accessiblesolely by plane, and the only facility within reach byfoot was often a small shop selling kerosene,batteries and canned meat. Communication bytelephone or post was at best erratic.

In all three countries, teachers were rarely from thecommunities in which they lived and worked,meaning that their year was punctuated by difficultlengthy journeys back to their home communities.The physical remoteness of the schools also meantthat teachers far from regional and provincialeducation authorities were rarely visited and did notreceive regular prompt communications from theregion or the centre. Teachers had little opportunityfor contact with their community of practice outsidetheir schools. Teaching and learning materials wereslow to reach the schools and usually did so ininadequate numbers, if they arrived at all.

4.1.2 School facilitiesMost schools had basic infrastructure only, manywere dilapidated and neglected. Typically, classroomswere old, dusty and equipped with at most achalkboard and a limited number of desks andchairs. Often, they did not have glass in the windows,and were vulnerable to prevailing weatherconditions: leaky in the rainy season, stifling duringhot summer months, freezing in winter. Teachers’housing mirrored this pattern, with teachersfrequently inhabiting dwellings that suffered frompoor maintenance and infrastructure, and lackedelectricity, running water, good sanitation andcooking facilities. This is not to say that all schoolsstudied in the research followed this pattern,however, since the researchers did encounterschools that had benefited either from the input ofextra resources or from effective maintenanceprogrammes by good management.

4.1.3 Profile of pupilsPupils typically achieved lower educationalattainment than the average within their countries,and a class might well include a number of over-agepupils and pupils who were repeating years anumber of times. In some cases, pressure fromnational administration or the need to collect schoolfees led to secondary schools admitting pupils whowere barely literate or numerate. Class sizes wererelatively large though not unmanageably so

(average 35–45 pupils). In all three countries, themedium of instruction for secondary school wasEnglish, meaning that pupils might be learning in asecond, third or even fourth language. Pupils camefrom a diversity of language groups, which did not inall cases include the first language of the teacher.Very few pupils had the opportunity to travel far,even within the country, meaning that theirexperience of life was very limited, yet syllabuseswere usually academic and based on the experienceof urban life, including concepts such as trains,robots, washing machines and traffic lights.

4.1.4 Qualifications and trainingThe profile of the teachers was one of considerableheterogeneity, both within and between countries. Ahuge range of levels of education and qualificationcould be observed, with teachers having beentrained and recruited through a variety of differentschemes. In all three countries, trained secondaryschool teachers worked alongside colleagues whohad been promoted from primary schools orrecruited in from other professions in response toteacher shortages. By and large, of the teachersinterviewed for this research, those in PNG hadattained the highest levels of education andprofessional qualification, followed by Zambia, withMalawi bringing up the rear. This is in part due to thefact that the bulk of the research in Malawi tookplace in the recently created Community DaySecondary Schools (CDSSs). These schools werecreated to meet the increased demand for secondaryschooling caused by the introduction of free primaryeducation in 1994. Teachers in the CDSSs wereusually trained to primary level at best. In all threecountries, there was a great desire amongst teachercohorts to upgrade their professional qualificationsand many were either seeking release to followcourses at a university or teacher training institutionor were pursuing distance education.

4.1.5 Community participationCommunities and parents were rarely involved in anypositive way in the life of the school, even thoughboth national and VSO teachers felt this wasbeneficial when it did occur. Usually, lack ofinvolvement was due to indifference or alienationfrom education generally. In extreme cases,communities were actually hostile to the schools andtheir teachers, threatening and occasionally carryingout acts of violence against the staff. Teachers in

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PNG, in particular, were reported to be vulnerable tocommunity hostility, exacerbated by the fact that theywere rarely living and working within their homecommunities.

4.1.6 HIV/AIDSTeachers in all three countries were affected by theHIV/AIDS pandemic. This is much more openly anissue in Malawi and Zambia than in PNG, althoughHIV/AIDS is an increasing problem there too. InZambia and Malawi, HIV/AIDS was becoming amajor obstacle to teachers performing to the best oftheir ability, with teachers and students infected andaffected by the virus. The teacher workforce showedthat increased sickness absence and mortality rateswere beginning to increase. Teachers also had toabsent themselves to care for sick relatives or toarrange and attend funerals. However, reports onwhether teachers can be considered to be at greaterrisk than other groups vary. It has been assumed byHIV/AIDS professionals, and even within educationestablishments, that teachers are particularlyvulnerable to infection, being typically migrant withintheir own countries and having a higher socio-economic status than average. However, recentevidence suggests otherwise, with a report by NicolaSwainson and Paul Bennell (2002), asserting thatteachers are no more vulnerable than otherprofessionals. What is clear, however, is thatHIV/AIDS has further jeopardised what, in manycases, is already a fairly marginal existence. Teacherswho are HIV-positive incur medical costs that theyfind hard to sustain. They are unlikely to be able toafford antiretroviral therapies or even money forbasic drugs to treat HIV-related illnesses. They mayalso be subjected to stigma and discrimination.Teachers find that they are increasingly called uponto support family members infected and affected byHIV, carrying physical, financial and emotionalburdens, this being especially true of femaleteachers. They will also be expected to take onadditional duties as a result of colleagues’ morbidity.In a situation where teachers’ morale and motivationis already very fragile, the intensifying affect of livingin a society deeply affected by HIV may prove to bedevastating.

4.1.7 GenderGenerally in rural areas there were fewer femaleteachers, and those present had frequently followedtheir husbands to the schools. This mirrors thepattern commonly found in rural primary schools,whereas in urban areas it is usual to find femaleteachers in both primary and secondary schools.Female teachers were subjected to genderdiscrimination at school and at home. They weregenerally less likely to be promoted to seniorpositions and were offered sub-standard or noteacher housing due to lack of recognition of theirstatus as heads of households. In some cases, itappeared that female teachers were vulnerable tosexual harassment by colleagues and superiors atwork. They were also likely to be primary carers forchildren and parents, and responsible for ensuringthat a host of domestic duties such as cooking,water-carrying and cleaning were carried out. Insome cases, notably in PNG, female teachersreported incidents of domestic violence. Wheninvited to contribute any personal factors affectingtheir morale, female teachers were far more likelythan male teachers to cite difficulties in theirmarriages or home lives as having a negative impactin this respect. Female teachers were more likelythan male teachers to be taking on caring rolesbecause of the HIV/AIDS pandemic.

4.2 Teachers’ motivation andperformance, and quality educationAs noted above, VSO’s hypothesis was that there is aclose relationship between teacher motivation andperformance, based on the testimony of serving andreturned VSO volunteers, and backed up by desk-based research. It also assumed that teachers’performance had an important impact oneducational quality.

‘More generally the AIDS crisis heightens the need toprofessionalise the teaching cadre as quickly aspossible and improve teacher morale throughimproved remmuneration and other conditions ofservice.’Swainson, N. and Bennell, P., 2002, The Impact of HIV/AIDSEpidemic on the Education Sector in Southern Africa, CIE

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While VSO does not claim to have demonstrated adirect causal link between teacher motivation,performance and quality education, this researchgoes some way to validate the hypothesis.

A random sample of volunteers’ final reports13

submitted over the last five years revealed a very highlevel of concern about the motivation of colleaguesand its impact on their performance. Out of 70reports from five countries, including the threeselected for case-study research, around 50 per centspontaneously cited teacher motivation as a keyconstraining or contributing factor affecting theirplacement. For the vast majority of these, poorteacher motivation was considered to be aconstraining factor, although in a few cases thepositive attitude and good motivation of colleagueswas put forward as a key contributing factor. Itshould be noted that these reports are open innature, with no prompts to volunteers that theyshould address particular themes or issues. It canthus be concluded that the concerns they reported

were entirely derived from their actual experiencerather than any bias of VSO.

In a review of reports from VSO volunteers in Malawi,six out of ten of them mentioned teacher motivationand/or morale. Generally, there was a perceptionthat progress achieved in placement and in anyextra-curricular activities established by thevolunteer, would not be maintained due to lack ofgood teacher motivation. A number of the volunteersalso reported that teacher absenteeism was aproblem within their schools. Despite the frustrationthis caused, volunteers showed some empathy withtheir colleagues’ difficult situation.

In Papua New Guinea, five out of ten volunteerreports mentioned teacher motivation as affectingtheir placement. Generally, most referred to the factthat teachers in PNG frequently move schools due tothe poor working conditions they encounter in ruralareas, affecting continuity in the school and theability of colleagues to work effectively.

‘If teaching and learning are the beginning andend of the educational planning process then allmatters that bear on the welfare, professionaldevelopment and effectiveness of the teachermust be of prime importance.’Coombe, T., 1988, Integral Planning for the Staffing Function in

Education. Paper presented at the workshop on the Future of Strategic

Education Planning, IIEP

‘Learning opportunities are reduced when teachers arepoorly motivated, poorly trained and unable to foster achild-centred learning environment. High rates of teacherabsenteeism reduce rates of attendance and undermineparental confidence in school systems. Teachers play acrucial role in determining the expectations of childrenand how they relate to the school environment.’Watkins, K., 2000, The Oxfam Education Report, Oxfam Publications

‘The improvement of quality in basic education dependson teachers’ education, and on teachers’ behaviour andattitudes.’DESO/Sida, 2000, Teacher education, teachers’ conditions and

motivation, Sida

‘We know that teachers are the key factor in contributingtowards any enhanced quality of classroom experiences.’ Garrett, R.M., 1999, Teacher job satisfaction in developing countries,

DFID

13: All VSO volunteers are required to report on the objectives, activities and indicators in their placement outlines. Final reports givethem the opportunity to highlight factors affecting the attainment of the objectives.

‘Unfortunately, a lot of the time I feel like I am on apersonal crusade to help the students, whether I am inclass or in extra-curricular activities while other localteachers skip their lessons especially when theheadmaster is away. A lack of motivation among fellowteachers (mostly as a result of low salaries) is notsomething that a teacher from abroad is ever going tochange.’VSO teacher, secondary school, Malawi

‘The high turnover badly impacts upon the sustainabilityof the volunteers’ work. The counterpart who works withvolunteers and is hoping to take over from volunteersdoes not necessarily stay on for continuity, as there is atendency of teachers moving schools in PNG.’VSO teacher, secondary school, PNG

‘Many national staff at school X appear to be affected bymotivational issues that are seen throughout theeducational system in PNG. The staff are poorly paid andit is not unusual for wages to be severely delayed. Thisoften results in a reluctance on behalf of nationalmembers of staff to attend any formal in-service sessionsor carry out extra-curricular duties.’VSO teacher, secondary school, PNG

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For Zambia, 15 volunteer reports were reviewed, ofwhich eight mentioned teachers’ motivation asconstraining their effectiveness. The major effects ofthis were felt to be high turnover of teachers andteacher absenteeism. A number of VSO teachersspecifically cited the failure of the education systemto tackle problems of poor teacher motivation as acause of frustration to them and their colleagues.

Before the field research, a focus group of returnedVSO education professionals also convened toexplore their attitudes to teachers’ motivation in theirplacements. Returned volunteers from five countries(Malawi, Uganda, Guyana, China and Ethiopia) citedthe following as the main effects of poor motivationon teachers’ performance and the quality ofschooling and education:

� teachers take up other jobs alongside teaching� teachers move out of teaching where possible� teachers don’t teach� teachers use inappropriate methodologies � teachers do not take account of learners’ needs� the quality of teaching is poor.

Secondary effects noted were:

� loss of community confidence in education,resulting in high drop-out rates and more out-of-school children

� educational ability of country workforce is poorand economy suffers.

Volunteers’ understanding of the impact of teachermotivation was explored in more depth during theactual case-study research process. In Zambia, forexample, all volunteers working in the country wereasked to complete a brief survey on the importanceof teachers’ motivation. All the respondents rankedteacher morale or motivation as important to thequality of education in their school, with 60 per centstating it to be very important, and 40 per centfeeling it to be the most important factor affectingquality of schooling in their placements. In Malawiand Papua New Guinea, volunteers interviewedduring the research process were invited to offertheir insights on the topic and over 90 per centsupported the view that there was a causalrelationship between teachers’ motivation andperformance. In PNG, a number of volunteers (andother stakeholders) challenged the assumption thatteachers’ performance was poor per se, but felt morethat it was in jeopardy due to the lack of support fortheir motivation. This led the researcher tocharacterise education as being at a ‘crossroads’,where crucial policy choices could still be made tosupport teachers’ motivation and performance andprevent decline in quality of education.

‘High staff turnover makes it difficult to meet placementobjectives. Teachers who were interested in andcommitted to changes in the department and futureimprovements were unfortunately transferred within thefirst year. These teachers were not replaced, leaving otherteachers in the department overburdened and oftenteaching a subject they were not qualified to teach. Thiscontributes to low morale, making it difficult to workalongside colleagues and introduce new ideas andpractices in other classes.’VSO teacher, secondary school, Zambia

‘It is very difficult to work in an environment wheremorale, discipline and enthusiasm among staff is verylow. The same problems are ever existent (people do notrecognise the problems) but these are never tackled...Because the head of department does not have theauthority to run the department, teachers organiseprivate lessons during school time.’VSO teacher, secondary school, Zambia

‘Both teachers and students are demotivated resulting instudents feeling abandoned by most teachers.’VSO teacher, secondary school, Zambia

‘Motivated teachers perform well. Demotivated teachersdon’t turn up and if they are at school, they just give theclass notes.’VSO teacher, CDSS, Malawi

Q: ‘What are the four main hurdles to the quality ofeducation and teaching in your placement?A: ‘Teachers’ motivation – they are not willing to put inextra hours for training, observation etc.’VSO teacher, secondary school, PNG

‘They are an amazingly dedicated, hardworking group ofprofessionals in spite of their difficult conditions andworkloads.’VSO, secondary school, PNG

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Further insights into the relationship betweenteachers’ motivation and performance and thequality of education were gleaned through the focus-group discussions with national teachers. In Zambiaand PNG, teachers were invited to describe thecharacteristics of a well-motivated teacher, with thefollowing results:

Hardworking Hardworking

Punctual Puts time into planning /preparation

Happy Teacher performs well

Efficient (prepares his/her Students perform well lessons on time)

Pupils do not fear the teacher, Teacher uses a variety of are happy methods

Physical appearance is neat Teacher sets and marks homework

Active in most school Students and teacher are programmes happy

Found at the place of work Good relationship with the community

Gives more work to pupils Committed

Good relations with colleagues Punctualand supervisors

Self-supervised Disciplined

Good relations with staff

These responses imply that there is indeed a strongrelationship between teacher motivation and teacherperformance.

In Malawi, teachers were explicitly asked about therelationship between their motivation and theirperformance. Perhaps unsurprisingly, 100 per cent ofteachers confirmed the view that being well-motivated affected their performance. Moreover, thecomments made around this statement reflect adeeper understanding:

Head teachers also corroborated the view thatteachers’ performance was influenced by the extentto which their motivation is supported, with eight outof eleven head teachers (or deputies) confirming thisfinding.

In all three countries, reports from teachers andother stakeholders also confirmed the impact offragile and declining teacher motivation. Impactscould be categorised into three main themes:

� High turnoverAll schools where research took place werenegatively affected by high teacher turnover, as

Zambia PNG

‘If you are unhappy then you cannot work. You will go tothe classroom with loads of problems and yourpresentation will be poor. You need to have peace ofmind.’Teacher, CDSS, Malawi

‘If you are happy, you are going to deliver everything thatis required in that particular job. For example, if you’vegot a good house and good books, then I think nothing isgoing to hinder you going into class very happily andliking the job. But sometimes we are disappointed, we aregoing to class unprepared, we haven’t understoodeverything and we are doubting, ‘could they [the pupils]do this?’...but if you are provided with something that isneeded, even the mood, even the pupils, if they see you ina light mood, they are happy to learn in that situation.’Teacher, CDSS, Malawi

‘By the 21st of the month, a teacher has literally nothingat home, and has to come to school hungry and havingeaten nothing. In this situation, you cannot be able todeliver anything good in class.’Teacher, CDSS, Malawi

‘If the teachers are not motivated, they can work onlyunder supervision – if alone [unsupervised] they wouldnot go to class, but if they are happy then they go.’Deputy head teacher, primary school, Malawi

‘If a person is given a good package for the job he’s [sic.]doing, he makes sure he does the job withoutdisappointing these people who are providing thepackage for him.’Head teacher, CDSS, Malawi

‘Sometimes you see heads chasing the teachers into theclassrooms, but you can’t force them to teach. If they aremotivated, then they teach properly.’Head teacher, secondary school, Malawi

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teachers sought better opportunities elsewhere,either within or outside the teaching profession, andoccasionally in other countries. The main effects ofthis were lack of continuity, loss of good teachers,and uncertainty about the school establishment atthe start of the school term.

� Teacher shortagesAs well as dealing with the problems of highturnover, most schools in the study had enormousdifficulty attracting teachers and almost constantlyoperated without a full complement of staff, forcingthem to depend on volunteer teachers or expatriateteachers from neighbouring countries. Teachers werealso forced to cover vacant posts, adding a largeadditional burden to their own workload. In manycases, shortages were so extreme as to leave classeswithout teachers for long periods of time.

�‘Virtual’ attritionAlthough, as noted above, many teachers continue todo their jobs in difficult circumstances, it is clear thatthe hardships of their living and working lives havebegun to take their toll on professional commitment.In countries where there is little alternative formalsector employment, it is perhaps inevitable that theeducation system will end up carrying some teacherswho are not fully committed to their work. Thus,attrition out of the profession itself may not be aproblem, but a gradual erosion of professional normsand values is unfortunately in progress, withconcomitant effects. Absenteeism was a particularproblem in Zambia and Malawi, where teachersfrequently had to take second jobs to supplementtheir meagre incomes. Sadly, in Zambia it wasreported that ‘remote teaching’ (the practice ofwriting notes on the board or using a class prefect toread out a textbook while the teacher occupiedthemselves elsewhere) is becoming commonplace.In Malawi, poorly motivated teachers depended onchalk and talk methods or reading from textbooks.The impacts were perhaps less severely felt in PNG,although national and VSO teachers felt that if theirmotivation was better supported, teachers’

performance would dramatically improve. The major function of the focus-group work was todraw out in more detail teachers’ understanding ofthe different factors affecting their motivation. A clearpicture emerged of teachers’ self-perception as

public-sector employees, as educators, and asmembers of society at large, and in particular, of theirsense of worth in these spheres. Having establishedteachers’ understanding and perceptionssurrounding motivation, the next section of thisreport will answer the crucial question of what it isthat actually motivates teachers.

4.3 Teachers as employeesAs noted above, teachers in most developingcountries have experienced a marked decline instandards of living and purchasing power since themid-1970s, when fiscal pressure caused by setbacksin economic growth began to take its toll on publicpurses. This was intensified by the adoption ofstructural adjustment policies in the 1980s and1990s, when teacher salaries became an obvioustarget for cost-savings in education budgets, since inmany cases they make up the bulk of recurrentexpenditure on education. In many countries,teachers’ salaries have been supplemented by avariety of additional payments for extra duties ortaking up hardship postings. Variously referred to asincentives, entitlements and allowances, these salarysupplements have, over time, become a significantadministrative burden on education systems that arealready overstretched. Other elements of theremuneration package offered to teachers have alsocome under pressure. In particular, the housing stockavailable to teachers is inadequate in terms of bothquality and quantity. In countries where there is anexpectation that state employees will have low-costaccommodation of reasonable standard, theprovision of teacher housing will remain an issue ofconcern to national governments.

Teachers have also borne the brunt of anothercommon trend in education in developing countries:lack of investment in management at local, regionaland national levels to enable the system toaccommodate change and cope with crisis.

4.3.1 Remuneration packages� SalariesIn all three case-study countries, VSO’s researchdemonstrated that the poor absolute value of theteachers’ salaries was a significant factor influencingtheir motivation. Teachers’ concern about theirsalaries was particularly acute in Zambia and Malawi,where teachers’ salaries do not constitute a livingwage. For example, the average net monthly wagesof teachers interviewed in VSO’s Zambia case studyvaried from ZK 170,000 or USD 44 (basic school

‘A motivated teacher will give 200 per cent more.’Teacher, secondary school, PNG

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teacher) to ZK 298,000 or USD 77 (headmaster of asecondary school). The monthly cost-of-living surveyin June 2001 conducted by the Zambian Governmentestimated the cost of a basket of food for a family ofsix in Zambia to be ZK 328,570, or USD 85. InMalawi, a presidential edict had recently set aminimum for all teachers’ pay packages of MK 5,000.A VSO teacher in Malawi is paid MK 14,000 – anamount that is determined by VSO to be theminimum required for basic living, not includingtravel or entertainment. It is thus clear that mostMalawian teachers are not earning a living wage.

Not surprisingly, poor remuneration had adetrimental effect on teachers’ classroomperformance, as they reported being tired anddistracted during their time in school, and in somecases took time out to attend to other business.

In PNG, teachers found that their salaries were notenough to meet the high cost of living in remote ruralareas, where transport costs are high.

It is not simply the absolute amount of teachers’salaries that provokes their dissatisfaction, but theunfavourable comparisons they make between theirown remuneration packages and those of otherprofessions. In Papua New Guinea, this concern wasso profound as to have prompted the Papua NewGuinea Teachers’ Association (PNGTA) tocommission research into the Hay method of jobevaluation10, and heated debate continues aboutwhether teacher salaries should have parity withother public servants. Teachers in all countries

reported feeling inferior to other professionals,leading to demoralisation and teacher attrition out ofthe profession.

It is clear, however, from discussions withstakeholders, that there is little or no prospect ofteacher salaries being brought into line with those ofother public servants. This is not a situation unique todeveloping countries; sheer numbers of teachersmean that in the developed world, policy-makershave also shied away from taking such a step.

� Allowances and entitlementsA common feature of all three countries’ educationsystems was the attempt to boost teachers’ salariesthrough extra allowances and incentives. Over time,the list of these salary supplements has becomelonger and longer. In Papua New Guinea, forexample, a teacher in a rural area was able claim upto 13 different types of allowances or entitlements.Incentives were also paid in all three countries toattract teachers to undesirable regions and schools.However, these were seen as neither adequate norappropriate. In all three countries, teachers reporteddissatisfaction with both the amount andadministration of these allowances, and in somecases, objected in principle to being paid in this wayinstead of through the salary system.

‘I get ZK 198,000. I have six children, need to send twochildren to school and that takes up ZK 144,000 per term.The children of my sister now depend on me as well, sowhen I come to school, I know I have not solved theproblems in my family and that bothers me.’Teacher, secondary school, Zambia

‘I have a big family at home, my salary is finished in oneweek, so we borrow here and there. The other thing youwould see is that I will not knock off at 13.00 hoursexactly, as I have a tailoring project in town, so I have todeviate to that project... If I had enough money, I coulduse this time to prepare lessons. I’m aware this time isbeing misused by me in going absent, but teaching cannotbe my main occupation.’Teacher, secondary school, Zambia

‘We say we teach to help students, but on the other hand,teaching is a profession where at the end, the oneteaching needs to get something. Now there are otherjobs we know quite well where they have very goodpackages, salaries which are very good and a personworking in these organisational departments – he workshappily.’Teacher, CDSS, Malawi

‘Teachers, from my point of view, are the makers of thenation. The salaries we get are very small compared withother professions. The salaries being low makes meunhappy with the profession.’Teacher, CDSS, Malawi

10: The Hay method was devised in the US in the 1950s by E.N. Hay and Associates. It provides guidance for job grading relating to theskills required for effective job performance in three categories: know-how, problem-solving and accountability.

‘The allowance has made us happy – now we havesomething to eat at the end of the month and don’t go toschool hungry. But an allowance is not a salary. I wouldlike more to have an increase in basic [salary] to be surefor the future.’Teacher, CDSS, Malawi

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This issue was particularly pertinent during thecourse of the Malawi research, which took placeshortly after the release of a new housing allowancefor teachers. Teachers were, without doubt, thankfulfor the additional spending power afforded them bythe new allowance. Head teachers, in particular, feltthe new allowance had had a positive impact onteachers’ motivation. However, this satisfaction wastempered by a number of anxieties and complaints.Teachers’ perception was that the allowance wasinsecure and could be taken away from them; theyalso noted the fact that the allowances were notpensionable. Furthermore, the initial conditionsimposed on the allowances were seen asinequitable, as they varied according to region andgrade and were of uneven benefit depending on thecost of housing to the individual teacher.

� Administration of paymentsIn all countries, a major grievance voiced by teacherswas the difficulties they experienced in getting theirsalaries and allowances paid on time. In this respect,teachers can be seen most clearly as the victims ofsystem failure. In PNG, for example, the PNGTA spokeof three teachers who had paid from their ownpockets to make the expensive and difficult journeyto Port Moresby. These teachers spent more than amonth in Port Moresby and the expense of the tripcost more than the allowances that were eventuallypaid to them. This type of experience was socommonplace that non-payment of allowances, suchas the boarding duty allowance and the home leaveallowance, had resulted in the refusal of teachers tofulfil their duties, or in absenting themselves fromschool in order to try to secure the supplementsowed to them. Newly qualified teachers reportedhaving to wait up to nine months for their first salarypayment, and an informant from a major donoragency disclosed that the PNG Government itself

estimated that some 50 million kina (USD 1,257,700)was owed to teachers in back pay. In all threecountries, delays, or in some cases apparentobstruction to the payment of allowances andsalaries, results in teachers feeling frustrated andangry, and to a perception that poor financialaccountability at district and provincial level isresponsible. The resulting impact was twofold.Teachers spend inordinate amounts of time trying toensure that payments they are entitled to doeventually reach them and they feel that theproblems with accessing their payments reflect ageneral lack of regard for them and their welfare. Thiscompounds their sense of being low in status andvalue and is further exacerbated by the rudeness andeven contempt they experience at the hands ofregional and provincial officials

� Collective bargainingIn all three countries, teachers were unionised andelected representatives were charged with collectivebargaining on teachers’ salaries and allowances.However, their effectiveness was patchy, as theythemselves acknowledged in a couple of instances.In PNG, for example, the Teachers’ Associationacknowledged that a recent victory in securing aseven per cent pay increase was too little, too late.The PNGTA were explicit in stating that, in their view,the cause of their disempowerment was ultimatelydue to the adjustment policies imposed by the IMFand the World Bank. In Zambia, teachers’ unionswere perceived by teachers to be divided and therewere unconfirmed reports of deals being struckwhereby members of one union were granted biggersalary increases than those of another! In Malawi,however, more positive views emerged, perhapsbecause of the recent success of TUM (Teachers’Union of Malawi) in securing the new housingallowance.

‘It’s not all teachers who are accommodated in schools, soyou find that you received the same housing allowance,but some of us are paying rents that are higher thanothers. So although it’s good, it’s not wholly positive.’Teacher, CDSS, Malawi

‘I did a full year of double shift teaching last year, up tillnow I have not had my allowances for that. I followed upon that; I walk to the DEO’s [District Education Officer]office (15 km), take a form, walk back, have the head tosign it, bring it back to the DEO’s office, and then...’Teacher, basic school, Zambia

‘The pay problems are what affect teachers. The teachersknow they themselves are working hard so they getfrustrated when they see the paymaster, office staff andsenior administrators at national and provincial level notperforming.’Head teacher, PNG

‘The thing that would drive me out of the professionwould be the problems with allowances andentitlements.’

Teacher, secondary school, PNG

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� AccommodationA further issue of concern to most teachers wasaccommodation. During this research, teachersreported that their poor housing is a daily source ofirritation and ill-feeling. Housing stocks werereported to be small and to have frequently falleninto disrepair, leaving teachers with the choicebetween paying high rents for private housingsometimes far from their place of work, or living inhighly unsavoury conditions. Teachers reported livingwith leaking roofs, bad sanitation and brokenwindows. Frequently they had to manage withoutelectricity and running water, which adds to analready heavy burden of daily duties. Efforts toengage communities in house building andmaintenance had met with mixed success. Thissituation was particularly disappointing for teachersas housing had traditionally been free for teachers inall three countries and thus perceived as a perk of anotherwise difficult job.

In one situation observed during the Zambiaresearch, two teachers spent a whole year living in anarrow office between two classrooms. Zambianteachers who did have a house often complainedabout the state or the size of the house. This wasespecially true for unmarried female teachers whowere often forced to share a house with a colleagueand their family. For married female teachers, themain problem encountered was the official view heldthat they have no need of housing, as it wasassumed that their husband would provide for them.

Teachers who had been posted to rural areas andwho had no access to permanent, affordable andappropriate accommodation spent a considerableamount of time searching for other accommodationand in some cases in seeking transfers. This added tothe insecurity and lack of continuity experienced in

many rural schools. Once again, the feeling of beingneglected or disregarded by both schoolmanagement and the wider education establishmentwas equally important in generating frustration andresentment, as the practical problems posed toteachers.

� Promotion prospectsTeachers, like other types of public servants, seethemselves not as static employees but asprofessionals on a structured career path. The trendsin teacher recruitment highlighted in Section 3 have,however, meant that education systems oftenoperated a barrage of schemes to bring moreteachers into the profession, meaning that theteaching force has considerable variation ofexperience and qualification. At the time of writing,the Lehara scheme in PNG had been designed toattract people with vocational qualifications into theprofession. As mentioned earlier, a massive cohort ofprimary teachers in Malawi had been upgraded towork in the CDSSs. In Zambia the TOPSUPP(Teachers of Primary schools Secondary UpgradingProject) scheme had fulfilled a similar function.

‘Without TUM there would have been no housingallowance. It is a way we can produce our problems;before there was no way. TUM can refer problems, it is agood channel of communication.’Teacher, CDSS, Malawi

Q: ‘Why do teachers around you leave the profession?’A: ‘Poor accommodation. The toilets are not OK, they aremade of grass and mud. In the rainy season they falldown.’Teacher, CDSS, Malawi

‘A male teacher has a house, without putting across anymarriage certificate, he puts in a girlfriend... Meanwhile,we are four female teachers here and we all have our ownkids... They say that actually our husbands are supposedto take care of a house for us. Where we do not have [ahusband], like some of us, they make us share a house,with our children in a three-room block... Maybe we arenot friends; we do not even speak the same language. Weare two adults and eight children together, while thatmale teacher has the whole house to himself and hisgirlfriend.’Female teacher, secondary school, Zambia

‘When it comes to applying for next year’s posts, thosewho suffer might leave this place... and find where are theschools with housing etc...’ Teacher, secondary school, PNG

‘The minister really does not care whether I live in ahouse or under a bridge.’Teacher, high school, Zambia

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Common to all, though, was a real hunger forpromotion. In PNG, teachers’ resentment at thedecline in service by inspectors highlighted earlier,was due in part to the stipulation that teachers hadto be deemed eligible for promotion by an inspectorbefore being able to apply for higher positions.Teachers in PNG were also disappointed by the lackof availability of college courses, seen as the bestway of gaining promotion. In Malawi, the majority ofteachers interviewed were working in the CDSSs andtherefore hoped to improve their status throughimproving their qualifications and getting betterterms and conditions as a result. However, in allthree countries, teachers felt that their opportunitieswere constrained both by the bureaucratic systemsmanaging promotions and by the exorbitant costs ofimproving their qualifications.

One problem shared by all the systems examinedduring the research was a perceived lack ofopportunity for promotion while remaining in theteaching profession. Opportunities to become a headteacher were necessarily rare. Career progressionwas thus perceived to be a gradual acquisition ofteaching skills and qualifications, before progressinginto education administration. The effects of this aretwofold: good teachers are quickly lost to theprofession while those who remain in teaching feelthat their status and recognition is limited.

4.3.2 Management of teachersIt is manifest that teachers’ experience as employeeswithin education systems is essentially shaped bytheir experience of the school in which they work. Infact, this truism applies to virtually every type ofpublic servant. Yet, oddly, it seems to have escapedthe notice of both donors and governments, whocontinue to bombard teachers with innovations andinitiatives without considering whether managementcapacity is strong enough to nurture theircommitment to working life.

�In-school managementSchool management and the role of head teachers inparticular was a crucial area of concern to teachers,particularly in PNG and Zambia. In both cases, thereis a marked lack of congruence between thesignificance of the issue to teachers (and in somecases head teachers), and its importance in the eyesof the other stakeholders and in policycommitments. In Malawi, interestingly, dissatisfactionwith school management was predominant amongstfemale teachers and much less mentioned amongstmale teachers, who generally reported that they feltincluded in school decisions and that decisionsabout promotions were fair. VSO volunteers inMalawi, however, commented on management as acrucial factor in determining teacher motivation, bothpositive and negative.

In both PNG and Zambia, the relationship betweenhead teachers and their staff was a particular concernto many teachers. Many examples of unsatisfactoryinteractions were cited including:

� not being listened to, not being heard – a feelingthat the head does not take on board what theteachers say

� a lack of respect from the head teacher. Examplesof this were being reprimanded in the presenceof pupils and colleagues, or being asked toapologise after speaking out in a staff meeting.

� a feeling that the head does not stand up forteachers at regional education offices and doesnot defend their case for allowances or leave

� unfair promotions, with teachers who are new tothe school being made heads of departmentbefore the older teachers

� female teachers not being given certain extraresponsibilities (acting in the head teacher’sabsence, administrative duties)

‘I would love to go further but with the current trends itdoesn’t look possible as the fees are so high and I can’tafford it.’Teacher, CDSS, Malawi

‘When management are OK, we are OK.’Teacher, high school PNG

Q: ‘What is the role of the head teacher in motivation?’A: ‘He demotivates. He gives no guidance orencouragement...There is no respect for the head.’VSO teacher, CDSS, Malawi

A: ‘When he is there everybody works – they are aware oftheir responsibilities. When he is not there little things goamiss. When there are issues in the staff room he takesthe lead and the others follow. There is a lot ofcommunication between the administration and teachersand it is constructive communication.’VSO teacher, CDSS, Malawi

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� female teachers feeling that the head was morelikely to believe male teachers in matters ofdispute between teachers

� a lack of transparency about decision-making,particularly in financial matters.

Where relationships between the head teacher andstaff were less than positive, this also tended to havea negative effect on relations between teachersthemselves. This was especially true for femaleteachers, who felt that they were the object not onlyof generally poor management by head teachers, butwere specifically overlooked for promotion on thebasis of their gender, and, in some cases, sufferedsexual harassment by male teachers.

Head teachers did recognise the importance of theirmanagement role, and, in some cases,acknowledged their shortcomings in this respect.Their explanations for their poor managerial abilityincluded the fact that their own appointment hasbeen based on seniority in school, rather thangenuine support for the development ofmanagement capabilities, and the fact that they areoffered little in the way of training and support.

It appeared from the remarks made by teachers inboth PNG and Zambia that simple steps taken on thepart of a head teacher could make a big difference to

the morale of staff in schools. This impression camefrom a researcher’s observation of one exceptionalschool in PNG where, despite having the samesalaries and allowance problems as their colleaguesin other schools, teachers reported feeling supportedand encouraged, which in turn made them willing tokeep their discontent about teachers’ terms andconditions out of the classroom. In particular,teachers in this school appreciated the sense that theschool management would represent their concernsto higher authorities – something they struggled todo themselves due to a lack of effective channels ofcommunication.

Effective management is crucial for one furtherreason. In some disadvantaged schools, thesecondary school teaching profession has reached astage where educational norms and values areclearly in decline. In some schools in Zambia, forexample, it is considered acceptable to practise‘remote teaching’ – the practice in which teacherswrite notes on the chalkboard, or set pupils a chapterof a book to read, and then leave the classroom. It isaccepted that teachers have started to make moneyoutside their teaching job, and an atmosphere ofminimal effort has become normal. This situation is,in some cases, exacerbated by the practice ofsending teachers to rural schools as a punishment formisconduct. In the Zambia research, two teacherswho had respectively stolen and misbehaved withfemale students, were transferred to a rural area. Forthose remaining responsible teachers wishing to dotheir job properly, the climate of demoralisation andneglect cannot but affect them. Good management iscrucial if such schools are to avoid spiralling into avicious circle of neglect and despondency, and othersare to be prevented from reaching this level.

‘My fellow teacher proposes love to me, but I don’t wantit and I deny him. Then he goes to the headmaster andtells him I don’t do my job and so and so... Of course thehead listens to him, so what can I do?’ Female teacher, high school, Zambia

‘...the incentive is from the headmaster – if there is aproblem within the school it is the teacher and/orheadmaster; so the headmaster is so important... Studentsand teachers must feel there is a headmaster and deputyheadmaster who is willing to listen to them.’Deputy head teacher, secondary school, PNG

‘I didn’t get training for this and it would make for moreconfidence, otherwise I don’t feel I know whether what Iam doing is right or the correct method... The way inwhich I do things is according to what I have observedfrom other deputy headmasters.Deputy head teacher, secondary school, PNG

‘It’s administration that provide the support thatcounteract the other factors... any success rates from theschool come back to the administration at the schoollevel.’Teacher, secondary school, PNG

‘If you just get a word of appreciation, just a remark, italready does a lot to make you happy – whether it is theheadmaster, or the District Education Office.’Teacher, secondary school, Zambia

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� Decentralised management and administration One of the fundamental reform measures commonto all three countries is the decentralisation of manyfunctions of education system management andadministration. Teachers’ experience of this trendcould, at best, be described as mixed. On the whole,the regional structures responsible for supportingschools were characterised by teachers as inefficient,remote (both literally and figuratively) and, in somecases, lacking in transparency and accountability. Inthe rare cases that regional officials visited schools,they were seen as checking up on teachers, ratherthan supporting them. For many teachers, theirexperience of systemic breakdown or failure, forexample, in the payment of their salaries andallowances, was encountered chiefly at their regionalor provincial office.

As well as citing specific practical examples ofprovincial and district offices’ inefficiency in respectof schools’ or teachers’ needs, there was a generalsense that decentralised offices blocked informationand effective two-way communication about reformmeasures. Especially for teachers in remote ruralareas, it appeared that crucial bulletins, circulars andgazettes were not reaching schools. At the sametime, such limited opportunities that do exist for

consultation on reform plans were poorly advertisedand therefore not taken up by teachers in rural areas.In Malawi, this was a particular source of frustration,as was the lack of any effective governmentcommunication about the rationale for, and thefuture of, primary teachers working in CDSSs, both toteachers themselves but also to the general public.

To conclude, the research demonstrated a surprisingcomplexity of analysis by teachers about theirstanding as employees. While the researchers hadexpected teacher responses to be dominated byconcerns about the absolute value of their salaries,teachers also cited issues of administration,transparency and equity as being of equal import intheir feelings about remuneration. Furthermore, theirmotivation depended almost as much on the qualityof their relationships with school-level and regionalmanagement, with clear implications for nationalpolicy.

4.4 Teachers as educatorsA deficit model of teachers characterises teachers, atbest, as passive implementers of inputs andinnovations, as just another factor in the productionof education ‘outputs’. At worst, they are seen as thesource of problems of education, as an obstructionto the effectiveness of government and donorintervention. During the research it became clear thatpolicy-makers essentially regarded teachers asconservative and concerned principally with securingimproved terms and conditions of service. However,VSO’s examination of teachers’ own views on whatfactors inhibit and support their motivation suggeststhat most teachers remain deeply concerned aboutthe quality of their professional practice as educators,and that they harbour a real desire for practical andpedagogic support in this arena.

‘We were asked by the District Education Officer to fill ina list of teaching and learning materials needed. Fiveheads of department spent a huge amount of time findingout the exact needs of the school. Then they travelled tothe District Education Officer’s office and spent a wholeday there to list and write everything out. This has beenvery detailed work. We have not heard anything since...’VSO teacher, secondary school, Zambia

‘I would really like my leave. If you save it up for threeyears than you have ZK 2.5 million. I could use that tobuild a house. But as for the Provincial Education Officer’s office, you come and go, come and go, come andgo. I think if you want it, you would have to give thempart of it.’Teacher, high school, Zambia

‘The provincial government system hasn’t worked – it hasproved to be a drain on cash and is too politicised. It isnow a hybrid system and a decision must be takenwhether to re-centralise or to build capacity to make itwork again.’PNGTA representative

‘The majority of the country are so confused about thesechanges and no one knows exactly what is going on orwho is doing what in the plan.’Teacher, secondary school, PNG

‘I can now see the channels that could have been thereduring my time as teacher; more liaising, more close-upcommunication and regular, daily and consistentcommunication between the head offices, provincial,district and individual schools in order to communicatewhat is really happening.’Curriculum development officer and former teacher, PNG

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4.4.1 TrainingAmongst the groups interviewed for this research,there was a very strong desire for opportunities forprofessional development. Naturally, teachers hadaspirations to upgrade their qualifications, eitherthrough distance learning or attending a collegecourse. This desire can in part be attributed to thefact that an improved qualification is a pre-requisitefor progress up the career ladder. However, theteachers’ responses gave a clear indication that theirinterest in professional development also resultedfrom a desire to do a better job in the classroom. InMalawi, training was cited more frequently than anyother factor both as a positive ‘motivator’ whenteachers had access to it, and as a source ofdemoralisation when it was unavailable. When askedto offer reasons for this, responses centred on thefact that teachers had not been given enoughpreparation or training to be able to deliver the newcurriculum, rather than their wish for careeradvancement.

In all three countries, professional developmentopportunities, from short in-service training coursesto longer upgrading courses, are in short supply.Specific courses were available to teachers aimed atupgrading their qualifications (for example, fromdiploma to degree level) through colleges anddistance learning. Yet, these can of course only be

made available to limited numbers of teachers dueto the fact that they are expensive, may well entailteachers being released from school, and are notdesigned with the intention of achieving coverage ofthe whole teacher population.

In the research discussions, however, it appearedthat teachers are equally eager to have theopportunity to share ideas and learn new skills inshort courses or meetings, through on-the-jobsupport, and to extend the range of techniques andmethods in their professional practice. In all threecase-study countries, such training opportunitieswere reported to have become extremely scarcewhen compared to the past.

Where courses did exist, there was little follow-up orsupport from management or inspectorate services.This lack of opportunity to reflect on and improvetheir performance has led to a situation whereteachers are reluctant to adjust their methodologiesto incorporate more interactive approaches, and relyinstead on the chalk and talk approach with whichthey feel more comfortable. Clearly, this isparticularly problematic where curriculum changesrequire new methodologies to be deployed.

Teachers felt that not only were they left lacking inconfidence and ideas because of the limited accessto training courses, they also perceived the loss of in-service opportunities as a disregard of their needs.Such training that was available was driven not by an

‘Lack of training and subject knowledge demotivatesthem. The new syllabus is a problem – it has knockedtheir confidence. They are usually only one step ahead ofthe students in their knowledge. There are new syllabusesand new textbooks but there is no training... In-servicetraining within the school does make a difference butmore is needed not just from the volunteer.’VSO teacher, CDSS, Malawi

‘Motivation would come if the teachers were trained, butwhen the curriculum came in teachers were saying, ‘wecan’t do this’, and that led to demotivation.’Head teacher, CDSS, Malawi

‘I’m encouraged and motivated [by the SSTEP (SecondarySchool Teacher Education Programme) trainingprogramme] as I’m acquiring new skills and thesupervisors are motivating and encouraging us – they tellus the weaknesses and strengths of our lessons so weimprove gradually.’Teacher, CDSS, Malawi

‘Previously teachers had two years at college, workshopsand other facilities for teachers to learn. Now there isnothing. There has been no new training for the newsyllabus.’Head teacher, CDSS, Malawi

‘The syllabus is good. It was syllabus D when I started in1985, and it is still D, but maths does not change and thepupils are every time different and I know it very well bynow. But I’m still using the methods and the schemes thatI learnt in college 15 years ago.’ Teacher, secondary school, Zambia

‘Still we have meetings every week. In these meetings wehave a lot of nice ideas, plans for observing, but whenyou’re out of the meeting, it does not happen!’ VSO teacher, secondary school, Zambia

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understanding of teachers’ professional developmentbut by policy-led requirements, for example to bringprimary teachers up to required levels to teach insecondary schools. There was little evidence thatattempts were being made in any of the threecountries to assess serving teachers’ training needs inany participatory or inclusive fashion, resulting in aset of priorities that did not satisfy the true demandsof the situation. This could be seen as part of abroader failure to consult or accommodate teachers’views in policy development and implementation, asSection 4.6 will examine.

4.4.2 Teaching and learning materialsAnother common cause for complaint was the lack ofteaching and learning materials available to teachers.Having no textbooks or supporting materials leftteachers feeling that their possible approaches toteaching are limited and inadequate; as a result theystruggle to manage in the classroom. This issue wasintensified by the fact that in all three countries,teachers are frequently trying to accommodatecurriculum and syllabus changes arising from reforms– reforms on which they felt they had not beenconsulted and were therefore sometimesinappropriate or badly planned. This was an issue inparticular in Malawi, where the training needs of theprimary teachers promoted to CDSSs had not beentaken into account – they were therefore dependenton textbooks to compensate for shortfalls in subjectknowledge and teaching approaches.

Teachers in all three countries seemed to be aware ofdifferent teaching styles and techniques that theycould apply, such as group work and other interactivemethods. However, any newly learnedmethodologies and interesting lessons were oftenstymied by the lack of materials. Basic items such astextbooks are seen by teachers as essential to theirperformance in class.

In PNG, lack of teaching and learning materials wasseen not merely as a cause of difficulty to teachers ingetting the job done, but as contributing to asituation in which teachers were unable to meetstudents’ needs and thus encountered behaviouralproblems in the classroom, leading to a further dip inmorale.

4.4.3 Inspections and guidance services

Like all other departments of the education systemsstudied in this research, inspectorate services hadcome under pressure due to lack of funds. This was asource of irritation for teachers in Malawi and PNGespecially. In PNG, for example, in the year 2001/2,the Inspections and Guidance Division was operatingon just 13 per cent of the previous year’s budget,resulting in part from a government decision to offerfree education to all in an election year. In all threecountries, teachers and head teachers reported adecline in the service they received from inspectorateservices. Perhaps surprisingly, supervision frominspectorate services appeared to be regarded asessentially helpful and motivating – this declineconsequently had a negative impact on motivation,as teachers felt that there was no way for them to

‘Really I feel that sometimes the government does changethe other things when it is not ready to do so...You findthat the curriculum or maybe the syllabuses have changedand we start at school without having the instructionalmaterials... We find that somewhere we have a lot ofproblems.’Teacher, CDSS, Malawi

‘My colleague has very good ideas to teach, but he willneed to go and buy manila paper, felt pens and scissorshimself to make the materials he needs for those lessons,and he can’t!’VSO teacher, secondary school, Zambia

‘We want to do literature in English and Chichewa, but wecan’t do them because we don’t have the books or taperecorders, which is tough.’Teacher, CDSS, Malawi

‘Lack of teaching materials leads to teachers not beingprepared for class, which leads to disobedient students,which leads to lower teacher motivation.’Teacher, secondary school, PNG

‘Between 1991 and 1999, inspectors used to come toincrease our knowledge and interest. Now there is nomore inspection – we can do whatever we want knowingthat nobody will come.’Teacher, CDSS, Malawi

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gain feedback and praise for good performance or toseek advice and tips on how to improve. Teachers’desire to undergo inspection at their schools mayindicate a need for professional discourse andpositive reinforcement for those who have fewopportunities to connect with their community ofpractice due to the remoteness of their situations. Itmay also reflect a sense that inspectors and guidancevisits were an effective way for teachers to receiveinformation about decisions made at headquarters,and to express their concerns to someone who theyfelt had a voice in authority.

Teachers in Zambia, however, did not mentionneglect from inspections and guidance services as asource of dissatisfaction. It is not clear whether this isbecause they are still receiving the attention ofinspectors, or whether visits from inspectors are notwelcomed, or whether it just did not register as aproblem for teachers either way.

4.4.4 WorkloadIn Papua New Guinea and Malawi, concerns aboutworkload were cited as very important influences onteacher motivation. In fact, in Malawi, this was themost important factor influencing motivation. Inneither case, perhaps surprisingly, were teachersprimarily affected by heavy teaching loads due toincreased enrolments. Rather, the problemsencountered stemmed from pedagogic initiatives orsystem breakdowns.

In PNG, teachers’ resounding view was that a majorfactor in making them feel positive about teachingwas being able to plan and deliver lessons wellenough so that pupils were able to achieve learningobjectives. However, they felt they were preventedfrom doing so by the heavy administrative burden

imposed by fulfilling assessment procedures andprocuring teaching and learning materials. Bothproblems were perceived as originating fromprovincial and district authorities. Other demands ontheir time stemmed from their responsibilities asboarding school teachers, which were both complexand onerous. This problem was compounded by teacher

shortages, particularly at the beginning of the schoolyear, meaning that teachers were compelled to covervacancies in subject areas other than their own. Thisissue also affected Malawian teachers working inrural areas, while teachers working in urban andsemi-urban areas were clearly less affected, partlybecause they were able to attract single femaleteachers.

Teachers in all regions of Malawi were united by asense that recent innovations had increased thecomplexity of their workloads, with a negative impacton their motivation. The pressure created byaccommodating these changes also goes some wayto explain the grievances voiced about training andteaching and learning materials mentioned earlier.These factors together form a picture of teachers leftin the dark about decisions, and given littleassistance to implement them. Similar resentmentabout the expectations placed on teachers byreforms made without consulting them wasexpressed by PNG teachers. This is just one exampleof the way in which policy-makers would benefit

‘There is also a lack of inspectors which is no reason formotivation. There are no checks on the teachers. There isno help, no encouragement, so the teachers run away.’Head teacher, CDSS, Malawi

‘It is good to be able to talk about these things... Normallyit should be the inspectors who are our only messengersto pass on the problems but he [sic.] only comes once ayear even though he is meant to come three times, andeven when he does come, it is just for a couple of hours tocover all three areas of work – advisories and inspectionsfor eligibility, which affects promotion.’Teacher, secondary school, PNG

‘We are used as ‘Jacks of All Trades’ – as security,counsellors, policemen, work parade supervisors, messmanagement, dormitory managers and so on and soon...The focus is always being taken away from theteaching, with no extra money, and this affects ourperformance.’Teacher, secondary school, PNG

‘Most of the schools in town have got reduced workloadsas opposed to those which are in the rural areas, becauseyou only get men there while here we are many women...’Female teacher, CDSS, Malawi

‘I am a caretaker teacher – all of us are like this. All haveextra subjects so our working capacity is low because weare overloaded.’Male teacher, CDSS, Malawi

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from a more nuanced, well-informed understandingof the potential impact of their initiatives.

It is interesting to note that, by comparison, Zambianteachers voiced very little concern about workload,either in terms of amount or complexity. This may bedue to the fact that sheer survival figured so largely intheir consideration of their concerns, leaving littleroom for lower-order anxieties. Sadly, it may also bethat their morale has dipped so low that they do not,in the main, concern themselves with the quality oftheir own performance. If this is the case, the impactof innovations or teacher shortages may appear quiteperipheral when compared to the struggle of dailylife.

4.4.5 Pupil achievement and behaviourIn common with teachers around the world, teachersin this study were fundamentally affected by the dailyinteractions with their pupils. When asked abouttheir original motivation for becoming teachers, theyreported a desire to communicate with young peopleas a primary motivation, with few citing salary orcareer ladder. Good performance of pupils was alsofrequently given as a source of positive teachermotivation in all three countries. Where teachers feltsupported and enabled to assist pupil learning, theirmotivation was generally higher. Female teachers, inparticular, appeared to put pupil achievement at theheart of their perception of their own worth.

Zambian teachers were particularly concerned aboutthe issue of poor pupil achievement due to pressureto promote pupils up to grades that wereinappropriate to their abilities. Schools are notincentivised to remedy this situation because byrefusing entry to pupils who do not achieve entrystandards, they would make it impossible to collectsufficient school fees. Thus, teachers find themselvesteaching pupils who have little or no chance of truesuccess in school.

In Malawi, pupil behaviour was one of the mostfrequently given reasons for poor teacher motivation.Unfavourable comparisons were often madebetween pupils of today and of the past, and quiteoften teachers compared pupils’ attitudes with theirown when they were at school. Older teachers wereparticularly challenged by the fact that they perceivedthat their authority and respect was in decline.

It appeared from the responses that a decline inteacher confidence in their own skills and subjectknowledge, partly prompted by innovations insyllabuses, curricula and methodology, hasunfortunately coincided with a considerable cultureshift in pupil behaviour and parental attitudes due tochanging societal and political conditions. Teachersfrequently mentioned ‘too much’ democracy or amisconception of democracy as being the source ofthe problem. Parents and pupils now feel entitled toexpect that a class will be staffed by a qualifiedteacher who knows their subject, and are beginningto voice their discontent when their expectations aredisappointed, as frequently happens due to theexigencies of employing primary teachers in CDSSswithout training or additional pay. Whatever therights and wrongs of this situation, teachers feel ill-equipped to deal with it from within their own menuof teaching approaches, and yet cannot depend onsupport from within the education system or fromthe community at large. They also feel that it has anegative impact on pupils’ learning attainment.

The stark contrast between the past and presentsituation appears to have resulted in a policy lag that

‘There is more work as there are more different subjects.The Division [Ministry of Education] is good at promisingbut they don’t deliver on orientation.’Teacher, CDSS, Malawi

‘The Form 1 pupils are innocent and know nothing, but bythe time they leave they are big and they know things,and that is satisfying.’Teacher, secondary school, Malawi

‘I am coming to like my job when I see that the pupils arelearning. In 1998 I used to complain a lot... I had a groupthat did well in the examinations and that reallymotivated me.’Female teacher, secondary school, Zambia

‘Maths is known to be difficult, that is what otherteachers tell the students. It is not obligatory, so pupilsjust tell me, “I don’t care, I will not write [take the exams]in Grade 12.”’Teacher, secondary school, Zambia

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will need to be compensated through changes toteacher training and school behaviour policies, if andwhen the relevant decision-makers come to realisethe seriousness of the situation. The situation is sosensitive that it merits a concerted effort on the partof the Malawian Government to educate thepopulation about the current realities of the situationin secondary schools.

This section has demonstrated that teachers, even indifficult circumstances, have a strong desire toperform well, to enhance their pupils’ learning and tohave opportunities to continue learning andimproving their practice. It has also shown theconsequences of failing to include teachers indecision-making processes about educationalinnovation. Section 4.5 will now look more deeply atthe relationship of the teaching profession withcommunity and society.

4.5 Teachers as members ofcommunity and society There is one further area from which teachers appearto derive a sense of worth and value. This is theirstatus in, and contribution to, the communitiesaround them and to wider society. As observed inSection 3, teachers, and in particular secondaryschool teachers, have experienced a sharp drop inmonetary status over the last 20 years. The effects ofthe decreasing value of their remuneration packageshave been noted above. This section will take a moreholistic look at the impact on teachers of theconcomitant decline in their reputation and standingin the eyes of the public

4.5.1 Teacher status in the community and withparentsUp until the 1970s, a secondary school teacher couldexpect to command considerable respect in the eyesof the community they served. Often the onlyeducated people in the vicinity, they took pride intheir roles and the rewards that their positions

brought. However, the setbacks to their financialreward have begun to take their toll on the publicperception of teachers’ role and contribution.Ironically, this comes at a time when teachers’dependency on the communities around them mayhave actually increased – teachers require credit inlocal stores and might even depend on local suppliesof cheap agricultural goods for survival.

Teachers in all three case-study countries reportedfeeling that the community did not value them asthey had done in the past. It was especially difficultfor them if, as was often the case, they came from adifferent region and language group from that ofwhere they now work. This was perhaps most acutein Papua New Guinea where the isolation of teacherswas greatest. In Malawi, the issue of access todemocratic rights again presented a challenge forteachers in managing their relationships with thecommunity, particularly parents. Teachers believedthis lack of respect compounded the poor moralethey felt as a result of their poor remuneration.

Good relations with the community were also seenas a positive motivator for teachers. In theexceptional school in PNG mentioned in Section4.3.2 as having benefited from good management,one of the results of this was that the school andcommunity had an excellent relationship, whichbrought advantages to both.

‘To me, as I was starting, I felt it was good but now, itseems the behaviour of the children it is not reallymotivating. They introduced democracy in Malawi andthe behaviour and discipline of pupils has changed. Thismakes a person not to enjoy teaching now compared tothe first days.’Teacher, CDSS, Malawi

‘It [the relationship with the community] is not good dueto this new freedom and parents have the wrong attitude.There is no respect and they see the teacher as anintruder.’Teacher, secondary school, Malawi

‘The community abuse us and underrate our job. The lackof respect makes us unhappy when our salaries are so lowwe can’t even have chairs in our house.’Teacher, secondary school, Malawi

‘All teachers are local – they are teaching their owncommunity and feel obligation to their communities. Ifteachers are from the local community the teachers getpraise from their own community. Also the communitysupport the teachers with praise and food.’ Head teacher, secondary school, PNG

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4.5.2 Teachers’ status in wider societyContinued dissatisfaction with remuneration and thesense of their needs being ignored by theiremployers gave rise to a general feeling of beingundervalued by government and society as a whole.Teachers reported feeling that they were the lowestof the low, the neglected and forgotten profession.They were particularly aggrieved by the sense thattheir status had fallen below other public servantswhen their contribution to national developmentwas just as great. This may have been intensified forthe teachers in this research by the remoteness oftheir situation and the lack of communication andconsultation channels open to them.

In PNG, a sense of declining status had led to thedevelopment of a complex discourse on teachers’relative ‘work value’. In 1999, the PNGTA hadcommissioned a year-long research project onteachers’ terms and conditions – Last In Line:Teacher Work Value Study – from the NationalResearch Institute in order to influence governmentto bring teachers’ terms and conditions into line withother public servants. In Zambia, teachers attributedthe difficulties they encountered with their terms andconditions of service as resulting directly from theirpoor status in the eyes of their employers.

Sadly, in Malawi, teachers’ feelings of low self-worthwere intensified by living in an HIV-prevalent society.

It appears, then, that recognition for teachers’ keyrole is diminishing both inside and outside theeducation system. Teachers’ views are not sought,their needs are not prioritised and they are regardedas little more than technical inputs that can bemoulded to suit the exigencies of public policy.

4.6 Teachers’ voiceThe research findings reveal many aspects of thedisempowered situation of teachers, and this sectionfocuses on how teachers’ motivation is affected bythe nature of the power relationships with nationaland local education authorities, and their lack ofvoice in education decision-making processes.Mirroring their sentiments are those of educationofficials – sentiments that tend to show a lack ofdialogue between the two groups.

The researchers found that teachers were eager tocommunicate their perspectives on their ownsituation, and their views on wider education policyand practice. It also revealed that they rarely, if ever,felt that these views were actively sought orwelcomed. This, teachers felt, had contributed to theprecariousness of their situation and their waveringmorale. Teachers were aware that much is expectedof them, particularly in light of the fact that they areresponsible for delivering educational reform. Yet,they reported that they have not been consulted fortheir experienced viewpoints on what is needed forthe reforms to succeed.

In all three case-study countries, teachers’ focus-group discussions on the demotivating factorsderiving from national level centred on the fact thatthe educational authorities disregarded teachers’views and voices. For example, in Zambia ‘lack ofunderstanding of teachers’ problems’, ‘no attentionto teachers’ problems’, and ‘not aware of teachers’problems’, were among the responses to the focus-group prompt on factors affecting their motivationfrom regional and national level.

‘A teacher is nothing and is passed from one office toanother. The same mentality that a teacher is nothing isthere. It takes months to correct salaries if they are wrongafter you have been promoted.’Teacher, secondary school, Malawi

‘There is a certain picture painted about teachers. Theimportance is not shown in practice, despite leaderssaying we are. Compared to anything else we arevalueless.’Teacher, CDSS, Malawi

‘There is no regard for teachers in society any more. Oncewe were important people in the town, but now...’Teacher, secondary school, Zambia

‘If a teacher dies, sometimes officials are not present atthe funeral and they also have to hire a vehicle. This is anembarrassment to the relatives, as it looks as if the personhad a bad job.’Teacher, CDSS, Malawi

‘It upsets me when they are saying that we all have thevirus.’Teacher, CDSS, Malawi

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Teachers in Papua New Guinea reported that a lackof consultation led to them feeling undervalued eventhough their involvement was fundamental; as if theywere just viewed as the vehicles – not as keystakeholders or informers – in a system in which theyhad no say in designing. This is particularly acutegiven the physical remoteness of the schools, and isexacerbated by the fact that teachers do not evenfeel well-informed about what is expected of them,much less that their input is actively welcomed.

This was echoed during the Malawi research, whereteachers and most head teachers felt that they didnot have a voice in decision-making at regional ornational level. Head teachers were sometimesinvolved in planning for regional sporting activitiesand the National Day of Education activities forexample, but consultation on matters of curriculum,training needs and the expansion of the CommunityDay Secondary Schools was notably unsatisfactory.Teachers and head teachers both commented onthis.

While teachers felt that they were not included indecisions, in all three countries they reported thatthey were held responsible for the failings of theeducation system, compounding their sense ofalienation and resentment.

The extent to which teacher unions were perceivedas being an effective channel for teachers’ viewsvaried from country to country and within countries.For example, the PNGTA was generally believed to bedoing what they could to secure improved terms andconditions for teachers at national level, but to havelimited effectiveness in dealing with problemsassociated with regional administration. In Malawi,about 60 per cent of teachers who participated in theresearch were members of TUM, and of those, about50 per cent found the organisation effective. It wassaid by some to be, ‘a voice for our problems’, ‘achannel for communication’, and ‘a negotiatorbetween teachers and government’. However, otherswere critical of the organisation. It was described as‘just taking my money’, ‘politicised’ and a ‘non-starter’. In Zambia, teacher unions seemed to havebeen weakened by recent splits, meaning thatnegotiations with each other took priority overfighting for teachers’ terms and conditions of service.A number of other stakeholders cited incidents whenthe teachers’ unions had failed to take upopportunities to give input into decisions.

In all three countries, some limited efforts weremade to consult teachers in decision-makingprocesses, but these were far from systematic. Forexample, in Papua New Guinea, a recent review ofthe secondary curriculum had included four regionalworkshops to which teachers were invited to discuss

‘Teacher issues are not addressed by the government... Asa sector we are unimportant, neglected.’Teacher, secondary school, Zambia

‘There are no bottom-up communications. As a teacher Ihave not been consulted on anything in nine years aboutwhat teachers feel. They just do it in the top offices andthen send it down.’Teacher, high school, PNG

‘The majority of the country are so confused about thesechanges and no one knows exactly what is going on orwho is doing what in the plan... No one knows where weare.’Curriculum development officer, PNG

‘For the most part it is just a matter of them saying, ‘dothis’.’Teacher, secondary school, Malawi

‘When it comes to decisions by the provincial and nationallevels, there is no say. To change the curriculum someresearch around schools should have been carried out,but it wasn’t...’

Head teacher, secondary school, Malawi

‘The heads do assemble but they just say ‘yes, Sir’...’Teacher, CDSS, Malawi

‘When the results are poor the MoEST say the CDSSteachers are under-qualified. We are, but we don’t want itto be like this... They only see the bad – they don’t seewhen we have done well.’Teacher, CDSS, Malawi

‘Teachers are not consulted on anything, but criticisedabout everything!’VSO teacher, secondary school, PNG

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the curriculum. However, in the event, only twocompleted consultation forms were returned byteachers to feed into the process, suggesting thatvery few teachers actually attended the workshopsand bringing to the fore questions about why theyhad not felt enabled to do so. Similarly, in Malawi,there has never been a formal, established approachto elicit teachers’ views, and therefore teachersreported feeling confused and sidelined by decisionsabout a new curriculum and in-service training. InZambia, one donor informant reported that teacherrepresentatives had been invited to sit on theSecondary Schools Committee of the EducationStrategy Board, but again, no teachers seemed to beaware of this opportunity. In all countries, it is clearthat mechanisms for informing teachers aboutconsultations and ensuring that they are enabled andsupported to attend them are inadequate.

Consultations with education officials and donorsconfirmed the fact that teachers’ concerns and viewswere insufficiently prioritised in planning and policyformulation. In many cases, there was generalawareness of the problem of poor teacher moraleand even the factors causing it, but little impetus orinclination to act on it. A major problem seemed tobe an inability to prioritise appropriate action, and adesire to shift responsibility to other stakeholders.

Regional managers and other officials were inclinedto blame teachers for the climate of demoralisationin schools, citing incidents of teacher absenteeismand lack of commitment to work, without attemptingto interpret the reasons for this. They were alsounwilling to take responsibility for their own role insupporting teachers’ motivation.

One group of education officials who were moresympathetic to teachers’ concerns were thoseresponsible for pedagogic support, such asinspectors and curriculum development officers. Ingeneral, their accounts of the issues closely reflectedwhat the teachers expressed. They also, however, feltdisempowered in addressing such issues.

National officials recognised the problem of poorteacher motivation and, to some extent, were able tocite the causes of it. In particular, officials who hadbeen teachers themselves were aware of the issuesand tended to be sympathetic. However, in round-table discussions and one-to-one interviews, therewas a marked tendency to shift responsibility toother departments within the Ministry of Educationor even to other ministries, rather than taking asystematic and coordinated approach. There wasalso a feeling of helplessness that funds wereinsufficient to allow for effective steps to be taken,and occasionally that politicians were impedingrational decision-making. It should be noted, though,that the stakeholder meeting held to conclude theresearch process in Malawi did result in a groupendorsement of the findings of the research andcommitment to act upon them.

National officials also reported that donors andinternational institutions had a large and sometimesinappropriate influence on education priorities,without taking account of teachers’ own needs and

‘Teachers sneak out and don’t come back to school forone or two months... Why should we pay teachers if theyare not standing in front of a class?’Provincial education adviser, PNG

‘I am the desk officer. I cannot do anything to help. It isbeyond my capacity.’District education manager, Malawi

‘We are squeezed between the national plans and theactual delivery of education in schools. There is not muchthat we can do for teachers.’Provincial education officer, Zambia

‘Teachers do so much and they are not being recognisedand we are losing a lot of teachers in this country becauseof this.’Curriculum development officer, PNG

‘As for curriculum changes, it does not necessarilymotivate the teachers – actually it demotivates theteachers because the changes are forced on them withouttraining or guiding them.’Education and methods adviser, Malawi

‘The Teaching Service Commission needs to reviewpolicies and structures like form-filling. Quite a fewproblems stem from salaries.’Staff development officer, PNG

‘The Ministry is fully aware but there is no means in termsof money.’Teacher trainer, Malawi

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responses to their innovations. This was backed upby other stakeholders, such as teachers’ associationsand religious institutions supporting education.

Civil-society organisations, including teachers’associations, were generally highly aware of theissues and sympathetic to teachers’ concerns, andrecognised the limitations of Ministries of Educationin addressing them.

Donors were mainly, though not exclusively,sympathetic to the issue of poor teacher motivation,but tended to approach it from the perspective ofhow well teachers were implementing donorprojects and to propose technical solutions to theproblems. Other stakeholders felt this to be aweakness in donor programmes, although individualprojects were well-received.

In conclusion, stakeholder consultations largelyconfirmed the teachers’ sense that decision-makerswere not addressing their problems. Despite someknowledge of teachers’ difficult circumstances and ageneralised awareness of the problem of poormorale in schools, donors and ministry officials didnot display a nuanced understanding of the impactof poor teacher motivation, and were unable toprioritise appropriate action. Leadership andownership over the problem and a willingness toaddress it were notably lacking.

‘Donors sometimes have policies that are not flexible tothe normal daily operation of our business and this doesnot give room to the MoEST to motivate teachers. Forexample, you cannot implement certain programmesbecause you are supposed to follow the programme asarranged by donor consent.’Divisional statistician, Malawi

‘University centres are funded by AusAid but teachersstruggle to find cash to attend expensive courses andthere are no scholarships available. AusAid also tend tofund costly infrastructure projects such as the provision ofcomputers to selected schools.’PNGTA representative, PNG

‘The MOE are being pushed towards the provision of basiceducation. Secondary schools have been left out in thebush.’Education academic, Zambia

‘The pot is simmering; it’s about to boil.’PNGTA representative, PNG

‘Nobody recognises teachers’ efforts. The MoEST is notdoing anything, so morale is low.’Representative of the Synod of Livingstonia, Malawi

‘Management capacity should be improved by getting ITsystems for training on management and by bringinglecturers from the University of Queensland to train.’AusAid representative, PNG

‘I think the idea that teachers are demotivated isoverplayed – it’s something of a fashion and not borneout in reality.’DFID representative, Zambia

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Positive motivation and morale in practice: an example of a rural high school in Papua New Guinea

‘Tall Trees’ High School (not its real name) is certainly cut off in a remote rural area – it takes a flight from theprovincial town and a car ride to get to the school. It experiences many problems typical of remote schools indeveloping countries, yet it is also praised by education officials for obtaining very impressive results. Theschool was described by one key stakeholder as a ‘small but very good little school’ and by others as havingthe best performance in the province.

So, what makes the difference? The critical factor identified by the teachers was the leadership of a well-trained head teacher and other administration staff in crucial areas, such as supportive management,budgeting and planning. This not only made for the smooth running of the school, but for a positiverelationship with the local community.

In focus-group discussions, teachers told the researcher that the secret to the more positive motivation ofteachers and better performance of this school was related to the good management of the workingenvironment. Examples of benefits were good maintenance of teachers’ houses and ready availability ofteaching aids and other resources. But equally as important is that good management enables teachers tounderstand their responsibilities and they therefore do their bit to make sure that the school runs well.

The first point that struck the researcher on arrival at the school was how well maintained the school buildingsand teachers’ housing were. This, the teachers say, is because the school management undertakes regularmaintenance and in turn, the teachers feel responsible for the good upkeep of the school; the good housesare also a motivating background factor to their lives as teachers at the school.

The teachers say they feel responsible because they are treated and respected well by their seniors. Respectfor the teachers extends to all areas of school life, from the head teacher being completely transparent aboutschool budgets and expenditure (teachers can see these whenever they want, so they do not feel excludedfrom the running of their school) to the headmaster being well organised for the orientation week of eachterm – setting objectives, timetables and programmes for the year. Problem-solving is open and consultative –teachers feel able to be open about things to their seniors and management are open to criticism andsuggestions from teachers.

The teachers are given regular in-service training within the school throughout the year, by more senior orexperienced staff members, both formal and informal. In addition, teachers receive continual observations, aswell as feedback and positive suggestions for improvement. Teachers say they feel supported and motivatedwhen this is done positively. When it comes to sorting out teachers’ problems, such as unpaid allowances, theschool administration try as far as is possible to follow these up for teachers by writing to the relevant officesand supporting them where they can, so that teachers do not have to go to the provincial offices themselves.The teachers say that the lack of allowances does not affect them as badly as in other schools, as not only dothey feel supported by their own superiors at school level but they also have enough other positive factors inplace: ‘People are responding to my needs, I am cared for, I am looked after by the authorities’.

The working relationship and atmosphere between the teachers and the community is positive. All teachersare from the local community except for one who is married to a local person, and some were themselvespupils at the school; maybe this goes some way to explaining the successful relationship between the schooland the local community. Perhaps this is further helped by the fact that the school supports the localcommunity where it can and vice versa, for example, by buying the local produce and growing coco within theschool grounds – the community is involved so there are no problems with crops being stolen, as happens inother schools. The constant liasing by the headmaster maintains this good relationship. This has also turnedinto an excellent project in which students can learn about growing rice and coco palms and offsets the highcost of living by providing the school with cheap local goods and injects cash into the local economy. Aconstructive reciprocal relationship exists.

Teachers are still under pressure from heavy workloads and what would normally be expensive living costs,but due to the combination of these reasons listed, they do not feel demoralised or demotivated.

‘Tall Trees’ is one of the most successful schools in Papua New Guinea: 20 out of 36 students went through toGrades 11 and 12 at secondary school and 100 per cent of these then went on to tertiary education.

�Box 5 �

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Section 5:

Conclusions and

recommendations

VSO’s Valuing Teachers project set out to explore therelationship between teachers’ motivation andperformance and education quality, and to identifyand analyse the factors affecting teacher motivationin order to make recommendations for national andinternational policy-makers. Section 5.1 will look atthe broad conclusions that can be made from theresearch. Sections 5.2 and 5.3 will summarise thefactors affecting motivation as identified by teachersin the case-study countries in this research. Focusingmore particularly on the issue of teachers’ apparentexclusion from the decision-making that affectsthem, the report will go on to suggest, in Section 5.4,measures that must be implemented to ensure thatteachers’ voices are heard in policy fora, including,but not limited to, adequate representation forteachers’ associations. Finally, recommendations onthe role of donors and international institutions insupporting a new compact between teachers andpolicy-makers will be made in Section 5.5.

The research established that the UNESCO/ILORecommendation concerning the Status of Teachersquoted in Section 3 are still very far from beingrealised. The findings amply demonstrate that thereis an urgent need for policy-makers to recognise thefact that educational quality is very largely dependenton the willingness and ability of teachers toaccommodate and implement change. Thus, supportfor their livelihoods, professional development andmorale is not an optional extra but a centralcomponent of effective policy-making. Teachers arenot bureaucrats or technicians but roundedprofessionals with complex and varied needs. Asnoted in the Introduction, it is impossible to makestandardised recommendations on the policymeasures that must be taken for all countries, so thiswill not be attempted here. However, the implicationof the research is that a new approach to policy-making on education is required – one that putsteachers’ roles, needs and views at the heart of policyformulation, implementation and evaluation.

5.1 ConclusionsThe following conclusions can be drawn from theresearch:

� Teachers’ motivation is fragile and declining.� Teachers have low self-esteem in their

professional role, and feel they are notrespected by others.

� Teachers’ performance is strongly influenced byteacher motivation.

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� Teachers wish to be enabled to perform well,which in turn influences their motivation.

� Teacher motivation is a critically ignored factor ineducation policy-making.

� There is a strong link between teachers’motivation and performance, and educationquality, but improving teachers’ motivation is notuniformly prioritised as a major concern ofnational and international policy-makers.

� Non-remuneration and administrative issues arealmost as important as the actual level ofremuneration teachers receive. Improvingteachers’ motivation may not, therefore, be asdifficult or expensive as it appears.

� Policy-makers and other stakeholders are awareof the problem of poor teacher motivation, butare not taking appropriate action either to seekteachers’ views or address their needs.

Recommendation: Addressing the factors that reduceteachers’ motivation should be a major concern ofpolicy-makers. This will create conditions for thesuccess of other education interventions.

5.2 Non-remuneration factorsIt is often assumed that teachers’ job satisfaction islargely, if not exclusively, related to theirremuneration levels. This research has demonstratedthat teachers’ motivation stems from a complexinterplay of factors that link to their sense of theirown worth and value as educators and employees.While remuneration is certainly one factor ininfluencing their motivation (and will be examined inmore depth later), teachers expressly identified thefollowing issues as equally, if not more, significant:

� Leadership is crucial in establishing school-levelsupport systems and supervisory practices thatcan secure professional commitment fromteachers, even in difficult and disadvantagedcircumstances.

� Teachers must be given opportunities to reflecton their professional practice through short in-service training and supportive inspectors’ visits.

� Teachers require more and improvedmechanisms for the management of pupilbehaviour and ability.

� Workloads must be rationalised to enableteachers to concentrate on the core business ofteaching.

� Raising the public’s regard for teachers is

essential. This should be a shared responsibilityof government, civil-society and teachers’associations.

� Teachers need to feel confident of the subjectsthey are expected to teach, and are assisted indoing so by the provision of teaching andlearning materials for themselves as well as fortheir students, especially where teachers areteaching unfamiliar subjects or higher grades.

The factors that were largely or wholly omitted fromteachers’ discussions on what affects their motivationare interesting in their absence. Since these omittedfactors are sometimes those prioritised forintervention by policy-makers, they are offered hereby way of comparison:

� well-constructed classrooms� furniture� teacher resource centres� school libraries� sports equipment� school uniform� class size� greater autonomy in determining teaching

methods� preferences about working in day versus

boarding schools.

Recommendation: All education stakeholders shoulddemonstrate the value of teachers, and take steps toensure that wider society develops a more positiveand supportive attitude towards teachers.

5.3 Remuneration factorsTeaching is a profession, and teachers’ remunerationpackages must reflect their proper status andvaluable contribution to society. Policy-makers needto recognise that there is a threshold below whichteachers cannot be reasonably expected to performtheir duties effectively. Over time, inadequateremuneration packages (including accommodationand allowances) will erode teachers’ commitment totheir vocation and education norms and values willstart to decline in schools. Therefore, nationalgovernments should not seek to reduce the salarybudgets for teachers. Attention is required, however,to ensure that teachers’ remuneration packages arestructured appropriately and that their administrationdoes not become a factor in teacher demotivation.

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The application of complex systems of allowancesand incentives, rather than ameliorating teachers’situation, has actually had a negative effect becauseof the difficulties in administering them. They arealso considered to be insecure and an inadequateform of recognition for teachers’ efforts in working indifficult circumstances.

According to teachers’ views on the subject of theirremuneration, the following themes can beidentified:

� Pay schemes should, wherever possible,minimise the number of allowances and investin salaries, except where necessary to attractteachers to disadvantaged regions.

� Teachers going to work in rural areas should beoffered non-pay incentives such as security oftenure and accelerated access to professionaldevelopment opportunities.

� Low-interest loan schemes to allow teachers tobuy and maintain their own homes are teachers’preferred option to access housing of goodquality in the event that free housing is not acondition of service.

Recommendation: It is essential to improveremuneration practices around administration,management and equity as they are key factors inteacher motivation.

5.4 Teachers’ voiceThe factors identified above may or may notimmediately suggest certain rational policy decisionsthat can be taken. However, the proper people toexpress teachers’ concerns to policy-makers areteachers themselves. If there is one overridingmessage that must come from this research, it is thatpolicy-makers, education managers and donors needto do more to listen to teachers. Teacher unions maystrive to negotiate on behalf of teachers with varyingsuccess but the discourse they have engaged in hasbeen principally that of industrial relationsnegotiations. Education International recognises thatteachers and teacher associations have much to offerin developing understanding of the delivery of qualityeducation. This research strongly endorses theirposition. However, while this section calls for betterrepresentation of teachers’ voices, it does not referonly to the inclusion of representatives fromteachers’ associations. While teachers’ associationsdo have a vital role to play, the research also revealed

the need for all stakeholders, including nationalgovernment and civil-society coalitions, to findimaginative and inclusive ways of eliciting teachers’views and addressing their concerns.

Teachers are the mediators between educationsystems and their target beneficiaries, and are thebest-placed stakeholders to give a nuanced, well-informed view on the efficacy of those systems,policies and projects. While it must be acknowledgedthat teachers’ interests are not the same as those ofchildren, parents or managers, they have been leftout of the debates for so long that there is a need toredress the imbalances of the past. Far too often,only token efforts are made to invite and supportteachers to participate in decisions and change theprocesses that affect them and their ability to do theirwork, leaving them feeling that they are merelypassive implementers of reform. Apart from the factthat this way of working fails to make the best use ofteachers’ understanding of education, it alsodemoralises teachers and undermines their sense ofagency and commitment to the profession that is sovital to the maintenance of education norms andvalues in schools. The tendency towards the‘projectisation’ of donor support to education, wheredonor funding is dependent on the adoption of aparticular project, such as curriculum reform ortextbook redesign, has in some cases exacerbatedthis problem. Often dependent on Northernconcepts and accepted educational canon, suchprojects have varying levels of relevance to Southerncontexts.

Finally, it must also be acknowledged that teachersand teachers’ organisations have a part to play inclaiming their space in education discourse.Teachers’ sense of neglect and declining status hasled to a creeping alienation from the process ofeducation reform, and reports were heard ofteachers failing to participate when consultationprocesses were in fact set up. Teachers must beenabled to take the opportunities offered to them inorder to claim their rightful place at the decision-makers’ table. Clearly, this entails policy-makersmaking new provision to allow teachers time and toreward them appropriately for their participation. Italso requires other actors in education, such asNGOs, parent-teacher associations and schoolgoverning bodies, to actively support teachers’involvement.

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Based on VSO’s research, the following aspects ofeducation systems would benefit greatly from theinclusion of teacher voice in planning,implementation and evaluation:

� development of new syllabuses or curricula� design of pre-service and in-service teacher

training (content and delivery mechanisms)� design of donor projects� structure of decentralisation� national education planning� design of management training and

determination of competencies and duties ofteachers and head teachers

� methods of payment of teacher salaries andallowances, including the balance between thetwo

� management of promotions� incentives for taking up rural or hardship

postings� innovation in schools in respect of HIV/AIDS

education.

Recommendations:

� Ministries of Education should establishprofessional representative bodies for teachers, suchas general teaching councils, as fora for debate anddiscussion of teachers’ needs and contributionsoutside the domain of industrial relations and termsand conditions.

� Decentralisation must be accompanied byeffective measures to ensure successful top-down andbottom-up communications with schools, supportedby monitoring and evaluation systems. Theappointment of an ombudsman to ensure open andoperational communications between schools andheadquarters could be an effective measure.

� Reform processes must incorporate mechanismsto ensure participation of teachers and other civil-society actors, such as NGOs working in education orrelated fields, in planning, implementation andevaluation of change in education.

� Teacher unions, education councils of religiousbodies, civil-society coalitions and teaching servicecommissions should work together to ensure thatteachers are identified, trained and supported toparticipate in open decision-making processes. � Teacher unions should develop well-informedpositions on debates about quality and relevance of

education as well as engaging in industrial relationsnegotiations on teachers’ terms and conditions.

5.5 International institutions andinternational NGOs Donors and international institutions will continue toplay a key role in influencing the conditions underwhich teachers live and work. Dakar and itsaftermath have ushered in a new era where it isgenerally agreed that education strategies must benationally designed and owned by governments,with the broad participation of civil society in theirdesign. Mobilisation of donor funds should followfrom the agreement of viable national plans toachieve the Education For All goals. Criteria must bedetermined against which the plans are judged, withmajor implications for the recruitment, remunerationand retention of teachers. This research suggests aneed to understand the implications of any proposedfinancing frameworks for teacher morale andmotivation.

Recommendations:

� International financing frameworks should notrecommend a single formula for the calculation ofteacher remuneration packages. Teachers’ salaries area matter for collective bargaining and negotiation atcountry level.

� Donors should be willing to support teachers’remuneration in the same way as other educationinterventions.

� The extent to which teachers have participated inthe formulation of national education plans should bea key criterion for donors and international financialinstitutions in judging their viability.

� Donor consortia and international working groupson education should ensure regular representation ofteachers in their decision-making processes.

� International monitoring systems should includeprovision for seeking direct feedback from teacherson the efficacy of education reform.

� International NGOs must support the inclusion ofteacher voices in education decision-making as well asensuring it in their own planning processes.

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This report has, VSO believes, demonstrated that it istime to recognise teachers as partners in educationdiscourse rather than as deliverers of education. VSOtherefore calls on national governments to prioritisemeasures to support teachers’ motivation aboveother possible interventions, and to welcometeachers’ voices in policy-making. Furthermore, VSOcalls on donors and international institutions torecognise the vital role that teachers play in realisingeducation reform and to ensure that financingagreements create favourable conditions forteachers’ reward, incentivisation and support needs.Teachers’ contribution to quality education isparamount and it is time that this is recognised andvalued by those with power over their lives. It isincumbent on all – national governments, donors,international institutions and teachers’ ownrepresentative bodies – to support teachermotivation in order to facilitate their performanceand to bring teachers into the dialogue on policyformulation, implementation and evaluation.

‘A teacher who is a happy teacher will teach well, and ahappy school is a good school.’School inspector, PNG

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The research was conducted using simple techniqueswith the aim of enabling participation where possibleand at the same time generating a replicable modelfor low-cost advocacy research.

VSO volunteer reports were analysed to identifyfactors affecting VSO teaching and educationplacements. A focus-group discussion was held witha group of returned VSO volunteers in order todevelop deeper understanding of attitudes towardstheir teacher colleagues.

Desk-based research was conducted on topics ofschool and teacher effectiveness, teacher morale,motivation and job satisfaction, and pertinent issuessuch as teacher training and school management.

Three case-study countries were identified for furtherin-depth research and analysis with volunteers,national teacher colleagues, other educationemployees, education managers and stakeholders.The case-study countries were Zambia, Malawi andPapua New Guinea, which were chosen according tothe following criteria:

� Teacher motivation was considered byprogramme staff and volunteers to be asignificant constraint on education quality andvolunteer placements.

� VSO had significant experience of educationdelivery in the country.

� VSO programme staff were prepared to engagein policy dialogue at national level on teacherissues.

Research took place in these countries between July2001 and August 2002. In all three countries, focus-group discussions and in-depth interviews wereconducted with teachers, volunteers and schoolmanagers in schools where VSO had volunteerplacements – mainly disadvantaged secondaryschools. Education stakeholders, such as nationalofficials, teacher unions, church missions, andeducation NGOs and coalitions, were consultedthrough semi-structured interviews and workshops.

In all three case-study countries, the research processconcluded with a round-table policy discussion thataimed to share preliminary findings with keystakeholders and senior education staff and seektheir views on possible country solutions. Becausethe research was conducted in conjunction with theVSO staff in-country and under fairly challengingconditions, it was occasionally necessary toincorporate some slight differences in themethodology used. For example, in Zambia and PNG,teachers and volunteers were invited to fill inquestionnaires offering further insights and rankingtheir levels of teacher motivation and performance.For each case-study country, a policy report has beenprepared, drawing conclusions and making context-specific recommendations. To obtain a copy of thesereports, please contact the Advocacy Department,VSO, 317 Putney Bridge Road, London SW15 2PN.Tel: +44 (0)208 780 7200

Appendix 1

Methodology

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Country As percentage of GNP As percentage of Average annual Current expenditure government expenditure growth rate (%) as percentage of total

1990 1996 1990 1996 1990–96 1990 1996Malawi 3.4 5.4 11.1 ... -3.9 75.3 82.3Zambia 2.6 2.2 8.7 7.1 -3.4 87.0 92.6PNG* ... ... ... ... ... ... ...

Percentage distribution of current expenditure by level Current expenditure per pupil as percentage of GNP per capitaCountry 1990 1996 1990 1996

Pre prim Pre prim Pre prim Pre prim+prim. Sec. Tert. +prim. Sec. Tert. +prim. Sec. Tert. +prim. Sec. Tert.

Malawi 44.7 13.1 20.2 58.8 8.9 20.5 8 52 999 9 27 1,580Zambia 42.9 20.2 18.4 41.5 18.4 23.2 6 20 235 5 11 192PNG ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ...

* PNG stands for Papua New Guinea UNESCO World Education Report 2000

Public Expenditure on Education

Public Current Expenditure on Education

UNESCO World Education Report 2000

Country Pupil-teacher ratio Percentage of female teachersPre-primary Primary Secondary general Pre-primary Primary Secondary general

1990 1996 1990 1996 1990 1996 1990 1996 1990 1996 1990 1996Malawi ... ... 61 59 29 22 ... ... 31 39 25 ...Zambia ... 44 39 ... ... ... ... ... 43 ... ... ...PNG ... 32 32 37 25 24 ... 66 32 27 31 ...

Teaching staff in pre-primary, primary and secondary education

UNESCO World Education Report 2000

Appendix 2

Education statistics for eachcase-study country

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Bibliography Buchert, L., 1998, Education reform in the South inthe 1990s, UNESCO Publishing

Carron, G. and Ta Ngoc Chau, 2000, The quality ofprimary schools in different developing countries,UNESCO Publishing

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Coombe, T., 1988, Integral Planning for the StaffingFunction in Education, Paper presented at theworkshop on the Future of Strategic EducationPlanning, IIEP

Dakar Framework for Action, 2000, Buildingpartnerships and mobilising resources, WorkingPaper from the World Education Forum

DESO/Sida, 2000, Teacher education, teachers’conditions and motivation, Sida

DFID, 2000, Education for all: The challenge ofuniversal primary education, Target StrategyPaper, DFID

Dove, L.A., 1986, Teachers and teacher education indeveloping countries, Croom Helm

Duraisamy, P., James, E., Lane, J. and Tan, J-P., 1998,Is there a quantity/quality trade-off as pupil-teacher rations increase?, International Journal ofEducational Development

Education International, 1999, Structural adjustment,education reforms and trade union strategies:Ghana as a case study, Education International

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Garrett, R.M., 1999, Teacher job satisfaction indeveloping countries, DFID

Guthrie, G., 1982, Reviews of teacher training andteacher performance in developing countries,International Review of Education

Halliday, I.G., 1999, Developing a professionalteaching service, CommonwealthSecretariat/ADEA

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Heyneman, S.P., 1987, Multilevel methods foranalysing school effects in developing countries,Comparative Education Review

ILO, 1996, Impact of structural adjustment on theemployment and training of teachers, ILO

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Lockheed, M.E. and Verspoor, A., 1991, ImprovingPrimary Education in Devloping Countries, WorldBank/OUP

Makau, B. and Coombe, C., 1994, Teacher moraleand motivation in sub-Saharan Africa, Donors toAfrican Education Working Group on the TeachingProfession

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Pennyquick, D., 1998, School effectiveness indeveloping countries: a summary of the researchevidence, DFID

Spear, M., Gould, K. and Lee, B., 2000, Who would bea teacher? A review of factors motivating anddemotivating prospective and practisingteachers, NFER

Swainson, N. and Bennell, P., 2002, The Impact ofHIV/AIDS Epidemic on the Education Sector inSouthern Africa, CIE

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Selected papers from the World Education Forumdiscussion groups

How can a crisis in the teaching profession in developingcountries be averted?

VSO is an international development charity working through volunteers with over

40 years’ experience of working in educational institutions in developing

countries. VSO volunteers have the opportunity to gain unique insights into the

challenges their national colleagues face in providing education to disadvantaged

children in difficult circumstances. This research was initiated as a result of VSO’s

experience that teachers’ motivation in developing countries is fragile and

declining, with serious implications for the viability of education reform and the

attainment of international development targets in education.

This report is based on focus-group, interview and questionnaire data gathered

from national teachers and other education stakeholders in three case-study

countries: Zambia, Papua New Guinea and Malawi. Focusing largely on teachers’

attitudes to their own profession, the research sought to develop a holistic

understanding of the complex interplay between teachers’ remuneration

requirements, professional support needs, and their relationship to wider society.

It took as its starting point the assumption that teachers’ motivation had a

significant impact on their performance and that teacher performance was one of

the major factors influencing education quality.

The findings of the research suggest that national and international policy-makers

need to develop a deeper understanding of teachers’ attitudes to their own

profession and the factors affecting their motivation. Not only are teachers the

major learning resource in developing-country schools, they also have a wealth of

experience about what does and does not work for education in disadvantaged

contexts. Yet these teachers’ views and insights are seldom considered adequately

in planning and implementing education reform. A new approach to education

reform is called for: one that puts teachers’ needs, and perspectives, at the heart

of decision-making.

Published by VSO317 Putney Bridge RoadLondonSw15 2PNwww.vso.org.uk