TSC plans to have teachers renew certificate in a move aimed at reviewing performance

School heads at the 13th Kenya Primary Schools Head Teachers Association (KEPSHA) annual delegates conference at Sheikh Zayed Centre in Mombasa, December 04, 2017. [PHOTO: GIDEON MAUNDU|STANDARD]

If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it, teaches management guru Peter F Drucker. Plans by the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) to have teachers renew their certificates every five years are welcome. Obviously, the issuance of a certificate will be pegged on performance.

Like all other goal-setting initiatives applied in the workplace, we believe its aim is to ensure teachers perform their duties conscientiously. Among the causes of dismal performance, besides the disruption caused by frequent industrial disputes, is the absence of a proper performance measurement tool.

And because they know that nobody measures how they perform and therefore no sanctions for non-performance, most teachers give the bare minimum in class. This has led to poor preparations for student assessment and exams. That notwithstanding, there are many teachers who go out of their way to ensure their students get the best from them. But there is evidence that many play truant.

Teachers absent themselves from work because they are demotivated or must moonlight to make ends meet, or in the worst case scenario, are plainly lethargic. But the implementation of the 2017-2021 CBA between Knut and Kuppet (the 312,000 membership unions) necessitates that a performance management culture be introduced. This newspaper advocates for performance appraisals that include monitoring absenteeism.

Absenteeism denies students the much-needed teacher-student contact time that is hugely significant in overall student mental development and ultimately, academic performance. And with improved terms, taxpayers expect no less from teachers. Moreover, research studies have proven that performance measurement is a motivating factor in the workplace. No doubt, teachers will do better because they know that effort will be recognised and most certainly, rewarded.