Teacher transfers from primary schools in Chama district of Zambia: causes of the massive teacher exodus and its effects on learner’s academic performance.
Date
2020
Authors
Phiri, Donald
Mulenga, Innocent Mutale
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Multidisciplinary Journal of Language and Social Sciences Education
Abstract
Scholarly research has shown that the availability of
enough qualified teachers in schools is key to effective
curriculum implementation. In Zambia however,
rural schools experience more teacher transfers to
urban schools. The purpose of this study was to find
out the main causes of teacher transfers from Chama
district of Muchinga province. Researchers in this
study also sort to analyze the effects that teacher
transfers had on the learning process. A descriptive
research design was used to explore this phenomenon.
150 teachers were sampled from 25 rural schools
and each of these school’s head teachers were
also part of the sampled participants. Focus group
discussions and interviews were conducted to collect
data from teachers and head teachers. Human
resource documents and examination performance
records from the district education office in Chama
were also analyzed. The findings of the study showed
that teachers requested for transfers due to a number
of factors such as separation from their spouses,
conflict with school administrators, poor deployment
procedures and social amenities, remoteness of
the schools, fear of witchcraft and qualification
upgrading. It was further noted that all these factors
negatively affected learners’ performance since
schools were understaffed, and teachers demotivated
and at times left schools for a number of days so as
to access social services in town at the expense of
teaching and learning. While each of these causes
needed immediate attention it was however concluded
that the problem of understaffing in schools in rural
Chama due to transfers is a big one which required
national policy makers to invest in improving the
living conditions of teachers in rural schools by
providing social services such as hospitals, roads,
banks, electricity and modern school structures and
staff houses. It was envisaged that if this is done at a
national level most of the causes of teachers leaving
rural schools would be gradually reduced.
Description
Keywords
Teacher placement. , Learner performance. , Rural schools. , Academic performance.