School supervision in four African countriesunesdoc.unesco.org/images/0012/001248/124823e.pdf · School supervision in four African countries: ... The actual operation of supervision

Published in the series:Trends in school supervision

School supervision in fourAfrican countries:

Vol. I: Challenges and reforms

Anton De Grauwe

A paper copy of this publication may be obtained on request from:[email protected]

To consult the full catalogue of IIEP Publications and documents on ourWeb site: http://www.unesco.org/iiep

Co-operation Agency (Sida) has provided financial assistance for the publication of

this booklePublished by:

International Institute for Educational Planning/UNESCO7 - 9 rue Eugène-Delacroix, 75116 Paris

ISBN: 92-803-1207-3

© UNESCO 2001

International Institute for Educational Planning

mailto:[email protected]

http://www.unesco.org/iiep


International Institute for Educational Planning http://www.unesco.org/iiep




Trends in school supervision

School supervisionin four African countries:Volume I

Challenges and reforms

Anton De Grauwe





The designations employed and the presentation of material

throughout this review do not imply the expression of any opinion

whatsoever on the part of UNESCO or IIEP concerning the legal status

of any country, territory, city or area or its authorities, or concerning

its frontiers or boundaries.

The publication costs of its study have been covered through a grant-

in-aid offered by UNESCO and by voluntary contributions made by

several Member States of UNESCO, the list of which will be found at

the end of the volume.

Published by:


7-9 rue Eugène-Delacroix, 75116 Paris

e-mail: [email protected]

IIEP web site: http://www.unesco.org/iiep.

Cover design: Pierre Finot

Typesetting: Linéale Production

Printed in IIEP’s printshop

© UNESCO 2001






5

CONTENTS

Pages

List of abbreviations 6

List of tables 7

List of figures 8

Presentation of the series 9

Summary 13

Introduction 191. Methodology 192. Background on the four countries

and their education systems 22

I. General overview of supervision and supportstructures 27

1. Historical background 272. The overall structure 293. Official functions 354. Relations with other services 415. School-site supervision 45

II. Management of supervision and support services 531. Basic facts and figures 532. Critical management issues 683. Budgetary and financial matters 804. Working conditions 87

III. The actual operation of supervision and supportservices 93

1. Planning and workload 942. School visits 1053. Reports 1164. Follow-up, including use of reports 119

IV. Overall assessment 1251. Impact on school functioning and quality 125

2. Main challenges 135

3. Present reforms and trends 145




6

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

AT Advisory Teacher

B. Ed. Bachelors in Education

BETD Basic Education Teachers Diploma

CE Certificate in Education

CTO Central Transport Organization

DDC District Development Committee

DEO District Education Officer

ELTSP English Language Teaching Support Project

EO Education Officer

IE Inspector of Education

M. Ed Masters in Education

NER Net enrolment rate

NGO Non-Governmental Organization

NIED National Institute for Educational Development

PSI Primary School Inspector

REO Regional Education Officer

SAT Senior Advisory Teacher

SEO Senior Education Officer

SIE Senior Inspector of Education

SSMDP Secondary Schools Management Development Project




7

LIST OF TABLES

1. Area and personnel investigated for regional case study 21

2. Basic indicators 23

3. Basic indicators on education 25

4. Pupil/teacher ratios at primary level 25

5. Numbers of schools, teachers and supervisors, 1997-1998 54

6. Disparities in supervisors’ posting by region 56

7. Primary supervisors by age 59

8. Secondary supervisors by age 59

9. External advisers by age 60

10. Primary supervisors by length of service (as supervisor) 62

11. Primary supervisors by total length of service 62

12. Secondary supervisors by length of service 63

13. External advisers by length of service 63

14. Primary supervisors by qualifications 65

15. Secondary supervisors by qualifications 65

16. External advisers by qualifications 66

17. Supervision and advisory staff by gender 67

18. Share of women among supervisors and teachers 68

19. Recruitment procedures and criteria 69

20. Namibia: annual salaries (1997) of officers withcomparable experience 81

21. Zimbabwe: basic annual salaries and monthly allowancesof education staff, July 1997 onwards 83

22. Distribution of time between tasks for supervision staff 96

23. Distribution of time between tasks for advisory staff 97

24. Distribution of time between pedagogical andadministrative duties 98

25. Tanzania: primary schools inspected per year 102

26. Zimbabwe: regularity of teacher inspection visits 103

27. Different types of school visits 111




8

LIST OF FIGURES

1. Index of growth of primary enrolment (1970 = 100) 24

2. Age of primary-school supervisors 59

3. Age of secondary-school supervisors 60

4. Age of external advisers 60

5. Experience in supervision of primary-school supervisors 62

6. Years of experience of primary-school supervisors 63

7. Years of experience of external advisers 64

8. Primary supervisors by qualifications 65

9. Supervision and advisory staff by gender 67

10. Tanzania: % of schools not inspected 102

11. Headteachers’ responses on the impact of supervisionon schools: average scores 127




9

PRESENTATION OF THE SERIES

This publication forms part of a series on ‘Trends in school

supervision’, which accompanies the implementation of an IIEP

project on ‘Improving teacher supervision and support services for

basic education’. The project, which began in 1996, is one of the main

research components of the Institute’s Medium Term Plan 1996-2001.

The Institute wishes to express its sincere thanks to BMZ (the German

Federal Ministry for Technical Co-operation) and to UNICEF for their

support in the implementation of this project.

Earlier research, at the Institute and elsewhere, has pointed to

the need, in an era of increased decentralization and school

autonomy, to strengthen the skills of personnel involved in

supervision and support at local level and in schools.

Two related points are worth mentioning here, as they form both

the background to and the rationale for the IIEP’s concern with this

area of management. Firstly, professional supervision and support

services for teachers, although existing in almost every country for a

long time, have been ignored, increasingly so since resources have

become more scarce. This neglect has, until recent times, been

reflected by a similar indifference among researchers. Secondly, one

important reason why the quality of basic education has deteriorated

in many contexts is precisely related to the weakening of these

services.

The IIEP project, developed against this background, consists of

research, training and dissemination activities. Its specific objectives

are to assist countries in diagnosing and reforming the existing

services of supervision and support, and to identify promising

strategies for their reorganization and strengthening. The series of




School supervision in four African countries: challenges and reforms

10

publications, of which this monograph forms a part, is the result of

research, implemented in several regions, to address a number of

questions, such as:

• How are supervision and support organized in different countries?

What have been the major trends in their recent evolution?

• What are the principal problems which supervision and support

services are presently facing in terms of: organizational structures;

overall management; and daily functioning?

• To what extent and under what conditions do these services have

a positive impact on the quality of the teaching-learning processes

in schools?

• What are the major innovations taking place, mainly in respect of

the devolution of supervision and support to the school-site level?

How do these innovations operate? What are the main results?

In order to formulate answers to these questions, the project

elaborated the following operational definition of school supervision

and support services: all those services whose main function is to

control and evaluate, and/or advise and support school heads and

teachers. The focus of the project is on external supervision and

support, that is to say on the work of inspectors, supervisors, advisers,

counsellors, etc. located outside the school, at local, regional or

central levels. A common characteristic of these officers is that regular

visits to schools are an essential part of their mandate.

However, many countries, in their attempts to reform and innovate

supervision, are increasingly relying on in-school or community-based

strategies (such as resource centres, school clusters, in-school

supervision by the principal or by peers, school-based management)

to complement – if not to replace – external supervision and support.

The project therefore also pays attention to a number of such

innovations and, in more general terms, the strengths and weaknesses




11

Presentation of the series

of strategies, aiming at the reinforcement of internal quality-control

mechanisms.

This series ‘Trends in school supervision’, thus consists of a variety

of titles: national diagnoses on supervision and support, comparative

analyses of the situation by region, case studies on innovative

experiences, monographs and discussion papers on specific

management issues. It is hoped that this series will fill a gap in

education research as well as be an inspiration, in particular to policy-

makers intending to reform supervision, and to supervisors who want

to improve on their practice.

Other titles in the series include:

• Ali, M.A. 1998. Supervision for teacher development: a proposal for

Pakistan. Paris: UNESCO/International Institute for Educational

Planning.

• Carron, G.; De Grauwe, A. 1997. Current issues in supervision: a

literature review. Paris: UNESCO/International Institute for

Educational Planning.

• Carron, G.; De Grauwe, A.; Govinda, R. 1998. Supervision and

support services in Asia. Volume 1: A comparative analysis. Volume

II: National diagnoses (Bangladesh, the State of Uttar Pradesh in

India, the Republic of Korea, Nepal and Sri Lanka). Paris: UNESCO/

International Institute for Educational Planning.

• Fergusson, V. 1998. Supervision for the self-managing school: the

New Zealand experience. Paris: UNESCO/International Institute for


• Gurr, D. 1999. From supervision to quality assurance: the case of

the State of Victoria, Australia. Paris: UNESCO/International Institute

for Educational Planning.





12

• Khaniya, T.R. 1997. Teacher support through resource centres: the

Nepalese case. Paris: UNESCO/International Institute for Educational

Planning.

• Perera, W.J. 1997. Changing schools from within: a management

intervention for improving school functioning in Sri Lanka. Paris:

UNESCO/International Institute for Educational Planning.

• Wilcox, B. 2000. Making school inspection visits more effective: the

English experience. Paris: UNESCO/International Institute for


Acknowledgements

This publication could not have been written without the

invaluable advice and continued guidance of Mr G. Carron.




13

SUMMARY

Improving the quality of schools and the achievement of students

remains a priority throughout the world, not least in the developing

countries. To monitor quality, national authorities rely strongly on

the school supervision system. But that system has not always been

able to play that role, plagued as it is by a lack of resources, an

inefficient structure and an ambiguity about its main functions. Much

of our knowledge about the challenges facing supervision services

and individual supervisors is based on anecdotal evidence and the

somewhat repetitive complaints of supervisors themselves and of

school staff. This publication intends to make up for this lack of data

by examining the situation of four countries in the Eastern- and

Southern-African region: Botswana, Namibia, Tanzania and Zimbabwe.

Methodology

The study is the result of work undertaken by four national teams,

which generally included one or more practising supervisors, based

at central and/or regional level and an experienced researcher. Each

report was prepared in two stages. In a first stage, the present state

of supervision and support services was examined at national level,

in order to arrive at an overall picture of their structure and

management. In a second stage, the actual operation of these services

in one region or district became the focus. This second step therefore

covered only a limited number of supervisors and schools. Its

purpose was not to arrive at a complete picture of supervision in the

whole region under study, but to gain an overview of how supervisors

operate and the problems they encounter. Once the four studies were

finalized, the IIEP prepared a comparative analysis and drew a number

of conclusions for the reform of supervision.





14

The challenges

Supervision services in the four countries face a myriad of

problems, and it is useful to distinguish between root causes and

results. The root causes can be classified in three categories: (i) a

lack of resources; (ii) inefficient management; and (iii) an

organizational structure not adapted to the present realities.

The lack of resources has multiple implications. The number of

supervisors has not kept pace with the numbers of schools and

teachers; as a result, the school/supervisor and teacher/supervisor

ratios are high. This workload becomes more difficult to manage if it

is combined with a lack of financial and material resources.

Supervision offices in Tanzania suffer most and some have become

almost ghost-like. Elsewhere, the situation is less serious, but does

not justify complacency, as the service remains under-financed in all

four countries.

Management problems are experienced in several areas of

management: selection and recruitment; training; career development

and incentives; and support and evaluation. Identifying the ‘right’

recruitment criteria is not an easy matter. The situation is particularly

complicated at secondary level: supervisors are generally recruited

from among subject specialists, few have experience in school

management and they occupy a post at the same grade as the

secondary-school principals. Many principals therefore do not

consider supervisors as their superiors and refuse their advice. Maybe

one should think about creating a specific cadre of school-

management supervisors, as distinct from subject inspectors, with

recruitment criteria and a post of a grade adapted to their more

demanding job description. In all four countries, there are concerns

with both the organization and the content of training courses,

which are ad hoc rather than part of an overall programme of




Summary

15

professional development, and seldom seem to address the real needs

of supervision staff. A further management problem concerns the

lack of career development opportunities: for most supervisors,

their present post is the culmination of their career, a reward for

many years of service in schools. This evidently risks turning the

supervision service into a conservative body, with little motivation

to innovate and look for new challenges.

The organizational problems which supervision experiences relate

to four points. Firstly, in two countries, the service is still relatively

young and its present structure lacks clarity (in Namibia) or logic (in

Botswana). Secondly, co-ordination is difficult, especially between

the supervision service and other services which work towards

pedagogical improvement, such as teacher training, teacher resource

centres, curriculum development and examinations. The follow-up

to school visits suffers from this lack of co-ordination.

Recommendations made in inspection reports and addressed to the

administrative and/or pedagogical authorities, remain words in the

wind, which frustrates the school staff as well as the supervisors. A

third issue concerns the very demanding job description of

supervisors, who are asked to handle a load of administrative and

pedagogical tasks. The fourth point in this regard might well be the

most significant. In all four countries, supervisors feel constrained -

even frustrated - by their lack of autonomy and authority to take action,

especially on their own recommendations. School heads are in a

similar situation. Overcoming these constraints implies, however, a

profound change in the management system and culture and – but

less crucially – a strengthening of management capacities at district

and school levels.

The results of these varied problems are that supervisors face a

heavy workload with few resources. This leads to a lack of motivation





16

and has a negative impact on the actual operation of the service.

Inspectors, who do not have the resources nor the time to give

detailed and profound support to schools, quickly, as a defensive

reaction, take on control-oriented and critical attitudes which are

poorly appreciated by school staff. The overall conclusion seems to

be that there is insufficient close and supportive contact – through

school visits, seminars, courses and so on – between supervisors and

schools. In particular, follow-up actions on visits or reports are scarce.

It is not surprising then that many schools feel that the overall impact

of the supervision and support service on what goes on in school is

weak.

The reforms

Managers and decision-makers are conscious of these weaknesses

and challenges and are making attempts to improve the situation:

changes are occurring in three main areas: the management, the

organization of the service and its actual operation.

All four countries are fully conscious of the perverse effects of

some existing management rules and practices. There are indications

that policies are being reformulated and that some practices have

changed. To give a few examples: in Zimbabwe, recruitment has

become more transparent, through systematic advertisement of

vacant posts, interviews of candidates, and the convening of a

Promotion Committee involving all regional directors. Both Botswana

and Namibia see the need to define more clearly the tasks of the

different categories of supervision and support staff. In Namibia, this

forms an integral part of a Performance Management System, which

should clearly set out the tasks of the different officers and the criteria

on which they will be evaluated. This will help in monitoring their

work and in giving them support.




Summary

17

The second set of reforms concerns the organization and

structure, and the responsibilities given to different levels and actors.

Four changes can be identified. Firstly, there exists a willingness to

co-ordinate more strongly existing services at a central level.

Secondly, to allow for a closer and more regular supervision of

schools, these are brought together into clusters and officers are

given the responsibility for one such group of schools, with their

office sometimes being located at that level. Thirdly, and following

logically from the above, there is an increased stress on in-school

supervision and support. In Botswana, for instance, Staff

Development Committees are established in secondary schools: they

carry out needs assessment and draw up programmes for school-

based training, using expertise from within or outside the school. In

Zimbabwe, headteachers of both primary and secondary schools have

received or are receiving training in school management. In principle,

each school has a Board, with members of the administration and

teacher representatives, which supervises, assists and advises

teachers, and also has to assess and recommend them for promotion.

Fourthly, the civil society and certain school communities are

gradually being given an increased role in monitoring the functioning

and quality of schools.

A third set of reforms concerns the actual operation and the focus

of supervision activities, in particular school visits. In some cases,

inspectors work more as a team than as individuals and the focus shifts

from individual teacher inspection to school evaluation. Openness

and transparency are increasingly encouraged, implying that schools

will be informed beforehand of visits. As a result, where these reforms

are actually being implemented, teachers are beginning to consider

inspectors as sources of help rather than of criticism. One final trend,

which seems more the result of practical constraints than a well-

designed policy, lies in focusing supervision and support





18

interventions on the schools most in need of these. The challenge

now is to turn an existing but very ad-hoc practice into a well thought-

out policy. A diversified supervision system, which concentrates on

the most remote and isolated schools and on the least experienced

or weakest teachers, is a promising way out, not only to solve several

practical problems, but also to guarantee a better impact of

supervision services on schools.




19

INTRODUCTION

This report compares the management and the operation of school

supervision and support in four countries: Botswana, Namibia,

Tanzania1 and Zimbabwe. The countries were selected in such a way

that the set included more developed (Botswana) and least developed

(Tanzania) countries, countries which recently became independent

(Namibia) and those which formed part of the first wave of Africa’s

drive for independence (Tanzania), with populations ranging from

just over a million (Botswana, Namibia) to over some 10 million

(Zimbabwe) to some 30 million (Tanzania). All have made major

efforts to increase access to basic education: Botswana, Namibia and

Zimbabwe come close to achieving universal primary education,

while Tanzania has in recent years lost much of the progress made in

earlier decades and continues to face a severe challenge: only about

half of the children between six and eleven are at present enrolled.

1. Methodology

The report is the result of work undertaken by four national teams,

as part of an international project on Improving teacher supervision

and support services for basic education. In each country, a research

team was set up, which generally included one or more practising

supervisors, based at central and/or regional level, and an

experienced researcher. These teams worked according to a set of

detailed guidelines, prepared by the IIEP, and wrote their report in

two distinct stages. In the first stage, the present state of supervision

and support services was examined at national level. The objective

was to arrive at an overall picture of the structure and management

1. The United Republic of Tanzania constitutes Tanzania Mainland and Zanzibar, whichhave separate Education Ministries and a different management system. Zanzibar tookpart only in the first stage of this exercise by preparing a brief report on the structures,management and main problems of its supervision services. No case study was undertaken.




20


of these services, with an outline of the main problems they

experience, without entering into the details of their daily operation.

This first step relied mainly, if not exclusively, on a perusal of the

available literature, reports, official documents and statistical data.

In the second stage, the actual operation of supervision services

became the focus, by examining their situation in one region. This

second step therefore covered only a limited number of supervisors

and of schools. Its purpose was not to arrive at a complete picture of

supervision in the whole region under study, but to gain an overview

of how supervisors operate and the problems they encounter. The

collection of information for this regional case study relied mainly

on two sources: interviews with a limited number of supervisors;

and group discussions, with questionnaires addressed to

headteachers and/or teachers in a few schools.

The samples of supervisors, schools and teachers who were

interviewed as part of the regional case study differed quite a bit in

size and make-up from one country to another, the main reason being

that the size of the region or district also varied greatly. In Botswana,

the case study covered the southern part of the Central region and

the team interviewed only the Regional Education Officer (REO), four

inspectors and one in-service officer, in addition to staff from 10

schools. In Namibia, the region selected was Ondangwa West, but

special attention was given to the Okahao inspection circuit, one of

eight circuits within this region. The seven inspectors and 11 advisory

teachers come from the whole region, while the 11 headteachers were

chosen from among the 42 schools in the Okahao circuit. In Tanzania

Mainland, the samples of staff interviewed all came from the Muheza

district, which forms part of the Tanga region in the north of the

country. In Zimbabwe, finally, the study was undertaken on Kwekwe

district, where one Education Officer (EO) and five District Education




21

Introduction

Officers (DEO), 12 school headteachers and 35 teachers were

interviewed (see Table 1).

The samples were not chosen to be representative of the national

situation, but to illustrate with more details and more vividly the daily

operation and the circumstances within which supervisors actually

work. While the situation they depict is generally not very different

from that of other areas, care should, nevertheless, be exercised when

interpreting the results from these case studies.

Table 1. Area and personnel investigated for regionalcase study

Country Area of investigation Personnel interviewed2

Botswana Southern part of • 1 regional education officerCentral region • 4 inspectors

• 1 in-service officer• 7 headteachers (5 primary,

2 junior secondary)• teachers in 10 schools

(5 primary, 5 junior secondary)

Namibia Okahao circuit in • 7 inspectorsOndangwa West region • 11 advisory teachers

• 11 primary-school headteachers• teachers of 11 schools

Tanzania Muheza district in • 4 school inspectorsTanga region • 4 district education officers

• 2 teacher service commissionofficials

• 8 Ward education co-ordinators• 20 primary-school

headteachers• teachers in 20 primary schools

Zimbabwe Kwekwe district in • 1 education officerMidlands region • 5 district education officers

• 12 primary-school heads• 35 primary-school teachers in

12 schools

2. All listed staff were interviewed. To some staff, in addition, questionnaires were distributed.The case studies contain the relevant details.




22


The research teams were asked to define, for the purpose of this

project, the term ‘supervision and support services’ as covering all

those services whose main function is to inspect, control, evaluate,

and/or advise, assist, support school heads and teachers. The main

focus of the project was on external supervision and support, that is

to say on the work of inspectors, supervisors, advisers, counsellors,

etc. located outside the school, at local, regional or central levels. A

common characteristic of all these officers is that regular visits to

schools form an essential part of their mandate. In-school or

community-based devices of supervision and support were also to

be considered so as to ensure a full understanding of the functioning

of the external services.

2. Background on the four countries3 and their education systems

The four countries in this comparative study were all formerly

colonies of the United Kingdom, but the difference in their dates of

independence shows the diversity in their more recent history:

Tanzania, 1961; Botswana, 1966; Zimbabwe, 1980; and Namibia, 1990.

Their economic development has also been very different, the result

being that Tanzania is, at present, one of the least developed countries

in Africa, while Botswana is one of the most advanced (see Table 2

for more detailed data). The AIDS pandemic, however, has hit this

country particularly hard, and life expectancy has decreased from

68 years in 1994 to 46 years, according to the latest estimates.

3. The data on Tanzania, in this introduction, refer to Tanzania Mainland and Zanzibarcombined. No separate data were available in the sources used.




23

Introduction

Table 2. Basic indicators4

Population GNP GNP Life Aid % urban (millions) per capita per capita expectancy per capitapopulation

(US$) Average (US $)growth

1985-1995

Botswana 1.6 3,240 6.1 46 68 50

Namibia 1.7 1,890 2.9 54 108 30

Tanzania 32.9 240 1.0 47 31 32

Zimbabwe 11.9 520 -0.6 51 24 35

Immediately after independence, all four countries experienced

a steep expansion in the number of children going to primary school

(see Figure 1 for data on three countries). Tanzania was unable to

sustain this development and has seen enrolment rates dropping,

especially in the late 1980s. Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe can

be said to have come close to universal primary enrolment, although

pockets of low enrolment (among nomadic groups and in large

commercial farming areas) remain. (Recent data on Botswana are

somewhat misleading: the drop in the net enrolment rate from 89 per

cent in 1985 to 81 per cent in 1996 is largely the result of a recent

policy decision to decrease the admission age at primary level (from

seven to six) and the resulting change in calculating the rate. The

NER stood in 1994, just before the policy change, at 96 per cent, which

shows better the continuing increase in enrolment). Enrolment at

secondary education has also experienced a sizeable increase in

Botswana and Namibia, but less so in Zimbabwe, while it remains

very low in Tanzania. Regional disparities are, undoubtedly, more

important than those concerning gender: the enrolment rate of girls

at primary level is equal to, if not higher than, that of boys. Table 3

4. For purposes of comparison, all data are taken from the indicators database, made availableby the World Bank on its web-site (http://www.worldbank.org/data/). They refer to 1998or 1999.


http://www.worldbank.org/data/


http://www.worldbank.org/data/


24


presents some basic indicators on the development of the education

system. One can see that education occupies a priority position in

public policy given that it receives a significant share of the budget:

not less than 20 per cent in the different countries.

With the exception of Tanzania, teachers’ qualifications have

improved significantly over recent years. In Botswana, for instance,

teachers are now trained up to Diploma level. For secondary schools,

Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe still experience some teacher

shortages and have to rely on expatriates. Pupil/teacher ratios in all

four countries decreased between 1980 and 1995, although there has

been a slight increase in both Tanzania and Zimbabwe in recent years

(see Table 4).

Figure 1. Index of growth of primary enrolment(1970 = 100) 5

500

400

300

200

100

1970 1980 1990 1996

BotswanaTanzaniaZimbabwe

5. No comparable data are available in the UNESCO Statistical Yearbook on Namibia, whichobtained independence only in 1990.




25

Introduction

Table 3. Basic indicators on education6

NER primary NER Pupil/ GER SpendingTotal primary Teacher ratio secondary on educ.

girls 1996 as % of budget

1985 1996 1996 primary secondary 1985 1996 1985 1996

Botswana 89 81 83 25 18 29 65 15.4 21.8

Namibia7 . . 91 92 32 21 39 61 .. 25.6

Tanzania8 56 48 49 36 17 3 5 15.6 23.0

Zimbabwe9 136 113 111 39 27 41 49 15.0 22.9

Table 4. Pupil/teacher ratios at primary level

Botswana Namibia Tanzania Zimbabwe

1970 36 .. 46 37

1980 32 .. 41 44

1990 32 32 35 36

1996 25 .. 36 39

The structure of the education system in the four countries is as

follows: two years of pre-primary, followed by seven years of primary

and five (Botswana, Namibia) or six (Tanzania, Zimbabwe) years of

secondary, in two cycles. The successful expansion of primary

enrolment has led to a redefinition of the term ‘basic education’,

which is now considered to last in Botswana 10 years and to cover

primary and junior secondary.

6. For purposes of comparison, data for Tables 2 and 3 and for Figure 1 are taken from UNESCO’sStatistical Yearbook 1998.

7. Data for pupil/teacher ratios are for 1990.8. Data for current public spending only.9. Data for GER primary. Data for spending on education in 1996 come from national

sources.




26


All four countries have kept some parts of their colonial legacy,

which explains the similarities in, for example, the education

structure and in some aspects of educational management. At present,

their policies continue to be somewhat influenced from experiences

in the United Kingdom, sometimes through reform projects, financed

by international agencies. The trend towards giving schools more

autonomy and the efforts to build up resource centres can be quoted

as examples, although such impact is of course tempered strongly by

the different policy environments and by national initiatives.




27

I. GENERAL OVERVIEW OF SUPERVISION ANDSUPPORT STRUCTURES

1. Historical background

The creation of inspection services accompanied the introduction

of formal public education in each country: as early as the 1920s for

instance in Tanzania10 and the 1930s in Zimbabwe (for white

education; African education had to wait until 1972 to see its first

inspectors).

The expansion of the system after independence, in numbers

of schools, students and teachers, was accompanied by a slower

growth in the number of supervision officers. To allow supervision

services to function efficiently with an increased workload, in

different countries, several strategies were used:

• separating primary from secondary supervision;

• decentralizing some services;

• creating specific support services.

The following paragraphs comment on these three strategies. In

Botswana and Zimbabwe, a separation was made in the 1970s

between supervisors in charge of primary and secondary education.

Such a separation already existed in Tanzania at that time, but has

not yet been introduced in Namibia. In Zanzibar, from 1984 onwards,

a distinction was made between primary inspectors, secondary

inspectors and inspectors for specific subjects, such as religious

studies and Arabic, who serve both levels. Two further categories

10. The remainder of the document will refer to Tanzania Mainland as ‘Tanzania’. Zanzibarwill be considered as a separate case, although it forms part of the United Republic ofTanzania.





28

have since been created: junior work inspectors in 1987, and

inspectors for headteachers in 1996.

All countries, with the understandable exception of Zanzibar, have

at different moments in time decentralized the supervision tasks to

officers based at regional or district level. This process has not been

problem free. In Botswana, it has led to a lack of subject-specific

officers for secondary subjects in the regional offices, because of the

financial burden the appointment of a full cadre of officers in each

region would represent. Moreover, the fact that the regional offices

for primary and secondary education do not coexist has resulted in

poor co-ordination. In Tanzania, the Decentralization Act of 1972

implied that inspectors became accountable to district authorities

rather than to the Ministry of Education. As a result, the central co-

ordination system was abolished, but this was deplored to such an

extent that the central Inspectorate Department was re-established

in 1978.

Namibia, with quite a different background, experiences at present

a similar problem of co-ordination and leadership. This is the result

of its particular history rather than a poorly managed decentralization

process. Before independence, there were 11 different supervision

and support authorities. Since 1990, regional offices have to a large

extent retained the autonomy of those pre-independence authorities.

In order to offer leadership and policy guidance, in 1996, a Directorate

Inspectorate and Advisory Service was established, within an overall

effort to build up a unitary service. Botswana is also planning to set

up a similar central department, which will be responsible for policy-

making, planning and co-ordination of inspection at all levels.

Zanzibar established an inspectorate unit in 1984, which became a

department in 1992 then a division (within the Department of

Professional Services) in 1996.




General overview of supervision and support structures

29

A third way of managing an increased workload is to create special

staff for support services, as distinct from supervision. This has clearly

been the case in Botswana, where the in-service officers undertake

this task, and in Namibia, with the creation of the advisory teachers.

Zanzibar also has a group of teacher advisers. In Tanzania and

Zimbabwe the inspectors or education officers, as they are called in

Zimbabwe, are expected to perform both inspection and advice tasks.

Almost everywhere, nonetheless, attention is increasingly being paid

to offering more direct support to schools, through resource centres,

for example.

These changes have taken place within a policy environment

recently characterized by a change of perspective on the distribution

of tasks and authority between the education system and the schools.

More autonomy is being given to schools, and supervision services

are being asked to be more development-oriented and less control-

focused. This has also led to structural transformations, in an attempt

to decrease the distance between supervisors and schools.

2. The overall structure

While the different types of reform, described above, succeeded

to some extent in lessening the workload and simplifying the job

description of individual officers, they also resulted in giving school

supervision as a whole a more complicated structure.

The following overview of the structures of primary-school

supervision indicates that this complexity is mainly a factor of the

degree of decentralization. Everywhere, the distance between the

office and the schools is difficult to bridge. As this study will highlight,

transportation and travel allocation issues therefore become weighty

considerations in the management of these services. At the same time,

efforts are made to bring supervisors closer to the school, through





30

the creation of additional administrative levels. In Namibia, for

instance, the idea has been mooted to set up district offices to serve

areas least accessible to the regional offices. The creation of additional

levels has nowhere been accompanied by the abolition of existing

ones, the result being that schools in some cases will be supervised

by officers from different levels, with the ensuing problems of co-

ordination.

In all countries, with the exception of Zanzibar, officers are at

present functioning at least at three levels: central, regional, district

or local. Supervisors, who are actually in charge of visiting schools,

are of course posted at the lowest level. However, in the less

populated countries (Botswana and Namibia), this lowest level does

not correspond to an office as such, but to an area of responsibility.

In Tanzania, a fourth level under the district exists: the ward office,

but so far it plays no official role in supervision.

At secondary level, because services are less decentralized, the

structure is less complex. Information on these structures is available

for Zimbabwe and Botswana. In the case of Tanzania this information

was not collected, while in Namibia no separation exists between

primary and secondary supervision. In Zanzibar, primary and

secondary supervisors belong to the same service, based at central

level. In Botswana and Zimbabwe, secondary-school supervisors

operate mainly from the regional level, and are not further

decentralized. A first reason is evident: the number of secondary

schools is smaller. A second reason is equally important: secondary-

school supervisors are generally subject-specific. This means that

decentralizing them to local level would imply a multiplication of

vast teams in each office, a burden no country can afford at present.

In Botswana, even the regional offices do not yet have a full staffing

of subject supervisors, for this precise reason.





31

��

��

��

��

■ BotswanaBotswanaBotswanaBotswanaBotswana

��

!�� "#

$�� %&� $�� '�� !�� $�� '�� !$�'"�

�� "#

(��

�� %�� '��!%�'"��

��%�'��

■ NamibiaNamibiaNamibiaNamibiaNamibia

�� ) �� *�� +�� ,��

%�� !��

�� "#

$�� %�� -,��

��.� ��-%�� .��

�� ,��

�� !%+�"� �� /� �

�� !%,�"��

�� !+�"� �� !,�"� � ��

�� #

(�� 0��

� �� +� ��





32

��

��

�� !%+��+�"��

�� !%,��,�"�� 1��

■ TTTTTanzaniaanzaniaanzaniaanzaniaanzania

�� +��

+�� %��

�� #

2� �� %��3�� 2� ��+��%�� #

�� 445�� +��%��

�� *�� ! %+"� ��

�� #

6 �� 6 �� *

�� *��

)�� 3�� 78� ��

�� %��

�� %+�

■ ZanzibarZanzibarZanzibarZanzibarZanzibar

,��1��

+�� %��

�� +�� *��

�� 3�� 1� ��

��

��





33

■ ZimbabweZimbabweZimbabweZimbabweZimbabwe

�� %� � ��9��%��

��#

$�� :�� ! ��;��

<�� !�'"��"� �� ! ��48��

4;��=��'��"#

�� %&��*�� >� ��;� ��

!��'"��

��

!�'"� �� !��'"�

��


�� #

$�� ?�� $�� '��

�� =��*��

�� &��&��


�� )��

�� %� � ��9�#

$�� :�� 48� �� 4;� ��=��*�� '�

��1��





34

A second explanation for the complexity of supervision lies in

the fact that, in addition to the classical services, specific external

school advisers11 can also be identified. In Botswana, where this

service is well organized, a separate department (the Department of

Teacher Training and Development) has existed in the Ministry of

Education since 1989, which organizes teacher support. Within the

Department, there is an in-service training unit. Originally distinct

units existed for primary and secondary education, but they are now

being merged. Eleven well-funded and well-functioning teacher

resource centres, all over the country, report to this unit: they

organize in-service training and visit schools for teacher support, for

needs assessment, feedback and follow-up.

In Namibia, as we saw above, the Directorate of the Inspectorate

and Advisory Services has a Division for Advisory Services, headed

by a SAT. All regions have a section for Advisory Services, with a

number of advisory teachers. In addition, the National Institute for

Educational Development (NIED), which has the status of a

Directorate, provides support services, by developing programmes

and curricula and organizing in-service training. Its staff go out from

time to time to visit schools.

Zanzibar has a set of officers called teacher advisers. In Tanzania,

on the other hand, there are no specific external school advisers.

Teacher resource centres exist, but they seem to organize the

residential in-service courses only, rather than go out to schools. The

situation is similar in Zimbabwe, where there are no specific external

advisers, but an increasing number of resource centres are being set

up.

11. In this document, we consider ‘external school advisers’ only as the staff who go out toschools to offer advice. This therefore excludes, for instance, teacher trainers, based inteacher colleges, for whom school visits are not part of their regular duties.





35

There are two further factors, which can add to the complexity of

the supervision structure. As explained above, different types of

schools (primary/secondary) and specific subjects are under the

supervision of different officers, while it is also difficult to

distinguish supervisors from officers performing purely

administrative tasks. In Botswana, for instance, at primary level, the

SEO is as much a supervisor as an administrative officer, but at

secondary level, separate posts exist for administrative and

pedagogical supervision.

3. Official functions

The job descriptions of the primary-school supervisors in all

countries show evident similarities, although the emphasis differs

from one to another and every country has assigned a few specific

tasks. A synthetic description of the main tasks in each of the four

countries is given in a separate box. Several general comments can

be deduced from this overview. Firstly, in all countries supervisors

at district or local level are expected to fulfil an intricate and wide-

ranging set of tasks, which can be summarized under four points:

• control as such (which includes inspection visits, sometimes

expressed as ‘assessment’ or ‘monitoring’);

• support tasks (both informal guidance and more formal in-service

training or meetings);

• some administrative duties, without a linkage to control or support

(such as: the payment of teacher salaries, the administration of a

school feeding programme); and

• a representation or liaison role.





36

In Namibia, a fifth assignment is explicitly added, namely policy

advice. Zimbabwe allots a similar task exclusively to the central level.

In all cases, the main instrument which allows supervisors to

perform successfully these tasks, is a visit to schools. As we will see

later, because of a combination of practical and budgetary constraints,

school visits are not undertaken as regularly as they should be, and

the whole efficiency of the service suffers.

��

��

��


�� 1�� %�'��

�� 1��

• �� #

• �� !��"� ��

�� *� �� 3�� *��

��1��#

• ��

��#

• �� %�'��

��

�� )�� 6��

�� 1��





37

%�'� !,�� "� ��

�� %�� %�'� !��

��=��"�� /� ��

��=��1��

�� ,��1�� =��*��

�� 1�


�� +�� ,��

%��

• �� /� ��

�� #

• *��

�� #

• ��

�� #

• �� *�� : �� %��?�� #

• ��

�� 1�� 1��,��

��,��%�� =��

��

�� :+�� +��

��1�� %�� @��

��

��





38


�� *%�� +��! %+"� ��

• ��

�� #

• �� #

• ��

��

��#

• �� *�� #

• ��1�� *��


�� =�� 1�

/�� +�� %�� +�� $�� %��

,� �� +�� A��6��1� +�� !�� =�� "�� +��

�� @� �� B�� &��

��


�� '�� /��

��=��

• �� &��

�� #

• �� #

• ��

�� #





39

• ��

�� #

• �� #

• �� B� ��<��& � ��

��=��'��

�� 1��

• �� 3�� *�� #

• �� #

• �� #

• � ��

�� %� � ��9��

• ��

�� #

• �� 3�� *��#

• �� .�

�� #

• �� 1��!��

:B'�� "#

• ��1��





40

Ministries of Education have at least two strategies at their disposal

to simplify the job description and lessen the workload of officers.

Firstly, specific advice-oriented actors can be appointed. This has been

done in Botswana and Namibia, but even then most supervisors retain

a support function. It is indeed difficult for a supervisor not to offer

any advice upon identifying weaknesses in a school. On the other

hand, the combination of advice and control within the same officer

is not necessarily appreciated by teachers. Secondly, specific service

staff can be appointed to handle administrative duties, which would

allow professional officers to concentrate on the core pedagogic

tasks.12 Not one country, however, has created such separate staff.

Only in Botswana, at secondary level, does there exist a separation

between the supervision of schools’ administration and that of

subject teaching.

The burden of administrative duties makes it difficult for

supervisors fully to concentrate on their core tasks. It seems that

priority is being given to the administrative duties, not so much

because supervisors consider them more fundamental, but as these

generally carry an urgency factor. The regional case studies will

illustrate this in more detail.

The distribution of tasks between the different levels (central –

regional – district) and the logic behind this distribution are

somewhat unclear. In Namibia and Botswana, for instance, the

centrally located service has a job description not significantly

different from the district officers. Zimbabwe, on the other hand,

has assigned its central Standards Control Unit a list of tasks which

are more oriented towards system evaluation and information for

12. This was done in Chile, among other places, with success: supervisors are spending muchmore time on their core tasks, and their impact on schools has improved. The strategy isevidently not without an impact on the salary burden.





41

decision-making at central level. In this case, the distinction between

the tasks of central staff and district staff are quite conspicuous, but

there remains less clarity concerning the task distribution between

regional and district offices and, within this last office, between the

EO and the DEOs.

In all four countries, it is more difficult to argue for a specific role

for the regional level, in contrast to the central and the district offices.

Centrally based supervisors can be assigned responsibilities for the

overall planning of the service, for defining guidelines and for giving

policy advice. Locally or district-based staff needs to do the actual

school visits. But, because of its intermediate position, the regional

level has a less straightforward role and a risk of overlap with both

higher and lower-based staff, especially at primary level. The scenario

where secondary schools are concerned is different, as in most

countries secondary-school supervisors remain based for the time

being in regional offices. The distance then created between primary

and secondary-school supervisors can pose another problem.

4. Relations with other services

Supervision is one of several services aimed at improving pedagogical

practices in the classroom. Ideally, the relations between supervision

and services in charge of curriculum development, examination and

testing, and in particular teacher training, should be close and well

organized. In such a way, supervision findings and recommendations

could feed into teacher training and curriculum development, while

there would be a greater rapport between examinations and the

delivered curriculum. Such a coherent set of interventions would offer

more help to teachers, who are at times confused by the conflicting

advice coming from these different sources.





42

In order to arrive at that ideal scenario, two broad factors, on

which this study will comment later, are of particular relevance:

supervision visits should collect information relevant to pedagogical

improvement, while supervision reports need to be disseminated

and acted upon by the different recipients. What is also important

are the contacts, both informal and formal, which exist between

these services; in other words the involvement of supervisors in,

for instance, examination writing, achievement testing or teacher

training. The following paragraphs study the nature and extent of

these relations.


�� !��

� ��"�� 1��

• �� =�� #

• �� *��

�& � ��#

• ��*�� ,��

�� .�� #

• �� +*%��&��

�� :B'��

,��

�� &��

��%�'�� =��

�� 1��

�� & ��=��


+� : �� 1 �� &�� 0��

�� & ��





43

�� & � ��

�� .��

�� +�� ,��

%��


�� *��

�� 1��& � �� *� 1��

*� ��*��

��


+�� +

�� 3��*��

�� %��*��

�� &��1��

�� & � ��


��

�& � �� 1��& � ��

�� /��

��

�� 9�� =��

�� *�� $��

�� +� ��

�'��

!��"�� *��

��3��





44

The above overview shows very different situations.

Relationships between supervision and the other pedagogical

services are close and institutionalized in Botswana, supervisors

being members of committees and panels in charge of curriculum

development, teacher training and examinations. In Zimbabwe, their

involvement is less institutionalized, but still quite intense:

supervisors serve as resource persons in training and participate in

writing test items, marking examinations and preparing evaluation

reports. In Namibia, however, the situation tends to the opposite,

with no formal contacts and very few informal ones between

supervisors and other pedagogical support staff. Supervisors are,

for instance, not represented on the examination board, neither will

they be on the Regional Education Forum. At the time of writing the

national report, this forum was to be set up in each region, in order

to promote and monitor educational development. It was to be

composed of representatives of school boards, community leaders,

church bodies, employers, trade unions, teachers’ unions, student

organizations and NGOs, but without inspectors or advisory teachers.

In Tanzania, in principle, supervisors do sit on curriculum panels

and help with examinations, but in practice their involvement in

pedagogical improvement is limited, because of the practical

constraints on their work.

While the Botswana case seems the most amenable to developing

supervision as an integrated component of a pedagogical

improvement service, it is not without problems. With the ever

increasing number of schools and pressure from within the Ministry

and from the public in general for more inspections, SEOs have found

the duties they do in co-operation with, or on behalf of, other

departments to be an added burden which limits their capacity to

supervise schools more effectively. Indeed, it is difficult to argue that

supervisors need to widen their co-operation with other school and





45

teacher-support services, while recognizing at the same time that at

present they spend too little time on their priority task: supervision.

This raises a number of questions. Firstly, in which fields should

supervisors, as a priority, be involved? The one field which comes

closest to their core task, supervision, is undoubtedly in-service

training. It could be argued that a good school visit should take the

form of an informal training session of school staff. In addition, many

recommendations, which conclude visits, relate to the need for such

training. Ensuring that supervisors work closely together with other

staff in charge of in-service training, might also help in changing the

image of the supervisor in a positive way. A second question concerns

the nature in which supervisors could be involved in other services.

Should it be left to individuals in, for example, their field offices to

decide in what area to be involved or should the supervision service,

as an institution, ensure that its views and opinions are taken into

account? In a similar vein, the choice exists between relying on

informal contacts or formal bodies. What is more important than

defining answers to these questions, is to ensure that some forms of

contact exist between supervisors, teacher trainers, curriculum

developers and others, through, as a minimum, the exchange of

reports, and, where possible, the organization of team visits.

5. School-site supervision

In all countries, the Ministry of Education has realized that it has

become difficult for supervisors, including those posted at

decentralized levels, to effectively monitor what goes on in schools

and to give consistent support to teachers. The numbers of teachers

and schools per supervisor and the poor communications render it

nearly impossible for a supervisor to spend enough time in each single

school. It is believed moreover that schools need to take more





46

responsibility for their own performance and quality and that a

culture of quality assurance can only be developed through promoting

internal school supervision. In view of this, bringing supervision

closer to school, either by clustering schools or by devolving some

supervision and support tasks to the school site and to the school

community, is a general trend everywhere, although to varying

degrees. The actual policies indeed differ quite significantly between

countries.


��

�� $�� 48;��

$��: �� Cthe Head as instructional

leader, together with the deputy and senior teachers, should take major

responsibility for in-service training, through regular observation of teachers

and organization of workshops (…) the Education Officers’ visits to schools

should supplement the school-based in-service training”.�+� ��

�� &��

�� *��

�� !�� "� �� !�� "��

�� B��

� ��

��

�� %� ��

�� *��

4DDE� �� *�� 1

�� 1��

�� !�� "� �� 3��

��





47


%�� *�� &�� +� � ��

�� =�� +��

�� 1��-�� .��

��

��%��

��

��

�� '1 � �� -the officially appointed and

recommended governing body.�� /� �

�� +

�� *� 1��

��


+� � 3 ��

��%�� %+��

� ��

��%��

• ��

�� #

• �� .�

��#

• ��

%�� 1��

• ��

��#

• ��

� �� #

• ��





48


%�� 1��

��


$��*�� @��

� � ��

�� !�� "�� !�� "��

��

�� *��

��%��%�� )� ��

�� &��

��

��'�� '�� &��

�� %��

��!��*��"��%��

,�� !��"��*��

� ��

%�� 2�� +� ��

�� 3��

��

� �� &�� ,��

��

With the exception of Zanzibar, everywhere different actors at

school-site level are being asked to play an increased role in teacher

supervision. A central issue is of course who will receive the

responsibility to assess and assist teachers. Two, not mutually

exclusive, scenarios seem to exist. A first alternative consists of relying

on senior staff, with school principals as the main actors, assisted by





49

deputies and, at least in secondary schools, department heads. These

department heads have the advantage of being subject specialists,

which is not the case for principals. In large primary schools in

Zimbabwe, heads will be assisted by deputy heads and by teachers in

charge, while in Namibia some schools make use of ‘guardian

teachers’ who work with new appointees. In Botswana in particular,

senior staff in schools are increasingly being offered training in school

management, so that they will be able to play a greater role in

supervising and assisting their staff. A second, less common,

alternative consists of setting up a separate board within the school,

consisting of senior staff and possibly representatives from the

administration. This is the case for instance of the School Suitability

Boards in Zimbabwe.

A comment is useful here: all countries point out that in reality

only the bigger schools are actually implementing a policy of in-school

supervision. In general, effective in-school supervision and support

is only visible in a small percentage of primary schools. In Kwekwe

district, in Zimbabwe, the impact of School Suitability Boards is “felt

most in urban schools, where there was less mobility and hence better

retention of experienced heads”. Indeed, primary schools do not only

face problems of size, but also the lack of sufficient experienced staff

and a quick turnover of teachers. Therefore, many, not to say most,

primary schools continue to operate as before.

A reform strategy, more pertinent to the characteristics of many

such schools, consists of creating school clusters, with or without

resource centres at their core. These clusters, which are being set up

in each of the four countries, aim to share expertise and resources

between schools and to strengthen local capacities for in-service

training. Where such clusters are functioning well, they are received

with enthusiasm by school staff and their potential for improving

quality is recognized. The main challenge is to turn what are still





50

somewhat isolated projects into an overall policy. Many, if not most,

resource centres have been set up on the advice of and with funding

by international agencies, as part of donor-funded projects (the

situation in Botswana offers, from that point of view, an exception).

There is an evident need for stronger co-ordination between the

different efforts and, finally, to integrate the school cluster resource

centres into an overall supervision policy. Such a policy should respect

the original mandate of these centres, without turning them into

another administrative level, with the same weaknesses and

constraints as, for instance, the district offices.

The devolution of supervision to the local level can also imply an

increased reliance on school communities. In all four countries, some

structure, representing the community, exists. They carry names such

as Parent-Teacher Associations, Boards of Governors or School

Development Committees. Their official authorities differ: in Tanzania,

the School Committee has quite wide-ranging powers, including in

the pedagogical field. In Zimbabwe, on the other hand, School

Development Committees or Associations have no explicit

supervision or support tasks. In reality, the situation is probably not

very different from one country to another, with communities seldom

exercising whatever powers they might have in supervision and

support. The case study on Kwekwe district in Zimbabwe commented

that “communities are only involved in the physical development of

schools. Reports on teachers were not discussed with communities

and their responsible authorities. Supervisors rarely met communities

when visiting schools.”

The current policy reforms, however timidly implemented, imply

nonetheless a strengthening of in-school and close-to-school

supervision. This has, as far as can be deduced from the studies, not

yet been accompanied by a reformulation of the roles of external





51

supervisors. Botswana, as was seen, has created a specific category

of teacher-support personnel, the staff development co-ordinators,

who help secondary-school staff identify training needs for a group

of neighbouring schools. The available information on the four

countries points to the need to rethink the overall organization of

the supervision services and to re-assign tasks to the different levels

and actors, starting from the school itself.







53

II. MANAGEMENT OF SUPERVISION AND SUPPORTSERVICES

1. Basic facts and figures

(a) The present profile of schoolsupervisors

This paper has already pointed out that supervisors are burdened

with too many schools for them to be able to offer effective

supervision of the primary schools within their area of operation.

The potential of the supervision system to influence teaching/

learning practices in schools is a function of the number of schools

to be supervised and the number of teachers to be guided by each

supervisor. However, any judgement on the adequacy of supervision

depends very much on what is expected from supervisors. Having

15 schools per inspector could be considered manageable, if his or

her main role is supposed to be a swift inspection of the school’s

management and administration. But if a supervisor is expected to

offer consistent and continuous support to all teachers, then the ratio

of teachers/supervisor is the one to look at: having about 100 teachers

per supervisor is probably the upper limit. In other words, any

assessment about the numbers of supervisors depends on the role

assigned to the service.

Table 5 presents the number of officers in supervision and support

compared to the number of teachers and schools, and then calculates

the school/supervisor and teacher/supervisor ratios.





54

Table 5. Numbers of schools, teachers and supervisors,1997-199813

Country Posts14 Numbers Numbers Numbers School/ Teacher/of staff of of supervisor supervisor

schools teachers ratio ratio

Botswana Primary supervisors 35 718 12,785 20.5 365Secondary supervisors 28 230 6,214 8.2 222External advisers 67 948 18,999 14.1 284All officers 130 948 18,999 7.3 146

Namibia Inspectors 50 1,449 16,759 29.0 335Advisory teachers 148 1,449 16,759 9.8 113All officers 198 1,449 16,759 7.3 85Occupied posts 129 1,449 16,759 11.2 130

Tanzania Primary inspectors 428 11,151 105,916 26.0 247

Zanzibar Primary inspectors 14 161Secondary inspectors 5 64

Zimbabwe Primary supervisors 309 4,670 63,900 15.1 207Secondary supervisors 156 1,531 29,074 9.8 186

One unknown quantity in this table concerns the number of vacant

posts. Only Namibia gave specific information on this issue. While

the inspectorate is almost fully staffed (48 of the 50 posts are filled),

vacancies are a serious problem for the advisory service. About 40 per

cent of the posts (67 out of 148) were unfilled in November 1997. In

Ondangwa West for instance, only eight out of 23 posts are filled.

The total number of teachers to be reached by these advisory teachers

is 4,079, more than 500 per occupied post, rather than 180 when all

posts would have been filled. In Botswana, it seems that two posts

have been left vacant, as there are 37 inspectoral areas at primary

level and only 35 inspectors.

13. Data in italics are taken from the UNESCO Statistical Yearbook and concern 1996 (forBotswana) and 1997 (for Tanzania). For Tanzania, the data had to be computed on thebasis of the information available in the UNESCO Yearbook (which concerns the UnitedRepublic) and deducting data obtained separately for Zanzibar. For Zanzibar, the nationalreport contains only the ratios, not the raw numbers.

14. As identified under Chapter I.2.




Management of supervision and support services

55

It is difficult to compare between countries: officers do not have

the same job description, and, in two countries, Namibia and

Botswana, the role played by specialized advisory staff, who cover

both primar y and secondary schools, needs to be taken into

consideration. This notwithstanding, a few points can be noted:

• Primary inspectors have to supervise, on average, 15 schools in

Zanzibar and Zimbabwe, 20 in Botswana, 26 in Tanzania and 29 in

Namibia. The number of teachers varies from just over 160 in

Zanzibar, 200 in Zimbabwe and 250 in Tanzania, to 335 in Namibia

and 365 in Botswana. However, in these last two countries

inspectors can count on ‘advisers’ to help them.

• At secondary level, there is little difference between Botswana

and Zimbabwe: a supervisor is, on average, in charge of about 10

schools and 200 teachers. Zanzibar is in a much better position: a

supervisor oversees 5 schools only and 64 teachers. However,

these figures are misleading as, at this level, supervisors work by

subject. One should therefore examine the charge of specific-

subject staff. This was done in Zimbabwe and we can note for

instance that there are 14 English subject officers for 4,058 teachers

in that subject (a ratio of 290 teachers per officer), 11 mathematics

officers for 3,490 teachers (a ratio of 317) and 12 Science officers

for 3954 teachers (a ratio of 330 teachers).

There exists also quite detailed information by region

(understandably this is not the case for Zanzibar). In some countries,

this information is available in the Ministry of Education as part of

the ‘normal’ data on education, but in others (Namibia, for example)

a special data collection exercise had to be undertaken. We were able

to compare the presence of supervisors between regions for three

countries. Table 6 gives some details.





56

Table 6. Disparities in supervisors’ posting by region15

School/supervisor ratio Teacher/supervisor ratio

Average Lowest Highest Average Lowest Highest

Botswana 20.5 17.5 22 Not available

Namibia 30.2 18.0 43.6 349 220 510

Zimbabwe 15.1 8.2 18.2 207 194 240

Interpreting these data, especially school/supervisor ratios, to

draw conclusions about regional disparities, needs to be done with

care. We do not know the density of the school network, the transport

possibilities or the differences in school size. It is more useful to look

at teacher/supervisor ratios, although care is still warranted. The

differences in Namibia are striking. The ratios vary from 220 teachers

per supervisor (Rundu) to 510 (Ondangwa West). In this last region,

supervisors also have the highest number of schools under their

charge. Windhoek, the capital region, not surprisingly has the lowest

number of schools per supervisor, but still more than the average

number of teachers. In Zimbabwe, the differences are smaller: the

average number of teachers per supervisor varies from 194 to 240.

In addition, we should remember that differences can also exist

within offices, as a result of the criteria used for distributing schools

between officers. This can be on the basis of the number of schools,

but the main criterion can also be geographic-administrative, each

officer being assigned one or more administrative sub-divisions,

which form a geographic entity. The information on the Central

region in Botswana, although not very detailed, shows the existence

of differences within an office: two inspectors oversee between 10

and 19 schools, another two between 20 and 29 schools. However,

15. Note that for Botswana existing posts were used rather than occupied posts, while theopposite is the case for Namibia, which explains the difference with Table 5.





57

all four have between 300 and 350 teachers. In the Kwekwe district

in Zimbabwe, each DEO is responsible for 22 or 23 schools. The

number of teachers under their charge varies between 266 in the

rural circuits with smaller schools and 455 in the one urban circuit. A

similar situation exists for secondary schools, with the school/

supervisor ratio ranging between 6 and 10 and the teacher/supervisor

ratio between 94 and 282.

The following points emerge from the above paragraphs:

• The number of schools and teachers for which supervisors are

responsible, seem, at first sight, manageable, with a school/

supervisor ratio varying from 15 to 30. Much depends however on

the supervision and support these officers are expected to give to

schools and on their working conditions. For instance, if

supervisors are supposed to have consistent and regular contacts

with schools, and if the distance between schools and the scarcity

of transport renders travelling arduous and time-consuming, the

present number of schools is too high. If, on the contrary, the main

task of a supervisor is to inspect a school once a term, and travelling

and working conditions are not constraining, then the ratio can be

considered acceptable.

• Differences in workload between regions and/or districts and

between officers within districts can be fairly great. Some of these

are not surprising, with urban staff having to oversee more teachers

than rural staff, who experience more transport problems and

work with smaller schools. It is fairly clear however that one

criterion, which could have been used in the distribution of

schools between offices, namely the school’s need for more or less

supervision, is not taken into account. The distribution remains

done on an administrative basis, the underlying assumption being

that all schools without distinction need similar supervision. The





58

actual number of staff would be sufficient, if this staff were well

equipped (especially with transport) and if these officers would

focus their attention on the most needy schools.

(b) Profile of supervisory officers

The five countries did not collect exactly the same data on the

supervisors. But what is available offers a general impression of the

profile of the “typical” school supervisor. We will at the end of this

rather dry overview discuss some of its implications. The following

is an overview of the data collected.

(i) By age

� �� *�� !��

Table 7 ��Figure 2"�� 3 � ��2�� *�� ;8�

�� : �� :�� 3 ��

>8��+�)�� 2 3� ��

� �� >8�� *�&��58��

%�� )�� 2��

��!��Table 8 ��Figure 3"��)�� 7F��

��;8�� 2�� *��

4;E��&�� !��Table 9 ��Figure 4"�

�)�� =��>8��: �� 78��

��;8��6�� 1��





59

�� 4E

�� !�� !�� !�� !�� !�� !��!��!��!��!��

58*5D E E 8 ; <

>4*>D 4< 74 4E8 4F <;

;8G 47 74 7EF D 77<

�� 5; >F >7F 57 58D

"�� #�"�� #�"�� #�"�� #�"�� #� �� $�� $�� $�� $�� $��

��%��%��%��%��%� ��

�� !��!��!��!��!��

58*5D 45 E

>4*>D 4> DE

;8�G 4 ;>

�� 7F 4;E

16. The table concerns, for Namibia, all supervisors as they are responsible for both primaryand secondary schools, and, for Zanzibar, all supervisors (primary and secondary) andadvisory teachers.





60

"�� &�"�� &�"�� &�"�� &�"�� &� �� $�� $�� $�� $�� $��

�� '�� '�� '�� '�� '� ()�� ()�� ()�� ()�� ()��

��

58*5D >E 55

>4*>D 47 58

;8G D 4F

�� E< F4

"�� *�"�� *�"�� *�"�� *�"�� *� �� )�� )�� )�� )�� )��





61

(ii) By length of service

+��

� �� &�� !Table 11 �

Figure 6"��?��

� ��78�� 1�� 1��'��: �� 3� ��

�� /� �� &��

�� 4DD8��

�� : �� !Table 10

��Figure 5"� �� &��

��&��

� �� 4;� �� )�� %�� *

��2�� &��

�� !Table 12"�� +�)�� *

��

�� 48�� .��&��&�� &��

�� !Table 13 ��Figure 7"�� &��

��

,��

��+��H��1��2�� *��

�� &��

�� 45� ��

�� 48�� +��'� ��

6��: �� ;>�� #��

�� &�� 48�� &� ��

�� 5E#��

�� *��

�� &��





62

��+��+��+��+��+,�,�,�,�,� �� -�� .�� -�� .�� -�� .�� -�� .�� -�� .

/////��

8*D 7; 57

48*4D 48 45

78� �� 8 5

�� 5; >F

"�� 0�"�� 0�"�� 0�"�� 0�"�� 0� ()�� $�� ()�� $�� ()�� $�� ()�� $�� ()�� $��

��+��+��+��+��++++++��

/////�� !�� !�� !�� !�� !�� +++++�� !��!��!��!��!��

8*D 7 8 4 4

48*4D 47 44 > 7>

78*7D 74 558 75 44D

58� �� 45 F< > 4E;

�� >F >7F 57 58D

17. Includes all supervisors (primary and secondary) and advisory teachers.





63

"�� 1�"�� 1�"�� 1�"�� 1�"�� 1� /////��)��)��)��)��)�� $�� $�� $�� $�� $��

��+��+��+��+��+#�#�#�#�#� �� 4F

/////�� !��!��!��!��!��

8*D 7; 8

48*4D 5 74

78*7D 8 48E

58� �� 8 7D

�� 7F >F

��+��+��+��+��+&�&�&�&�&� ()�()�()�()�()��4D

/////��

8*D E> < E5

48*4D 5 5E 4E

78*7D 8 7E 7

58� �� 8 47 8

�� E< F4 F4

18. For Botswana: length of service as supervisor; for Zimbabwe: total length of service.19. For Botswana: length of service as external adviser; for Namibia: first column: total length

of service; second column: length of service as external adviser.





64

"�� "�� "�� "�� "�� /////��)��)��)��)��)��)�)�)�)�)��

(iii) By qualifications

�� /� �� 1��

��'�� /��

��!��Table 14 ��Figure 8"��1��

��

�� #�� ! �� 1�� "#

�� +�)�� : ��

�� *��

�� ,��

�� ! �)��"�� +�� 3 �

��>7F�� 547�� -'.

�� 2 3� �� 3 ��

�� 1��

�� =�� +�2�� )�I��

� ��

)�� /��

��!��TablesI15 �I16"�� =��!� ��

�� 1��"��

�� &��





65

��+��+��+��+��+*�*�*�*�*� �� 2 �� 2 �� 2 �� 2 �� 2 ��78

3 ��3 ��3 ��3 ��3 �� !�� !�� !�� !�� !�� !��!��!��!��!��

�� 7 47 547 E 4;D

�� 48 48 44> 4E 4E

)�� 4D 74 7 > 47D

�� > ; 8 E ;

�� 5; >F >7F 57 58D

"�� %�"�� %�"�� %�"�� %�"�� %� �� 2 �� 2 �� 2 �� 2 �� 2 ��

��+��+��+��+��+0�0�0�0�0� �� 2��2��2��2��2 ��

3 ��3 ��3 ��3 ��3 �� !��!��!��!��!��

�� /�� 7 ;

)��/�� 45 4;4

��/�� 45

�� 7F 4;E

20. The nomenclature regarding qualifications differs from country to country. More detaileddata can be found in the national reports.





66

��+��+��+��+��+1�1�1�1�1� ()�� 2 ��()�� 2 ��()�� 2 ��()�� 2 ��()�� 2 ��

3 ��3 ��3 ��3 ��3 ��

�� /�� 48 D

�� /�� ; F

)��/�� 7E ;7

��/�� 7E 47

�� E< F4

(iv) By gender

?��

�� &�� )�� !Figure 9

��Table 17��6��

: �� ! ��<� �� "� ��2�� ! ��D� �� "��

;8*E8��)�� +��

�� !Table 18"��

�� =�� =��

�� 9�� /� ��

�� =��

��

��=��





67

"�� '�"�� '�"�� '�"�� '�"�� '� � ��

��+��+��+��+��+��

4� ��4� ��4� ��4� ��4� �� 55555 "��"��"��"��"�� 55555

)�� 5; 74 E8�8 4> >8�8

%�� 7F 4< E8�< 44 5D�5

�&�� E< 7< >8�5 >8 ;D�<

,�� 458 E; ;8�8 E; ;8�8

: �� +�� >F >; D5�F 5 E�5

,�� F4 >D E8�; 57 5D�;

,�� 47D D> <7�D 5; 7<�4

� 3 �� >7F 5;7 F7�7 <E 4<�F

2 3� � ,�� 57 7> <;�8 F 7;�8

2�� 58D 7FF D5�7 74 E�F

%�� 4;E 4>8 FD�< 4E 48�5

,�� >E; >7F D7�8 5< F�8





68

��+��+��+��+��+%�%�%�%�%� ��

4� ��4� ��4� ��4� ��4� ��

�� %�� %��

)�� <<J >8J >5J 5DJ

� 3 � ��2 3� � >>J 4FJ

2�� >>J <J 5EJ 48J

The typical primary-school supervisor is a man with a lot of

experience, who has made his career in the education service, first

as a teacher, then as a headteacher, to become finally a supervisor.

Such wide experience makes up for what is, in many cases, a lack of

academic qualifications. The question must be asked if this is the most

appropriate profile when we think of the supervisor as a collegial

innovator, someone who will spread examples of good practice

between schools, or if this profile is more adapted to the concept of

a control-oriented supervisor, who puts reliance on his administrative

authority. A related question is: does this profile need to be changed,

through, for instance, reforming the recruitment rules and

regulations. The comparison with the profiles of secondary-school

supervisors and advisory teachers is quite instructive: they are

generally younger, therefore with less experience (especially as a

headteacher) but with higher qualifications. Two factors explain this

difference: recruitment rules coupled with the relatively recent

creation of these posts.

2. Critical management issues

The effectiveness with which supervisors perform their duties,

depends not simply on their own competence and their profile, but

very much on the ways in which their profession is being managed

by the national authorities. Management implies aspects such as:

recruitment rules and career development opportunities; the training





69

and support of which supervisors can benefit; and the ways in which

they are being monitored and evaluated.

(a) Recruitment

Table 19 summarizes the recruitment procedures and the

requirements, in terms of qualifications and experience, for each

country.

��+��+��+��+��+'�'�'�'�'� 6�� 6�� 6�� 6�� 6��

�� 4��4��4��4��4��

K� �� &��

)�� '�� %�� *

!�� " �� 5

��

)�� '�� F�� .��

!�� " �� &��

/� ��

��

: �� '�� )��G�5�� G�5��

�� &��

)��G�47�� &��

� 3 :�� # �� ;�� .��

�� &��

��

��

2 3� � �� &��

��

2�� L � �� )��

�� ! �� *

�� "

While examining these procedures and criteria, and looking at

the same time at the actual practices, five issues come to the fore.

Recruitment criteria need to be clear and transparent. In Tanzania,

the lack of unambiguous official criteria guiding the selection of





70

candidates is a problem. Moreover, appointees are not always

consulted to find out if they are interested in the post of inspector.

This situation can give rise to favouritism and consequently the

appointment of less competent and less motivated candidates.

Practising inspectors themselves deplore the present situation and

those in the Muheza district suggested different improvements,

including advertising the posts to allow competent and committed

teachers to apply and making the selection criteria transparent. In

the other countries, criteria are clear and the information available

in the case studies in Botswana and Zimbabwe confirms that these

official procedures are indeed respected.

A second issue concerns the definition of criteria and in particular

the relative emphasis placed on experience and academic

qualifications. Several countries (Namibia, Zanzibar) do not expect

an applicant for a post as inspector to have experience as a

headteacher. In Botswana, the same is true for a secondary-school

supervisor, who only needs to have occupied a senior position in

school. The result seems that, once SEOs are recruited from amongst

senior teachers, they are often disrespected by school heads, who

consider them to be their juniors. The fact that some supervisors are

occupying a post with a lower grade than secondary principals,

aggravates the issue. This problem does not exist at primary level in

Botswana, where all supervisors have had to be successful primary-

school heads. On the other hand, the EOs interviewed in the Central

region are concerned about the qualifications required and feel that

there is a need to recruit individuals with at least a degree. This,

however, could well make it more difficult to attract people with

sufficient primary teaching background, as these do not necessarily

have high academic degrees. Tanzania, where in 1997 the minimum

qualification was upgraded from ‘O’ level to Diploma, might face a

similar dilemma in the future. The choice between ‘qualifications’





71

and ‘experience’ needs to be guided both by a vision of the expected

role of the supervisors, but also by the need for them to be accepted

and respected by school staff. In the longer term, that choice will

become less and less of a dilemma, with the increased qualifications

of the whole population.

A third issue is that of age: while the official regulations in general

do not demand experience in schools of more than 10 or 12 years,

most supervisors can look back on a much longer career in education.

Maybe the present regulations imply somewhat that promotion to

the post of inspector is a reward for a successful career in schools,

rather than a recognition of particular capacities.

Another concern is with the low number of female applicants. In

various countries, females tend not to apply much, because of the

long distances they have to travel to visit schools and the prolonged

absences from the family. Zimbabwe, which is faced with this issue,

requires heads of offices to write individually to qualified women

inviting them to apply.

Finally, it is not clear in how far competence or excellence in the

previous job plays more than an informal role in the recruitment

procedures. One exception is the Botswana in-service officer, who is

recruited on the basis of exemplary classroom practice. A useful

selection criterion, in the case of supervisors, could be successful

performance as a teacher and as a headteacher. This of course raises

the delicate issue of how to interpret and assess ‘excellence’ and who

will be the judge.

(b) Career development

Promotion possibilities in all four countries are limited, due to

the pyramidal structure. In most cases, the post of supervisor, either





72

at primary or secondary level, is the last post in an officer’s career. In

the rare cases where promotion is possible, it will lead to a post

outside of supervision.

There are some specificities in each country. In Botswana, the

decentralization process has brought about some change by enabling

more movement within the service. Senior staff in secondary schools

can be promoted to supervisors without having experience as

headteacher. However, as supervisors, they will then be on a lower

grade and salary scale than some secondary principals, a position

which renders their inspection job very difficult. Tanzania has one

specificity: supervisory officers belong to the same cadre as teachers.

As such, there are no differences in conditions of service, salary

structure or other benefits. This also implies that some teachers can

be of a higher grade than their inspecting officers, a situation similar

to that of secondary supervisors in Botswana. In Zimbabwe, the main

step up the career ladder for a DEO is to become an EO. However, for

this they should be university graduates, and the number of EO posts

is limited: 68, as compared to 241 DEOs, who are not the only possible

candidates. On the whole, therefore, promotion possibilities,

especially within the field of supervision and support, are scarce.

(c) Training

The need for more and better training – both at the beginning

and during their career – is a recurring demand of supervisors in the

Eastern and Southern African region. The following paragraphs give

an overview of the situation in each country.

+�BotswanaBotswanaBotswanaBotswanaBotswana�� *��

�� 1��

�� 5;� �� 7>� ��

�� &� �� *��1� ��





73

�� *��9H��

�� ,��

��$�'�� !��1�"��

�� *�� ,��

�� !��

� ��

��"� �� *�� 1��

��

��

,�� &��

��

• � �� /� ��#

• �� '� �� 1��#

• �� -��.��

,� � �� 1��

�� &��

+*�� '�� *��

�� :��

��*�� *��

��

4F*�� *��

+�� Namibia Namibia Namibia Namibia Namibia �� *�&��

�� +� � �� -��.� ��

�&�� 3��

�� *��

�� 1� � �� @�� *��

��

�� TTTTTanzaniaanzaniaanzaniaanzaniaanzania��+��

�� *��





74

��&�� @�� 1��

�� 1�� /��

�� ?��

�� 1�� %��*��

�� 3�� 1�� +��3

�� 45� �� 4F� ��

�� 1��

��1�� 1�� =��

�� %��(� ��& � �� ,��

+�ZanzibarZanzibarZanzibarZanzibarZanzibar�� *�� &��

57I�� *�� @��

��

�� 1��

�� 1��

+�ZimbabweZimbabweZimbabweZimbabweZimbabwe�� 3�� *��1� ��

��

�� &��*��1

�� 1�

�� +�H��1�� &

�� 1��

��

� �� 1�� ,��&��

�� 1��

�&��

+*�� 3�� ?��H��1��

�� *��

�� 1�

� ��*�� %� �� ,��

��





75

The overall impression gained from the national and regional

studies is preoccupying: on the one hand, an insufficiency of

induction and in-service training, coupled with worries about its

relevance and quality; and, on the other hand, arguably more crucially,

the absence of a coherent and motivating professional development

programme. Let us look at each of these points consecutively.

A formal induction training programme exists in Botswana and

Zimbabwe and used to exist in Tanzania, until budget cuts led to its

virtual disappearance. Even in the first two countries, not every newly

appointed supervisor attends these courses. Almost everywhere,

however, decentralized offices have put in place some mentor system,

whereby a new recruit accompanies a more experienced supervisor

for a few weeks. Such training is considered by the supervisors to be

both useful and cost-effective. It could be argued that the best training

is offered by the practitioners themselves, but it could also be true

that such training leads to a reproduction of existing practices and

leaves little opportunity for a renewed vision.

While a number of in-service training courses take place, they are

not integrated within an overall capacity-building programme, neither

do they focus sufficiently on supervision issues. Many of those are

ad-hoc affairs, related to the implementation of a particular project.

Supervisors ask for more training, but especially for a better-organized

programme with a more relevant content. At the same time, budgetary

constraints have been especially hard on training, the result being

that a significant number of staff have not had the opportunity recently

to attend any courses.

The impact of much of this capacity building is limited because of

the almost complete absence of training manuals and because no

corresponding training is given to support staff or school heads.

Efforts have been under way to develop, at regional level, such





76

materials, with assistance from the Commonwealth Secretariat. Not

in one country can one speak of a comprehensive professional

development programme which integrates training of different types,

with the provision of manuals, supportive evaluation of supervisors

and career development.

(d) Support

Supervisors need a motivating working environment. Regular

training is one aspect, enjoyable working conditions is another. Not

unimportant is the availability of a number of instruments, such as

manuals and guidelines, which help them to fulfil their tasks

effectively and breaks to some extent the feeling of isolation. In all

four countries, some instruments are available, but few go beyond

the rather administrative forms and circulars. In addition, the regional

case studies showed that not all field staff members have these

materials at their disposal. There is a risk in having too many or too

precise standard report forms and/or circulars, namely that

supervisors are put in a straitjacket, which allows for little creativity.

That risk however does not yet occur in any of the four countries,

where the support materials available to supervisors are scarce and

not integrated into an overall framework.

+�BotswanaBotswanaBotswanaBotswanaBotswana�� 1��

�&�� ,��

�� *��

��=��+�NamibiaNamibiaNamibiaNamibiaNamibia��

��&�� '� �� 6�� &��

��$��

�� *��'� �� 6��

�� =��

�� .��

� ��





77

�� %��

��

��

+�TTTTTanzaniaanzaniaanzaniaanzaniaanzania�� .�� 1� ��

� ��

��'�� Zanzibar

�� +�ZimbabweZimbabweZimbabweZimbabweZimbabwe��

��

�� H��1��

��@��

�� =��

�� '�� '��

�� 1��

Supervisors could find additional support from meeting and

discussing with their colleagues through professional organizations.

No such organization exists in Botswana, Namibia, Tanzania or

Zanzibar. There has been a demand in Botswana for the constitution

of a body to enable more interaction between officers. In Zimbabwe,

the National Association of Education Officers is a sub-body of the

officially recognized Zimbabwe Teachers’ Association.

(e) Monitoring and evaluation

A first question, when discussing monitoring, concerns the

identity and position of the person who does the monitoring. In

principle, in all four countries, supervisory officers are monitored

by their superior officers. In Botswana, for instance, Principal

Education Officers were recently appointed to monitor and provide

direction and leadership to supervisors. In Tanzania, however, the

situation is somewhat more complicated, as the PSIs working at

district level are technically accountable to the District Executive





78

Director, who is accountable to Local Government and thus to the

Prime Minister’s Office. The Ministry of Education is not involved in

that process. However, the Chief Inspector of Schools and the Zonal

Chief Inspectors do evaluate PSIs on a number of professional matters.

Probably more important is a second question: how (through

which process) and on what basis (which criteria/indicators) is staff

performance assessed? The following paragraphs examine these

issues in the four countries.


�� &��

�� $�� '��!$�'"��,��

��$�'�� 1��

�� /� ��

� ��

��

�� %� �� *

�� &��

��

�� *��

��

Namibia Namibia Namibia Namibia Namibia ��

��=�� ,��

�� %��

�� +�� ,��%��

� ��

� ��%��,��

�� 6� ��

��: �� 1�� 1��

=��





79

+�TTTTTanzaniaanzaniaanzaniaanzaniaanzania�� *��

�� 1��

��

��

+�ZanzibarZanzibarZanzibarZanzibarZanzibar�� @� ��

��

�� *��

��

+�ZimbabweZimbabweZimbabweZimbabweZimbabwe�� *�� 3��

�� '�.� �� '�� 1��

��

��

��

�� 1�� +

��

=�� & � ��

��

Supervisors, as in many other countries, are assessed mainly on

the basis of the quantity of their work: the number of visits made and

the number of reports written. However, and this is a positive

development, some stress is being put on a few other factors which

give a more complete view of their performance, e.g. their handling

of teacher misconduct (in Botswana) and the guidelines they prepare

(in Zanzibar).

Evaluation is becoming more of a participatory activity than one

imposed from outside by the superior. Indeed, in Botswana, Namibia

and Zimbabwe, supervisors are evaluated by comparing their actual

performance to plans and objectives, which they themselves defined

at the beginning of the year. On the other hand, several officers in





80

21. Exchange rates, in February 1998, at the moment of the data collection on this part, wereas follows: US$1 = Botswana P3.82 = Namibia $4.92 = Tanzania Sh627.95 = Zimbabwe$17.

different countries stress the need for more transparency and more

specific guidelines, in order to allow less room for subjectivity and

nepotism.

Finally, the ideal assessment criterion for a supervisor relates

undoubtedly to the impact their visits and activities have on schools’

achievement. For well-known reasons (the difficulty to assess the part

supervision plays in school improvement), few countries anywhere

in the world rely on this indicator. It is therefore pleasant to note

that in one country, Zimbabwe, some reference is made to the

examination results of schools to judge the performance of a

supervisor.

3. Budgetary and financial matters

(a) Salaries and allowances21

The following paragraphs describe for each country, firstly, the

present situation with regard to salaries and allowances and,

secondly, the opinions of the staff who were interviewed in the

framework of the regional case studies.

+�BotswanaBotswanaBotswanaBotswanaBotswana��

��

�� *��

,�� *��

�� =��

��

�� +��

�� !�� 4�;4� �� 8�D5��1��





81

� �� "��,��

� �� !� ��)�� -��."��6��

�� <;� ��

��

6�� &�� $�'��

��

��'�� &��

good��fair� �� poor��%��

�� 44E�1�

��

�� Namibia Namibia Namibia Namibia Namibia

4DDE�� ,��

�� =��

��Table 20 �� .

�&��6��

� �� %��

��

�� =��

��#,��#,��#,��#,��#,� ��7�� -+��7�� -+��7�� -+��7�� -+��7�� -+''''''''''�.��.��.��.��.��

��)��)��)��)��)��

8��8��8��8��8�� -��9.��-��9.��-��9.��-��9.��-��9.

%�� '�� 44D�757

�� %�� %�� 444�>4>

+��

�� %�� 487�77;

�� A��%�� %��

,��

@� �� DE�D>;

B� �� E8�888





82

��

� �� &��:M<8I��

� �� +��

��:M<8��

�� '� �� 6��

�� %�� 44� ��

�� very poor� ��poor�� fair��

��good� �� very good��

�� very poor�� poor��

�� %��

�� #� ��

�� 1�

�� %�� %�� 1��

�� 6��

��1��

+�TTTTTanzaniaanzaniaanzaniaanzaniaanzania��

��

��

%��,�� 9%M47�;��9%M55�5��@��

��

��

�� 1�� 3� ��

��1��

%��

� � �� /� �� +

��

��

�� =�� %&��

�� 4DD;��

��





83

+�ZanzibarZanzibarZanzibarZanzibarZanzibar�� /� ��

��1�� &��

��

�� %��

:�� 3��

��

?�� =�� &�� 4DD;� �ZimbabZimbabZimbabZimbabZimbabwwwwweeeee��

�� 58�� A��4DD<��&��

� ��

�� *�� -� � �� .� ��

�� Table 21 ��

� �� 4�A��4DD<��

�� */� ��

��

��! �� +��++��+++��

��"��

��1�� 1��

��#��#��#��#��#+++++�� !��7�� !��7�� !��7�� !��7�� !��7��

�� :�; ��+�:�; ��+�:�; ��+�:�; ��+�:�; ��+''''''''''��

8��8��8��8��8�� <� ��<� ��<� ��<� ��<� �� -��!��9.-��!��9.-��!��9.-��!��9.-��!��9. ��

�' 4>>�5<7 78F 5>D

@� � 4>>�5<7%�� %��+

��' 47E�;<E 78F 5>D

@� � 47E�;<E%�� %��++

@� � 48E�557%�� %��+++�0 �� %��+

%��B� �� FF�<>8

@� � <>�>E8 �� %��+++

9�� %�� 57�;F8





84

,�� '�� '�� &��

�� 6��

�� 1�� !��

��"��

��

��!��4DDF"��2M<88�� 2M;8��

� �� !�� 2M;8"#

2M<8� ��2MF8�� #�2M7�F8��1��

�� 2M5�44��1��

%� ��

��

� ��+�� 1��

��

The level of supervisors’ salaries differs of course with the level

of development of the country and the salaries paid to other public

servants and in the private sector. They are relatively low in Tanzania,

quite a bit higher in Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe. In the last

two countries, salaries of education personnel recently increased

substantially, but in part to make up for the fact that they had lagged

behind for a long time. Salaries everywhere depend mainly on

position and experience, with no consideration for performance.

Most interviewed supervisors express some dissatisfaction with

their salaries. This is not simply because they are considered too low,

a complaint not unique to supervisors, but also because of what could

be called management-related problems: some supervisors are paid

less than the staff they have to monitor and advise; others are not

paid exactly according to their present post. On the other hand,

among the interviewed there are practically no complaints about not

being paid on time.





85

The official level of allowances is probably sufficient for

supervisors to travel and to find acceptable accommodation, in all

countries except Tanzania, where budgetary problems are more

severe than elsewhere. In the other countries, complaints relate

mainly to the fact that obtaining such allowances, both before

travelling or after visits, is a time-consuming bureaucratic exercise.

(b) Budgets

Where the budget for supervision is concerned, two questions

are paramount: what is the size of the budget, in absolute terms and

in comparison to the overall education budget; and, who controls

the release of the funds, or, in other words, what financial autonomy

do individual supervisors have? The answer to the first question is

everywhere very difficult to find, as there seldom exists a specific

budget for supervision services. Spending on supervision mainly

consists of two items: salaries of supervisors and travel and

subsistence allowances. It should not be complicated – although time-

consuming – to get precise salary data. The budget for allowances is

much more difficult to grasp, as these are generally assigned to

regional offices as a whole, who use them for different purposes.

The following overview shows that there are some differences

between countries, but that, on the whole, information is scarce. The

most relevant data come from the interviews during the case studies,

and represent the opinions of the staff rather than statistical data.

Namibia Namibia Namibia Namibia Namibia ��

�� &�� &��

��-��.��

��

��

�� 9��





86

��

��


�� +� ��

� �� 1��

�� 3��

�� C�� '��

�� *�&��#�+� ��&��N��

��

+�TTTTTanzaniaanzaniaanzaniaanzaniaanzania�� /� ��

��

�� !�� "

� �� 3 ��

��

�� 1��

+�ZimbabweZimbabweZimbabweZimbabweZimbabwe�� &� ��

�� & �� ,��

��1�� D7�<��

�� %��

8�;�� +*��

�� 8�8F��

��

�� +� ��

�� +

�� -��.� �� - ��

��.�� 1�� 6��'

��

��

��

� �� 1��





87

Unfortunately, no specific data are available anywhere concerning

the size of the supervision budget, in absolute terms and in

comparison to the overall education budget. However, the bit of

anecdotal evidence which exists, indicates that spending on

supervision consumes only a very small percentage of the total

education budget. The opinions of supervisors point at a more

preoccupying reality, namely that spending on supervision has

suffered disproportionally in recent years from the financial crisis.

This has had severe detrimental effects on the quality of the service.

Concerning the second issue – who controls the release of the

funds, or, in other words, what financial autonomy do individual

supervisors have –, only in Botswana do supervisors receive their

own travel budget, which does not mean that they have complete

financial leeway. But that situation is probably preferable over the

one existing in the other three countries, where regional office heads

have control over the budget and might consider other priorities than

supervision.

4. Working conditions

When examining working conditions, several factors should be

looked at: the availability and quality of offices, office equipment and

support staff, at central and decentralized levels; the housing situation

and the distance between home and office, and, most importantly,

the transport of the staff who have to undertake school visits and

therefore need easy access to schools. The situation differs widely

from one country to the other.

+�BotswanaBotswanaBotswanaBotswanaBotswana�� /� ��

��@� �/� �� 1�

�� /� ��#

�� '�� 3 ��!��'"��





88

� �� #� � ��

�� %��

�� .��@�� %��

$��

� �� /�� /��

��

�� ,�� &��

� �� /��

��

�� !�� 1�

��"� ��

�� 1�� &��

� ��&��$�'�� ,��

�� @ ��

��

�� >&>��

�� $�'��

��'�� *��

�� $��

�� $�'�� @��

%�'�� '��

'��-� �� .��

��1�� &�� -�� .�

�� 1� �� 1 ��

��

6��1�� Namibia Namibia Namibia Namibia Namibia �� /��'��

� ��/�� /� �� '��

�� &��

��

�� 3��





89

�� %��

�� .�� '��

��

%��

�'� �� 6��?��

�� ,��

�� &��,��

� �1� �� /� ��

� �� '�� +��

��

+� ��

��!�� 4>I1�"��

� ��

�� ,�� =��

��-� �� .��1��

��-�� .��-� �� .�

�� TTTTTanzania anzania anzania anzania anzania �� 1�� 1��

�� .��,��

��

• � �1� ��

�� *� ��

��#

• ��/�� #

• �� #

• ��/� ��

'�� 3 ��

��@�� 4F��

�� %��





90

�� :�� &��

�� '��

�� 1��@��'��

�� 1��

�� '��

�� &�� !��

�� "�� 1��,��

��

�� ZanzibarZanzibarZanzibarZanzibarZanzibar�� /� ��

�� /��

�� 1��

��1��

�� 3

� � �� .�� 3��

+�ZimbabweZimbabweZimbabweZimbabweZimbabwe�� /� ��

+�� 1��

�� @��

��

�� 1��,��

��

��@��

��1��

� �� 1��

�� 1��+��

�� 1��

+�H��1�� ,��&

��

��

��1�� :��

��#� ��





91

+�� @��

�� 3�� 1��

��

� �� .�� +��

H��1��

�� ,�

��

��!@� ��(�� B��"� ��1��%��

��

�� ,� ��

��

A suitable working environment implies, as a minimum, that

supervisors have separate office space and the basic tools to function

efficiently. Probably the most important tools are a computer (or at

least a typewriter), a filing cabinet and a telephone. From that point

of view, and at the risk of simplifying, one could say that working

conditions are distressing in Tanzania, acceptable in Zimbabwe and

rather good in Namibia and Botswana.

In the three latter countries, most staff have a separate office or

at least sufficient office space. Most also have a telephone (quite a

few have a fax), and a filing cabinet, while an increasing number have

a computer, although many, e.g. those posted at regional level in

Botswana, have to make do with a typewriter. The contrast with

Tanzania is striking. There, very few supervisors have what could be

called an office, most working within empty office space, alone,

without equipment, without direct linkage to regional, zonal or

central officers. This is not simply de-motivating, but seriously

hampers the functioning of the service. The absence of a working

typewriter or computer makes report-writing an excessively difficult

endeavour and limits the time which should be spent on other more





92

meaningful activities. It is somewhat startling that such a relatively

cheap item as a filing cabinet is absent in so many offices. Filing

reports, so that they can be used afterwards and can be referred to

when necessary, is almost a pre-condition to ensuring a positive feed-

back to and follow-up on visits.

But the most fundamental issue is of course transport. Recruiting

officers and paying them salaries, without giving them the possibility

to go out and visit schools, is hardly a good investment. All countries,

but especially Tanzania and Zimbabwe, experience constraints in this

regard. Not only is there a lack of vehicles, but the available ones are

in some cases badly maintained or used for other purposes than

school visits. Ensuring the availability of transport is a priority for

any policy aimed at improving supervision services. Attempting to

‘save money’ by cutting budgets across the board can be self-defeating.

Cutting in the transport availability of district staff condemns this

personnel to remain in their offices, unemployed, without the

possibility to visit schools, their ‘raison d’être’.




93

III. THE ACTUAL OPERATION OF SUPERVISION ANDSUPPORT SERVICES

This chapter paints a picture of the daily work which supervisors

undertake. It concentrates fully on the actors at district or local level,

who are supposed to go out and visit schools regularly, and examines

issues such as:

• how is their work planned?

• how heavy is their workload and what are their main tasks?

• how regularly can they go out to schools?

• once they are in schools, what does such a visit precisely imply?

• what reports are written?

• to whom are these reports distributed?

• what actions are taken, by the schools and the supervisors, after

visits and reports are made?

The case studies, prepared in each of the four countries, provide

the basic material for this part. As explained in the introduction to

this report, the case studies examined the situation of one particular

district or region. These districts cannot be considered to be

representative of the whole country, but they do illustrate a typical

situation within the country. Drawing general conclusions from these

particular situations needs therefore to be done with much care. This

is especially true where supervisors express their personal opinions.

For the readers’ comfort, this chapter will continue to refer to

the four countries, rather than to the individual districts or regions

which the case studies examined. It should be kept in mind, however,

that the situation described is that of one district only and that other

districts might face different circumstances.





94

1. Planning and workload

(a) Planning and norms

In all four countries, supervisors define individually their own

work plans, especially for school visits. These plans, which are

prepared annually and monthly, have to be approved by the head of

office, to ensure both availability of funds and synchronization of

supervision activities with other programmes. These plans are seldom

fully implemented, because of the lack of transport, the lack of funds,

the existence of vacant positions and unscheduled activities, such as

meetings and workshops.

The workload of supervisors depends to a great extent on the

number of schools for which they are responsible. For primary

supervisors, the main criterion to distribute schools between staff is

a geographical one, either an existing administrative sub-division

(e.g. a number of wards in Tanzania) or an area specifically defined

for supervision purposes (a circuit in Namibia) or simply a group of

schools. In Botswana, there is also an explicit concern to ensure that

the number of schools is fairly equally distributed. At secondary level

and where advisory teachers are concerned, these are generally

responsible for one or a few subjects within a wider geographical

area.

In two countries, Namibia and Tanzania, the case studies do not

mention the existence of official norms with regard to the number

of schools or teachers to be visited and the number of reports to be

made. In Tanzania, this is felt to be too dependent on the availability

of funds and the urgency of the issues. In both countries, however,

some indications do exist: in the absence of clear norms, regional

offices or individual supervisors sometimes define their own norms,

based on their experience and current practice. In the Ondangwa




The actual operation of supervision and support services

95

West region in Namibia, staff therefore mention different norms:

the number of schools to be visited per term varies between 40 and

100, the number of teachers to be inspected is around 40 per term;

in addition, some supervisors claim that they are expected to

participate in one regional and one circuit workshop per term and to

organize four cluster workshops per year. These indications are

evidently rather haphazard and difficult to respect. In Tanzania,

inspectors believe that they are supposed to inspect about 10 schools

a year.

In Zimbabwe, the issue of norms gave rise to quite some

disagreement among the interviewed supervisors. Three of the six

did not know of the existence of official norms. The three others

gave different answers: the number of schools to be visited in a year

is either 8 or 10, teachers to be visited 24, 30 or 33, reports to be

written 8, 30 or 32. This confusion reflects the real situation, in the

sense that norms do exist but not in a written form. It is understood

within the central Ministry that each school should be visited three

times a year, with each teacher being supervised on each occasion.

However, this is nowhere written down and that of course explains

the lack of clarity among supervisors.

Only Botswana has specified a clear norm: primary-school

supervisors are required to cover 12 schools per year through a full

inspection. The total number of teachers, which will be concerned,

differs according to the size of the schools.

The overall impression is that, with the exception of Botswana,

there is little clarity about the norms which should inform and guide

the supervisors’ work. The result is that it becomes more difficult

for the service to plan its efforts and for the superior officers, such

as the heads of regional offices, to evaluate those. Developing a

culture of accountability, which is certainly desirable, can with





96

22. Is called: ‘teachers’ social problems’ and ‘conducting in-service training’ in Botswana;and ‘staff development’ in Zimbabwe.

23. Includes ‘investigating discipline cases’ for Botswana; ‘workshops’, ‘counselling’, ‘parentmeetings’ and ‘clerks and school secretaries’ for Namibia; ‘school functions’,‘investigations’ and ‘pastoral’ in Zimbabwe.

difficulty be done in the absence of clear performance criteria. In

the same vein, not one of the four countries seems to have defined

any rules or indications about the total time or percentage of total

work to be dedicated to school visits.

(b) Distribution of time between tasks

Supervisors were asked to give a rough estimate of the time they

spent within an average month on different activities, and also to

identify what they consider to be their three priority tasks.

�� /��

Tables 22-23��

��

��##��##��##��##��##� =��=��=��=��=�� >��>��>��>��>��

��>��>��>��>��> �� !��!��!��!��!��

55555 55555 55555

%�� 78 5> 75

$�� F 44 4F

'��1 >7 7; 7F

,�� 48 47 44

�� 77 F D 4;

'��75 47 D ;

�� 488 488 488





97

��#&��#&��#&��#&��#&� =�� >�� =�� >�� =�� >�� =�� >�� =�� >��

��>��>��>��>��> ��

?�$��?�$��?�$��?�$��?�$��

55555 55555

%�� 58 4F

$�� 4; 4>

'��1 8 7;

,�� ; <

�� ;8 5;

'��7> 8 4

�� 488 488

The most time-consuming tasks of supervisors are office work in

Botswana and Zimbabwe, and school visits in Namibia, where office

work comes second. Together these two tasks take up about half of

the time in Zimbabwe and about 60 per cent in the two other

countries. The remainder of time is almost equally divided between

report writing, attending meetings, teacher training and development

and a set of other minor tasks. It is clear from these data that visiting

schools does not occupy the priority position which one could

expect. Two factors are at play: the overload of different tasks and

the weight of office work. These factors are less important in the

case of advisory staff (see Table 23), especially in Botswana where

the time distribution of the one in-service officer interviewed shows

a clear focus on teacher training and development and on school visits.

As it is somewhat difficult, on the basis of the above data, to see

the time spent on pedagogical and administrative tasks (report writing

and attending meetings could be considered either of both), the same

three countries also asked supervision and support staff explicitly to

24. Includes ‘personnel development’ and ‘examinations’ for Namibia.





98

make that distinction (see Table 24). A few examples will clarify the

distinction: administrative tasks include taking care of teacher salaries,

arranging transport and accommodation, sending mail to schools,

typing leave requests and similar forms; pedagogical tasks include

preparation of training materials, writing school-visit reports,

attending meetings to discuss school performance and visiting

schools. The data confirm the image of supervisors’ daily work seen

above: the involvement in administrative tasks takes up more than

half of an inspector’s time in Botswana and Namibia, and just about

half in Zimbabwe. What should be priority, pedagogical supervision

and support, thus occupies second place. The advisory teachers (in

Namibia) do succeed in dedicating most of their time to pedagogical

tasks.

Table 24. Distribution of time between pedagogical andadministrative duties

Pedagogical Administrative% %

Botswana Inspector 38 62

Namibia Advisory Teacher 58 42

Namibia Inspector 38 62

Zimbabwe Education Officer 49 51

Supervisors were also asked to identify what they consider their

most and their least useful tasks. This allows us to compare their actual

work with what they consider essential to achieve their objectives.


!�� #� �� #� ��

� ��#� �� 1"� ��

�� 1�





99

�� 1��

��,�� 1��

��1#� �� #�� .��

��Namibia Namibia Namibia Namibia Namibia ��

�� 1��

�� ,��

�� 1��

� �� *�� 1�� 1�

�� +�� TTTTTanzania anzania anzania anzania anzania ��

�� 1�� =��

�� &��

�� *�� !��/��

�� 1�� 1��"��%��ZimbabZimbabZimbabZimbabZimbabwwwwwe e e e e ��

�� 1��

��#��

,�� Namibia Namibia Namibia Namibia Namibia ��

�� 1��

��1��(� �� 1��

�� *��

��

*��BoBoBoBoBotswtswtswtswtswana ana ana ana ana ��1�� *

�� 1�� 1��

The following emerges from the preceding overview. On the one

hand, there is a preoccupying discrepancy between what supervisors

consider their most crucial duties and the actual time they dedicate

to those. Too much of their time is indeed spent on administrative

and purely practical matters of a rather petty nature, which have very

little impact on the functioning of schools and the quality of teaching.

On the other hand, advisory teachers, where they exist, face a less

worrying situation: the activities which they consider most useful,





100

are also those on which they spend most of their time. Even the

more practical issues, which they find less useful, relate more closely

to their work, than in the case of supervisors. Two factors are at play.

Firstly, administrative duties do not occupy a central place in their

job description. But one can say almost the same of supervisors, whose

job description is focused on supervision and support. The second

factor is more important: it seems that advisory teachers can avoid

doing administrative tasks, because they have somebody else to rely

on to do these tasks, namely the supervisors. Supervisors are not in

that position. The creation of a separate category of officers in charge

of teacher advice and development has allowed this staff to

concentrate on their core duty and has probably meant that schools

receive more support. However, it has not led to a lessening of the

administrative workload of the supervisors. Their situation might well

have worsened. The fact that in Botswana and Namibia, the two

countries where pedagogical advisers exist, inspectors spend more

time on administration than in Zimbabwe, where there are no

advisers, proves to some extent this conclusion.

(c) Number of school visits

Knowing that supervisors spend relatively little time on school

visits and that the number of schools under their charge is sizeable,

the question evidently crops up: how many schools do they actually

supervise on average in a month or a year? There are several aspects

to this issue: there is the view of supervisors on how many schools

and teachers they observe, this should be confronted by the opinion

of the schools themselves, and finally some explanations should be

given with regard to the situation we encounter. To complicate

matters somewhat, two countries (Botswana and Tanzania) presented

relevant information in their national report, concerning the country

as a whole, as well as in the regional case study, with some differences

between both.





101


�� ,�� %�'��

��78�� ,��

�� ,

��

��

� 1�� 1�� ,��

�� ?��

�� =�� 3 ��0��

� �� !F� �� 78"��

�� =�� #� � ��

�� =��

�� %�� 1�� ,��

�� =��

�� +� ��

��

��

��)�� *��

�� E;��

�� ,�� /��

��

��

��:��

�� >8��

�� +�� 1 ��

��

+�NamibiaNamibiaNamibiaNamibiaNamibia��'1 � ��

�� & �� +��

�� *��

�� ,��

��

��





102

�� TTTTTanzania anzania anzania anzania anzania ��

� � �� 3 ��

� � � �� Figure 10 ��Table 25��

��

�� 4DD7��4DD;��

�� 6��

�� &��

��

�� 3 � �� 1�

�� 1�� '� ��

��4DD;��

��3 ��

�� %��

� ��

"�� "�� "�� "�� "�� +��+��+��+��+,�,�,�,�,� �� 7�5�� 7�5�� 7�5�� 7�5�� 7�5��

��#0��#0��#0��#0��#0� �� 7�� 7�� 7�� 7�� 7��7;

/////�� 55555 � ��

��

��

4DD7 48�<D5 7�F<E 7E�E ;>4 ;�5

4DD5 48�F>< 5�44F 7F�< >E8 E�F

4DD> 48�D78 7�>>8 77�5 >E; ;�7

4DD; 44�8E7 4�55E 47�4 >>E 5�8

25. Source: National data.





103

+�� 3 � �� 1� 4E� ��

4>I�� %��

��

�� 4DDF��

�� 4DDE��

��+�� &��

��

��

�� /� �� #�� */� ��

�� '� �� >8� �� >;� ��

��

��/��

��#1��#1��#1��#1��#1� !��7� �� !��7� �� !��7� �� !��7� �� !��7� ��

@��@��@��@��@��

�� +��+��+��+��+''''''''''��

9�� 47 5�4> 7

��*�� 45 4�<8 5

$�� 48 >�77 8

�� 5; 7�E; ;

? �� ZimbabZimbabZimbabZimbabZimbabwwwwweeeee�� &��

��H��1��'��*

�� *�� <� ��58��

�� '�� 1��

�� 1�� /�� ,��

�� *��

�� 1��

� �� Table 26��

��

�� &��

�� 3� ��





104

�� *��

�� +�4DD<��

5;I� �� 1��

In all countries, the data show that supervisors do not succeed in

visiting, within one school year, all the schools for which they are

responsible, even less all the teachers. The reasons given by

supervisors do not need much comment: transport problems; too

many schools, partly because posts are left vacant; organization of

unscheduled activities. Teachers and headteachers recognize the

importance of these constraints, but they also believe that the lack of

skills and of training equally plays a role. In a few cases, they mention

that some supervisors prefer to travel to the more remote, but still

accessible, schools, in order to receive more travel allowances.

The advisory teachers in Namibia, who could offer advice to a small

percentage of their teachers only, add that teacher support and

development is a time-intensive activity. This is a point that probably

deserves some emphasis: offering valuable supervision and support

takes time and can scarcely be achieved through hurried visits. The

right criterion on which to judge the effectiveness of supervision is

probably not the number of schools visited, but the content and

impact of such visits. The main problem with this approach is that we

do not know precisely what the term ‘inspection visit’ in the different

countries implies. It might be more useful to make a full supervision

visit to a few carefully selected schools, than to undertake superficial

visits to all schools indiscriminately. It is worth remembering at the

same time that any judgement of the efficiency and sufficiency of visits

should be made in function of the avowed objective of the service.

Administrative control demands shorter visits, but to a larger group

of schools, ideally all schools, than pedagogical supervision and

support.





105

There is little doubt that, in present circumstances, the number

of schools and teachers assigned to supervisors and advisory teachers

in all of the four countries, is too high, if one expects this staff to

visit most, if not all, of these schools and teachers regularly and to

offer consistent support and supervision. Two solutions present

themselves. The first one would be to appoint more supervisors and

to improve their working conditions, especially the transport. But

this might be a rather challenging proposal, in view of the existing

budget constraints. A more attractive strategy might reside in

demanding that supervisors concentrate their interventions on the

schools most in need of their support, in other words to develop a

diversified approach, which will serve schools in function of their

needs.

As will be seen in the following section, such a diversified

approach is already being used to some extent, but more as a result

of necessity than policy. Because supervisors are unable to visit all

schools, a selection becomes necessary: one criterion might then be

the needs of the school. Headteachers in urban schools in the

Kwekwe district (Zimbabwe), for instance, explain the rare number

of visits they receive by referring to their rather good performance

and to the fact that supervisors therefore do not feel the need to

come and control their performance regularly. However, it was noted

that in the same district the more remote rural schools are less

frequently visited than the peri-urban schools and this undoubtedly

finds its explanation in transport and budgetary problems rather than

in a diversification policy.

2. School visits

The precise programme and content of a school visit is crucially

important: as mentioned already, the term visit can imply a very brief





106

encounter with a headteacher, or a three-day full examination of

school management, teacher performance and parental opinions. To

get a more precise idea of what the term ‘school visit’ stands for, the

case studies looked at several issues: how are schools selected for

visits, how do supervisors prepare themselves and what preparations

do schools take, is notice given to schools, what types of visits exist,

what is their duration and what precisely do supervisors do when in

schools?

(a) Selection of schools

In only one case study, Namibia, were precise details given about

how schools are selected. Different criteria intervene in the case of

the advisory teachers:

• schools which face problems, especially the poor performance of

the school or of teachers;

• upon well-motivated requests by schools;

• to assess the ability of a teacher to be appointed or promoted;

• when schools are adding a new grade or implementing a new

syllabus;

• to serve schools far away from the centre or facing lack of materials.

The criteria used by the inspectors in Namibia are not very

different, although ‘random selection’ is also mentioned. The

Zimbabwe report indicates that ‘problem schools’ and those which

have not been supervised for very long receive priority. In Botswana

and Zimbabwe, the information presented in the preceding section

about the number of school visits, shows a preference to go to schools

which are not very close to the office (as these are generally well

functioning) and those which are not too remote (as they would be

difficult to reach). It is not surprising that transport availability

becomes a core criterion, when it is both a necessity and a constraint.





107

It seems from the interviews with supervisors throughout the

four countries, that the selection of schools is to a large degree a

pragmatic matter. When schools experience a problem, and they are

rather easy to reach, they will be visited as a priority. Schools which

seem to function quite well might receive brief courtesy visits, but

not much more. Schools far away will be visited whenever necessary

and feasible. In addition, quite a number of schools which are close,

or on a main road, might regularly have a supervisor come in for a

short visit, when passing by.

(b) Preparation by supervisors and noticeto schools

Once a school has been selected, supervisors prepare themselves

in a fairly straightforward way: they obtain, if necessary, permission

from their superior; they identify what is the main objective, prepare

whatever materials and documents are needed (checklists, standard

report forms) and make practical arrangements. The interviewed

inspectors in the Central region in Botswana indicate that, in addition,

they will take along policy documents relating to the visits’ objectives

(syllabi, code of regulations). They will also consult several

documents related to the schools to be visited. In Botswana this

includes the report of the last visit, the teachers’ timetable and recent

correspondence with the school, which might have prompted the

visit. The schools themselves are not requested for any particular

information. The Namibian advisory teachers and inspectors look at

a more complete file, which contains some information about the

school’s quality, such as pupil/teacher ratio and examination results,

and about individual teachers. In Zimbabwe, the importance of

consulting previous reports is stressed, as this offers the supervisor

an entrance point into the school, by examining the implementation

of previous recommendations. However, the Kwekwe case study

comments that previous reports are seldom available, partly because





108

of the poor or absent filing systems and partly because official

regulations do not stipulate that a copy should be kept in the district

office.

One issue, on which disagreement exists, concerns the need to

give schools notice of visits. The practic as well as the opinion of

supervisors and teachers differ from country to country.

+�BotswanaBotswanaBotswanaBotswanaBotswana�� &��

�� @� ��

��

�� 1��

�� +�� *��

��

� ��

�� 3�

��

�� @� ��

��

+�NamibiaNamibiaNamibiaNamibiaNamibia��

��

��

�)��

��

��


��

��+��

��6�� 3 �� 1��

��

�� ?��





109

-�� .� �� -��.� �� -��.�� +� ��

�� .��45��4<��,�� =��

�� <8�� !4>��78"��

��

�� /�� &��

��Zimbabwe Zimbabwe Zimbabwe Zimbabwe Zimbabwe � �� ?��

�� *�� 1��

��'��

��C��

�� N� %�� /��

� ��

�� ,��

�� 1��

��2��

�� !��&"��1��

�� !��"��

��

�� C�� N�

Not one of the four countries has defined an unambiguous policy

concerning giving schools notice of visits. Much depends on a

combination of the personal opinions of the staff and a set of practical

matters.

The personal opinions of supervisors differ in relation to what

they see as their role and the type of visit. When their purpose is

fault-finding through brief spot-checks, giving notice would be

contrary to that purpose. Visits which are meant to gain a complete

overview of the school’s functioning through a full inspection are

generally announced, to allow the school and the teachers to collect

and update all the necessary information. When teachers are visited

to offer them support and advice, they are generally informed





110

beforehand, to ensure a mutually trusting relationship and also to

allow the teachers to prepare themselves. Teacher inspections in many

cases are not announced.

The above ‘rules’ only apply insofar as a number of practical

problems do not occur. What is indeed more important than the

convictions of the supervisors are the practical constraints they

experience. Many visits take place unplanned, many planned visits

cannot be held as foreseen, and schools are difficult to contact

because of the lack of means of communication.

It is not surprising that there are differences of opinion between

supervisors, headteachers and teachers. Supervisors are, on the

whole, the least eager to give regular notice. Headteachers are

somewhat ambivalent: they demand in general to be informed, an

understandable attitude, especially if their own performance is being

assessed. They are less insistent on the need for notice when teachers

will be the main targets of the inspection, and are at times even in

favour of surprise visits, which can offer them arguments in their

attempts to discipline and control the teaching staff.

(c) Preparation by schools

If schools receive notice, what preparations do they undertake

before inspectors arrive? In two countries, headteachers gave some

information in this regard. In Botswana, the heads will ask the

teachers to update their records, will collect the necessary

documentation and make a list of priority problem areas. Similar

preparations will be made in Tanzania: school records will be checked

with regard to availability and accuracy; teachers will get their files

in order; the school plan of action will be readied and the school’s

cleanliness looked at. The headteachers believe these preparations

to be especially useful: it offers the school an opportunity to identify





111

areas which can be improved, and increases the teachers’ confidence

and thus the benefit they will derive from the supervision.

(d) Types and duration of visits

All countries draw a distinction between different types of

supervision visits. The following Table 27 presents, for each country

and, in the case of Namibia, for separate categories of staff, the

duration of these visits and indicates if they are undertaken by

individuals or teams.

��#��#��#��#��#�� =��=��=��=��=��7E

(a) BotswanaBotswanaBotswanaBotswanaBotswana, inspector

�� = ��= ��= ��= ��= ��

?�� ;�� +�� 0��

�� 7��5�� +��

�� 4�� +��

?��*�� 4��7�� +��

�� 4�� +��

(b) NamibiaNamibiaNamibiaNamibiaNamibia, advisory teacher

�� = ��= ��= ��= ��= ��

,�� 5�� +��

?��*�� 7�� +��

�� 4�� +��

��!�� " 5��1� ��

26. Interpreting and comparing the duration of supervision visits needs to be done withcare: the same type of visit does not cover everywhere the same activities; disagreementand differences might exist between officers. In all countries, in principle, the timementioned is the time spent in schools and does not include travelling.





112

(c) NamibiaNamibiaNamibiaNamibiaNamibia, inspector

�� = ��= ��= ��= ��= ��

?�� 4�� +��

?��*�� 4�� +��

+�� 4�� +��

�� O�� +��

�� O�� +��

(d) TTTTTanzaniaanzaniaanzaniaanzaniaanzania, inspector

�� = ��= ��= ��= ��= ��

?�� F�� >��

�� 5�� 7��

L�� 5�� 4��

?��*�� 5�� 4��

�� 4�� ;��

(e) ZimbabweZimbabweZimbabweZimbabweZimbabwe, education officer

�� = ��= ��= ��= ��= ��

?�� >��

+�� 7�;��

%��1� 4�� +��

�� 7�;�� +��

?��*�� 5�� +��

�� 4�� +��

,�� 7��

In all four countries a full inspection, a teacher inspection, a follow-

up visit and a courtesy visit exist. In addition, in Namibia and

Zimbabwe, there are ‘institutional school inspections’, ‘advisory visits’

in Tanzania and Zimbabwe and, of course, in Botswana and Namibia,

where they are the task of separate staff. Botswana identifies also

‘partial inspections’ and Zimbabwe ‘spot checks’.





113

The objectives of these visits are different and their duration and

the number of people involved also differ from country to country.

A full inspection visit, as the term implies, will look at all the aspects

of the school, especially its management. It is undertaken in Tanzania

and Zimbabwe by a team, which stays for half a day or one day, and in

the two other countries by one individual supervisor, who, in

Botswana, spends a whole week in the school. For secondary schools

in Botswana, however, all full inspections will be undertaken by a

team. Teacher inspections are everywhere, except in Tanzania, the

task of a single supervisor, staying from 2.5 hours to a day, depending

on the country. Similar remarks can be made regarding follow-up visits

and courtesy visits. The advisory teachers in Namibia generally take

much more time when they are in a school. A panel visit by a whole

team, which admittedly covers several schools, can take up to three

weeks.

The divergence between countries in time spent in schools for a

full inspection can be explained to some extent by the difference in

content and objectives of such visits, between countries. But this also

shows that it is difficult to define an ideal timing and an ideal team

for a full inspection visit. Obviously, school size plays a role. But, in

any case, it could be ambitious, not to say self-defeating, to expect a

single supervisor to gain a full image of a school’s functioning and

quality from a one-day visit, or even to ask the same from a team which

stays for half a day. On the other hand, of course, requesting that

supervisors stay longer than one day in each school will lead to still

less visits to other schools and might also face a few practical problems,

such as lodging. If supervision is considered a mainly control-oriented

exercise, the main objective of which lies in ensuring that all schools

and teachers to a large extent respect the official rules and

regulations, then the present arrangement of relatively short full

inspection visits, interspersed with much briefer courtesy visits,





114

teacher inspections and follow-up visits, could be considered

pertinent. But that arrangement poses not simply a problem of

substance (should control be supervisors’ main task?), it is at present

ineffective, as it does not succeed in controlling all schools and even

less the most remote ones, where official rules might be more

regularly flouted. If supervision is seen as a school and teacher

development activity, longer, more intensive and more regular visits

will be needed, but, as was mentioned already, these should be

concentrated on the least effective schools. Advisory teachers in

Botswana and Namibia are to some extent already following this path.

(e) The activities of a supervision visit

The content of a visit depends in part on the type of visit. The

following paragraphs describe what takes place during a full

inspection visit.

In all four countries, this type of visit follows more or less the

same pattern. If the supervisors arrive early in the morning, they might

attend the opening of the school and give a short speech. In all cases,

the first important meeting is with the head for a briefing regarding

the objectives of the visit and to make practical arrangements. The

seven headteachers interviewed in the Central Region in Botswana

indicate that they are not asked to make any suggestions to the

inspectors on how they should proceed with the visit. In the Muheza

district in Tanzania, this was the case for only 5 out of 20, the

remainder were asked for their input ‘sometimes’ or ‘always’. The

headteacher briefing could be followed by a short staff meeting,

although this is only mentioned in Botswana. In the other countries,

the supervisors will immediately proceed with the collection of

relevant information and with classroom observation. The

information to be collected includes, to use Zimbabwe as an example,

data pertaining to the general administration of the school, the type,





115

quality and quantity of infrastructure, lesson delivery, resource

provision, numbers of pupils and teachers, and past performance in

examinations. Classroom observation includes checking pupils’

exercise books and assessment records and is followed by a discussion

with the individual teacher to give him or her advice. Supervisors

seldom visit all classrooms. In principle, facilities are also inspected,

although in Botswana headteachers indicate that this seldom takes

place. At the end of the visit, a staff meeting is held with all teachers

and a debriefing meeting with the head. Headteachers commented

that such after-inspection discussions are very useful, as they help to

identify areas where immediate action can be taken by the school

staff themselves.

In not one of the four countries does a full supervision visit

include a discussion or a meeting with the parents. Such meetings

might well happen from time to time, especially during courtesy visits,

but it seems that they take place systematically only in Zimbabwe.

They do not figure on the agenda of a full inspection, but form part

of the schedule of an institutional inspection and a courtesy visit.

Visits by advisory staff follow a different pattern from a full

inspection. They focus more on the teachers, or on a single teacher,

than on the school. They will spend little or no time with the

headteacher, focusing their attention on the teacher in the classroom.

The process is also more participatory, with discussions between the

teacher and the adviser, both before and after the lessons observed.

In Botswana, for instance, the in-service officer mentions that the

teachers are asked to indicate areas where they want to be observed

and that they will participate in the observation, by highlighting what

they see as their weak and strong points. Some-secondary school

teachers mentioned however that they are not always informed

beforehand of the visit of an in-service officer, which makes it more

complicated for the teachers to prepare themselves.





116

3. Reports

(a) The regularity of report writing

In all four countries a lot of stress is put on reports. In Zimbabwe,

a circular by the Chief Education Officer states: “Much value is attached

to report writing, as the report is a permanent record and, in the

majority of cases, is the only means by which the Ministry gets to know

about the state of education provision in the schools.” In principle,

every visit leads to a record, if not necessarily a report. Indeed, brief

courtesy visits are probably too poor in substance to warrant a report,

but brief comments are made in the school’s logbook. Supervisors in

Tanzania, Botswana and Zimbabwe confirmed that, for most other

visits, reports are systematically made. In the Kwekwe district in

Zimbabwe, the case study commented that reports tend to

concentrate more on school heads and on teachers, on individuals

therefore, rather than on institutional aspects. In Namibia, a majority

of both inspectors and advisory teachers said that they always, or very

often, write reports, but a few indicated that they do so seldom or

never for courtesy visits, for institutional school inspections and for

advisory visits. Some claim that writing a report for every visit is too

time-consuming and that maybe three-monthly summary reports are

a better solution.

In principle, standard report forms exist in each country. This does

not mean that they are also available to and used by all supervisors.

There is not much information on this issue, but what is available is

somewhat distressing. In the Ondangwa West region in Namibia, only

about one-quarter of the interviewed advisory teachers knew of the

existence of standardized forms and used them.





117

(b) Content of reports

Only the Zimbabwe case study offers detailed information on the

content of reports. Each report starts with some basic data on the

individual or the school to be inspected. This is generally followed

by an identification of the visit’s purpose (‘to assess the competence

of the classroom practitioner’ or ‘to assess the administrative ability

of the head and to assist where possible’). Then follows a description

of the workload and responsibilities of the teacher or headteacher

and a comment regarding his or her suitability for this job. The main

part consists of an evaluation of the performance, which will be more

pedagogical where teachers are concerned, and pedagogical as well

as administrative for heads. Regularly, reference is made to facts to

underlie the evaluation: the marking of pupils’ exercise books, the

number of staff and parents’ meetings held and so on. Where criticism

is given, generally this is accompanied by more positive, encouraging

comments. In the case of the report on heads, the standard report

form contains, for that purpose, a section entitled ‘Noteworthy

achievements’. The report ends with conclusions and

recommendations. The nature of these recommendations, and the

way in which supervisors will follow up on them, are crucial to the

impact of a supervision visit and to the satisfaction of schools and

teachers with the whole supervision service.

Before reports are finalized, they are generally discussed informally

at the end of the school visit, with the headteacher and the concerned

teachers. In the office itself, discussions will be held with colleagues

and the superior officer: the district education officer in Tanzania,

for instance, or in Namibia the senior advisory teacher and/or the

circuit inspector.





118

(c) Filing and distribution

One copy of the written reports is kept in the district office, where

the supervisor is based, for filing. This however is not the case in

Kwekwe district in Zimbabwe, apparently because the district office

was not explicitly mentioned in the relevant official circular. This is

deplorable, because it undermines supervisors’ efforts to follow up

on previous visits. It had already been noted that in some cases,

especially in Tanzania, the lack of filing cabinets makes it difficult to

keep reports for a long time in a useful state.

Another copy should in principle be sent to the headteacher and,

where it relates to teacher inspections, generally also to the individual

concerned. In Tanzania, school reports are filed and kept in the

headteacher’s office and teachers can only consult them after a special

meeting with the head. It seems indeed, from the anecdotal evidence

available, that most schools receive reports, although the time taken

for a report to arrive can be long. In the Central region in Botswana,

all but one primary school received the report within a month, but

in one secondary school it had taken more than a year for a full

inspection report to arrive. A comparable situation is reported in the

Zimbabwe case study: all heads received the reports, some within

two weeks, others – especially in the more remote schools – had to

wait for two months.

Reports are distributed to some other officials, in Namibia, for

instance, to the Regional Director and, in some cases, the Regional

Planning Officer. In Zimbabwe, copies are also systematically sent to

the Ministry of Education’s headquarters, where, as is known, the

Standards and Control Unit will analyze them.

There is some controversy about the usefulness of sending reports

to School Boards or similar bodies with parents’ representation. The





119

interviewed school headteachers generally agree that teacher

inspection reports should not be made available to these bodies,

because, to quote the Zimbabwe report, “such reports were on

professional issues which communities had nothing to do with”. In

Namibia, two other points are mentioned: distributing reports might

create conf licts; Board members should be able to read and

understand the reports’ content. Most supervisors, heads and

teachers agreed that reports which put more emphasis on institutional

issues (school enrolment, infrastructural and financial matters,

relations with the community, school calendar and organization)

could usefully be communicated to the Board. The reasons given are

that parental involvement should be encouraged, that the reports

could enhance collective responsibility and might create a sense of

responsibility among the community. In addition, it is useful that the

community be kept informed of some matters. It is not clear, from

the scant information available, in how far reports are actually

distributed to the school board or committee. Officially, this seems

to be the case only in Tanzania, where, in principle, boards will be

informed of matters related to their role and function and an

executive summary is presented together with the detailed report,

for their information. In the other countries, schools might transmit

the report or some of its findings to the board, but in how far this is

done, remains unclear. In Botswana, most secondary schools do

discuss supervision reports with the board, because these reports

are more institutional, while primary headteachers prefer to keep

the reports more confidential.

4. Follow-up, including use of reports

Reports should lead to actions, both by the school and by the

supervisors. The nature of this follow-up depends of course in part

on the quality of the report’s recommendations. Equally important is





120

the margin of manoeuvre of schools and supervisors, which is a

function of their autonomy, their authority and the resources available

to them. The following paragraphs will first give some attention to

the nature of the recommendations, before examining in how far

and in which ways action is taken on them.

(a) Recommendations

When asked about the usefulness of recommendations,

headteachers in Botswana, Tanzania and Zimbabwe underlined the

importance of two factors: the relevance of the topic addressed and

the precision of the recommendation. Headteachers in Botswana in

this regard listed the following among the useful suggestions: ‘the

school to supply mathematical instruments to students’, ‘directions

on how to make comments in students’ continuous assessment files’,

‘advice on keeping pupils’ records’, but found ‘introduction of English

as a medium of instruction in Standard 2’ a recommendation of little

value, because of the lack of trained teachers and materials. (It is

encouraging to note that more than half of heads did not identify

any useless recommendations). The teachers’ list of helpful advice

included: ‘provision of in-service for teachers’, ‘teachers to be

deployed to level appropriate to their skills’, ‘regular marking of

pupils’ work’ and ‘team teaching’, but found advice regarding

discipline in large classes to be unpractical. School heads in Tanzania

considered all recommendations to be of value, and identified a fairly

large list of areas where such advice is particularly useful, going from

‘staff and staff welfare’ over ‘school community relations’ to

‘evaluation of lessons’.

Through these and other comments from school staff, it can be

deduced that recommendations become more appreciated the more

precise they are, through for instance identifying an actor and a

deadline for the implementation of a particular proposal. There are,





121

it seems, two types of recommendations which are particularly

appreciated by school staff:

• those with an obvious pedagogical impact, which can be

implemented by the school or the teacher at little cost and fairly

easily, and are precise in their formulation;

• those which are being addressed to a higher instance (the district

office, the regional office or even the Ministry) and from which

school staff will benefit.

Recommendations which show little appreciation of the real

situation and daily constraints met by teachers, are considered

unhelpful.

(b) Follow-up by the school

Three questions arise when examining the response given by the

school to reports: what is actually done to the report itself; with whom

are its findings and conclusions discussed; what action is taken?

Reports are generally filed by the headteacher, which in most cases

implies that they are not freely available to the individual teachers.

One school in Botswana displays a copy in the staff room and in the

library, for the teachers’ use. All heads, who were questioned in

Botswana, Tanzania and Zimbabwe, discuss full inspection reports

with all their teachers during a staff meeting (this question was not

raised in Namibia). Specific teacher supervision reports will lead to

a meeting with the interested teacher only. In the Central region in

Botswana, four of the seven heads also arranged for a special separate

discussion on full inspection reports with the School Senior

Management and a few discussed with the Board of Governors. In

Tanzania and Zimbabwe, a discussion with the board or the school

development committee is more regular, but limited to issues of

interest to them.





122

A majority of schools takes some action on the reports’

recommendations, but the level and coverage of this follow-up differs

from country to country and from school to school. In Zimbabwe, all

headteachers claim that they attempt to develop with their teachers

action plans to implement the recommendations. Four out of six

interviewed supervisors, however, noted their dissatisfaction with

the action taken by schools. In Botswana, the situation differs very

much between schools: some heads ‘always’ take action, others do so

‘most of the time’, and a few only ‘sometimes’. The action taken can

be to call specific meetings, to visit some teachers more regularly in

their classroom and to discuss with them in order to motivate them,

and to develop action plans. All but one of the seven headteachers

from the Central region in Botswana indicated that they prepare a

specific action plan to put some recommendations into practice.

Teachers confirmed this. In Namibia, the interviewed headteachers

attested that their satisfaction with teachers’ implementation of

advice is poor: in the case of about two-thirds of teachers, they are

‘totally unsatisfied’ or ‘rather unsatisfied’. They believe that in general

standards do not improve, in part because teachers know that follow-

up actions by supervision and support staff will not take place. The

point is crucial: expecting from school staff commitment to taking

action should be accompanied by a similar commitment among

supervisors.

(c) Follow-up by the supervisors

Headteachers and teachers show on the whole little satisfaction

with the follow-up undertaken by supervisors themselves. In

Botswana heads complain that follow-up visits are only undertaken

after a long time and are superficial. Teachers are still more critical:

the report says that they are totally unsatisfied. Namibia’s data are

similarly discomforting: none of the supervisors – this is the point of

view of heads – undertakes ‘regular’ follow-up visits, most only do so





123

‘from time to time’ and a few ‘never’ do. The result is that 5 of the

11 headteachers in the sample are either ‘totally unsatisfied’ or ‘rather

unsatisfied’ with actions taken by the administration. They claim that

only rarely do supervisors act on recommendations in reports. On

the other hand, they recognized that, where some follow-up was

undertaken, it led to clear improvement. In Tanzania, school staff finds

the actions of supervisors to be insufficient and ineffective, and they

quote three reasons: the lack of follow-up visits, the fact that

supervisors do not succeed in solving practical problems such as the

scarcity of equipment, and the fact that they rely on Ward Education

Co-ordinators, who seldom have the knowledge or the authority to

amend problems. Supervisors confirm that, although follow-up visits

are planned for, the number of visits and other activities undertaken

to implement recommendations is insufficient, for which they blame

mainly financial constraints.

In Zimbabwe, the interviewed supervision staff were asked how

regularly they undertake follow-up visits: one answered ‘never’, three

‘irregularly’ and two ‘regularly’. Shortage of transport and of funds

were the main reasons why follow-up was not systematic. Three-

quarters of the 12 school heads confirmed this lack of follow-up and

cited the same factors. It is somewhat surprising that five out of the

six officers are satisfied with the level of follow-up action taken at

administrative level, while – as we saw before – four of them are

dissatisfied with the way schools react. Headteachers have quite a

different opinion: most, as indicated above, claim to undertake various

steps after an inspection visit to implement its advice, while more

than 40 per cent of them are unhappy with the administrative follow-

up. In rural schools, that figure is much higher, which reveals a

worrying disparity between regions. Some heads complained that

‘recommendations made by one supervisor are completely ignored

by the next one’.







125

IV. OVERALL ASSESSMENT

1. Impact on school functioning and quality

To gain a balanced picture of the impact of supervision on the

functioning of schools and the quality of teaching, it is necessary to

distinguish between the opinions of supervisors themselves,

headteachers and teachers. In addition, a difference needs to be made

between their opinion on the supervision service as a whole, in its

present state, and their feelings about the impact of the particular

activities of supervision and support staff, especially school visits.

Not all countries have systematically collected all of these different

viewpoints, but sufficient information is available to gain an overall

impression. It should be kept in mind that opinions have been

collected from among a small sample of staff in each of the four

countries and that they reflect the specific situation and characteristics

of the district or region in which they are posted.

(a) Impact of school visits

Let us look first at supervisors’ opinions about their visits. The

11 advisory teachers interviewed in Namibia feel that their work has

had an impact on schools, as they note visible improvement in several

schools over recent years. In Zimbabwe, three out of six supervisors

consider their impact on schools to be ‘very strong’, one ‘strong’ and

two ‘fair’. They say their recommendations are generally implemented

and, as a result, performance of heads and teachers has improved.

They also believe that the reports of visits are used by higher

authorities and therefore influence positively the development of

schools.





126

More important than the opinions of supervisors themselves, are

those of headteachers and teachers. The graphs on the following pages

summarize the answers to a question addressed to the sample of

school heads in each of the four countries. They were asked to

evaluate the impact of a supervision visit on 11 or 12 different aspects

of the school, on a scale from 1 (negative) over 2 (none), 3 (limited),

4 (fairly positive) and 5 (positive) to 6 (strongly positive). From the

average scores presented in the graphs it can be deduced that the

interviewed heads are (or at least declare to be) rather satisfied with

supervision visits. On almost all aspects the impact is assessed to be

between fairly positive and positive. In all four countries, the impact

is felt to be especially strong on teacher performance (lesson

preparation and delivery) and on teacher presence. There is, except

in Namibia, a less positive evaluation where teacher motivation is

concerned. The score is generally lowest regarding availability of

teaching/learning materials and school infrastructure, issues on

which supervisors can make recommendations, but take very little

action. Impact on issues related to management by the headteacher

is considered to be fairly high.

Teachers’ opinions were not collected as systematically as those

of headteachers, except in one country, Botswana. There, teachers

are, as a rule, more critical than headteachers in their assessment of

the impact of visits, with two notable exceptions: they consider that

supervision has a very high impact on classroom delivery and a high

one on teacher motivation. Remarks made by teachers in the other

countries show, as in Botswana, satisfaction with the effect of visits,

but on a level lower than that of headteachers. It is appropriate to

mention here that headteachers probably have other expectations

from supervision than teachers. They might want visits to be in part

oriented towards teacher control and discipline, not exclusively

towards pedagogical development, the main concern of teachers.




Overall assessment

127

In Tanzania, some additional information was available, collected

through two other research projects. An inspection-impact study on

secondary schools, undertaken as part of the English Language

Teaching Support Project (ELTSP), concluded that, ‘the inspectors have

played an important part in the progress and success of ELTSP’.

Secondly, a survey among teachers, undertaken by the inspectorate,

revealed that teachers were of the opinion that some inspection visits

led to improvements, in areas such as:

• the preparation and use of teaching materials;

• the use of English in the schools;

• evaluation of pupils’ work;

• general school administration.

Figure 11. Headteachers’ responses on the impact ofsupervision on schools: average scores





128




Overall assessment

129

The data presented in Figure 11 and other – more anecdotal –

evidence allow us to conclude that visits are generally well

appreciated by headteachers and teachers. However, a few

amendments should be added to this positive image.

Not all types of visits nor all activities within a visit, are equally

well appreciated. In Zanzibar, teachers prefer visits which examine

the school as a whole over the individual teacher inspection. In

Zimbabwe, on the other hand, school heads considered teacher

inspections to be the most useful, as they necessarily focus on what

is the core of the school’s quality, namely what occurs in the classroom.

This difference in opinions seems to confirm what has been noted

before, namely that teachers and headteachers both appreciate visits,

but for different reasons. The headteacher sees teacher supervision

as helpful to his or her management of the school. It can be an

additional tool in attempts to ensure discipline among teachers and

to assert headteacher authority. The teachers feel that institutional

inspections can help them in arguing for changes, where necessary,

in the way the school is run. This points to a wider issue: a supervision





130

visit is never a neutral act. It is an intervention, if not an invasion, in

a school’s daily life, which the different actors will try to use for

their own benefit maybe more than for the wider benefit of the

school.

Headteachers in Zimbabwe make the following distinction: they

approve most of teacher inspections, followed by full and institutional

inspections, and courtesy visits, which – because of their informal

character – allow for a free exchange of opinions and views between

supervisors and school staff. They make a negative assessment of spot

checks and follow-up visits; spot checks, because of their almost

intrinsic fault-finding character, and follow-up visits, because these

are seldom clearly linked to the preceding visits and therefore lose

their sense of being. In Tanzania, general supervision visits and

courtesy visits were considered most useful, as well as inspection of

physical structure of the school, which is an especially worrying issue.

In Botswana, full inspections were considered by heads and teachers

alike to be of most assistance.

Within a visit, the post-supervision meeting with the staff is singled

out as the most helpful part, because it allows staff to share ideas and

discuss their experiences and viewpoints with each other and with

supervisors. As such, supervisors might gain a more precise, more

balanced view of a school’s functioning. In addition, classroom

observation and staff development activities, formal as well as more

informal, are well appreciated. It seems therefore that supervision

which allows for teacher participation and focuses on teacher

development is felt by teachers to be of most assistance.

Another point worth raising is that not all schools appreciate visits

in the same way. The data in Figure 11 are averages which hide quite

important differences of opinion. These differences will obviously

relate to the particular supervisor. The impact study on English




Overall assessment

131

language teaching in Tanzania, referred to above, showed

dissatisfaction with some inspectors. Teachers’ main complaints were

that they demoralize teachers through harsh comments and that they

give impractical advice. Each school also has a different experience

and a different opinion. To some extent, this is the result of their

location. The Zimbabwe case study includes some data to illustrate

this. Urban schools on the whole evaluate the impact of supervision

visits much higher (5.4) than peri-urban (4.2) and rural (4.3) schools.

Rural schools complain especially about the short duration of visits,

as much time is taken up by travelling from office to school and back.

This is particularly deplorable, as those schools employ most of the

newly appointed, inexperienced teachers. Urban headteachers, while

generally satisfied with supervision visits, feel that they are

experienced and qualified enough to take over part of the supervision

tasks. They claim, at the same time, that a long-term beneficial impact

can only be achieved through allowing for more in-school supervision.

(b) Impact of the supervision service

While visits as such are considered in many cases a valuable and

helpful exercise, this does not imply that there will be overall

satisfaction with the functioning and effectiveness of supervision and

support services. One of the main complaints of all groups is that

supervisors do not visit schools regularly enough. Another is that

follow-up on visits is unsystematic and deficient. For an overall

evaluation, several factors, which go beyond an assessment of visits,

need to be looked at, in particular:

• the time supervisors spend on administrative and other activities

which have little, if anything, to do with school quality;

• the workload of supervisors and the ensuing regularity of visits;

• the feedback on visits by different actors (supervisors and the

other staff in the education management system);





132

• the extent and nature of other development-oriented activities in

which supervisors are engaged, such as in-service training, meetings

and workshops, and the impact of those on schools.

The following paragraphs examine the situation of each country

in more detail.


��

�� 1� ��

�� 1�� 1�

�� *��

�� /��1��

�� 3��

�� 1�

�� .� ��

��1��/��

��.��

�� /��

�� Namibia Namibia Namibia Namibia Namibia ��

�� 1��

��

�� )�� *��

�� ?�� 3��

�� *�� 1�� %��

�� &��

��

�� %��

�� ,�� 1��

��




Overall assessment

133


�� 1�� *1��

�� 3 �� 1��

� ��

��1��*�� /��

�� &�� 1��

��

�� =��

��

�/�� 6�� 1�

��

6��1��

��ZanzibarZanzibarZanzibarZanzibarZanzibar��

��

�� &�� @��

�� 1��

��

��Zimbabwe Zimbabwe Zimbabwe Zimbabwe Zimbabwe ��

��

��

• ��#

• � 1�� 1��#

• ��#

• �� #

• �� 3��*�� #

• ��.�� !�� "�

The overall picture gained so far is a little confused, for different

reasons. Supervisors, headteachers and teachers do not have the same

opinions, as they do not share the same expectations. Schools also





134

differ in their experiences, and the averages hide significant

disparities, which depend to some extent on the school’s location

and evidently on the personality of the inspecting officer.

There are some conclusions that come quite clearly to the fore.

Supervisors are – not unexpectedly – more satisfied than school staff.

They feel that their interventions can be of help and give examples

of how some schools have changed because of their work. At the

same time, they recognize nevertheless the limits on what they can

achieve, but put the responsibility for this outside of their own hands.

Headteachers and teachers are more critical towards the

supervision service. They appreciate certain activities, in particular

school visits with an evident pedagogical character, but they feel that

the impact of the service on what goes on in school is weak. They

realize that the reasons are diverse, but feel that some of the

responsibility is the supervisors’ own. While supervisors do work in

constraining circumstances, their attitudes are not always helpful and

their interventions too control focused. It is noteworthy that there

exist differences in opinion between headteachers and teachers, the

latter group being more critical in general, but much depends on the

objectives of the supervisors: when they focus on control of school

management, they are more easily accepted by teachers than when

they concentrate on teacher inspection.

All actors – teachers, headteachers and, somewhat less strongly,

supervisors themselves – deplore one main weakness: more attention

needs to be given to the follow-up on recommendations. A school

visit, a teacher inspection, a training course, a meeting with school

leaders should also be stages in a cycle which leads towards school

improvement. In many cases, they are one-off events, which might

lead to a report, but to nothing much more. This probably is the

biggest disappointment to supervisors and school staff alike.




Overall assessment

135

The following section will look in more detail at the challenges

which supervision and support staff face in order to offer more

effective and enduring assistance to schools and teachers.

2. Main challenges

The problems experienced and challenges faced by the four

countries are different in nature and in extent. While problems of

management and even structure of the service are of more concern

in Botswana and Namibia, a more basic problem, namely poor working

conditions, is top of the agenda in Tanzania. Some issues, for instance

the lack of continuous training programmes, are common to all

countries. The following paragraphs review, in detail, the main

concerns identified by each report, including through the case

studies.

Botswana Botswana Botswana Botswana Botswana ��

��

�� 3��

��=��

��=��

�� !��

� �� "� ��

�� 1��*��

��

�� *�� =��

,�� *��

��&��

��

��

�� 1 ��

��,�� 1��





136

�� %�� ?�� 1��

�� *�� =��

� �1�� *��%��

��

� �1�� 3�� *��

� 1�� ?��

�� 1��

��

��

• �� #

• ��/� ��

��

+�Namibia Namibia Namibia Namibia Namibia �� 1��*��

��

�� ,��

��=�� 3��

�� 1�� *�� +

�� )�� *��

�� .��

��=��

��1�� :�� +�

�� &��'��

��1��

��

� ��

/� �� &��+� ��

��

�� & ��




Overall assessment

137

�� 1��

�� &��

�� *��

��

+�: ��

� �1��

��

TTTTTanzania’sanzania’sanzania’sanzania’sanzania’s��

��

�� 3 �� 1��

'�� /� ��

�� 1�� .��

� ��

�� !�� "�� .��

�� ?��

�*� ��

�� 1��

�� &�� &�� 1�

�� 1�� 1�

6��

�� 1��?��

� ��

�� 1�� .

�� %�� 1��

��

�� *� �1��

�� &��

��

�� 1��





138

27. At the time of writing, 10 different agencies managed resource centres, including UNICEF,the World Bank, Dutch, Irish, Danish and British agencies and District DevelopmentCouncils.

��

� ��/� �� *��

/� �� /�� !�� -'.� �� "� �4DD<��

��

�� *��

� �� *��

�� -�� .� ��

$�� 7< �:��*��

��&��

��

Zanzibar Zanzibar Zanzibar Zanzibar Zanzibar ��

• �� 1�� #

• �� 1��#

• �� #

• �� 1��

�� #

• ��*�� 1��*��

�� '��

��

��Zimbabwe Zimbabwe Zimbabwe Zimbabwe Zimbabwe ��

�� 1�� *��

�� &�� ,��

��*�� 1��

��

��




Overall assessment

139

��

��%�� 1�� & ��

�� -�� .�� 1��

�� +� ��

�� =��

%�� ?��

��

�� '��

�� '��

�� %��

�� 1��

��.�� =�� /� ��

��

�� 3��

��?�� *�� ? ��

� ��

,�� 1��

�� 3 ��

�� 1��

?��

��

��

��

6�� 1�� 3 �

��

�� ,��

�& ��

� �� %��

�� 1��

��





140

�� 1��

��

�� 1�� +�H��1��

�� 588��

�� &�� 1�� 1��

,� � �� 2��

��:��

�� .� �� 1��

��

�� ?��

��

��

Supervision services in the four countries face a myriad of

problems, and simply listing these, as was done above, could easily

lead to a sense of discouragement. It is useful therefore to distinguish,

within this long list, what can be considered as root causes from what

are more results. Drawing up such a framework is not simply helpful

from an analytical point of view, but is also a pre-condition to drawing

up any plan to redress and reform the supervision system. The root

causes for the present weakness of the supervision service can be

classified in three categories: a lack of resources; inefficient

management; and an organizational structure not adapted to the

present realities.

The lack of resources has multiple implications. The number of

supervisors has not kept pace with the numbers of schools and

teachers; as a result, the school/supervisor and teacher/supervisor

ratios are high. Every single officer at primary level is responsible for

some 20 or more schools and hundreds of teachers. This workload

becomes more difficult to manage if it is combined with a lack of

financial resources to travel and with material resources (filing




Overall assessment

141

cabinets, typewriters, telephones) of poor quality and insufficient in

number. Most supervision offices in Tanzania suffer from this almost

complete absence of resources and have become ghost-like in state.

Elsewhere, the situation is less worrying: although the numbers of

staff are comparable to those in Tanzania, they can work with better

and more resources. But this should not lead to complacency

anywhere, as the supervision and support service remains under-

financed in all four countries. The impact of this neglect is at times a

somewhat isolated and de-motivated staff, who face a heavy workload

and feel to be operating against the odds.

Management problems are experienced in several areas of

management: selection and recruitment; training; career development

and incentives; and support and evaluation. These are not unrelated

to the lack of resources, as management obviously becomes more

intricate in an environment of scarcity. But some inefficiencies cannot

be explained by lack of resources, but seem the result of

inappropriate decisions or a wider neglect. Solving these

inefficiencies could actually help in overcoming the resource

constraints.

Identifying the ‘right’ recruitment criteria is not an easy matter.

Qualifications and experience both seem important, but at primary

level, many of the most experienced teachers do not necessarily have

a strong academic background, because they entered the teaching

profession a long time ago, when qualification requirements were

rather low. This is still the scenario in Tanzania, but seems no longer

to be the case in the other countries, where primary-school

supervisors generally have both a strong background and

qualifications, higher than the teachers they supervise. Tanzania, in

any case, is also making its recruitment criteria stricter. At secondary

level, the situation is more complicated: supervisors are generally





142

recruited from among subject specialists, few have experience in

school management and they occupy a post at the same grade as the

secondary-school principals. Many principals therefore do not

consider supervisors as their superiors and refuse their advice. Maybe

one should think about creating a specific cadre of school

management supervisors, as distinct from subject inspectors, with

recruitment criteria and a post of a grade adapted to their more

demanding job description. A somewhat different problem,

mentioned explicitly in Namibia and Tanzania, concerns the non-

respect of existing rules and norms, which puts into discredit not

only the individual staff member, who benefits from this anomaly,

but the whole service.

There is little need to comment in detail on the fragility of training

for supervisors. In all four countries, there are concerns with both

the organization and the content of training courses. When such

courses are organized, they are ad hoc rather than forming part of an

overall programme of professional development, and seldom seem

to address the real needs of supervision staff. In Tanzania, in recent

years, less and less such courses have taken place, while in the three

other countries supervisors take part from time to time in training

workshops, but these have insufficient linkage to their daily practice.

A further management problem concerns the lack of career

development opportunities: for most supervisors, their present post

is the culmination of their career, a reward for many years of service

in schools. This evidently risks to turn the supervision service into a

conservative body, with little motivation to innovate and look for new

challenges. Changing this reality is not evident, as it is linked, on the

one hand, to the recruitment criteria and, on the other hand, to the

hierarchical structure of the education management system.




Overall assessment

143

Arguably more easy to redress are the weaknesses in the support

given to supervisors and in their evaluation. While in all four countries,

some official forms exist which help inspectors in performing their

tasks (such as: standard report forms, circulars and guidelines),

nowhere does this support take a more comprehensive form, through

for instance manuals, regular meetings, newsletters and so on. The

issue of evaluation has two aspects. On the one hand, in some cases,

most clearly so in Zimbabwe, there is an absence of clear norms on

what is expected from officers. This is detrimental not just to their

evaluation, but also to the planning of their own work and to their

accountability. On the other hand, most norms, which have been

formulated, relate to the number of visits and reports, and much less

to the quality and the impact of the supervisor’s work. Quantitative

norms are of course much easier to assess, but they could give the

wrong message, asking supervisors to undertake as many visits as

possible rather than to ref lect on the impact their various

interventions could have on schools. Judging the quality of their work

by examining the ways in which schools improve is more intricate,

but ultimately more beneficial: it could make supervisors jointly

accountable with schools for the quality of the teaching and learning,

thus closing the gap which now exists between the school and the

supervisor. Zimbabwe is to some extent going in that direction.

The organizational problems which the service experiences, relate

to four points. Firstly, in a number of countries, parts of the service

are still relatively young or have undergone change recently, and their

present structure lacks clarity (in Namibia) or logic (in Botswana).

Secondly, co-ordination is difficult, especially between the

supervision service and other services which work towards

pedagogical improvement, such as teacher training, curriculum

development and examinations. The linkage with the upper levels of

the administration is similarly elusive, while the relationship between





144

supervisors and the newly established teacher resource centres is

weak. The follow-up to school visits suffers from this lack of co-

ordination. Recommendations made in inspection reports and

addressed to the administrative and/or pedagogical authorities,

remain words in the wind, which frustrates the school staff as well

as the supervisors. School staff are at times left with a sense of

confusion, when the advice coming from different corners does not

go in the same direction. A third issue, with regard to the organization

of the supervision and support service, concerns the very demanding

job description of supervisors, who are asked to handle a load of

administrative and pedagogical tasks.

The fourth point in this regard might well be the most worrying.

In all four countries, supervisors feel constrained, even frustrated,

by their lack of autonomy and authority to take action, especially on

their own recommendations. School heads are in a similar situation.

Overcoming these constraints implies, however, a profound change

in the management system and culture and, but less crucially, a

strengthening of management capacities at district and school levels.

As long as this is not the case, supervisors at times use their lack of

authority as an excuse for inaction.

The results of these varied problems are that supervisors face a

heavy workload, with few resources. This leads to a lack of motivation

and has a negative impact on the actual operation of the service.

Inspectors, who do not have the resources or the time to give detailed

and profound support to schools, quickly, as a defensive reaction,

take on control-oriented and critical attitudes, which are poorly

appreciated by school staff. Planning their work becomes more

difficult, if they do not have access to their own transport and have

regularly to undertake administrative tasks, with little connection to

their work. In the same vein, supervisors do not seem to identify clear




Overall assessment

145

priorities, neither concerning the type of inter ventions nor

concerning the particular schools to be visited.

The overall conclusion seems to be that there is insufficient close

contact – through school visits, seminars, courses and so on –

between supervisors and schools. Especially, follow-up actions on

visits or reports are scarce. It is not surprising then that many schools

feel that the overall impact of the supervision and support service

on what goes on in school is weak.

3. Present reforms and trends

Education managers and decision-makers are conscious of the

weaknesses of the existing supervision services. They are making

attempts to improve on that situation: some reforms are being

implemented on a nationwide scale, others on a pilot-basis, while

still others have only been announced, so far. The overall picture

emerging is nevertheless encouraging, as changes are occurring in

three main areas: the management, the organization of the service

and its actual operation.

Management reforms

All four countries are fully conscious of the perverse effects of

some existing management rules and practices. There are indications

that policies are being reformulated and that some practices have

changed, relating to recruitment; training and support; the

preparation of job descriptions; and evaluation and monitoring

procedures. In Tanzania, the 1995 Education and Training Policy

emphasizes the demand for recruitment procedures to be more

transparent and to be the result of stricter procedures. However, so

far this has remained a policy declaration. In Zimbabwe, recruitment

has become more transparent, through systematic advertisement of





146

vacant posts, interviews of candidates, and the convening of a

Promotion Committee involving all regional directors.

Everywhere the need for more and better-organized training and

professional support to supervisors is recognized. The Revised

National Policy on Education in Botswana recommended that “a

comprehensive training programme should be implemented as a

matter of urgency”. The 1995 Education and Training Policy in Tanzania

did similarly. All four countries are involved in a programme to

develop training materials for inspectors, in the framework of the

working group on Teacher Management and Support, set up within

the Association for the Development of Education in Africa, with

support from the Commonwealth Secretariat. Namibia, through the

compilation of a manual for school principals and the organization

of several management courses, also aims at enhancing the support

available to education personnel, in schools and in offices. The overall

impression gained from the reports remains somewhat pessimistic:

no consistent, sustainable and regular national training programmes

exist, while international or regional ones are not yet covering more

than a few supervisors.

Both Botswana and Namibia see the need to define more clearly

the tasks of the different categories of supervision and support staff.

In Namibia, this forms an integral part of a Performance Management

System, which should clearly set out the tasks of the different officers

and the criteria on which they will be evaluated. This will help in

monitoring their work and in giving them support.

Organizational reforms

The second set of reforms concerns the organization of the

supervision services, the way in which these services are structured




Overall assessment

147

and the responsibilities given to the different levels and actors. Four

aspects can be identified.

Firstly, there exists a willingness to co-ordinate more strongly

existing services at a central level. In Botswana, the Revised National

Policy on Education has recommended that “the inspection of schools

should be under one department of inspection formed from an

enhanced amalgamation of the existing departmental inspectorates”.

Namibia is also planning to change its central structure, by integrating

three Directorates (Inspectorate and Advisory Services, Education

Programme Implementation and Special Education) into one. This

office should be better staffed, so that it can play the co-ordinating

role it is expected to.

Secondly, to allow for a closer and more regular supervision of

schools, these are brought together into clusters and officers are given

the responsibility for one such group of schools, with their office

sometimes being located at that level. In Namibia, within the existing

Okahao circuit for instance, three school clusters have been set up.

In Zimbabwe, the larger Kwekwe district has organized its schools

into 21 clusters. The purpose of such clusters is not simply to facilitate

the planning and to increase the coverage of external supervision

and advice, but especially to strengthen support activities between

the schools. In Zimbabwe, this clustering forms part of the Better

Schools Programme, which has also organized management training

for senior staff in schools and links school clusters to district resource

centres. To some extent, such clusters existed already in Tanzania in

the form of wards, the smallest administrative division. Ward

education co-ordinators, however, do not have the necessary skills

or background to play the role of a supervisor. Suggestions are

therefore made to retrain them so as to strengthen their supportive

potential to schools.





148

Thirdly, and following logically from the above, there is an

increased stress on in-school supervision and support. In Botswana,

two recommendations of the Revised Policy emphasize the need to

decentralize support tasks, in particular staff development and in-

service training, to the school level. To enable senior staff to play

this role, the Secondary Schools Management Development Project

(SSMDP) was implemented between 1993 and 1996 and is now

institutionalized as part of the Ministry’s official programme. The

establishment of Staff Development Committees in secondary schools

goes in the same direction. They carry out needs assessment and draw

up programmes for school-based training, using expertise from within

or outside the school. A project similar to the SSMDP, for primary

education, started in October 1997. Thirty primary-school heads are

following a two-year intensive training course in the UK. On their

return, they will be based at Education Centres and be responsible

for the staff development of a cluster of schools. Their role will be

similar to that of the School Management Adviser, working at

secondary level. In Zimbabwe, the Ministry is in principle fully in

favour of strengthening in-school supervision. In this regard,

headteachers of both primary and secondary schools have received

or are receiving training in school management. In principle, each

school has a board with members of the administration and teacher

representatives. This board supervises, assists and advises teachers,

and also has to assess and recommend them for promotion. In

Kwekwe district, these boards were functioning well in urban

schools, where staff are more stable. The Zimbabwe report noted

regularly that urban schools consider their need for control through

supervision to be limited, because of their good performance and

the quality of their teaching staff.

Fourthly, the civil society and particular school communities are

gradually being given an increased role in monitoring the functioning




Overall assessment

149

and quality of schools. Tanzania is the country with the longest

tradition in this regard: the 1995 Education and Training Policy of

Tanzania again stressed the decentralization of school management

to the school committees, which have mandatory powers to supervise

several aspects of school functioning. In Namibia, the authorities also

attempt to get civil society involved in education management, but at

a regional level rather than in the management of individual schools.

Each regional Council is expected to monitor, promote and oversee

educational development in the Region. It should, therefore, establish

a Regional Education Forum, which will advise regional education

authorities, oversee school operations and protect the education

interests of the communities. It should be composed of

representatives of school boards, community leaders, church bodies,

employers, trade unions, teachers’ unions, NGOs and student

organizations. As was seen earlier, in all four countries, there is quite

some disagreement about the role and authority of individual school

boards, for instance regarding their access to supervision findings.

Reforms in the daily operation

A third set of reforms concerns the actual operation and the focus

of supervision activities, in particular of school visits. In Zanzibar,

where structures and management have undergone little change,

reforms have been introduced to the inspection process, to improve

its impact on schools. Firstly, inspectors work more as a team rather

than as individuals. Before, secondary-school inspectors worked

separately from primary, who were in charge of their district only.

Now, they can form teams and visit both primary and secondary

schools. Secondly, there is a focus on school evaluation and less on

individual teacher inspection. Thirdly, openness and transparency are

encouraged in all school affairs and in supervision. This implies that

all schools are notified two weeks beforehand of the date of

inspection. As a result, where these reforms are actually being





150

implemented, teachers are beginning to consider inspectors as

sources of help rather than of criticism. In Zimbabwe, there is a similar

trend towards more openness and transparency. While inspection

visits were previously unannounced and had the clear objective of

discovering wrongdoings, pre-informed visits have now become the

norm. While the right to conduct unannounced inspections still

exists, the avowed purpose of the expected visits is to give support

in an amicable spirit. The Ministry itself has also made its own

procedures for recruiting and promoting staff more transparent. More

inspections are now also undertaken by teams, with a focus on whole-

school improvement rather than on individual teacher inspection.

Supervision findings could be used to improve individual schools,

but are of equal value as an assessment of the functioning of the whole

system. Only in Zimbabwe however does the service have, as a specific

objective, system reform and improvement, through the methodical

use of reports. The central Standards Control Unit every year visits a

sample of schools within one region, for a global evaluation. It

examines curriculum implementation and innovations, management,

relations and development programmes. Reports, with strong

recommendations, are sent to the Regional Director and these same

recommendations serve the system.

One final trend, which seems more the result of practical

constraints rather than a well-designed policy, lies in focusing

supervision and support interventions to the schools most in need

of these. Reference was already made to the opinions of urban

headteachers in Zimbabwe, who do not feel regular external control

to be indispensable to their rather well-functioning schools. The

challenge now is to turn an existing but very ad-hoc practice into a

well thought-out policy. A diversified supervision system, which

concentrates on the most remote and isolated schools and on the




Overall assessment

151

least experienced or weakest teachers, is a promising way out, not

only to solve several practical problems, but also to guarantee a better

impact of supervision services on schools.

It needs to be stressed, finally, that a reform programme which

wants to overcome the many challenges facing supervision and

support services in the Eastern and Southern African region, will need

to be accompanied by a strong commitment to offer these services

the necessary minimum basic resources to function. Without such

commitment, any reform programme risks to have a very limited

impact.







IIEP publications and documents

More than 1,200 titles on all aspects of educational planning havebeen published by the International Institute for EducationalPlanning. A comprehensive catalogue is available in the followingsubject categories:

Educational planning and global issues

General studies – global/developmental issues

Administration and management of education

Decentralization – participation – distance education – school mapping – teachers

Economics of education

Costs and financing – employment – international co-operation

Quality of education

Evaluation – innovation – supervision

Different levels of formal education

Primary to higher education

Alternative strategies for education

Lifelong education – non-formal education – disadvantaged groups – gender education

Copies of the Catalogue may be obtained on request from: IIEP, Dissemination of Publications

[email protected] of new publications and abstracts may be consulted at the

following website: http://www.unesco.org/iiep.


http://www.unesco.org/iiep.


http://www.unesco.org/iiep.





The International Institute for Educational Planning

The International Institute for Educational Planning (IIEP) is an internationalcentre for advanced training and research in the field of educational planning. Itwas established by UNESCO in 1963 and is financed by UNESCO and by voluntarycontributions from Member States. In recent years the following Member Stateshave provided voluntary contributions to the Institute: Denmark, Finland, Germany,Iceland, India, Ireland, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland.

The Institute’s aim is to contribute to the development of educationthroughout the world, by expanding both knowledge and the supply of competentprofessionals in the field of educational planning. In this endeavour the Instituteco-operates with interested training and research organizations in Member States.The Governing Board of the IIEP, which approves the Institute’s programme andbudget, consists of a maximum of eight elected members and four membersdesignated by the United Nations Organization and certain of its specialized agenciesand institutes.

Chairperson:Dato’Asiah bt. Abu Samah (Malaysia)

Director, Lang Education, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Designated Members:

Torkel Alfthan

Chief, Training Policy and Employability Unit, Skills Development Department,International Labour Office (ILO) Geneva, Switzerland.

Eduardo A. DoryanVice-President, Human Development Network (HDN), The World Bank,Washington D.C., USA.

Carlos FortínDeputy Secretary-General, United Nations Conference on Trade andDevelopment (UNCTAD), Geneva, Switzerland.

Edgar OrtegónCo-ordinator of ILPES and Liaison with Office of the Executive Secretary ofCEPAL, Latin American and the Caribbean Institute for Economic and SocialPlanning (ILPES), Santiago, Chile, Colombia.

Elected Members:José Joaquín Brunner (Chile)

Director Education Programme, Fundación Chile, Santiago, Chile.Klaus Hüfner (Germany)

Professor, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany.Faïza Kefi (Tunisia)

Minister of the Environment, Ariana, Tunisia.Teboho Moja (South Africa)

Visiting Professor, New York University, New York, USA.Teiichi Sato (Japan)

Special Adviser to the Minister of Education, Ministry of Education, Science,Sports and Culture, Tokyo, Japan.

Tuomas Takala (Finland)Professor, University of Tampere, Tampere, Finland.

Michel Vernières (France)Professor, University of Paris I, Panthéon-Sorbonne, Paris, France.

Inquiries about the Institute should be addressed to:The Office of the Director, International Institute for Educational Planning,

7-9 rue Eugène-Delacroix, 75116 Paris, France.



Published in the series:Trends in school supervision

School supervision in fourAfrican countries:

Vol. II: National diagnoses(Botswana, Namibia, Tanzania, Zimbabwe)

Anton De Grauwe

A paper copy of this publication may be obtained on request from:[email protected]

To consult the full catalogue of IIEP Publications and documents on ourWeb site: http://www.unesco.org/iiep

Co-operation Agency (Sida) has provided financial assistance for the publication of

this bookle

Published by:International Institute for Educational Planning/UNESCO

7 - 9 rue Eugène-Delacroix, 75116 Paris

ISBN: 92-803-1207-3

© UNESCO 2001


mailto:[email protected]







Trends in school supervision

School supervisionin four African countries:Volume II

National diagnoses

BotswanaNamibiaTanzaniaZimbabwe





The views and opinions expressed in this booklet are those of the

authors and do not necessarily represent the views of UNESCO or of

the IIEP. The designations employed and the presentation of material

throughout this review do not imply the expression of any opinion

whatsoever on the part of UNESCO or IIEP concerning the legal status

of any country, territory, city or area or its authorities, or concerning

its frontiers or boundaries.

The publication costs of its study have been covered through a grant-

in-aid offered by UNESCO and by voluntary contributions made by

several Member States of UNESCO, the list of which will be found at

the end of the volume.

Published by:


7-9 rue Eugène-Delacroix, 75116 Paris

e-mail: [email protected]

IIEP web site: http://www.unesco.org/iiep.

Cover design: Pierre Finot

Typesetting: Linéale Production

Printed in IIEP’s printshop

© UNESCO 2001






5

CONTENTSPages

Presentation of the series 7

Chapter I. Botswana 11List of abbreviations 14List of tables 15Introduction 17I. General overview of supervision and support

structures 21II. The management of supervision services: basic facts

and critical issues 33III. Actual operation – Report of a case study

on the southern part of the Central region 49IV. Overall assessment 62Conclusion 71

Chapter II. Namibia 73List of abbreviations 76List of tables 77Introduction 79I. General overview of supervision and support

services 84II. The management of supervision services: basic

facts and critical issues 93III. Daily operation of supervision and support

services – results of a case study in the OndangwaWest Region 110

IV. Overall assessment 113

Chapter III. Tanzania 147List of abbreviations 150List of tables 151Introduction 153I. General overview of supervision and support

services 158II. Management of supervision services 168




Contents

6

III. The daily operation of supervision services –report of a case study in Muheza district 179

IV. Overall assessment 195

Chapter IV. Zimbabwe 207List of abbreviations 210List of tables 211Introduction 213I. General overview of supervision and support

services 223II. The management of supervision services: basic facts

and critical issues 235III. The daily operation of a supervision service

in Kwekwe district 255IV. Overall assessment 285Conclusion 301Appendix I 303




7

PRESENTATION OF THE SERIES

This publication forms part of a series on ‘Trends in school

supervision’, which accompanies the implementation of an IIEP

project on ‘Improving teacher supervision and support services for

basic education’. The project, which began in 1996, is one of the main

research components of the Institute’s Medium Term Plan 1996-2001.

The Institute wishes to express its sincere thanks to BMZ (the German

Federal Ministry for Technical Co-operation) and to UNICEF for their

support in the implementation of this project.

Earlier research, at the Institute and elsewhere, has pointed to

the need, in an era of increased decentralization and school

autonomy, to strengthen the skills of personnel involved in

supervision and support at local level and in schools.

Two related points are worth mentioning here, as they form both

the background to and the rationale for the IIEP’s concern with this

area of management. Firstly, professional supervision and support

services for teachers, although existing in almost every country for a

long time, have been ignored, increasingly so since resources have

become more scarce. This neglect has, until recent times, been

reflected by a similar indifference among researchers. Secondly, one

important reason why the quality of basic education has deteriorated

in many contexts is precisely related to the weakening of these

services.

The IIEP project, developed against this background, consists of

research, training and dissemination activities. Its specific objectives

are to assist countries in diagnosing and reforming the existing

services of supervision and support, and to identify promising

strategies for their reorganization and strengthening. The series of

publications, of which this monograph forms a part, is the result of




School supervision in four African countries: National diagnoses

8

research, implemented in several regions, to address a number of

questions, such as:

• How are supervision and support organized in different countries?

What have been the major trends in their recent evolution?

• What are the principal problems which supervision and support

services are presently facing in terms of: organizational structures;

overall management; and daily functioning?

• To what extent and under what conditions do these services have

a positive impact on the quality of the teaching-learning processes

in schools?

• What are the major innovations taking place, mainly in respect of

the devolution of supervision and support to the school-site level?

How do these innovations operate? What are the main results?

In order to formulate answers to these questions, the project

elaborated the following operational definition of school supervision

and support services: all those services whose main function is to

control and evaluate, and/or advise and support school heads and

teachers. The focus of the project is on external supervision and

support, that is to say on the work of inspectors, supervisors, advisers,

counsellors, etc. located outside the school, at local, regional or

central levels. A common characteristic of these officers is that regular

visits to schools are an essential part of their mandate.

However, many countries, in their attempts to reform and innovate

supervision, are increasingly relying on in-school or community-based

strategies (such as resource centres, school clusters, in-school

supervision by the principal or by peers, school-based management)

to complement – if not to replace – external supervision and support.

The project therefore also pays attention to a number of such

innovations and, in more general terms, the strengths and weaknesses




9

Presentation of the series

of strategies, aiming at the reinforcement of internal quality-control

mechanisms.

This series ‘Trends in school supervision’, thus consists of a variety

of titles: national diagnoses on supervision and support, comparative

analyses of the situation by region, case studies on innovative

experiences, monographs and discussion papers on specific

management issues. It is hoped that this series will fill a gap in

education research as well as be an inspiration, in particular to policy-

makers intending to reform supervision, and to supervisors who want

to improve on their practice.

Other titles in the series include:

• Ali, M.A. 1998. Supervision for teacher development: a proposal for

Pakistan. Paris: UNESCO/International Institute for Educational

Planning.

• Carron, G.; De Grauwe, A. 1997. Current issues in supervision: a

literature review. Paris: UNESCO/International Institute for


• Carron, G.; De Grauwe, A.; Govinda, R. 1998. Supervision and

support services in Asia. Volume 1: A comparative analysis. Volume

II: National diagnoses (Bangladesh, the State of Uttar Pradesh in

India, the Republic of Korea, Nepal and Sri Lanka). Paris: UNESCO/

International Institute for Educational Planning.

• Fergusson, V. 1998. Supervision for the self-managing school: the

New Zealand experience. Paris: UNESCO/International Institute for


• Gurr, D. 1999. From supervision to quality assurance: the case of

the State of Victoria, Australia. Paris: UNESCO/International Institute

for Educational Planning.





10

• Khaniya, T.R. 1997. Teacher support through resource centres: the

Nepalese case. Paris: UNESCO/International Institute for Educational

Planning.

• Perera, W.J. 1997. Changing schools from within: a management

intervention for improving school functioning in Sri Lanka. Paris:

UNESCO/International Institute for Educational Planning.

• Wilcox, B. 2000. Making school inspection visits more effective: the

English experience. Paris: UNESCO/International Institute for


Acknowledgements

This publication could not have been written without the

invaluable advice and continued guidance of Mr G. Carron.




Chapter I

School supervisionin Botswana

A. MakgothiM. BangaleK. MotlotleO. Pansiri

F. Stoneham







13

CONTENTS

Pages


List of tables 15

Introduction 17

I. General overview of supervision and supportstructures 21

1. Historical background of supervision and support 232. The overall structure of supervision and support 253. Official functions of the different services 284. Relations with other pedagogical services5. Classical supervision and support services within

a broader perspective:school-site support andsupervision 30

II. The management of supervision services: basic factsand critical issues 33

1. Basic facts 332. Critical management issues 373. Budgetary and financial matters and working

conditions 44

III. Actual operation – Report of a case studyon the southern part of the Central region 49

1. Planning and workload 502. School visits 533. Feedback and reporting 584. Follow-up 60

IV. Overall assessment 621. Impact on school functioning and quality 622. Challenges to supervision and support 643. Present trends and challenges 68

Conclusion 71




14


ADEA Association of Development of Education in Africa

BIPP Botswana In-Service, Pre-Service Project

BOG Board of Governors

CD&E (Department of) Curriculum Development and Evaluation

CEO Chief Education Officer

CJSS Community Junior Secondary School

CRT Criterion Referenced Testing

CTO Central Transport Organization

DPSM Directorate of Public Service Management

DVET (Department of) Vocational Education and Training

ERTD Examinations, Research and Testing Division

NDP National Development Plan

NPE National Policy on Education of 1977

ODA Overseas Development Administration

O & M Organization and Methods

PEIP Primary Education Improvement Project

PEO Principal Education Officer

PTA Parent-Teacher Association

REO Regional Education Officer

RNPE Revised National Policy on Education

SADC Southern African Development Community


SMA Schools Management Adviser

SMT Senior Management Team

SSMDP Secondary Schools Management Development Project(Programme)

SSS Senior Secondary School

TSM (Department of) Teaching Service Management

TT&D (Department of) Teacher Training and Development

UPE Universal Primary Education

USAID United States Agency for International Development




15

LIST OF TABLES

1. Distribution of primary schools by region 33

2. Distribution of secondary schools by region 34

3. Distribution of primary SEOs by age 34

4. Distribution of primary SEOs by length of service 35

5. Distribution of primary SEOs by qualifications 35

6. Distribution of secondary SEOs by age 35

7. Distribution of secondary SEOs by length of service 36

8. Distribution of secondary SEOs by qualifications 36

9. Distribution of in-service education officers by age 36

10. Distribution of in-service education officers by length ofservice 37

11. Distribution of in-service education officers byqualifications 37

12. In-service training of primary SEOs 41

13. Average percentage of time devoted by supervisorsto various tasks 52

14. Impact of full inspection 63

15. Main problems mentioned by selected heads in theCentral region 67

16. Measures for improvement suggested by selected headsin the Central region 67







17

INTRODUCTION

Country background

Botswana, a landlocked country in Southern Africa is an arid land

prone to drought. The Kgalagadi Desert occupies about 60 per cent

of the land to the west. The population is 1,450,000, concentrated

along the eastern part of the country. The western and north-western

parts are very sparsely populated, posing a challenge in the provision

of services such as education.

Botswana has enjoyed peace and political stability since

independence in 1966. Prudent planning and strict financial discipline

have seen Botswana emerge from being one of the poorest countries

on the continent in 1966 to a lower middle-income country in 1997.

The GDP stands at US$4.6 billion and a per-capita GDP of US$2,980

today at the time of writing. Botswana’s engine of economic

development is diamonds while copper, nickel, cattle and wildlife, as

well as tourism are also significant contributors.

A brief history of education in Botswana

The first formal schools were established in the mid-nineteenth

century by missionaries. In the latter half of the nineteenth century

tribal chiefs mobilized resources in the form of education tax to

establish tribal primary schools. The colonial government started

making nominal contributions to education in 1904. In 1935 the

Education Department was established by the Protectorate

administration. In general, development of education was very slow.

Up until 1940 there were no post-primary institutions. Schools were

found only in the major villages. These schools were under-resourced

and the quality of education was poor.




18


After independence in 1966, Botswana experienced rapid

development in the education sector. In 1967 there were 252 primary

schools enrolling just over 70,000 pupils. In the following 30 years

the number of schools almost tripled, to 718 primary schools in 1997

with a total enrolment of over 320,000. The Net Enrolment Ratio,

which stood at 54 per cent in 1976, increased to 94 per cent in 1997.

Expansion at secondary was even steeper: there were 9 secondary

schools with 1,027 students at independence, and in 1997 there were

230 secondary schools with 109,663 students.

The structure of the education system is as follows: the primary

cycle (seven years) and the junior secondary cycle (three years) make

up the period of Basic Education. After basic education, students have

the choice between senior secondary (two years), followed by higher

education, or three-year vocational training. The age for enrolment

into the first year of primary, Standard 1, is six years. A special

dispensation is made for children in the more remote parts of the

country to start school a little later. The reason for this is that in these

parts a school might be a long way from home and only older pupils

would be able to walk this distance.

Responsibility for primary education is shared between the

Ministry of Local Government, Lands and Housing (MLGL&H) and

the Ministry of Education. The MLGL&H, through the local authorities,

is responsible for providing physical infrastructure and school

supplies such as textbooks, stationery, furniture and equipment, other

materials and school meals. The Ministry of Education provides the

professional inputs such as teachers, supervision and support,

curriculum and examinations. The Inter-ministerial Committee on

Primary Education, co-chaired by the Permanent Secretaries of the

two Ministries ensures co-ordination of activities in primar y

education.




19

Introduction

At primary-school level there is an acute shortage of classrooms.

Many classes are taught outside, under a tree or wherever shade can

be found. In such cases, and as long as it does not rain, a ‘shift’ system

operates, with one class being inside for one week and outside for

the following week. One of the worst cases was a primary school

visited recently in Maun, the gateway to the Okavango Delta. At this

school there were 31 classes and only 10 classrooms. At this school

all Standard 2 pupils are taught outside throughout the year. When it

rains there are no lessons for classes without a room.

Prior to the 1994 Revised National Policy on Education (RNPE)

primary-school teachers were trained at Certificate level. Minimum

entry into teacher training was a pass at junior secondary level. Pre-

service teacher training has undergone qualitative improvement;

trainee teachers are now recruited from senior secondary graduates

and are trained up to Diploma level. The output of qualified teachers

has also increased.

In-service training has been strengthened to take place regularly

at school, regional and national levels. Eleven education centres have

been strategically located across the country to support in-service

initiatives and to act as resource centres for teachers.

Child-centred learning was adopted in the early 1980s as the

pedagogical approach that can best enhance the quality of learning.

Programmes were developed that have the child at the centre of

learning. An example of these is the ‘Breakthrough to Setswana’, a

novel approach to language teaching, which relies strongly on the

use of the national language.

The Botswana Teacher Competency Instrument (BTCI) was also

developed to help supervisor y staff (education officers and

headteachers) improve their supervision and support in order to help





20

teachers move away from teacher-centred, knowledge-based learning

to that which is child-centred.

Financing education in Botswana

Government has always attached great importance to the

development of educational opportunities. A demonstration of this

is that in the past 20 years education has consistently received 19 per

cent to 25 per cent of the recurrent budget. In the financial year 1996-

1997 education’s share was 22.6 per cent of the recurrent budget.

The evolution of development expenditure in education over the

last 20 years has reflected a shift in priorities. Access to primary

education was a priority after 1976 as government strove for universal

access to primary education. Once this was achieved, emphasis shifted

to universal access to junior secondary education. Expenditure

during NDP 7 (1991-1997) was consistent with this trend: education

was allocated US$250,000,000 (at 1991 prices) of the development

budget. The share for primary education was 18 per cent, while

secondary education received the largest share at 39 per cent. For

NDP 8 (1997-2003) government will spend about US$627 million (at

1997 prices) of the development budget on education. This will

constitute 19.7 per cent of the entire development budget. The

greatest beneficiaries of this allocation are secondary education

(32 per cent), vocational education and training (23 per cent) and

primary education (21 per cent). During NDP 8 priorities are to

maintain 100 per cent access to Basic Education (primary and junior

secondary education), increase transition to senior secondary

education from the present 30 per cent to 50 per cent, and increase

access to vocational education and training. The improvement of

facilities in primary schools has also assumed priority.




21


1. Historical background of supervision and support

At independence in 1966 there was a small cadre of school

inspectors whose responsibilities covered both primar y and

secondary schools. Their emphasis was more on fault finding than

guiding and supporting teachers in their work.

The 1970s witnessed the emergence of a new generation of subject

advisers/inspectors whose role was to provide in-service training,

guidance to teachers and support in curriculum development.

Inspection played an important but minor role in their work. The

title Inspector was replaced by Education Officer (EO) to reflect the

new roles.

Once this new corps of education officers became established,

the primary and secondary-education levels were separated into

Department of Primary Education and Teacher Training and

Department of Secondary Education, in the mid-1970s.

In the case of primary education, officers were decentralized to

local level. Each officer was responsible for a cluster of schools in a

given Inspectorial Area. A Regional Education Officer (REO)

supervised a group of education officers. This arrangement brought

supervision and support closer to the schools.

The education officers in the case of secondary education became

subject specialists, with their responsibilities including syllabus

revision, production of instructional materials, prescription of

textbooks and equipment, setting of examinations, inauguration and





22

chairing of subject panels. The primary-school officers carried out

similar duties for their level.

The rapid expansion of secondary education from the mid-1980s

had two structural implications. On the one hand, there was an

attempt to decentralize supervision through the creation of regional

offices. However, this attempt has not been fully successful, because

this move was not accompanied by a significant increase in the

number of officers. On the other hand, the workload of individual

subject specialists increased and it became difficult for them to cope

with the many tasks that had grown around each subject. This

complexity of functions carried out by the subject specialists called

for a variety of expertise that could not realistically be found in one

person. The need arose to devolve some of the responsibilities and

functions to other persons or departments with expertise in those

areas.

When the Department of Curriculum Development and Evaluation

(CD&E) was established in 1978, the curriculum-related functions

transferred to this new department. Later on, in 1989, the Department

of Primary and Teacher Training was separated into two: the

Department of Primary Education and the Department of Teacher

Training, since 1992 called the Department of Teacher Training and

Development. The responsibility for pre-service and in-service

training was transferred to this Department.

The Revised National Policy on Education (RNPE) of 1994 has

mandated that a Department of Inspection be established whose

purpose would be quality assurance in the education system. This

department would cover inspection at all levels – primary, secondary,

vocational education and training and teacher training. This new

Department of Inspection was, at the time of writing, still to be

established. It is envisaged that it will be staffed mainly by officers

from the Departments of Primary and Secondary Education.




School supervision in Botswana

23

2. The overall structure of supervision and support

At central level, supervision and support of teachers is provided

by three departments, namely the Departments of Primary Education

and of Secondary Education in charge of supervision and the

Department of Teacher Training and Development, in charge of

support. Each Department has its own structure, reflecting in part its

historical development.

Department of Primary Education

At central level, the Department is headed by the Director of

Primary Education and consists of various sections. The next level of

supervision is that of the Regional Education Offices. There are six

regions in the country, each consisting of four or more Inspectorial

Areas. The REO is overall responsible for all primary education

matters in the region. He/She also liaises with the Department of

Teaching Service Management (TSM) for the deployment of teachers

between regions.

Supervision and support at local level is provided by a Senior

Education Officer (SEO), in charge of an inspectorial area. In all there

are 37 Inspectorial Areas in the country. The SEOs conduct inspection,

pastoral visits as well as some in-service training. Another important

function of SEOs is liaison with District/Town Councils on matters

pertaining to infrastructure and supplies. They also recommend to

the regional education officers (REO) the deployment of teachers

within their Inspectorial Area.

Department of Secondary Education

At secondary level, all officers act as subject advisers and this

explains to a large extent why the decentralization policy has been

implemented with less success than at primary level. Until 1990, all





24

secondary-school supervisors worked in the Ministry Headquarters.

Decentralization in order to provide more effective service and

supervision became an affirmed goal of the Ministry at the end of

the 1980s.

Attempts at decentralization started in 1990 with the establishment

of three regional offices. Today there are five such offices, headed by

a regional education officer. In principle, each office should have a

full set of subject specialists, but this is by far not the case. Currently

there are 31 inspectors or senior education officers in the Department.

Twenty-one are based at headquarters and only 11 in the regions.

The number at Department headquarters amounts to two officers

per core subject (Setswana, English, science, social sciences,

mathematics, agriculture) and one for each optional subject (design

and technology, home economics, art, computer studies, commercial

studies, etc.). Senior education officers at both headquarters and

regional office are involved more with inspection and less with

providing support in the form of advisory visits.

That practical progress in this direction has been extremely slow

is due to lack of posts and ‘manpower ceilings’. The result is that

senior education officers in the regions are too few to form effective

inspection teams and are more often than not called upon to join in

inspections organized from headquarters.

Department of Teacher Training and Development

The establishment of the Department of Teacher Training and

Development in 1989 was an important development in providing

support for teachers. Within this Department there is the In-Service

Training Unit. Initially there were two teams of In-Service Officers,

one primary and another for secondary. The two services are now

being unified.





25

The in-service education officers are based at 11 Education

Centres throughout the country. These officers conduct needs

assessment of schools in the area and then plan and conduct in-service

training on the basis of the assessed needs.

The RNPE has introduced many innovations in terms of new

content and new methodologies. It falls on the in-service education

officers to provide the training required for the teachers to cope with

the new changes.

3. Official functions of the different services

Department of Primary Education

The main supervisory actor is the senior education officer (SEO)

in charge of an inspectorial area. The main functions of the

inspectorate fall into the following categories:

(a) Professional function

The SEOs conduct inspection of schools in their areas. They give

teachers advice on instructional matters based on the gaps observed

during lesson observations. Training needs are also identified during

the inspection and school-based staff development arranged. Heads’

leadership capacity is assessed and supported in the same way.

(b) Administrative function

There are also important administrative functions performed by

the SEOs. These relate mainly to personnel management –

maintenance of teachers’ records, transfers, engagement of untrained

teachers, deployment of teachers, recommendations for promotion

and disciplinary action.





26

(c) Liaison function

The SEOs represent the Ministry of Education in meetings of local

authorities such as Full District/Town Council meetings, various

committees of the local authorities, e.g. District Development

Committee, Education Committee, Planning Committee. At these

meetings they advise on matters of infrastructure, school supplies

and education policy.

Department of Secondary Education

The overall duties and responsibilities of the secondary-school

department as defined in the Scheme of Service are:

• improving the quality and productivity of the secondary-education

personnel;

• maintaining and continuously raising the standards of academic

performance;

• promoting professionalism among teachers and education officers;

• ensuring that curricula are adequately followed;

• implementing and maintaining the approved national policies on

secondary education;

• evaluating the impact and relevance of policy;

• administering the relevant provisions of the Education Act and

other regulations pertaining to secondary education.

The main activity through which to attain these objectives is

through school visits. In addition to school inspection, senior

education officers also carry out a number of other functions, which

include:

• co-ordination of subject-specific activities such as curriculum

implementation and promotion of activities such as fairs,

exhibitions and associations;





27

• provision of in-service courses;

• deployment and management of teachers in their respective

subjects;

• preparation and marking of examination papers.

To fulfil its tasks, the Department is divided into:

(i) Inspectorate and Field Services Section;

(ii) Management and Training Section;

(iii) Finance Audit Section.

The function of the Inspectorate and Field Services Section is more

inclined towards supervision and control, while the Management and

Training Section plays a supportive role in order to develop and

support school heads, deputies and senior teachers. This is a newly

created section which will continue the work begun by the Secondary

School Management Project which was concluded in December 1996.

The Finance Audit Section consists of a small team of auditors which

exercises control over school finances by monitoring books of

accounts and presiding over the hand-over exercise that takes places

at the departure or transfer of a school head.

The auditors and inspectors do at times carry out joint inspections

of schools, although more often than not they operate independently.

The importance of including finance in the whole school inspection

is recognized; however, the small number of auditors currently makes

it impossible to put this into practice.

Department of Teacher Training and Development

The main responsibility of this Department is to offer support and

advice to schools and teachers. While in-service education officers

for both primary and secondary schools complement each other, a

distinction can be made. At secondary level, they are subject





28

specialists. Their principal duty is to monitor and seek ways of

improving standards of teaching and departmental administration

within their specific subject areas. Where primary schools are

concerned, officers work mainly in three areas:

(i) Breakthrough to Setswana: a project supporting teaching

methods for early literacy in the primary schools;

(ii) Media: offering support to schools in information technology,

development of teaching aids and media-related activities;

(iii) Curriculum: all in-service education officers support curriculum

implementation and management development training.

4. Relations with other pedagogical services

Officers in both the Department of Primary Education and that of

Secondary Education have some say in the delivery of related

pedagogical services, such as curriculum development and

examinations. Their involvement can be through formal structures

or through more informal contacts.

At primary level, and as far as teacher training is concerned,

officers participate in advisory committees of colleges of education

which periodically review the colleges’ curriculum, and in working

committees for the co-ordination of teaching practice. More

informally, they identify teachers’ training needs and communicate

them to TT&D.

Officers also participate in subject panels responsible for the

development of syllabus design, textbooks and teacher guides. In

addition, they are involved in item writing, pre-testing and

supervision of the conduct of examinations.





29

Secondary-education officers, because they were at some time

solely responsible for all aspects of their subjects, have continued to

have even closer links with the departments that have assumed some

of these functions.

They sit, together with, for example, in-service officers and teacher

trainers, on Curriculum Panels co-ordinated by the Curriculum

Development Unit. In this capacity, they are heavily involved in the

development of syllabi, instructional materials, the selection of

textbooks and the implementation of new curricula.

They continue to play a role in in-service training: they are often

called upon to resource workshops organized by either the CD&E or

TT&D and, in addition, they also run their own workshops. This

occurs particularly in subjects without in-service officers.

Despite the devolution of the function of examination to another

department, SEOs continue in the role of Chief Examiner in their

respective subjects and are responsible for the co-ordination of

setting and marking of examination papers.

With the ever increasing number of schools and pressure from

within the Ministry of Education and from the public in general for

more inspections, SEOs have found the duties they carry out on

behalf of other departments to be an added burden which limits their

capacity to supervise schools more effectively.

In-service training has become the main responsibility of the

Department of Teacher Training and Development. Its staff link with

CD&E officers, ERTD officers, teacher-training colleges, University of

Botswana’s Faculty of Education, Departments of primary and

secondary.





30

At regional level, in-service committees have been set up, made

up of people from government and NGOs, with representation of

teachers, headteachers and members of the Primary and Secondary

Inspectorate.

5. Classical supervision and support services within a broaderperspective: school-site support and supervision

The Botswana Ministry of Education has recently embarked on

different initiatives to strengthen supervision and support at school

level, in response to international and national findings which

advocate that change should start at that level.

More authority is being given to the school head and senior staff.

The revised national Policy on Education identifies as one of its aims

(Recommendation 105) the empowerment of primary-school heads

to enable them to function better as instructional leaders. It reads:

(a) the Head as instructional leader, together with the deputy and

senior teachers, should take major responsibility for in-service

training of the teachers within their schools, through regular

observation of teachers and organization of workshops, to

foster communication between teachers on professional matters

and to address weaknesses;

(b) the Education Officers’ visits to schools should supplement the

school-based in-service training and should be geared more

towards a general ‘performance audit’ of the school as well as

management training of heads.

In order to strengthen the management and instructional

leadership capacity at secondary-school level, the Secondary School

Management Development Project (SSMDP) was conceived. It





31

targeted school heads, deputies and senior teachers for training in

management, staff development and instructional leadership. The

project ran from 1993 to 1996, supported by the British ODA.

Sustainability was built in by involving and training citizen

counterparts to work along the British technical advisers. Several

structures, among them regional SMAs, school clusters, regional

libraries, local resource persons, and regional strategic planning

committees were also put into place. A similar project for primary-

school headteachers was launched in October 1997 and its

implementation took off mid-1998.

Secondary schools are now expected to do their own school

development planning. In this regard, groups of schools have

nominated a teacher to be a Staff Development Co-ordinator, linked

directly with in-service education officers. They work with groups

of neighbouring schools and have as main tasks to identify staff

development (training) needs and to organize relevant programmes.

Most secondary schools have a small budget for such programmes.

Additional support for schools takes various forms:

• through whole school staff development planning, organized by

the In-service Department;

• through school based support;

• through school clusters;

• at Education Centres where teachers can work on their own often

with their pupils.

The success of School Development Planning differs from one

region to the other. Regions with a good number of secondary schools

generally have strong staff development committees. The whole

process of school and staff development planning is still to be instilled

across primary schools.





32

Communities play a relatively minor role in primary schools,

where they are represented through the traditional parent-teacher

associations. Their importance is greater at junior secondary level,

especially in the Community Junior Secondary Schools through locally

elected Boards of Governors (BOG). When these schools were

established in the mid-1980s, boards of governors were introduced

to help in their management. The concept was to establish a

partnership between government and communities in an attempt at

democratizing education. The members of the BOG are elected at a

meeting by members of the public to represent the interests of the

community in the management of the school. They are important in

ensuring that pupils receive the education that is their right. So, BOGs

are an important supervision structure in the community schools.




33

II. THE MANAGEMENT OF SUPERVISION SERVICES:BASIC FACTS AND CRITICAL ISSUES

1. Basic facts

Tables 1 and 2 show the distribution of schools by region, and,

for primary education, by inspectorial area. In principle, a primary

inspector is in charge of about 20 schools, with some variation in

function of their size and location. Not all posts are filled at the

moment. At secondary level, the arrangement is different. Officers

are responsible for certain subjects, either within the regional office

where they are posted or at central level. There are at the time of

writing a total of 31 secondary inspectors, only 11 of whom are posted

in the regional offices. On average, taking into account only the posts

actually filled, there were in 1997-1998 about 20 schools and

335 teachers per primary inspector and about 8 schools and 200

teachers per secondary inspector (this last comparison is misleading

as inspectors, as mentioned above, are responsible for subjects rather

than schools). There are 67 officers in the TT&D Department, which

are responsible on average for 14 schools and 260 teachers.

Table 1. Distribution of primary schools by region

Region Number of Number of Average number of schools inspectorial areas schools per inspectorial area

North 4 69 17

Central North 5 111 22

Central South 7 131 19

South Central 10 180 18

South 7 149 21

West 4 78 20

Total 37 718 19





34

Table 2. Distribution of secondary schools by region

Region Number of Number of Number of Totalgovernment SSS government-aided SSS1 CJSSs

North 5 1 41 47

North West 2 1 26 29

North Central 6 0 45 51

South Central 6 1 49 56

South 4 1 42 47

Total 23 4 203 230

Tables 3 to 11 offer a profile of the three types of officers –

primary, secondary and in-service. For each group, data are given on

age, length of service and qualifications. As far as age is concerned,

about half of primary SEOs are over 45, this is the case for only about

a quarter of secondary SEOs and in-service education officers. There

is a clear relationship with length of service in their present post. In-

service education officers – a post created rather recently – have all

less than 10 years’ experience. This is the case for 25 out of 35

primary SEOs and 25 out of 28 secondary SEOs. Primary SEOs have

less academic qualifications than their colleagues, who for the

greatest part have either a bachelors’ or a master’s degree.

Table 3. Distribution of primary SEOs by age

Age range Male Female Total

35-40 4 2 6

41-45 5 (1) 6 (1) 11

46-50 4 2 6

51-55 5 (1) 2 (1) (2) 7

56 + 3 (3) 2 (3) 5

Total 21 (5) 14 (1) (6) 35

REO in brackets

1 Government-aided Senior Secondary Schools are Mission Schools fully funded bygovernment.





35

Table 4. Distribution of primary SEOs by length ofservice

Length of service Male Female Total

0-5 8 7 15

6-10 7 3 10

11-15 3 3 6

16-20 1 3 4

Total 19 16 35

Table 5. Distribution of primary SEOs by qualifications

Male Female Total

Certificate 1 1 2

Diploma 9 1 10

Bachelor’s Degree 10 9 19

Master’s Degree 1 3 4

Total 21 14 35

Table 6. Distribution of secondary SEOs by age


31-35 2 0 2

36-40 5 6 11

41-45 (1) 5 3 7 (1)

46-50 (2) 4 2 (1) 6 (3)

51-55 1 0 1

Total 17 11 28

REO in brackets





36

Table 7. Distribution of secondary SEOs by length ofservice


0-5 7 10 17

6-10 8 0 8

11-15 2 1 3

Total 17 11 28

Table 8. Distribution of secondary SEOs byqualifications

Qualifications Male Female Total

Diploma 1 1 2

Bachelor’s 7 6 13

Master’s 9 4 13

Total 12 11 28

Table 9. Distribution of in-service education officers byage


31-35 7 7 14

36-40 13 19 32

41-45 2 5 7

46-50 1 4 5

51-55 2 3 5

56 + 2 2 4

Total 27 40 67





37

Table 10. Distribution of in-service education officers bylength of service


0-5 17 14 31

6-10 10 23 33

11+ – 3 3

Total 27 40 67

Table 11. Distribution of in-service education officers byqualification


Certificate 1 9 10

Diploma 1 3 5

Bachelor’s 15 11 26

Master’s 9 17 26

Total 27 40 67


(a) Recruitment

Recruitment for the public service including the Ministry of

Education is done through the Directorate of Public Service and

Management. In the past it was often the practice for the Ministry of

Education to identify competent teachers or school administrators

and directly to transfer them into its various supervisory departments.

Officers appointed to In-Service Teacher Support functions were

selected on the basis of the recommendations of the immediate

supervisors. Competent subject teaching (for secondary) or being

an effective teacher (for primary) were considered more important

than their potential as trainers. Nowadays, for both supervision and

in-service officers, a system of open advertisement and oral interview

prior to selection pertains.





38

Primary-school supervisors are recruited from the primary

schools. Candidates should have been successful primary-school

heads for a period of not less than three years. The age profile of the

primary SEOs illustrates their long experience. Prospective

candidates should have at least a Diploma in education.

At secondary level, the officers are recruited from among senior

teachers, deputies or school heads in secondary schools. Applicants are

required to have a junior degree and teaching qualification, a minimum

of eight years’ teaching experience and should have held a position of

responsibility within the school. Recruitment of SEOs is often very slow

and attracts only applicants from the ranks of senior teacher. Heads and

deputies are not attracted to the post because they already operate at

equivalent or higher salary scales than the senior education officer. Once

senior education officers are recruited from among senior teachers, they

are often disparaged by heads who regard them as their juniors who

have no practical experience in running a school. At present, even senior

teachers do not necessarily show interest in these posts. The reason for

this is that conditions of service for teachers have improved and

opportunities for progression in teaching are better than in the SEO

cadre. It is, therefore, no longer attractive for teachers to join the SEO

cadre. Recently, 14 posts of SEO have been advertised to fill positions in

the regions. The response has been limited and has not attracted

candidates of the calibre required.

The in-service cadre is attractive to officers because the job affords

them ongoing professional training through interacting with various

groups of teachers and other stakeholders in education. Problems of

recruitment are nevertheless encountered because the Teaching

Service Management, from where candidates come, offers to a certain

extent better salaries and promotional aspects compared to the Public

Service posts, to which they are appointed.





39

The staff interviewed as part of the case study in the Southern

part of the Central district, on which Part III will report in detail,

expressed their satisfaction with the recruitment procedure: the

inspectors saw an advertisement, applied, were interviewed and

offered the post, while the in-service officer was selected on the basis

of exemplary classroom practice. Their main suggestion concerns the

need to recruit better-qualified individuals.


The teachers in primary, secondary and teacher-training

institutions are employed by the Directorate of Teaching Service

Management (TSM), a Department of the Ministry of Education.

Education officers in the different departments are employed by the

Directorate of Public Service Management (DPSM). The two groups

are employed and governed by two separate statutory instruments.

One advantage that public officers however enjoy is that of movement

from TSM to DPSM and vice versa without any loss of service years.

But this cannot help the fact that officers in all three departments

have relatively few promotion possibilities. The career structure of

each department of the Ministry of Education is contained in a

Scheme of Service which outlines progression from education officer

to director (head of department). As one climbs the career ladder,

posts – and promotion possibilities – become fewer. The Department

of Primary Education, for instance, is characterized by a pyramidal

structure:

Director E2

Chief Education Officer D1

Principal Education Officer I D2

Principal Education Officer II D3

Senior Education Officer D4

Head Teacher (Primary) C1





40

Promotion possibilities within the Department of Secondary

Education have hitherto been even more limited since regional

education officers were usually drawn from the ranks of heads of

large senior schools and not from within the Department. A small

number of senior education officers have therefore sought

promotion by applying for positions outside the Department. In

pursuance of its policy of decentralization, the Department now plans

to re-deploy some senior education officers to the regions and retain

a few as principal education officers at headquarters to co-ordinate

the subject activities at national level. To this end, six senior education

officers have been promoted to principal education officer level.

In theory dismissal rules exist but in practice these have proved

difficult to enforce, because of the existence of grievance procedures,

which appear to render dismissal rules ineffective. A public officer

can spend any length of time being unproductive and yet no dismissal

is executed. Much as this sustains the country’s cordial industrial

relations, it often works against productivity, which is the

government’s corporate strategy for improving the public service.

(c) Training

Training for the inspectors both at primary and secondary level is

limited and unco-ordinated. Officers in the In-service cadre can count

on a better organized and more diversified programme.

There is no specific training plan for the officers in the Department

of Primary Education. However, of late some induction has been

conducted for new recruits, but it is rather ad hoc. The inspectors

interviewed in the case study, had all received a one to two-weeks’

induction, but called for a longer period, including capacity building

in areas such as management, handling cases of misconduct,

confidence-building and inspection procedures. In a similar way, in-





41

service training lacks organization. Occasionally some inspectors

participate in a two-weeks’ training course at the Institute of

Development and Management, others are sent to the UK for a three-

months’ course on inspection, but on the whole all feel the need for

more such training. Table 12 shows that about two-thirds of primary

inspectors have received no in-service training whatsoever.

Table 12. In-service training of primary SEOs

Male Female Total

No training whatsoever 15 9 24

2 Weeks IDM 4 2 6

3 Months UK 2 3 5

Total 21 14 35

At secondary level, an informal induction usually takes place and

consists of the following aspects:

• a short attachment at headquarters (whenever possible);

• briefing and distribution of inspection guidelines and checklists

by the Principal Education Officer II (academic);

• attachment to a mentor for the first few inspections.

Officers are nominated from time to time for various in-service

training courses, including on educational management, computers,

HIV awareness and counselling. No formal training programmes exist

specifically for supervision and inspection, although an annual

evaluation and planning workshop for all inspectors usually provides

a forum for presentation of professional papers and discussion.

Senior education officers themselves express the need for more

formal training programmes in the area of school supervision and

inspection. The supervisors interviewed in the Central region added

some details. They felt that such training should focus on innovations





42

that have recently been introduced into the schools, on teacher

management issues which have recently been decentralized and on

financial management. They were also candidates for more specific

supervision-related training, including on school visits and report

writing.

In-service education officers and staff development co-ordinators

receive ongoing professional support. Training programmes range

from short to long-term training and cover the following areas:

• Using computers in education;

• Production of visual aids;

• Reprographics in education;

• Resource-materials development;

• Curriculum-based training;

• Leadership, management and supervisory skills development

training;

• Training in emerging issues, e.g. HIV/AIDS, Population and

Sustainable Development, Environmental Education.

In addition, the CD&E and ERTD provide training to the same

officers so that they, in turn, can support schools in introducing

curriculum changes.

Newly recruited in-service education officers go through an

intensive induction training programme which includes attachment

to other departments of the Ministry of Education. An Induction

Training Manual has also been produced by serving officers.

From time to time, the three groups of officers – from primary,

secondary and in-service – receive training together, at times with

staff from the University of Botswana. This is particularly so in the

new topical areas of Environmental education, Population and

Sustainable development, to mention a few.





43

(d) Support for supervisors

The support available to supervisors takes two forms. On the one

hand, some guidelines and checklists for the conduct of inspections

are kept on computer and are made available to inspection teams when

needed. Secondly, the annual planning meeting referred to earlier

provides a forum to ensure co-ordination and consistency in the

operation of the inspectorate. There is no professional organization

for supervisors within the Ministry of Education: generally speaking,

the Botswana Public Service is not characterized by the existence of

either formal unions or informal associations. However, the need for

a professional forum, where officers from various departments could

share ideas, has been voiced by some officers.

(e) Monitoring and evaluation

Recently principal education officers have been appointed both

in the Department of Primary and Secondary Education in order to

provide direction and leadership for the inspectorate cadre. They

now monitor the work of the Inspectorate.

The evaluation and supervision of the officers follows the normal

hierarchical procedures: e.g. heads of schools are supervised by senior

education officers, who, in turn, are supervised by regional education

officers. The supervisors release a monthly itinerary for approval by

their REOs. Emphasis is on school inspection and close monitoring

for the maintenance of standards in schools. The supervisors in the

case study indicated that the REOs appraisal of their work is based

on the number of schools inspected, the quality of reports produced

and other noteworthy contributions, such as their handling of

misconduct cases and the support they give to schools to obtain

materials. Officers are appraised through a system of Confidential

Reports which is used in the whole of the public service. No special

code of ethics exists other than the Public Service Code.





44

The in-service officers are assessed on the basis of a number of

targets and performance indicators. However, because of the often

heavy workload these targets are frequently not met. They are

monitored at two levels: by an immediate Supervisor who is based at

the duty station and by the co-ordinator at the Departmental

Headquarters based in Gaborone. In-service officers prepare and

submit activity reports at the end of every school term. Generally,

reports cover the following aspects: officers’ target set, performance

indicators, and an appraisal of activities.

3. Budgetary and financial matters and working conditions

Budget and financial matters

It is rather difficult to identify, within the education budget, the

precise amount of spending on supervision and support services.

Budgets are distributed among departments and offices, which have

supervision as only one of their tasks. It is very difficult to know if a

budget line, such as ‘transport and subsistence’, was used for school

visits or for other purposes.

Supervisors’ salaries are comparable with those of other public

servants of the same level. As they get promoted, only their post is

considered, not their educational attainment (e.g. Diploma, Degree).

The career ladder of inspectors, heads and deputy heads is as follows,

from the highest to the lowest post:

Principal Education Officer I D2 Head SSS D2 Principal Education Officer II D3 Deputy Head SSS D3 Head CJSS D3 Senior Education Officer D4 Duty Head CJSS D4 Education Officer C1





45

The salary of a regional education officer (Primary) is equivalent

to that of a deputy head of a secondary school and a salary scale lower

than that of a regional education officer (Secondary). A senior

education officer can earn less than the head or the deputy head of a

senior secondary school. As alluded to earlier, this promotes the

perception of inspectors as officers, junior to school heads and with

little impact on their functioning.

All the inspectors who were interviewed, with the exception of

the REO, complained about their salaries, which they thought poor,

especially in comparison with officers in other ministries and with

colleagues in, for example, the colleges of education and secondary

schools. They noted the difference between primary and secondary-

school inspectors: the former are consistently paid more than the

staff they supervise, while the same is not always true for the latter.

All finally indicated that they are paid on time.

Travel and accommodation costs incurred by senior education

officers in the course of normal duty are met by the Department. The

norm is to travel in government vehicles, however when officers are

required to use their private vehicles they may claim ‘mileage’ for

the journey. This amounts to P1.51 and P0.93 per kilometre on gravel

and tar road respectively. Accommodation costs are usually met

through a travel advance, made available to the officer and called

‘imprest’. A subsistence allowance of P75 per night may also be

claimed when officers are not accommodated in hotels. Officers in

the Central region did not fully agree on the issue of allowances: some

considered them too poor, others sufficient or good. This might be

linked to officers’ location: those based far from the regional office

had difficulties in transmitting travel claims. In the same region, all

primary inspectors have their own travel budget, however the cry is

invariably that this allocation is too little, as shown by this response:





46

“The office has run short of funds several times. One has to limit

trips to avoid over-expenditure. I also experience serious

restrictions.”

Working conditions

At headquarters, office accommodation in a modern new Ministry

of Education building is adequate. Some offices are rather small for

various subject officers who keep large amounts of teaching material.

Almost all supervisors are housed by government through the

‘Housing Pool System’.

Regional offices, on the other hand, do face acute problems in

securing both office space and living accommodation for their

officers. Senior education officers and regional education officers

normally depend for accommodation on Rural Administration Centres

(RAC) controlled by the local authority. Quite often they would be

thought of last. Where there are no RACs, private accommodation

can be rented. In the case study, half the supervisors had been

provided with accommodation, while the rest rented privately. The

majority of officers live within 5 kilometres of their workplace, while

two lived 20 and 30 kilometres away, respectively, and take 20 to

40 minutes to reach their offices. The Ministry of Education does

not own any office buildings in the regions. Primary offices in the

regions very often do not have sufficient facilities such as computers,

photocopiers and proper office furniture. Generally, secondary

education and in-service officers are better provided in terms of

computers and other office equipment.

The situation in the southern part of the Central region was as

follows: while all inspectors indicated that they had their own office,

none of them was happy with its state. Their offices had the basic

materials: all had typewriters, filing cabinets and a telephone, either





47

in satisfactory or excellent condition. None, however, had a computer

or a stationery cupboard and only one inspector had a photocopier.

There is great disparity in the provision of support staff: one inspector

has six staff, another two have five, the REO has two and one inspector

has only one. Their situation seems to be better than in other regions

or at central level, where at times no specific service staff are allocated

for the Inspectorate and most officers have, of necessity, learned to

type up their own reports.

Transport

Transport at headquarters is generally provided though requisition

of vehicles from the Central Transport Organization (CTO), a process

which is fraught with administrative delays. Most of the primary

senior education officers have their own office transport. However,

those in the regional offices also depend on scarce CTO pool vehicles.

In the case of secondary education, the regional education officer

has official transport and SMAs also have their own transport, making

school visits easier. The SEOs do not have transport and again have to

rely on pool vehicles from the CTO.

As far as the situation in the southern part of the Central region is

concerned, three of the six officers have their own vehicle, which,

they complain, are in a poor condition. The in-service officer has no

transport and relies on the inspectors. Another inspector depends

on loans from the Central Transport Organization. “When transport

is not available, work comes to a standstill”, lamented this inspector.

The REO also depends on loans from the CTO which are not always

guaranteed.

On the whole, most of the inspectors in this area are rather

unsatisfied, while one was totally unsatisfied, with their working

conditions. Reasons for the dissatisfaction were listed as follows:





48

• lack of supplies and resources such as photocopiers, duplicators,

computers;

• lack of space;

• lack of support staff.

One inspector expresses these frustrations as follows: “With no

typist I often engage temporary assistance for which some money is

made available at least. With regard to the crowded office, you find

teachers waiting in the passage which is also used by other

departments and the public. The unsatisfactory condition of the

typewriter delays production of reports. Presently it has broken down

and typing has stopped. And, how can a field officer operate

effectively without a vehicle for the station?”




49

III. ACTUAL OPERATION – REPORT OF A CASE STUDYON THE SOUTHERN PART OF THE CENTRAL REGION

Introduction: background, sample and methods of survey

This case study was conducted in the southern part of the Central

region. The regional headquarters is located in Serowe, which is the

base of the primary school regional education officer (REO), the

secondary-school REO and the In-service Centre. Serowe, a peri-urban

centre, is also the administrative headquarters of the Central District,

the largest District in the country.

For purposes of the study 10 schools were selected by random

sampling from a computer database, with only one adjustment being

made to avoid including two rural schools from the same

neighbourhood. To cover the whole of basic education (primary and

junior-secondary levels), five primary schools and five junior

community secondary schools (JCSSs) were selected.

The schools represent a variety of settings, rural, semi-urban and

urban, and with distances ranging between 116 kilometres to

3 kilometres from the inspector’s and in-service office. All schools

were either along the main tarred road connecting to Serowe, the

regional centre, or were within 30 kilometres from this road. This

meant the schools were within easy access to the regional centre and

to the inspector and in-service offices responsible for them.

Data were gathered from six officers working in this area: the

REO, one In-service Officer and four inspectors. The inspectors came

from the following villages: two from Serowe, one from Palapye

(which is 45 kilometre from Serowe, the regional centre) and one





50

from Mahalapye (which is 110 kilometre from the regional centre).2

There are no secondary-school inspectors in this area, only the REO.

A questionnaire was administered to these six officers. This was

followed by a general discussion to try and get the full flavour of

conditions of work and to assess the feelings of the officers about

their work and conditions under which they operate. A questionnaire

was administered to five primary-school headteachers and two junior

secondary-school heads. The other junior secondary heads were not

available, either attending a regional heads’ workshop or otherwise

engaged. Finally, focus group discussions were held with all teachers

in all the sampled schools.

Two of the six officers (including the REO) are men. One of the

officers is between 30 and 39 years of age, two are in their forties

and three in their fifties. One has more than 20 years’ experience,

three between 10 and 19 and two less than ten. The REO and the four

inspectors have had some experience as a headteacher. One has a

Diploma, four a B. Ed and one a Master’s.


All inspectors indicated that schools are allocated based on a

geographical area; at the same time there is an attempt to rationalize

the number of schools per inspector. Two inspectors have more than

20 schools to supervise, two others only between 10 and 19. The

number of teachers is for all four between 300 and 350. The REO and

the in-service officer are, in principle, responsible for all 131 schools

and all the teachers in the area.

2. One inspector from Palapye was on compassionate leave due to the death of her husband.She is, therefore, not included in the following statistics.





51

Primary-school inspectors are required to inspect 12 schools per

year, but the number of teachers varies according to the size of the

school. The in-service officer did not specify her requirement. All

inspectors indicated that normally they are able to meet these

requirements, as far as school visits are concerned, but that they can

supervise only about two-thirds of their teachers. The reasons for

failure to do more include:

• disruption of schedules by national activities such as elections and

visit by the President, Ministers, etc.;

• long distances between schools in the sparsely populated country;

• conflict between school visits and administrative duties;

• vacant inspector positions; one inspector had to look after a

second inspectorial area, including carrying out teacher-

management duties;

• in large schools they are unable to see all teachers.

The six officers were asked, firstly, to identify the tasks that take

up most of their time; secondly, to list those tasks they consider least

important; and, thirdly, to give an approximate time-budget. The tasks

that take up most time were outlined as follows, in decreasing order:

For the REO:

• review and action on inspection reports

• monitoring inspectors’ activities

• consultation/advisory meetings with other stakeholders such as

local authorities.

For the inspectors:

• attending to office administration and teacher-management issues;

• inspecting schools and writing reports;

• meetings, seminars, conferences.





52

For the in-service officer:

• conducting workshops;

• monitoring and follow-up activities;

• working with individual teachers.

All the supervisors also indicated that they consider the tasks listed

above as the ones they should be performing, although not

necessarily in this order of importance. Some of the less useful tasks

were:

• attending meetings outside the Department, e.g. drought relief,

District Development Committee;

• being transport officer;

• attending workshops and conferences;

• officiating at Parents’ Days.

Table 13 reflects the answers given by the supervisors on the

question: how much time is spent on each of their tasks?

Table 13. Average percentage of time devoted bysupervisors to various tasks

Activity Inspection In-service

School visits 20 30

Report Writing 8 15

Office work 42 -

Attending meetings 10 5

Investigating discipline cases 12 -

Teachers’ social problems 5 -

Conducting in-service training 3 50

Total 100 100





53

Supervisors moreover indicated that, on average, they spend

62 per cent on what they consider administrative issues and 38 per

cent on pedagogic tasks.

2. School visits

(a) The views of the supervisors

Planning and preparation

All inspectors have annual plans and monthly itineraries prepared

by themselves and approved by the REO. In selecting schools for visits,

those with problems are given first priority and others are

systematically visited based on periodicity. Generally, plans are

followed faithfully but they may be disrupted by activities such as

elections, by visits of senior government officials, by the need to

attend to teachers’ personal problems, and by unplanned meetings,

workshops and conferences.

In planning their visits, the information on schools available to

the officers plays a big role. Although at present they do not have a

computerized database, each one has detailed information about

each of their schools. This information covers its name, when it was

established, the enrolment each term, how many pupils transferred

in and out each term, the numbers and names of teachers, how long

each teacher has been at the school, when it was last visited or

inspected, etc.

Supervisors indicated that they prepare for visits by:

• informing the school;

• checking the report of the last visit;

• setting out the objectives of the visit or identifying the precise

reason;





54

• collating various materials needed (checklists, instruments);

• finding policy documents needed for the visit, depending on the

objectives (Code of Regulations, syllabuses, teachers’ timetable);

• practical preparations: luggage, food, accommodation.

The in-service officer identifies, in addition, the specific needs of

the teachers to be assisted.

Pastoral visits and full inspections are always announced. However,

some informal visits are not announced. All inspectors agreed that it

was good to give advance notice of visits, the advantage being that

teachers are able to prepare a list of the problems and constraints

that they wish to discuss. Prior notice has also some disadvantages.

Schools adopt an artificial tone which does not portray their usual

life in terms of cleanliness, classroom appearance and they prepare

for the visitor rather than showing their daily work. The in-service

officer however felt strongly that unannounced visits frighten

teachers.

Types and implementation of inspection visits

Supervisors make a distinction between five types of visit:

Full inspection five days mostly individual

Partial inspection two to three days individual

Teacher inspection one day individual

Follow-up visit one to two days individual

Courtesy visit one day individual

In addition, there exists what is called a ‘pastoral visit’, which is

quite informal, usually to welcome new teachers to the area.

All inspectors indicated that they have guidelines for visits which

they follow closely, but the in-service officer indicated that she did

not have any guidelines.





55

Following is a brief description of two typical visits: a full

inspection visit by an education officer, and a classroom visit by the

in-service officer.

A full inspection visit consists of the following stages:

• inspector meets head and members of School Administration,

sometimes receives progress report;

• short staff meeting to inform teachers of expectations;

• visit to classrooms to observe individual teachers’ delivery, check

instructional records and resources;

• post-lesson discussion with individual teachers, inspector gives

advice;

• checks school administration records;

• checks pupils’ exercise books and continuous assessment records;

• check on school buildings, facilities and resources;

• staff meeting with teachers.

A classroom visit by the in-service officer can be divided into three

phases:

Pre-conference: Getting information about the class; getting the

teacher to reflect on strengths and needs in the teaching; the teacher

is asked to indicate some areas in which she wishes to be observed.

Observation: This is done by both the teacher and the adviser,

looking at specific areas the teacher has identified and any relevant

information that may crop up.

Post-conference: The teacher clarifies what she has observed: her

planning, teaching, contributions made by pupils, activities given to

pupils, etc. depending on the areas she has identified. The adviser

clarifies what she has seen, starting with strengths and then, lastly,





56

the needs which can be planned for. After having discussions, the

teacher and the adviser agree on aspects to be improved. Where there

is need, a demonstration is given. They agree on a date for follow-up.

(b) The views of the school staff

Planning and preparation

Headteachers indicated that on average 40 per cent of their

teachers are visited per year. There are some striking disparities as

all teachers were seen in one school and none in another.

Headteachers considered the number of visits insufficient. Teachers

indicated that the schools were visited less than twice a year, which

they also feel is inadequate.

All headteachers indicated that they are given notice of visits for

full and partial inspections, but not always for courtesy visits. Notice

arrives between a week and a month in advance. All say that they

inform their teachers. A few teachers in a secondary school indicated

that they are not always aware of visits and sometimes meet the in-

service teacher in the classroom. Headteachers stated that it is good

to receive advance notice because they can then prepare for the visit.

They will ask the teachers to update their records, they will collect

the necessary documentation and make a list of problem areas. One

head stated : “I advise teachers to continuously prepare as usual and

not to put on an untrue reflection of what normally takes place.”

Teachers also cited the following advantages of giving advance notice:

• it ensures teachers are present;

• it gives teachers time to prepare and update records;

• it offers them an opportunity to list items for discussion.





57

Headteachers also think a few spot visits (unannounced) are

advantageous. They indicated that inspectors, in any case, usually do

not request information before the visit.

Types and implementation of inspection visits

Headteachers make a distinction between five types of visit:

Full inspection three to five days primary school: one

inspector secondary school:

a team of eight to ten

Partial one day one inspector or one or

two advisers

Follow-up no indication usually one inspector

Courtesy visit brief one inspector

Teacher inspection one day one inspector

Information gathered from headteachers indicated that courtesy

visits were by far the most common, followed by teacher inspections

and then full inspections. Most schools had received at least one visit

during Term 1 of 1998. For one school, the last visit took place during

Term 3, 1997, and another school, which is only three kilometres from

the inspector’s office, indicated that it was last inspected in 1994.

All the heads indicated that supervisors give a briefing at the

beginning of a visit in order to give the objectives of the visit. They

indicated that supervisors never ask for suggestions from the head

on how to proceed. Teachers also concur that they are briefed at the

start of a visit.

Typical visits, as described by the school staff, differed little from

the procedure outlined by the supervisors. Some additional points

mentioned by some heads:





58

• inspection of facilities was not done;

• there was no discussion with parents;

• the inspector ran a workshop after the inspection;

• the inspector met with the Departmental senior teacher and gave

advice.

Head teachers indicated that during full Inspection inspectors

engaged in the following activities:

• examining records;

• classroom observation;

• discussions with the head;

• discussions with the staff as a whole.

However, they did not meet with the community. During follow-

up visits, inspectors had discussions with the teachers and the head.

3. Feedback and reporting

Most headteachers and teachers indicated that they receive a quick

oral feedback through discussions after lesson observations and at

the staff meeting at the end of the inspection. This is considered

useful as it allows teachers a chance to air their views. One head

however indicated that she has never experienced this type of

discussion.

All but one headteacher had received full inspection and

individual teacher inspection reports within a month. One secondary

school complained that it had taken a year before it received the full

inspection report.

Most heads indicate that they file inspection reports. One school

displays a copy in the staff room and the library for the use of teachers.





59

There was a difference of opinion on whether to send reports to

the Board of Governors (BOG). In secondary schools, where there is

more emphasis on reporting on the whole school rather than on

individual teachers, the heads felt that all stakeholders should have

access to the full report. Primary-school heads felt that the reports

should be confidential. Teachers felt that general reports should be

shared with BOG/PTA, but not individual teacher reports.

All heads indicated that they discuss the reports at full staff

meetings where input from teachers is received. About half of the

heads discussed the report with the school senior management team

and one out of six also with BOG.

Some questions were asked about the nature and usefulness of

supervisors’ recommendations. Most found these useful; however,

one school indicated that they are not helpful and added: “we carry

them out just for the satisfaction of the supervisor”. Following are

lists with examples of recommendations which headteachers and

teachers found useful or of little value. Those which were found to

be particularly useful seem to be directly related to the teaching/

learning process or show a direct experience of the classroom

environment.

Recommendation that headteachers found useful:

• use of variety of teaching methods, remedial teaching, use of

library;

• advice on keeping pupils’ records;

• stating objectives for lessons;

• suggestion that the school supply mathematical instruments to

students;

• direction on how to make comments in students’ continuous

assessment files.





60

Recommendations that teachers found useful:

• provision of in-service training for teachers;

• attachment to Teaching Aid Production Division;

• teachers to be deployed to level appropriate to their skills/calibre;

• remedial teaching;

• improving tidiness of pupils’ work;

• following objectives for the lesson;

• regular marking of pupils’ work;

• team teaching.

Recommendations that heads found to be of little value (60 per

cent of heads were silent on this issue):

• coding of syllabus objectives (this probably has to do with the

newly introduced Criterion Reference Testing at the end of primary

schooling);

• introduction of English as a medium of instruction in Standard 2

while materials are not available and teachers are not trained in

this aspect.

Kinds of recommendations that teachers found to be of little value:

• recitation as a teaching method;

• discipline in large classes: advice given is not practical;

• different subjects sharing display area in the classroom.

4. Follow-up

Six headteachers answered the question in how far they undertake

follow-up activities: three said they do so most of the time, two always

and one sometimes. The recommendations are put into practice by

calling meetings and by motivating teachers through visits to their





61

lessons and discussions. In addition, all but one headteacher indicated

that they do develop specific action plans to implement

recommendations. The teachers confirm this: in all but one school

they indicated that specific plans are made.

The headteachers indicated that they are rather unsatisfied with

follow-up activities by supervisors themselves, since these come after

a very long time or are superficial in nature. Full inspection reports

were said to be useful in the running of the school, but not partial

inspections. Most of the interviewed teachers indicated that they are

totally unsatisfied with follow-up activities.

The supervisors recognize that their impact on schools is not as

beneficial as it could be. They feel that several improvements are

needed to offer them greater possibilities to be of help to schools.

They list the following:

• better transport provision;

• better provision of resources by local authorities for the renovation

of schools, teachers’ accommodation and instructional materials;

• reduction of the number of schools per inspector;

• provision of caravans for accommodation when visiting rural

schools, where the inspector has to sleep in a classroom;

• appointment of officers to handle administrative work;

• training for inspectors;

• better office and residential accommodation.




62



The impact of supervision evidently depends to a large extent on

the possibility for supervisors to visit schools regularly. At primary-

school level, two conditions should make regular and frequent visits

possible. Firstly, each senior education officer has a compact number

of schools (average 19) to look after. Secondly, most officers have an

official vehicle they can use to visit schools. However, officers in the

more sparsely populated parts of the country have to travel vast

distances between schools, often under very difficult road conditions.

Sometimes these roads are impassable in the rainy season. These

factors make frequent visits difficult.

Visits to primary schools are mainly of two types – one-week full

inspections and one-day advisory or follow-up visits. Because each

senior education officer has relatively few schools to supervise, they

are in principle able to visit each school in two school terms and

conduct full inspections regularly every two years. The senior

education officers get to know their schools intimately. They get to

know all the teachers as well. Not every SEO is in the same

advantageous situation: some, as mentioned above, face quite difficult

working conditions, while in other cases, posts are vacant and one

officer has to take care of two inspectorial areas. The result can be, as

was shown in the case study, that some schools are left unvisited for

quite some time.

At the secondary-education level, the problems are more

widespread and take on a structural character. The officers are too

few. The secondary-school level is complex because of subject

specialization necessitating more officers. These officers are very

poorly represented at regional level – usually about four – and are





63

under-resourced in terms of transport. These factors militate against

regular visits to schools. As a result the officers are not closely in

touch with their schools and their impact is therefore much

diminished.

The case study examined in more detail the types of supervision

activities with the greatest impact. All headteachers and teachers

agreed that full inspection had the most impact. Aspects of

supervision that heads found particularly useful were (in order of

preference): classroom observation, advice on teaching methodology

and staff development. The teachers identified (in order of

preference): assessment of resources in the school, lesson observation

and on-the-spot advice. All concurred that not enough is done on

these aspects.

Table 14 shows the opinions of headteachers and teachers on the

impact of a full inspection, from none to very high, on the different

aspects of a school.

Table 14. Impact of full inspection

Area Headteachers Teachers

Administration Fair Limited

School infrastructure None – limited None

Availability of instructional materials Limited Limited

Teacher presence Fairly high None – limited

Lesson preparation Fairly high High

Classroom teaching and delivery Fairly high – high Very high

Student presence Fair Fair

Student performance Fair Limited

Relations between staff Fairly high Limited

Teacher motivation Fair High

Staff development Fair Fair





64

2. Challenges to supervision and support

Recruitment and training

Because the primary-education inspectorate is much older and

more established, it has almost its full complement of officers at

district and regional level. The same is not true at the secondary level.

A lot more officers are required per region because of subject

specialization. Poor recruitment into this cadre is compounded by

two factors: firstly, the manpower ceilings imposed on the Ministry

by development planning and, secondly, recruitment and career

issues. The best people to enter into this cadre, the heads and

deputies of secondary schools, are not attracted because their salaries

are already at the level of senior education officers and there are very

limited prospects for progression. The teachers who still find it

attractive to apply for positions of senior education officers are usually

not sufficiently experienced.

The absence of a comprehensive training programme for senior

education officers also undermines the development of this

supervisory service. To date, training has been ad hoc and without

focus, consequently it has not had a significant impact on the service.

Working conditions

The officers in primary and secondary education are sufficiently

well financed to meet recurrent expenses. Their biggest problem is

lack of adequate and appropriate office accommodation and

transport, in the case of secondary education. This seriously

undermines effectiveness and morale. The officers in the southern

part of the Central region commented on the paucity of transport

facilities and on the need to foresee accommodation, e.g. in the form

of a caravan for officers who are visiting isolated rural schools.





65

In-service officers, on the other hand, are reasonably resourced –

they have a facility they can call their own in the form of Education

Centres. Their transport problems are not as bad.

Workload and job satisfaction

As mentioned earlier, there appears to be no problem with

workload and job satisfaction within the primary education senior

education officers.

The multiple functions that secondary senior education officers

carry out impose a big workload. This burden diminishes their ability

to supervise and support teachers. Their difficulties with recognition

by school heads further undermine their morale, which does not

enhance their job satisfaction.

Disparities and co-ordination between services

The inconsistencies and inequalities outlined above between these

different services that provide supervision and support further

weaken their effectiveness. Some departments are adequately staffed

while others are not. Some are adequately resourced by way of

infrastructure and transport while others are not. Some have attractive

conditions of service and others not. A crucial problem is that the

regional demarcations of the three services do not coincide, resulting

in difficult co-ordination.

Insufficient visits

Even if officers succeed in visiting schools twice yearly, as is the

norm, teachers find this to be insufficient. In any case, many

supervisors do not succeed in respecting the norm.





66

In the case study, the headteachers as well as the teachers

complained about the irregularity of visits. The headteachers believe

that supervisors have too many schools to reach in one year and do

not have enough manpower. The teachers have a more critical opinion

and add to this first reason, three others:

• supervisors do not know their job descriptions;

• they need training;

• they like visiting remote schools so they can claim travel allowance.

Attitudes of supervisory staff

For supervisory officers to be effective, they must be perceived at

school level as truly supportive. The old-style inspector who is out

on fault finding has no place in efforts to improve quality of teaching

and learning.

The tension between secondary senior education officers and

school heads is fuelled by the perception each group has of the other.

The senior education officers want to see themselves as senior (and,

therefore, superior?) to school heads, while school heads see them

as junior officers. Unless these attitudes are dispelled, the

effectiveness of the senior education officers will be greatly

undermined.

Lack of follow-up

A number of headteachers in the Central region were asked to

identify what they saw as the main problems with inspection and in-

service officers and to suggest measures to improve on the

effectiveness of these services. The results are presented in the

Tables 15 and 16.





67

Table 15. Main problems mentioned by selected heads inthe Central region

Inspection In-service

Inspectors overloaded resulting in Teachers called out of classrooms toolimited number of inspections often for workshops

Visits are irregular In-service is irregular

No follow-up made Advisers are located far from schools

Inspection reports not made No follow-up after workshopsavailable to schools quickly enough

Inspectors unable to influence Too many schools per adviserprovision of infrastructure andinstructional materials

Table 16. Measures for improvement suggested by selectedheads in the Central region

Inspection In-service

Employ more inspectors Identify real needs of teachers

Strengthen in-school supervision Make follow-up visits and fewer schoolsper officer

Regular visits to schools and more More in-school advice for teachers andfollow-up school-based workshops

Provision of infrastructure and Advisers should brief heads on the kindslearning materials should be of services they can offerconducted by Ministry of Educationinstead of local authorities

What can be noticed is that, in addition to some problems

mentioned above, such as the irregularity of visits and the overload

of work, many of their references concern the lack of follow-up and

the different ways this is being experienced: the fact that inspection

reports arrive with delay, the great distance between schools and

supervision and support staff, the relative powerlessness of

supervisors to influence provision of infrastructure and learning

materials. The measures of improvement, suggested by heads, focus





68

on the same issue. The teachers, when asked a similar question,

recognized a similar list as concrete measures to improve supervisors’

work:

• increase the number of inspectors;

• increase number of advisers – one for each subject area in a region;

• more frequent visits to schools;

• provide transport for supervisors;

• reports should be made available immediately after an inspection/

advisory visit;

• regular follow-up visits.

3. Present trends and challenges

The National Commission on Education of 1992 identified many

of the problems outlined in the above section and made several

recommendations. The comprehensive implementation of these

recommendations should result in improvement in teacher

supervision and support. Implementation has already started and

progress has been made in some areas.

The Secondary Schools Management Development Project ran as

a project from 1993-1996 and is now institutional as a programme. It

did a lot in reshaping secondary-school heads’ attitudes and values

through advocating participatory management and transparency.

Recommendations 104 and 105 of the Revised National Policy on

Education (RNPE) emphasize the need to decentralize staff

development and in-service training to the school level. The Senior

Management Team in the school (head, deputy, senior teachers) is

required to take the lead in school-based, school-focused staff

development programmes as the most effective form of support to

teachers. A consequence of the SSMDP, coupled with this





69

recommendation, is the establishment of staff development

committees in the schools. They carry out needs assessment in the

school and draw up programmes for school-based training, using

talent within the school or inviting expertise from outside if it does

not exist in the school.

The Botswana In-Service, Pre-Service Project (BIPP) will further

strengthen school-based in-service training. The SSMDP has been a

successful concept and is now being replicated at primary-education

level with the PSMDP which started in October 1997. Some 30 primary-

school heads were selected and sent for a two-year intensive training

programme in schools management development. When they return

they will be based at Education Centres and each will have a cluster

of schools to work with along the lines of the secondary schools’

SMAs.

The establishment of a separate Department of Inspection as

articulated in Recommendation 116 will enhance the career

development of senior education officers as school inspectors. Salient

points of this Recommendation are:

“(a) The inspection of schools should be under one department of

inspection formed from an enhanced amalgamation of the

existing departmental inspectorates.

(b) The extent and limitations of the level of responsibility of the

inspector in relation to the teacher, the head and other officers

should be clearly defined.

(c) All members of the Inspectorate should receive training on

appointment and regular in-service training. A comprehensive

training programme should be implemented as a matter of

urgency.”





70

The implementation of these recommendations will

comprehensively address many concerns raised above by the senior

education officers.

Decentralization as conceived in Recommendation 117 envisages

a regional representation of the Ministry of Education that would

harmonize all the Ministry’s departments at regional level. It calls for

all departments of the Ministry to be under one leadership in the

region. It perceives all departments operating from under one roof.

This would make it cost-effective to provide support service such as

equipment, support services, transport and office space. The

departments will begin to relate better with each other instead of

being independent entities that duplicate resources and effort.

Through the ADEA’s working group in the teaching profession,

whose lead agency is the Commonwealth Secretariat, SADC countries

have embarked on a project – SADC teacher management and support

project. They have developed modules for the training of school

inspectors. What remains is to identify a lead institution within the

region within which this training would be institutionalized. Once

this is achieved Botswana would be able to implement

Recommendation 116(c).




71

CONCLUSION

As the education system continues to expand the need for

strengthening supervisory and support services also increases. When

new schools open, new and inexperienced heads are appointed. They

need support with their own development so that they can have the

capacity to supervise and lead others. Each year many new teachers

join the service on completion of training. In the first few years in

the service, as the teachers try to find their way, a lot of support is

necessary. In Botswana the many demands made on the teacher as a

result of the innovations that come with the RNPE demand that the

support services be strengthened to effectively render the required

service.

As the system grows supervision can no longer be effective from

the centre, it will need to be decentralized right down to school level.

This calls for intensified training of the inspectorate and the school

heads.

The potential of boards of governors and PTAs as supervisory

structures is not fully exploited. If it were it would further enhance

the efforts of the traditional structures of supervision.







Chapter II

School supervisionin Namibia

H.C.H. Van SchalkwykA. Ilukena

D. MukuwaF. Voigts







75

CONTENTS

Pages


List of tables 77

Introduction 79

I. General overview of supervision and supportservices 84

1. Historical background 842. The overall structure of supervision and support 853. Official functions of the different services 884. Relations with other pedagogical services 895. Classical supervision and support services within a

broader perspective: school-site support andsupervision 92

II. The management of supervision services: basicfacts and critical issues 93

1. Basic facts and figures 932. Critical management issues 1103. Budgetary and financial matters 113

III. Daily operation of supervision and supportservices – results of a case study 118

Introduction 1181. Basic data 1222. Planning and workload 1243. School visits 1284. Reporting 1335. Follow-up, including use of reports 136

IV. Overall assessment 1391. Impact on school functioning and quality 1392. Synthesis of main problems 1423. Present trends and innovations 144




76


BETD Basic Education Teachers' Diploma

CEO Chief Education Officer

CIE Chief Inspector Education

CHO Chief Hostels Officer

DEPI Directorate Educational Programme Implementation

DIAS Directorate of Inspectorate and Advisory Services

DIR Director

DNEA Directorate of Examinations


HO Hostels Officer

IE Inspector Education

IH Inspector Hostels

NIED National Institute for Educational Development

PADE Postgraduate Diploma In Education

PMS Performance Management System


SIE Senior Inspection Education

SIH Senior Inspector Hostels

TRC Teacher Resource Centre

UNAM University of Namibia




77

LIST OF TABLES

1. Schools, learners, teachers and support staff, 1996 81

2. Class sizes and percentages of females, 1996 82

3. Average annual enrolment increase 82

4. Teacher qualifications, 1996 83

5. Number of posts on the establishment by region, 1997 97

6. Number of posts filled (staff actually appointedor acting in positions) by region, 1997 98

7. Average number of schools and teachers per post on theestablishment by region, 1997 99

8. Average number of schools and teachers per filled post byregion, 1997 100

9. Supervision and support staff by gender and region, 1997 101

10. Supervision and support staff by post and age, 1997 102

11. Age distribution of all supervision and staff by region, 1997 103

12. Years of total working experience of supervisionand support staff by post, 1997 104

13. Years of supervision and support services experienceby post, 1997 105

14. Total years of working experience of supervisionand support staff by region, 1997 106

15. Years of supervision and support services experienceby region, 1997 107

16. Level of education of supervision and support servicesby post, 1997 108

17. Level of education of supervision and support servicesby region 109

18. Financial conditions: opinions of advisory teachers 114

19. Working conditions of supervision and support staffin Ondangwa West 117

20. Time-budget of advisory teachers 126





78

21. Time-budget of inspectors 128

22. Regularity of reporting 134

23. Satisfaction with follow-up 137

24. Areas covered by supervision, as assessed by schools(in percentages) 139

25. Impact of supervision on different aspects of school life,as assessed by schools (in percentages) 140




79

INTRODUCTION

Namibia was one of the last African countries to gain its

independence, in 1990. It is very sparsely populated: just over one

and a half million people occupy an area more than three times the

size of the United Kingdom. The population is ethnically very

diversified, which has an evident impact on the language situation:

ten African and three European languages are fairly widely used.

The Constitution of the Republic of Namibia ref lects the

expectations of the people concerning education as follows:

“Article 20. Education

(1) All persons shall have the right to education.

(2) Primary education shall be compulsory and the state shall

provide reasonable facilities to render effective this right for

every resident within Namibia, by establishing and maintaining

state schools at which primary education will be provided free

of charge.

(3) Children shall not be allowed to leave school until they have

completed their primary education or have attained the age of

sixteen (16) years, whichever is the soonest, save insofar as this

may be authorized by Act of Parliament on grounds of health or

other considerations pertaining to the public interest.

(4) All persons shall have the right, at their own expense, to

establish and to maintain private schools, or colleges, or other

institutions of tertiary education, provided that:

(a) such schools, colleges or institutions of tertiary education

are registered with a government department in accordance

with any law authorizing and regulating such registration;





80

(b) the standards maintained by such schools, colleges or

institutions of tertiary education are not inferior to the

standards maintained in comparable schools, colleges or

institutions of tertiary education funded by the state;

(c) no restrictions of whatever nature are imposed with respect

to the admission of pupils based on race, colour or creed;

(d) no restrictions of whatever nature are imposed with respect

to the recruitment of staff based on race or colour.”

Namibia is divided into thirteen political regions and seven

education regions, with a Head Office in Windhoek.

Just after independence in 1990, Namibia embarked on a

comprehensive reform of its education system. Before independence,

educational provision was unequally divided over the different parts

with an unequal distribution of resources. Upon independence, the

education system was unified and many structural and educational

changes have since been effected.

Within the Ministry, three divisions were set up with a role in

offering supervision and support:

• The Directorate of Inspectorate and Advisory Services (DIAS),

which is mainly responsible for supervision and support. It was

not active until 1996 and still faces problems of understaffing.

• The National Institute for Educational Development (NIED),

established in Okahandja, 80 kilometres from Windhoek and serving

as a research body for the Ministry.

• The Directorate Educational Programme Implementation

(DEPI) is the principal organ for ensuring that national guidelines

and policies are adhered to and that the goal of equity, particularly

between the regions, is being achieved.




School supervision in Namibia

81

In addition, every region has resource centres where teachers,

inspectors and subject advisers can have meetings, workshops, etc.

The financial situation of the Ministry of Education may be

described as satisfactory although money for development will always

be a constraint. The total budget of the Ministry for the 1996-1997

fiscal year was N$1,051,511,000. As the number of students was 471,148,

the average expenditure per learner was N$2,076.

Growth in the provision of education after independence can be

seen in the increase of the number of schools from 1,325 in 1992 to

1,435 in 1996. The largest growth was between 1995 and 1996 when

57 new schools were opened.

Table 1 gives a clear indication of the number of schools, learners

and support staff (clerks, secretaries and cleaners).

Table 1. Schools, learners, teachers and support staff,1996

Region Schools Learners Teachers Support staff

Total % Female Total % Female Total % Female

Namibia Total 1,435 478,534 50.7 16,679 60.5 2,708 53.0

Katima Mulilo/Caprivi 40 33,448 48.5 1,497 35.7 231 86.1

Rundu/Okavango 238 45,874 48.8 1,802 37.2 123 32.5

Ondangwa East 349 118,201 51.9 3,053 65.6 455 27.0

Ondangwa West 345 134,894 51.2 4,094 69.1 380 52.4

Khorixas 107 34,431 51.2 1,398 58.4 371 56.1

Windhoek 141 77,894 50.5 3,240 68.1 716 52.9

Keetmans-hoop 109 2,601 50.0 1,465 50.0 395 68.1

Special schools 6 1,091 43.5 130 70.0 37 48.6





82

A clearer picture of the distribution of learners and class sizes is

provided by Table 2. The average class size is acceptable by

international and regional standards, at both primary level (34 pupils

per class) and secondary (32 per class). Females represent on the

whole more than half of all students and their share increases the

higher the grade, until junior secondary.

Table 2. Class sizes and percentages of females, 1996

Total Primary Secondary Othergrades

Total Lower Upper Total Junior Senior

Namibia 478,534 372,256 244,238 128,018 104,480 80,353 24,127 1,798Total learners

% Female 50.7 49.9 48.8 52.1 53.8 54.5 51.4 43.9

Class groups 14,336 11,013 7,319 3,694 3,219 2,429 790 104

Average 33.4 33.8 33.4 34.7 32.5 33.1 30.5 17.3class size

Table 3 highlights the increase in enrolment of learners from 1992

to 1996. The average annual growth rate was about 2 to 2.5 per cent,

slightly lower than the population growth.

Table 3. Average annual enrolment increase

Total Primary Averageannual

1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 growth rate %

Learners 439,325 450,639 474,343 472,228 478,534 2.2

Males 213,775 220,177 232,683 232,551 235,714 2.5

Females 225,550 230,462 241,660 239,677 242,820 1.9

The need for support services (inspectors and subject advisers)

is clear when a study is made of the professional and academic

qualifications of teachers in government and private schools





83

(Table 4). Almost 30 per cent of teachers do not have teacher training,

while the formal qualifications of 35 per cent are rather low: less

than Grade 12 (the end of senior secondary).

Table 4. Teacher qualifications, 1996

Total Teachers without formal Teachers with formalteacher training teacher training

Total Total Less Grade More Total Less Grade Morethan 12 than than 12 than

Grade or 1-2 2 years Grade or 1-2 2 years12 years of of 12 years of of

tertiary tertiary tertiary tertiaryeducation education education education

Total 16,679 4,700 2,355 2,109 236 11,979 3,633 6,830 1,516teachers

% 100.0 28.2 14.1 12.6 1.4 71.8 21.8 40.9 9.1

Government 15,774 4,532 2,292 2,036 211 11,237 3,537 6,458 1,242teachers

% 100.0 28.8 14.5 12.9 1.3 71.2 22.4 40.9 7.9

Private 905 163 65 73 25 742 96 372 274teachers

% 100.0 18.0 7.2 8.1 2.8 82.0 10.6 41.1 30.3

When Namibia became independent in 1990, English was adopted

as the official language. This issue held serious implications for

education. In November 1991, the Ministry of Education and Culture’s

Language Policy for schools was first published. From 1993 to 1996,

the phasing-in of English as the main medium of instruction was

introduced in Grades 4-7 for promotional subjects. From 1994 to 1998,

the other subjects were reformed. All of the above was the work of a

committee situated in NIED and known as the Curriculum

Coordinating Committee. The reform in the Junior Primary division

(Grades 1-3) is running concurrently with all of the above. This reform

started in 1995 and was completed in 1997 by the Lower Primary Task

Force.




84

I. GENERAL OVERVIEW OF SUPERVISION ANDSUPPORT SERVICES


Before independence, there were 11 different second-tier

authorities, each with their own policies, norms and resources and

their own supervision and support services. This arrangement stopped

with independence, when a national strategy was developed to get

to equity as far as the norms for provision were concerned. The

distribution of teachers, inspectors and subject advisers in the regions

was made more equitable, but was still mainly determined by the

available finances.

After independence, several changes were made with regard to

the establishment of the Ministry. This led to uncertainty amongst

staff members about their employment. The National Institute of

Educational Development was formed to do research and to develop

programmes (curricula, etc.). The Directorate Inspectorate and

Advisory Services (DIAS), which should have been directly

responsible for assisting the teacher in the classroom and the

principal to manage the school, was not activated until 1996. At this

moment, inspectors and subject advisers are not yet properly

organized.

The main issues remain, on the one hand, ensuring equity, and, on

the other hand, strengthening co-ordination in a country which had

been characterized by the existence of fairly independent and

unequal authorities.





85

2. The overall structure of supervision and support

Supervision and support to teachers are offered at three levels:

the Head Office, the Regional Office and the school itself.

(a) In the Head Office, three directorates have a role to play:

• Directorate National Institution for Educational Development

(NIED):

It is responsible for research and the programmes related to

schools as well as the monitoring of the implementation of the

programmes.

• Directorate Inspectorate and Advisory Services (DIAS):

It is basically responsible for assistance to advisory teachers and

inspectors in the regions concerning policy, co-ordination and

running of schools.

• Directorate Educational Programme Implementation (DEPI):

It is basically responsible for the implementation of programmes

and, at present, for the monitoring of the implementation of the

IGCSE programme. It also assists teachers in the classrooms.

In other words, NIED develops programmes, curricula, etc. and

inspectors and advisory teachers implement these in the regions.

NIED also plays a role as far as the monitoring of the implementation

is concerned. DIAS is responsible for implementation of programmes

in the schools and for improving the standard of teaching in the

classroom.





86

At this stage, proper co-ordination and co-operation between the

different directorates does not exist, but it is on the Ministry’s

programme to clarify this matter.

(b)Each Regional Office is headed by a Director and counts three

sections with responsibility for teacher supervision and

support:

• Section Advisory Services:

Education Officers give subject advice to teachers. They assist

teachers in the teaching process in the classroom. They ensure proper

implementation of programmes developed by NIED. They are

indirectly, via the regional director, in contact with Head Office.

• Division schools and hostels’ management:

(i) Inspectors of Education:

They are mainly responsible for the management of schools and

hostels and their target group is the principal and the rest of the

top management of the school or the superintendent of the school

hostel.

(ii) Hostels Officers:

They assist the chief Hostel Matron in the household division of

hostels to create a ‘home away from home’ atmosphere.

• The Teacher Resource Centre section:

Centres are unevenly distributed over the country and only assist

teachers, inspectors and subject teachers near to the centre.

Within some regions, district offices were created to serve those

areas which are least accessible to the services provided directly from

regional offices. These seven offices differ in type and quantity of





87

staff according to their location and to the size of the population to

be served. Each office is headed by a District Education Officer.

(c) The school:

The principal, together with the Heads of Department, is

responsible for the implementation of programmes at school level,

ensuring high-quality teaching and creating a learning-teaching

atmosphere.

Hierarchical relationship of staff employed:

NIED HO RO HO RO HO ROINSPECT- INSPECT- SUBJECT SUBJECT HOSTELS HOSTELSORATE ORATE ADVISER ADVISER

CEO CIE CEO CEO CEO SIH

SEO SIE SEO/SIE SEO SEO IH IH

EO IE IE EO EO CHO HO

CEO Chief education officerCHO Chief hostels officerCIE Chief inspector educationDIR DirectorEO Education officerHO Hostels officerIE Inspector educationIH Inspector hostelsRO Regional officeSEO Senior education officerSIE Senior inspector educationSIH Senior inspector hostels





88


The following are the main official tasks of the different services:

• Directorate National Institute for Educational Development (NIED)

– the evaluation, design and development of curricula for the

education system;

– the enhancement of professionalism and quality of teaching

personnel and other resources;

– the rendering of a general administrative support service.

• Directorate Educational Programme Implementation (DEPI)

– the training, development and assessment of schools’ and

hostels’ personnel to ensure the efficient and effective

management of the educational programmes and services;

– the provision of professional leadership and guidance in the

management of the Inspectorate and advisory services to

schools;

– the rendering of diagnostic, counselling and educational

psychological services to all learners;

– the determining of policies and the development of programmes

to establish and maintain opportunities for children with special

needs.

• Directorate Inspectorate and Advisory Services (DIAS)

– the training and development of schools’ and hostels’ managers

to improve the management effectiveness in educational

institutions;

– the formulation and development of management policies,

procedures and manuals;

– the administering and co-ordination of the National School

Feeding Programme (NSFP).





89

– the development and setting of national standards for better

teaching in schools;

– the monitoring of development and the enhancement of the

quality of educational programmes;

– the in-service training of school personnel to achieve set

standards.

• Teacher Resource Centres

– assistance to teachers to be more efficient in their classes;

– assistance with regional courses;

– collecting and storing of publications, documents and other

educational resources needed by schools.

The government-paid inspectors and subject advisers are also

responsible for supervision and support to private institutions which

are subsidized by the government.


Teacher pre-service and in-service training is in the hands of the

University of Namibia (UNAM) and the Regional Colleges of

Education.

The University of Namibia works both for pre-service and in-

service courses:

(a) The following pre-service courses are presented by UNAM:

• four-year B.Ed course;

• HED Sec. that is to be phased out.

(b) UNAM also contributes to in-service training in the following

areas:

• PADE (Postgraduate Diploma in Education);





90

• every year, personnel of UNAM visit schools to do in-service

training concerning subject contents;

• Ad Ed (Advanced Diploma in Education).

The Regional Colleges of Education offer the following courses:

(a) Pre-service training:

• Basic Education teacher’s Diploma (three years) (BETD). NIED

plays an important role in curriculum research and development

for this BETD course. When properly structured, EPI will also

play a role.

(b) In-service Training Courses:

• Four-year courses for unqualified and under-qualified teachers.

Pedagogical research: UNAM has its own research division which

is working closely with other universities and NIED, but with little

interaction with other Departments in the Ministry.

Examinations

The Directorate of Examinations (DNEA)’s main objective is to

establish a national examination system. It administers all external

national examinations. As far as primary schools are concerned, the

Ministry has approved measures to implement a national Grade 7

external examination.

The Examination Board is the policy-making board with regard

to examinations. Members are from the following cadres:

• The Permanent Secretary (chairperson) (1),

• Regional Directors (7),





91

• Under Secretaries (2),

• Representative of the Polytechnic (1),

• Representative of UCLES,

• Representative of the Windhoek College of Education,

• Teachers Unions (3).

There are no representatives from the inspection services.

At central level, on the whole, there are therefore rather few

linkages between supervision and support action and those in charge

of other services aimed at pedagogical improvement. NIED’s

involvement is more pronounced that that of the DIAS or of DEPI.

At regional level, closer co-operation has been sought. Each

Regional Council is expected to monitor, promote and oversee

educational development in its region. In order to fulfil this

responsibility, each council should establish a Regional Education

Forum. The function of such a forum is to advise regional education

authorities; oversee school operations; and protect the education

interests of the community. The forum should be composed of

representatives of School Boards (one representative from every

Constituency or Inspection Circuit); representative(s) of community

leaders; a representative of church bodies; a representative of

employers (business); a representative of workers (trade unions); a

representative of teacher unions; a representative of students’

organizations; non-governmental organizations; and any other co-

opted members. One councillor should be designated by the Regional

Council to be the convenor. The Director of Education and Culture

in the region should be the ex-officio member and Secretary of the

forum. The forum should meet at least three times a year. It should

report on its activities to the Regional Council and the Ministry of

Education and Culture. The absence of inspectors can be noted.





92


In principle, the policy is towards giving more responsibilities to

the top management of schools which is composed of the Principal,

the Deputy Principal and the Heads of Department.

Normally, senior subject teachers are requested to be in charge of

their subject. The work of such a subject head is to monitor whether

written work has been controlled by subject teachers and to help

subject teachers where requested (even in the class room). Heads of

Department in small schools are sometimes requested to do the work

of subject heads. In some schools, principals make use of guardian

teachers to assist newly appointed teachers. This system of in-school

supervision and support is so far only functioning in a small

percentage of schools.




93



The following tables offer detailed information on the numbers

of staff working in the supervision and support services and on their

profile. All figures relate to August 1997 (school figures) and

November 1997 (supervision and support-staff figures) and were

collected specifically for this national diagnosis.

Some judgement had to be used regarding the inclusion and

exclusion of specific posts in the data presented below: as direct

supervision and support services to schools were virtually exclusively

provided by regional office staff, no head office staff statistics were

included. The following posts in regional offices have been included:

Senior Inspector, Inspector of Education and District Education

Officer (grouped as ‘Inspectorate’); and Senior Advisory Teacher,

Advisory Teacher and Regional or District Teachers Resource Manager

(grouped as ‘advisory services’).1

All learner (pupil), teacher and school statistics exclude special

schools under the Division of Special Education in Head Office. They

do include private schools as most private schools in Namibia are

staffed or otherwise supported and supervised by government.

1. The following posts have not been included in the tables of basic figures:

• Regional Education Officers;• Inspector of Hostels;• School Counsellor and Senior School Counsellor (they are mainly in charge of education

psychology and guidance);• Local Teachers Resource Centre Manager (mainly responsible for all equipment and

materials in the TRC, and assists teachers in using a multi-media approach to teaching);• All Adult Education, General Services (Administration), Library and Culture staff;• Head Office staff.





94

Tables 5 to 8 present the numbers of established and filled posts

in supervision and support. The number of posts is linked to the

structure of the Ministry of Education.

The present structure was approved in 1993 and implemented in

April 1994. A review of the structure, conducted in 1997, was not yet

finalized at the time of writing. The present structure was partially

based on norms, while the proposed new structure rather considers

what is called the ‘specific needs of individual regions’. The relevant

norms underlying the present structure are stated below as edited

quotes from the relevant policy document. It should be noted that

the actual allocation of posts is still based on 1992 statistics.

(a) There are seven Regional Offices, each headed by a Director.

(b) Seven District Education Offices are being created.

(c) There are 39 school weeks per year, 35 of which can reasonably be

used for inspection and advice, and 4 of which are taken up by

examinations. The remaining weeks of the year are used for

administration and staff development and training.

(d) Each Region has one Senior Inspector of Education with the exception

of the two Ondangwa Regions and Rundu, which have two Senior

Inspectors. They are expected to devote 25 per cent of their time to

managerial duties and 75 per cent of their time to inspection duties.

This proportion has been taken into account when calculating the

number of Inspectors of Education required for each Region.

(Comment: The relevant policy document quotes as norm: 1 Inspector

of Education and 75 per cent of 1 Senior Inspector of Education per

35 schools. What is apparently meant is that the number of Inspector

posts are calculated as 1 per 35 schools. Senior Inspector post is

considered to be equivalent to 75 per cent of an Inspector’s post and

has to be taken into account to arrive at the actual number of posts of

Inspector of Education.)





95

(e) The number of Advisory Teachers per Region (with a minimum of 8)

=All teachers

×Unqualified teachers in the Region

105 Total unqualified teachers

(105 = 3 teachers × 35 weeks – the number an Advisory Teacher is

expected to serve per year.)

In each Region, one Advisory Teacher will be the Senior Advisory

Teacher, with the exception of the Ondangwa Regions which will have

2 Senior Advisory Teachers each. This is to be considered as a

promotional level rather than a purely managerial post.

(f) 1 Teachers Resource Centre Manager, 1 Educational Technologist, 1

Resource Centre Assistant and 1 Clerical Assistant per Regional and

District Teachers Resource Centre, of which there were 6 and 4,

respectively, in 1993.

Tables 5 to 8 show that the number of filled posts in 1997 was only

about two-thirds of the total of established posts. This is in particular

the case for advisory staff. The result is that, rather than to have about

10 schools per advisory staff (which would be the case if all posts

were filled), there are now 18 schools. Almost all posts in the

‘Inspectorate’ are filled, but the number of posts is less and, as a result,

the number of teachers and schools per inspector is quite high.

A majority of supervisors are men. This is more so among

inspectors (with only some 5 per cent women) than among advisers

(with about 40 per cent women)(Table 9). Tables 10 and 11 show a

similar distinction as far as age is concerned: about three-quarters of

inspectors are over 45; over 60 per cent of advisers are less than 45.

This is reflected in the years of working experience (Tables 7 and

14). Most supervision and support staff have less than 10 years’

experience in these services (Tables 13 and 15). The professional

origin of all staff is teaching or, in virtually all cases, a senior position

in a school. Tables 12 to 15 show that, in general, inspectors have





96

spent more time in schools before entering the supervision service

than advisory teachers. They have generally occupied more senior

posts in school.

A quarter of the inspectors and slightly more than 10 per cent of

advisory teachers have obtained only a secondary school degree or

less (Table 16). More than half, however, have a degree, equivalent

to a Bachelor’s degree (i.e. Grade 12 + 4 years). Regional disparities

are in this case quite significant: in one region, Rundu, 9 of the

20 supervisors have only finished Grade 12 or less (Table 17).

No specific information was collected on training. Hardly any staff

received any pre-service training in supervision, but many attend some

in-service courses from time to time.

Namibia has no statistical database of supervisory and support

services staff. A computerized personnel system presently being

developed will allow relevant statistics to be readily extracted when

the system is operational.





97

Ta

ble

5.

Nu

mb

er

of

po

sts

on

th

e e

sta

bli

shm

en

t b

y r

eg

ion

, 19

97

Reg

ion

Sen

ior

Insp

ecto

rD

istr

ict

Sub

tota

l:Se

nio

rA

dvi

sory

TR

CSu

bto

tal:

Tota

lIn

spec

tor

of

Ed

uca

tio

nIn

spec

tora

teA

dvi

sory

Teac

her

Man

ager

Ad

viso

ryE

du

cati

on

Off

icer

Teac

her

(Reg

ion

alse

rvic

es o

r D

istr

ict)

Kat

ima

Mu

lilo

14

16

17

19

15

Ru

nd

u2

4-

61

171

1925

On

dan

gwa

East

28

-10

227

130

40

On

dan

gwa

Wes

t2

8-

102

371

4050

Kh

ori

xas

12

25

112

215

20

Win

dh

oek

14

38

115

319

27

Kee

tman

s-h

oo

p1

31

51

141

1621

Tota

l10

337

509

129

1014

819

8





98

Ta

ble

6.

Nu

mb

er

of

po

sts

fill

ed

(st

aff

act

ua

lly

ap

po

inte

d o

r a

ctin

g i

n p

osi

tio

ns)

by

re

gio

n,

199

7

Reg

ion

Sen

ior

Insp

ecto

rD

istr

ict

Sub

tota

l:Se

nio

rA

dvi

sory

TR

CSu

bto

tal:

Tota

lIn

spec

tor

of

Ed

uca

tio

nIn

spec

tora

teA

dvi

sory

Teac

her

Man

ager

Ad

viso

ryE

du

cati

on

Off

icer

Teac

her

(Reg

ion

alse

rvic

es o

r D

istr

ict)

Kat

ima

Mu

lilo

14

-5

-6

17

12

Run

du1

7-

81

101

1220

On

dan

gwa

Eas

t2

8-

101

7-

818

On

dan

gwa

Wes

t1

7-

81

81

1018

Kh

ori

xas

13

-4

111

214

18

Win

dh

oek

15

17

-14

-14

21

Kee

tman

s-h

oo

p1

5-

61

141

1622

Tota

l8

391

485

706

8112

9





99

Ta

ble

7.

Ave

rag

e n

um

be

r o

f sc

ho

ols

an

d t

ea

che

rs p

er

po

st o

n t

he

est

ab

lish

me

nt

by

re

gio

n,

199

7

Reg

ion

Sch

oo

ls, t

each

ers

and

lear

ner

sA

pp

rove

d p

ost

s

Sch

oo

lsTe

ach

ers

Lea

rner

sIn

spec

tora

teSc

ho

ols

Teac

her

sA

dvi

sory

Sch

oo

lsTe

ach

ers

per

per

serv

ices

per

per

insp

ecto

rin

spec

tor

advi

sory

advi

sory

staf

fst

aff

Kat

ima

Mu

lilo

143

1,51

034

,125

623

.825

1.7

915

.916

7.8

Run

du23

61,

763

48,1

016

39.3

293.

819

12.4

92.8

On

dan

gwa

Eas

t35

03,

248

120,

448

1035

.032

4.8

3011

.710

8.3

On

dan

gwa

Wes

t34

94,

079

135,

472

1034

.940

7.9

408.

710

2.0

Kh

ori

xas

115

1,40

936

,033

523

.028

1.8

157.

793

.9

Win

dh

oek

148

3,31

981

,596

818

.541

4.9

197.

817

4.7

Kee

tman

s-h

oo

p10

81,

431

33,4

835

21.6

286.

216

6.8

89.4

Tota

l1,

449

16,7

5948

9,25

850

29.0

335.

214

89.

811

3.2





100

Ta

ble

8.

Ave

rag

e n

um

be

r o

f sc

ho

ols

an

d t

ea

che

rs p

er

fill

ed

po

st b

y r

eg

ion

, 19

97

Reg

ion

Sch

oo

ls, t

each

ers

and

lear

ner

sF

ille

d p

ost

s

Sch

oo

lsTe

ach

ers

Lea

rner

sIn

spec

tora

teSc

ho

ols

Teac

her

sA

dvi

sory

Sch

oo

lsTe

ach

ers

per

per

serv

ices

per

per

insp

ecto

rin

spec

tor

advi

sory

advi

sory

staf

fst

aff

Kat

ima

Mu

lilo

143

1,51

034

,125

528

.630

2.0

720

.421

5.7

Ru

nd

u23

61,

763

48,10

18

29.5

220.

412

19.7

146.

9

On

dan

gwa

East

350

3,24

812

0,44

810

35.0

324.

88

43.8

406.

0

On

dan

gwa

Wes

t34

94

079

135

472

843

.650

9.9

1034

.940

7.9

Kh

ori

xas

115

1,40

936

,033

428

.835

2.3

148.

210

0.6

Win

dh

oek

148

3,31

981

,596

721

.147

4.1

1410

.623

7.1

Kee

tman

s-h

oo

p10

81,

431

33,4

836

18.0

238.

516

6.8

89.4

Tota

l1,

449

16,7

5948

9,25

848

30.2

349.

181

17.9

206.

9





101

Ta

ble

9.

Sup

erv

isio

n a

nd

su

pp

ort

sta

ff b

y g

en

de

r a

nd

re

gio

n,

199

7

Reg

ion

Sex

Sen

ior

Insp

ecto

rD

istr

ict

Sub

tota

l:Se

nio

rA

dvi

sory

TR

CSu

bto

tal :

Tota

l I

nsp

ecto

ro

fE

du

cati

on

Insp

ecto

rate

Ad

viso

ryTe

ach

erM

anag

erA

dvi

sory

Ed

uca

tio

nO

ffic

erTe

ach

er(R

egio

nal

serv

ices

or

Dis

tric

t)

Kat

ima

Mu

lilo

F-

--

--

1-

11

M1

4-

5-

51

611

Ru

nd

uF

--

--

-6

17

7M

17

-8

14

15

13

On

dan

gwa

F-

--

--

4-

44

Eas

tM

28

-10

13

-4

14

On

dan

gwa

F-

1-

11

4-

56

Wes

tM

16

-7

-4

15

12

Kh

ori

xas

F-

--

--

52

77

M1

3-

41

6-

711

Win

dh

oek

F-

1-

1-

4-

45

M1

41

6-

10-

1016

Kee

tman

s-F

-1

-1

-4

-4

5h

oo

pM

14

-5

110

112

17

Tota

lF

-3

-3

128

332

35M

836

145

442

349

94





102

Ta

ble

10

.Su

pe

rvis

ion

an

d s

up

po

rt s

taff

by

po

st a

nd

ag

e,

199

7

Ag

e g

rou

pSe

nio

rIn

spec

tor

Dis

tric

tSu

bto

tal:

Sen

ior

Ad

viso

ryT

RC

Sub

tota

l:To

tal

Insp

ecto

ro

fE

du

cati

on

Insp

ecto

rate

Ad

viso

ryTe

ach

erM

anag

erA

dvi

sory

Ed

uca

tio

nO

ffic

erTe

ach

er(R

egio

nal

serv

ices

or

Dis

tric

t)

30-3

4-

1-

1-

112

1314

35-3

91

4-

51

181

2025

40-4

4-

8-

82

123

1725

45-4

93

91

13-

13-

1326

50-5

44

5-

91

10-

1120

55-5

9-

12-

121

6-

719

Tota

l8

391

485

706

8112

9





103

Ta

ble

11.

Ag

e d

istr

ibu

tio

n o

f a

ll s

up

erv

isio

n a

nd

su

pp

ort

sta

ff b

y r

eg

ion

, 19

97

Reg

ion

Ag

e g

rou

pTo

tal

30

-34

35

-39

40

-44

45

-49

50

-54

55

-59

Kat

ima

Mu

lilo

33

21

12

12

Ru

nd

u3

45

32

320

On

dan

gwa

East

14

33

34

18

On

dan

gwa

Wes

t2

45

42

118

Kh

ori

xas

23

23

62

18

Win

dh

oek

-2

36

55

21

Kee

tman

s-h

oo

p3

55

61

222

Tota

l14

2525

2620

1912

9





104

Ta

ble

12

.Y

ea

rs o

f to

tal

wo

rkin

g e

xp

eri

en

ce o

f su

pe

rvis

ion

an

d s

up

po

rt s

taff

by

po

st,

199

7

Tota

lSe

nio

rIn

spec

tor

Dis

tric

tSu

bto

tal:

Sen

ior

Ad

viso

ryT

RC

Sub

tota

l:To

tal

exp

erie

nce

Insp

ecto

ro

fE

du

cati

on

Insp

ecto

rate

Ad

viso

ryTe

ach

erM

anag

erA

dvi

sory

(yea

rs)

Ed

uca

tio

nO

ffic

erTe

ach

er(R

egio

nal

serv

ices

or

Dis

tric

t)

5-9

-2

-2

-7

-7

9

10-1

41

3-

43

172

2226

15-1

91

7-

8-

122

1422

20-2

41

91

11-

132

1526

25-2

94

6-

102

9-

1121

30-3

41

5-

6-

8-

814

35-4

0-

7-

7-

4-

411

Tota

l8

391

485

706

8112

9





105

Ta

ble

13

.Y

ea

rs o

f su

pe

rvis

ion

an

d s

up

po

rt s

erv

ice

s ex

pe

rie

nce

by

po

st,

199

7

Sup

ervi

sio

nSe

nio

rIn

spec

tor

Dis

tric

tSu

bto

tal:

Sen

ior

Ad

viso

ryTR

CSu

bto

tal:

Tota

lan

d s

up

po

rtIn

spec

tor

of

Ed

uca

tio

nIn

spec

tora

teA

dvi

sory

Teac

her

Man

ager

Ad

viso

ryex

per

ien

ceE

du

cati

on

Off

icer

Teac

her

(Reg

ion

alse

rvic

es(y

ears

) o

r D

istr

ict)

0-4

19

-10

134

136

46

5-9

517

-22

418

527

49

10-1

42

51

8-

13-

1321

15-1

9-

5-

5-

3-

38

20-2

4-

3-

3-

2-

25

Tota

l8

391

485

706

8112

9





106

Ta

ble

14

.T

ota

l y

ea

rs o

f w

ork

ing

ex

pe

rie

nce

of

sup

erv

isio

n a

nd

su

pp

ort

sta

ff b

y r

eg

ion

, 19

97

Reg

ion

Tota

l yea

rs o

f w

ork

ing

ex

per

ien

ceTo

tal

5-9

10-1

415

-19

20

-24

25

-29

30

-34

35

-40

Kat

ima

Mu

lilo

-6

2-

13

-12

Ru

nd

u1

36

34

12

20

On

dan

gwa

East

33

24

22

218

On

dan

gwa

Wes

t1

64

43

--

18

Kh

ori

xas

12

32

43

318

Win

dh

oek

-2

25

54

321

Kee

tman

s-h

oo

p3

43

82

11

22

Tota

l9

2622

2621

1411

129





107

Ta

ble

15

.Y

ea

rs o

f su

pe

rvis

ion

an

d s

up

po

rt s

erv

ice

s ex

pe

rie

nce

by

re

gio

n,

199

7

Reg

ion

Yea

rs o

f su

per

visi

on

an

d s

up

po

rt s

ervi

ces

exp

erie

nce

Tota

l

0-4

5-9

10-1

415

-19

20

-24

Kat

ima

Mu

lilo

46

1-

112

Ru

nd

u3

112

22

20

On

dan

gwa

East

87

2-

118

On

dan

gwa

Wes

t11

61

--

18

Kh

ori

xas

57

32

118

Win

dh

oek

26

94

-21

Kee

tman

s-h

oo

p13

63

--

22

Tota

l46

4921

85

129





108

Ta

ble

16

.L

eve

l o

f e

du

cati

on

of

sup

erv

isio

n a

nd

su

pp

ort

se

rvic

es

by

po

st,

199

7

Hig

hes

tSe

nio

rIn

spec

tor

Dis

tric

tSu

bto

tal:

Sen

ior

Ad

viso

ryT

RC

Sub

tota

l:To

tal

qu

alif

icat

ion

Insp

ecto

ro

fE

du

cati

on

Insp

ecto

rate

Ad

viso

ryTe

ach

erM

anag

erA

dvi

sory

Ed

uca

tio

nO

ffic

erTe

ach

er(R

egio

nal

serv

ices

or

Dis

tric

t)

Gra

de

12 o

r le

ss1

11-

12-

81

921

Gra

de

12 +

2 y

ears

-1

-1

-7

18

9

Gra

de

12 +

3 y

ears

18

-9

215

219

28

Gra

de

12 +

4 y

ears

417

-21

329

133

54

Gra

de

12 +

5 y

ears

22

15

-9

110

15

Gra

de

12 +

6-

--

--

2-

22

or

7 y

ears

Tota

l8

391

485

706

8112

9





109

Ta

ble

17.

Le

vel

of

ed

uca

tio

n o

f su

pe

rvis

ion

an

d s

up

po

rt s

erv

ice

s b

y r

eg

ion

Reg

ion

Hig

hes

t qu

alif

icat

ion

Tota

l

Gra

de

12

Gra

de

12

Gra

de

12

Gra

de

12

Gra

de

12

Gra

de

12

or

less

+ 2

yea

rs+

3 y

ears

+ 4

yea

rs+

5 y

ears

+ 6

or

7 y

ears

Kat

ima

Mu

lilo

1-

45

2-

12

Ru

nd

u9

12

71

-20

On

dan

gwa

East

41

46

21

18

On

dan

gwa

Wes

t3

35

7-

-18

Kh

ori

xas

11

68

11

18

Win

dh

oek

11

39

7-

21

Kee

tman

s-h

oo

p2

24

122

-22

Tota

l21

928

5415

212

9





110


(a) Recruitment

Supervisors are recruited by interview. Posts are advertised and

anyone may apply. The official requirements are contained in the

Wages and Salary Commission document, i.e. BETD plus 3 years’

additional degree plus 3 years’ experience or BETD plus 12 years’

experience. These official requirements are the main criteria for

selection. Regional directors and their senior personnel are normally

in charge of the recruitment and appointment for the filling of

vacancies in the regions. For posts at Head Office, the specific

directorate is in charge. Recruitment normally takes place once a year

unless there is a very critical vacancy.

There are usually scores of applications for these posts. Motivation

for applying varies from getting promotion and a better salary to the

prestige that goes with the job.

Problems encountered are that most of the candidates who apply

do not meet the official requirements. It is evident that they do not

read the advertisements carefully. In most cases, more than 90 per

cent of the applicants are male. Females tend not to apply, usually

giving ‘the vast distances to travel’ and ‘being away from home/family

for a long period’ as reasons for not applying.


Career prospects are open to all supervisors, who can be promoted

to Deputy Director, Director or even Permanent Secretary but, of

course, such posts are limited. Promotion possibilities outside are

equally poor.





111

(c) Training

Induction and in-service training activities in the area of

supervision are virtually non-existent. As far as induction is

concerned, in one or two cases there is a type of mentor system where

the newly appointed supervisors will be accompanied by seasoned

supervisors on visits to schools. The Ministry of Basic Education has

held in-service training courses intermittently during the past seven

years. However, they were unco-ordinated, unsystematically planned

and conducted by different people. There were also no follow-up

activities. On the positive side, it should be mentioned that in all cases

where the in-service training workshops were held (approximately

five for the past seven years), all the inspectors in Namibia have had

the training.

As far as the advisory teachers are concerned, the position is very

much the same. A lot of unco-ordinated, unplanned training was done

by a large number of people, including the Life Science Project and

ELTDP, to name but a few.

One main problem at the present moment is the fact that the system

of supervision is not organized in exactly the same way in all regions,

which makes a national training programme difficult to plan for and

manage.


There is no professional support for supervisors. There is no

professional organization for supervisors. There is no supervisors’

manual or Code of Conduct. There are a few standard report forms

available.

The development of a Performance Management System (PMS) has

just been completed and it is to be introduced in the near future.





112

This will provide support to supervisors on how to monitor,

supervise and support the staff that report to them. Also, a Code of

Conduct for teachers is in the process of being developed. This will

support the PMS.

(e) Monitoring and evaluation of supervisors

Supervisors are not monitored in the strict sense of the word. In

most regions supervisors are set certain goals/objectives at the

beginning of the year. At the end of the year, discussions are held to

establish to what extent these have been achieved.

In most regions the supervisors fill out a monthly return of

activities. This serves the purpose of monitoring their work. After

supervisors have visited schools, they write reports which are

submitted to the directors. These reports also serve as a monitoring

tool.

Although there are performance indicators which were compiled

by the Directorate Inspectorate and Advisory services for the

implementation of the Performance Management System, these are

not yet being used.

The main problem affecting monitoring and evaluation is the lack

of a code of conduct, to which must be added the crucial issue that

there are no official job descriptions for any job category, which

obviously renders monitoring difficult.





113


(a) Salaries and allowances

Salaries depend on the post occupied and the years of experience.

From this point of view, there are four categories of supervisors on

an increasing salary scale.

(i) Head of Department

Principal of Primary School

(ii) Principal Junior Secondary School

Advisory Teacher

(iii) Principal Secondary School

Inspector of Education

(iv) Senior Education Officer

The salaries of teachers and supervisors changed dramatically, in

many cases doubled, in 1996 when the new revised structures of the

Wages and Salary Commission were introduced. Salaries compare

favourably with jobs outside the education system and in most cases

are better than in the private sector. There is, however, a very wide

gap between salaries of teachers and headteachers, e.g. a graduate

teacher with three years’ experience earns N$60,000 per annum, as

opposed to a principal of a primary school earning N$102,225.

Supervisors do not have additional official sources of income. In

rural areas some supervisors have small farming projects or cuca shops

(small trading shops). There are financial incentives according to job

performance contained in the new performance management system,

which is not yet fully operative.

All supervisors receive the same allowances to cover travel costs.

Should supervisors travel to other towns, their accommodation costs

are paid in full by the government. The meals are calculated to a





114

maximum of N$70 per day, which is also fully paid by the Government.

Should supervisors decide to arrange their own private

accommodation and meal, they receive N$70 per day.

The case study in Ondangwa West examined the opinions of

inspectors and advisory teachers on their financial conditions.

Table 18 reflects the opinion of the 11 advisory teachers interviewed.

About two-thirds were rather unhappy with their salaries, when

compared to other public and private employees. Especially those

teachers seconded to do the work of an advisory teacher feel that

they are underpaid. Some of them said that they do not receive the

salary according to the post they currently are acting in, but only

that of a teacher. All advisory teachers are paid on time. They are

significantly more unhappy with travel and subsistence allowances

than with their salaries. Sometimes they run workshops for a week

without receiving this allowance. Even teachers who are attending

workshops are not getting paid for travel and subsistence. Some said

that they prepare their own food when going out to schools. Neither

do they receive additional payment for work on Sundays and public

holidays. Most of the advisory teachers are experiencing problems

with the payment of allowances because they hand in a claim at

General Services but do not receive any payment.

Table 18. Financial conditions: opinions of advisoryteachers

Very poor Poor Fair Good Very good

Salaries 1 6 3 1 0

Allowances 9 2 0 0 0

Inspectors in Ondangwa West find their salaries fair or good. Their

main problem is that principals of Senior Secondary schools are

receiving a higher salary, thus creating a situation where principals





115

are not interested in the post of an inspector. All inspectors are paid

on time. Their opinion on allowances for transport, travel and

subsistence is similar to that of advisory teachers: very poor. They

assert that they are not getting any allowances. One says that it seems

as if it is expected from inspectors not to make use of any allowances,

despite the fact that they are entitled to them.

(b) Budget

Budget allocations are made for support and supervision services

by each region under the headings: salaries, travel and subsistence

allowance. But these allocations are not earmarked for specific duties

or for individual officers. The result is that the precise funds going

to supervision and support are difficult to identify and difficult to

obtain by the officers.

The situation in the Ondangwa West region is typical. The travel

budget is handled by the regional office. It receives an amount for

travel and subsistence and is responsible for the distribution of these

funds among the different officials. In other words, no allocation is

made to individual officers, be they inspectors or advisory teachers.

Sometimes restrictions are experienced concerning the allocation of

money for transport, resulting in travelling being suspended and staff

being unable to visit schools.

(c) Working conditions

In almost all regions, the place of residence of supervisors is in,

or close to, the central town where the regional office is located.

Only one region so far is an exception, where attempts are being made

to build a few inspector offices closer to schools. Accommodation

facilities have been added. The region of Ondangwa West, on which

some more information is available, is more typical. The Ministry does





116

not provide accommodation. The average distance between the usual

residence and the office is 14 kilometres with the highest distance

32 kilometres and the lowest 3 kilometres. The fact that all live rather

close to the regional office means that the distance from their home

to some of the schools for which they are responsible can be very

great.

In all regions supervisors’ offices form part of the regional office

complex where they have access to typists/secretaries, clerks and basic

equipment. However, this does not guarantee that all officers have

at their immediate disposal all the necessary support staff and

equipment. The study on Ondangwa West asked 11 professionals

(mainly advisory teachers in the Okahao circuit) about the availability

of facilities and services. Table 19 summarizes their answers. All have

indeed office space and a telephone; all but one have access to a fax

and a photocopier and, in eight cases, a computer. The main problem

is with support staff: only one has a typist and clerical staff. Seven of

the officers are ‘rather satisfied’ with their material working

conditions, two were ‘rather unsatisfied’ and a further two ‘totally

unsatisfied’. The situation of the inspectors of Education in the

Ondangwa West region is better. Three of the five inspectors are

‘rather satisfied’, one is ‘totally satisfied’ with the material working

conditions, with only one expressing dissatisfaction.





117

Table 19. Working conditions of supervision and supportstaff in Ondangwa West

Facility Availability If yes, condition

Yes No Unsatisfactory Satisfactory Excellent

Individual office space 1 10

Shared office space 11 0 6 4 1

Transport facilities 7 4 4 2 1

Computer 8 3 2 5 1

Typewriter 1 10 1

Photocopier 10 1 4 4 2

Filing cabinet 8 3 1 5 2

Telephone 11 0 1 6 4

Fax 10 1 7 3

Typist 1 10 1

Clerical staff 1 10 1

In all cases, however, one of the main irritations, in addition to

shared offices, concerns the transport facilities. In principle, in all

regions, the inspectors have access to motor vehicles. But in some

cases, there is a shortage of vehicles. In most regions, therefore,

transport is organized in such a way that the advisory teachers travel

with the inspectors when visiting schools.

The situation is similar in the Okahao circuit: advisory teachers

and the inspector are making use of government vehicles that were

allocated to the regional office. Sometimes, because of financial

constraints and the shortage of vehicles, no visits can be organized.

Some of the advisory teachers make use of the vehicles of certain

projects, which are supporting the Ministry of Basic Education and

Culture.




118

III. DAILY OPERATION OF SUPERVISION AND SUPPORTSERVICES – RESULTS OF A CASE STUDY

Introduction

The Ministry of Basic Education and Culture consists of seven

educational regions. Ondangwa East and West are two regions that

were neglected because of the political situation of the past. They

are situated in the North of the country. This area has more than half

of the population of Namibia and was to a great extent the centre of

the war for freedom and independence. For the purpose of this case

study, we focused on the Ondangwa West region which has a very

big rural population. This educational region is made up of two

political regions, namely, Oshana and Omusati.

At the time of the study, there were 356 schools in the Ondangwa

West region, 202 Primary (Grades 1-5), 136 Combined (Grades 1-10

or Grades 4-10 or Grades 7-10) and 18 Secondary schools (Grades 6-

12). The region had a total of 4,079 teachers. There were eight

inspection circuits each headed by an inspector. The case study gave

special attention to one circuit: the Okahao circuit. It represents

42 schools with 440 teachers and 13,082 learners and it consists of

seven school clusters.

The clusters are in the hands of facilitators who are senior subject

teachers who are organizing workshops with the assistance of the

advisory teachers and, in some cases, with counterparts who are

senior teachers, seconded to do the job of an advisory teacher.

Since this case study focuses specifically on Okahao circuit, it is

useful to look at the policy that guides the operation of schools in

this circuit. Following are some relevant quotes from a policy





119

document prepared by the Okahao circuit. The document contains

some 26 sections; only those of interest to this study have been

retained.

Okahao circuit policyOkahao circuit policyOkahao circuit policyOkahao circuit policyOkahao circuit policy

ObjectivesObjectivesObjectivesObjectivesObjectives

• To help principals and teachers in administering schools;

• to enhance uniformity in our circuit for improving proper school functioning;

• to enable principals and teachers to know the areas in managing and

administering schools;

• to enhance effective teaching and learning in our schools;

• to enable the inspector, when visiting schools, to concentrate on areas in

which principals and teachers need more assistance.

School structureSchool structureSchool structureSchool structureSchool structure

For a school to function properly, it should have a structure which should be

visible to any person who may visit the school. This structure should indicate all

parties involved in the administration and management of the school

(e.g. Principal, Deputy Principal, Management Committee) etc. Each structure

should know its function and responsibilities. More importantly, each structure

should be provided with a duty sheet.

School policySchool policySchool policySchool policySchool policy

Any organization/school is established and operates with specific objectives

in mind. In this regard each school must have a ‘School Policy’. This document

must be a clear-cut statement/ guideline of its aims and objectives, setting out

what is to be achieved. School managers should compile a policy in which

they inform people how they want things to be done in a specific direction.

Therefore, each school in our circuit must have a ‘School Policy’. The policy

should include inter alia: general teaching organization, subject policies, the





120

use of teaching aids, teaching methodology, remedial work, communication,

the use of facilities (e.g. library) etc. The policy should also include policies on

cultural activities, sports, hostels, control of school development fund, buildings

and maintenance. The policy should be discussed by all parties involved, before

it is implemented. Furthermore, the policy should be implemented in line with

the Ministerial policies. The manager (principal) should make sure that each

staff member receives a copy of the policy document.

Subject policySubject policySubject policySubject policySubject policy

The success of every examination outcome depends to a large extent on

the subject management and administration. Therefore, it is the responsibility

of every subject head at the school to make sure that there is a ‘subject policy’

for each subject. The subject policy should clearly stipulate how the teachers

concerned are going to handle the subject matter. For example, the subject

policy should indicate how teachers are going to handle testing in their respective

subject. The subject policy should be approved by the principal before it is

implemented. It is also the responsibility of the subject head to make sure that

subject meetings are conducted regularly to evaluate, discuss and to bring in

new innovations within the subject area. It is also suggested that subject

meetings should be held at the beginning of each term or when it is deemed

necessary, e.g. when a teacher has attended a workshop, he/she has to brief

the other teachers on the new development surrounding the subject.

School boardSchool boardSchool boardSchool boardSchool board

The ‘school board’ is the officially appointed and recommended governing

body of the MBEC. Therefore, each school must elect a school board out of

parents whose children are schooling at that specific school and parent

community. The composition of the school board should be on equal

representation. This body should consist of members from the teaching staff

and parents. The term ‘equal representation’ means if five parents have been

elected for the school board, there will also be five teachers on the same board.





121

This will also apply to the number of students at senior secondary schools. It

should be understood that this body is a decision-making body at the school.

Hence, this body should meet regularly to discuss school-related matters.

Parental involvement in educationParental involvement in educationParental involvement in educationParental involvement in educationParental involvement in education

Research and experience have proven that active and meaningful

involvement by parents is essential for effective schooling and that the school

which values parents’ involvement tends to be more successful. Because parents

are responsible for their children, they need to get involved in issues that concern

their children. Parents should be given a place in the education system through

parents’ meetings, parent-teacher associations or school boards. Parents’

meetings should be conducted once a year, or as deemed necessary. It is

therefore expected from each school in our circuit (and this is more specifically

to the principal) to promote a relationship between the school community and

the general community. Inspectors should be invited to attend parents’ meetings

to brief them about Ministerial policies.

Complaints and requestsComplaints and requestsComplaints and requestsComplaints and requestsComplaints and requests

While executing our duties, we encounter problems which need to be

attended to. Principals and teachers are requested not to hesitate to report

whenever problems occur as this will also enable our office to tackle the

problems. If this happens, the following procedures should be adhered to. The

teacher concerned should report the matter to the principal, the principal should

report to the inspector, who should report the matter to the Regional Office.

That is to say, no teacher will leave school to attend to her/his problems which

have not even been brought to the attention of the principal or inspector. This

should be allowed only in exceptional cases, after the principal and the inspector

have endeavoured to do their utmost to help the teacher. Only then will a teacher

be given a note addressed to the Regional Office in which the problem concerned

is articulated, which will enable him/her to be attended to. When it comes to





122

conflict, we should learn to solve our problems internally before outside parties

are to be involved.

WorkshopsWorkshopsWorkshopsWorkshopsWorkshops

To acquire knowledge, skills and new teaching methodology, attending

workshops, whether on a National, Regional or Circuit level, is vital. Therefore,

each teacher in our circuit who is invited to attend a workshop must attend. On

returning from a workshop, feedback should be given to all teachers concerned

(teachers who are teaching the same subject). In the case of circuit facilitators,

the facilitators have to report to the Circuit Inspector so that a circuit base

workshop can be planned and conducted. Any teacher who fails to attend a

workshop should state reasons (valid) why she/he failed to attend a workshop.

This should be done in writing.

TTTTTeachereachereachereachereachers confs confs confs confs conferererererences/meeences/meeences/meeences/meeences/meetingstingstingstingstings

Each year (this depends on the decision of the Circuit Advisory Committee),

a conference or a mass meeting will be held. Teachers should understand that

conferences/meetings are not prescriptions from the Regional Office, but our

own gatherings so as to address our own needs. Teachers conferences/meetings

are compulsory for all teachers. Teachers who will not be able to attend the

conference or meeting should inform the inspector in writing via the principal.

Only teachers with valid reasons for being absent will be excused.

1. Basic data

The structure of supervision and support services in the

Ondangwa West region is no different from other regions: in the

regional office, three divisions have a role to play: the Advisory

Services Division; the School and Hostels Management Division; and

the Teachers Resource Centres Division. Within the schools, senior

staff and school boards are also given tasks related to supervision





123

and support, as described in the circuit’s policy. Between the regional

office and the schools are the circuits and the clusters, which ensure

a close relationship between the different actors.

Following are some basic facts and figures about supervision and

support services in the Okahao circuit.

The circuit is headed by an inspector, supported by two secretaries,

a clerk, a messenger, and a cleaner. The number of posts for advisory

teachers in Ondangwa West is 23. Out of these, only 8 are filled while

15 are still vacant. These eight advisory teachers service not only the

Okahao circuit, but also the other seven circuits. The circuit, as earlier

indicated, has 42 schools and 440 teachers. The number of teachers

in the whole region is 4,079, which makes it almost impossible for

the eight advisory teachers to provide an effective service. They are

on average responsible for 34 primary and 16 secondary schools and

for 426 primary and 159 secondary teachers.

Three of the advisory teachers are men, the other five are women.

Their age varies from 32 to 48, the average being 36. On average, they

have 13 years’ experience in the education system: almost eight years

as a teacher, two as a headteacher and two as an advisory teacher.

Their academic qualifications vary between Grade 12 a BA degree to

a B. Ed.

The inspectors of education in the Ondangwa West region are ten

in number, eight of whom are men. Their average age is 54. They have,

on average, nine years of experience as a teacher, about ten as a

headteacher or deputy and about six as a supervisor. Their

qualifications are not very different from those of the advisory

teachers. The one inspector of education responsible for the Okahao

circuit, is a man who has had the following career: four years as a

teacher, ten years as a headteacher and four years as a supervisor.





124

The number of schools under his responsibility: 39 primary and

3 secondary; the number of teachers under his responsibility:

380 primary and 60 secondary.

As part of this case study, information was collected from among

all the eleven advisory teachers of the Ondangwa East and West

regions, seven inspectors of the different circuits in Ondangwa West

and 11 of the 42 school principals in the Okahao circuit.


Normally the advisory teachers or inspectors do their own

planning by year and by trimester. The senior advisory teacher or the

senior inspector approves the programmes. While the inspector in

Okahao has responsibility only for the schools in that circuit, the

8 advisory teachers are responsible for subjects throughout the

whole region. In most of the cases no norms and regulations exist

such as number of teachers or schools to be visited and/or number

of reports to be written per year, etc. In some cases supervisors

define their own norms. Some of these, mentioned by the staff

interviewed, are as follows:

(a) Number of schools to be visited per term, between 40 and 100;

(b) Number of teachers to be supervised per term: 40;

(c) Number of reports to be written per term: 9;

(d) Other: Regional workshops: 1 per term,

Circuit workshops: 1 per term,

Cluster workshops: 4 per year.

In most cases where norms are in existence, the advisory teacher

or the inspector are not in a position to meet these norms. The reasons

are: lack of transport, long distances to travel, and unforeseen

circumstances, like requests from Head Office.





125

Both the advisory teachers and the inspectors were asked what

activities take up most of their time, what they consider their most

and least important tasks and how their time is distributed over

different activities. The answers given were not all the same and the

picture presented in the following paragraphs shows that diversity.

Analysis of the work of advisory teachers

The following were among the tasks mentioned as those taking up

most of the time of the advisory teacher:

• school visits;

• development of materials;

• in-service training workshops;

• administrative work like writing reports;

• assisting cluster workshops and observing;

• travelling to schools to plan with facilitators cluster workshops;

• supervision of the Molteno Project.

The following were mentioned as the most important tasks,

irrespective of the time devoted to them:

Task 1 Task 2 Task 3

• School visits • Development of materials • Trying out new ideas• Training of teachers • School visits • Planning in the office• Conducting workshops • In-service activities • Visiting teachers in classrooms• Planning workshops • Running of workshops • Supervising teachers• Writing reports for facilitators • Follow-up visits• Rendering professional • Advice to teachers • Planning workshops

support to teachers • Attending cluster • Observing teachersworkshops • Development of materials

When asked for their least important tasks, the advisory teachers

quoted the following:

• photocopying;

• arranging transport;





126

• organizing a winter school;

• meetings;

• administrative tasks (typing, writing reports);

• sending out invitations for workshops;

• answering telephone.

On average advisory teachers spend about 58 per cent of their

time on pedagogic tasks and 42 per cent on administrative tasks.

These latter tasks include purely secretarial duties (photocopying,

typing reports, filing, sending mail to schools), more administrative

work (arranging transport and accommodation for workshop

officials) and some tasks which are linked to pedagogical activities

(preparation of courses and examination committee meetings).

The following figures in Table 20 are approximate averages of the

estimated time devoted by the eight advisory teachers to different

types of activities during an average month.

Table 20. Time-budget of advisory teachers

Tasks Time devoted %

Teacher training and development 35

Office work 25

School visits 18

Report writing 14

Attending meetings 7

Other: Personnel development less than 1Examinations less than 1

Total 100





127

Analysis of the work of inspectors

Inspectors were interviewed in a similar fashion as advisory

teachers. The following were mentioned as the tasks that take up most

of their time:

Task 1 Task 2 Task 3

• Meetings • Office work at region and circuit • Administrative work• Problem solving • Counseling at schools • Inspections• report writing • inspection and school visits • report writing• school visits • Workshops • meetings

The tasks they considered most important, irrespective of time,

were the following:

1. Inspections

2. Supervision;

training of principals;

report writing;

counselling;

office work.

3. Meetings;

delivering materials to schools;

administrative work.

Among the tasks mentioned as the least important, were the

following:

• Attending meetings;

• addressing learners and teachers;

• delivering messages to schools;

• signing leave forms of teachers;

• collecting mail.

Inspectors spend more time on administrative tasks than advisory

teachers: about 62 per cent of their work is devoted to administration





128

and 38 per cent to pedagogical matters. Administrative tasks include

office work (report writing, correspondence, writing letters and

filling in leave forms) and organizing and attending meetings. The

following Table 21 represents the approximate percentage of time

devoted to different types of activities during an average month.

Table 21. Time-budget of inspectors

Activity Percentage

School visits 34

Office work 25


Report writing 11

Teacher training and development 9

Other:workshops 4counselling 2parent meetings 2clerks’ and school secretaries’ matters 1

3. School visits

(a) By advisory teachers

Types of visit: Advisory teachers make a distinction between four

types of visit:

Type of visit Average duration Individual/team visits

Advisory visits 3 days x x

Follow-up visits 2 days x x

Teacher inspection 1 day x x

Panel visits 3 weeks x





129

All visits can be undertaken by an individual officer or by a team,

except a panel visit which is always handled by a team and which

covers, over a fairly long period (up to three weeks), different

establishments.

Coverage: On average, the advisory teachers succeeded in visiting

21 per cent of the schools and 24 per cent of the teachers under their

supervision. The reasons they give for not being able to visit more

schools and/or teachers are as follows:

(a) In-service training of advisory teachers is time consuming.

(b) Sometimes there are travel restrictions because of financial

constraints.

(c) The numbers of teachers and schools is too high for all of them

to be covered in one year.

(d) Interruption of programmes by unforeseen circumstances.

(e) Much time is taken up with the production of materials and

running of circuit-level workshops.

Preparations: Different criteria are used for selecting the schools

for advice:

(a) Poor performance of a school or teacher.

(b) Availability of materials and assistance to schools far away from

centre.

(c) When assessing the ability of a teacher to be appointed.

(d) Follow-up visits.

(e) Problem situation in schools.

(f) Implementation of new grades and syllabus.

(g) Motivated request from schools.





130

Normally the following preparations are made before visiting a

school:

• determine the aim of the visit;

• develop materials if needed;

• get permission from supervisor;

• organize transport;

• make arrangements with principals and ask for their support, or go

without prior arrangements.

The following information is obtained, about the school, before

the visit:

• number of teachers for the subject;

• school timetable;

• distance of school from centre (if applicable);

• condition of roads;

• the grades the school is offering;

• examination results;

• Teacher/learner ratio.

Seven of the eleven advisory teachers prefer to inform teachers

‘always’ in advance of visits while four only do so ‘sometimes’. Nine

feel that notice of a visit should be given in advance because:

(a) the teacher should be available;

(b) the teacher should be prepared.

Two have the opposite point of view because:

(a) the advisory teacher should observe the teacher in a normal

situation;

(b) the teacher may do ‘window dressing’, thus creating a false

picture.





131

Only recently, written draft supervision guidelines were given to

some advisory teachers. Seven of the eleven say that they did not

receive any and are undertaking supervision according to what they

think correct.

The conduct of a visit: The following steps form part of a typical

school visit:

(a) Go to the principal and communicate the aim of your visit.

(b) Have a discussion with the teacher before the lesson starts.

(c) Observe lesson.

(d) Give teacher the opportunity to discuss the lesson given.

(e) Discuss the successes and failures in the lesson and recommend

corrective actions.

(f) Discussion with subject group.

(g) Debriefing of principal. Write report.

(h) Make copies of report and distribute.

(i) Make follow-up to see whether corrective actions were

implemented

(b) By inspectors

Types of visit: The following are the types of visit that the inspectors

conduct. The duration differs from half a day to two days. Almost all

are undertaken by a single inspector.

Type of visit Average duration

Full inspection 1 day

Follow-up 1 day

Courtesy ½ day

Institutional school inspection 2 days

Teacher inspection ½ day





132

Coverage: Inspectors in Ondangwa West succeeded last year, on

average, in visiting two thirds of the schools and just under half of

the teachers for whom they are responsible. The reasons for not

visiting all schools were quoted as follows:

(a) Too many schools allocated to one inspector.

(b) Long distances.

(c) Unforeseen activities of the Ministry.

(d) Meetings and workshops.

(e) Lack of finances and vehicles.

Preparation: Criteria used for selecting schools for supervision

are as follows:

(a) random selection;

(b) need to solve specific problems;

(c) follow-up visits;

(d) priority concerning overall needs.

Inspectors noted that the preparation they undertake before

visiting a school is twofold: to determine the aim, and, in function of

the aim, decide what should be the detailed objectives and tasks, e.g.

full inspection of the school, courtesy visit, etc. The information

normally consulted before visiting a school includes:

• previous inspection reports;

• examination results;

• information about teachers;

• information about problems that the principal may be

experiencing.

In principle, all inspectors inform schools in advance when visiting

them. They think this is important so as to make sure that teachers

are available or are prepared for the visit (e.g. meeting, panel





133

inspection, etc.). In some cases, however, school board members

request circuit inspectors not to inform principals because they want

inspectors to see the school as it is normally run. Most of the

inspectors are provided with supervision guidelines for visits and

they follow them regularly.

The conduct of a visit: A detailed description of a school visit by an

inspector includes the following elements:

(a) attend the opening of the school in the morning and give a short

speech;

(b) have a discussion with the principal concerning the visit;

(c) get certain information from the principal, such as:

• school timetable,

• arrangements to meet teachers responsible for certain

management tasks, e.g. the attendance registers, stock

control, financial control, etc.,

• time to have a discussion with the principal,

• time to have a debriefing with the principal;

(d) go through the supervision guidelines;

(e) make notes of positive and negative aspects;

(f) have a discussion with the personnel;

(g) have a discussion with the principal;

(h) write report and send it within a week to the school, the senior

inspector and the Regional Management Team.

4. Reporting

The situation in Ondangwa West differs on some points between

inspectors and advisory teachers. Most interviewed inspectors

confirm that they always write inspection reports for all visits. Some

however concede that they do so ‘very often, not always’ or even, in





134

the case of, for example, courtesy visits and also institutional school

visits, only ‘sometimes’.

Table 22 contains the answers of the 11 advisory teachers, when

asked about the regularity of their reporting on recent visits. Not all

answered for each type of visit.

Table 22. Regularity of reporting

Type of visit Never Sometimes Often Very often Always

Full inspection 0 0 0 0 1

Institutional 0 9 0 0 2school inspection

Teacher inspection 0 0 0 2 4

Advisory visits 0 1 0 1 5

Follow-up visits 1 1 0 0 3

Courtesy visits 0 0 0 0 1

Panel visits 0 0 0 0 1

Inspectors sometimes conduct inspections of all subjects and

only write one report. Some write reports for every visit because

they need the findings (negative and positive) to do follow-up visits.

Some feel that report writing takes too much time and a trimesterly

report seems to be the right way to go.

Seven of the eleven advisory teachers interviewed said that no

standardized formats for supervision reports exist. The others, who

received a standardized format, commented that these formats are

very important because they include all the activities that need to be

reflected upon. Those who received the formats therefore always

follow them. As far as inspectors are concerned, standardized formats

exist for school visits and teacher inspections, but some inspectors





135

of the Ondangwa West region are not sure if these exist, while others

do not always use them.

Inspectors discuss the report, before it is finalized, with the

teacher visited, the principal and the senior inspector, who should

all receive a copy of the report. On occasion another copy is sent to

the school board. Sometimes the following people are also contacted:

advisory teacher(s), planners, the director of the region.

Advisory teachers normally consult with the teacher concerned,

the principal and sometimes the head of department in the school,

the senior advisory teacher and the circuit inspector, before the final

report on a visit is written. The discussions, especially with the

teacher, have proved very useful because corrective actions can

directly be applied. The following people receive copies of reports

by advisory teachers:

• at school level: – the subject teacher,

– the principal;

• within the administration: – the circuit inspector,

– the regional director,

– the senior advisory teacher,

– the regional co-ordinator,

– planner (if applicable).

The following suggestions concerning reports and discussions of

reports, made by different staff, can be noted with interest:

(a) keep reports short and to the point and concentrate on good

and positive recommendations;

(b) if recommendations were made that need to be acted upon by

other divisions (e.g. general services), these divisions should

give attention to such recommendations;





136

(c) you should have understanding and sensitivity for other people’s

needs and feelings;

(d) principals should read reports and act accordingly;

(e) there should be a specific format for the different reports;

(f) more practical assistance should be given when visiting a

teacher.

The persons interviewed had different views on sending the

school inspection report to the school board. The following

statements reflect that diversity of opinion:

(a) such an action would be useful if the board members were able

to read and would understand the content of the reports;

(b) sometimes it might create conflicts;

(c) it is not professional to give a personal report to a school board;

(d) if the content of the report is only concerned with general

subjects, there is no need for the school board members to get

a copy;

(e) sometimes it may be of value if the school board is interested in

knowing precisely what is going on in the school;

(f) parental involvement should be encouraged, so that they take

keen interest in school affairs;

(g) in primary schools where there are no learners on the school

board it might be useful to ensure that reports are made available

to board members.


On this issue, information was collected only from among advisory

teachers and not from inspectors.

Almost all interviewed advisory teachers responded that they

undertake ‘from time to time’ follow-up visits to find out whether





137

advice and recommendations are being implemented. None does so

‘regularly’, while one ‘never’ does so. Time plays a big role. Advisory

teachers are overloaded and do not have time for follow-up visits.

Table 23 shows the extent of satisfaction with the level of follow-up

action taken on the advice and recommendations of the advisory

teacher, respectively, by the school and by the administration (nine

advisory teachers responded).

Table 23. Satisfaction with follow-up

Totally Rather Rather Totallyunsatisfied unsatisfied satisfied satisfied

At school level 1 5 2 1

Within the administration 2 2 4 1

A majority of advisory teachers feel that standards in schools do

not improve. Teachers seem not to follow the advice and

recommendations. It is difficult to convince them to accept new ideas

and changes. The teachers know that follow-up actions will not take

place and lack dedication and commitment. No feedback is received

from supervisors and/or administrators who receive reports. Only in

very rare cases do they follow up on recommendations made in

reports. On the other hand, in those cases where such follow-up has

been undertaken, clear evidence of improvement can be observed.

Advisory teachers were also asked to make an evaluation of the

impact of their work on schools. Seven of the ten who responded

believe that they have ‘strong impact’, three that they have ‘fair

impact’. They noted that:

• the advice given was well taken;

• teachers appreciate the fact that their knowledge about teaching

has improved;

• changes occur after visits;





138

• the increase in the pass rate shows improvements;

• teachers have grown in confidence, competence and teaching

skills;

• subject organization in schools has improved considerably;

• comments of teachers are encouraging.

While not one of the respondents believes that they have no or

only little impact, they nevertheless identified measures to be taken

in order to increase their impact:

• principals should be encouraged to be internal supervisors and to

check in particular on the implementation of recommendations;

• more school-based support by heads of departments should take

place;

• more advisory teachers should be appointed;

• effective follow-up activities should be organized; the impact is

bigger when follow-up visits take place;

• increased support from other support sectors, such as the

inspectorate, should be available;

• transport should be available.




139



Advisory teachers definitely feel that they have made an impact

on the schools. The situation in some schools has improved visibly

over the last two years. Tables 24 and 25 show the opinion of nine

schools on the areas covered by supervisors (inspectors as well as

advisory teachers) and the nature of the impact.

Table 24. Areas covered by supervision, as assessed byschools (in percentages)

Not Partially Fullycovered covered covered

Administration of the school 34 44 22

School infrastructure 22 44 34

Availability of teaching/learning materials 33 33 32

Development and use of teaching/learning 33 55 12materials

Teacher presence 22 33 45

Teacher lesson preparation 22 33 45

Classroom teaching and lesson delivery 22 23 55

Student presence 22 23 55

Student performance 22 11 67

Relations between staff 45 55 0

This table firstly shows the diversity of responses between schools.

It indicates also that the area least looked at is that of relations

between staff. The aspects most supervised relate to student

performance and presence, followed by teacher performance (lesson

preparation and delivery) and presence.





140

Table 25. Impact of supervision on different aspects ofschool life, as assessed by schools (in percentages)

Level of impact

Negative None Limited Fair High Veryhigh

Administration of the 14 14 44 28school

School infrastructure 12.5 12.5 37.5 37.5

Availability of teaching/ 14 14 14 44 14learning materials

Development and use of 14 14 44 14 14teaching/learning materials

Teacher presence 14 14 14 44 14

Teacher lesson preparation 14 14 58 14

Classroom teaching and 11 11 11 55 12 lesson delivery

Student presence 12.5 25 12.5 37.5 12.5

Student performance 14 43 29 14

Relations between staff 14 29 14 29 14

Teacher motivation 12.5 12.5 62.5 12.5

Staff development 14 28 44 14

All schools agree that the impact of supervision visits is never

outright negative. Schools feel a positive impact especially on the

following aspects, in decreasing order: teacher motivation, teacher

lesson preparation, classroom teaching and lesson delivery, followed

by teacher presence and staff development. For each of these areas,

more than 50 per cent of schools assess the impact to be ‘high’ or

‘very high’. At the same time, some schools consider that supervision

has only limited impact on the same areas. The aspects where impact

is lowest, are relations between staff, an issue little covered (as we

saw above), and student presence.





141

To strengthen the impact on schools, supervision and support

staff consider that actions are needed in different fields.

The organization of the services needs to be improved. The issue

of lack of job descriptions for both inspectors and advisory teachers

is very urgent. Many at times find themselves doing jobs that

professionally do not fall under their domain, but because they do

not have a written job description, they are unable to challenge or

question such assignments. There is also a problem of co-ordination.

The different services involved in the delivery of support to teachers

agree that they do not co-ordinate their activities. When reports on

visits are written by one service, they are not shared across those

involved. There is, therefore, a greater need to ensure that

information is shared by all concerned. A better-organized service

needs also to rely more on school-based support.

Several management issues also need to be addressed:

• Numbers of staff: in Ondangwa West, for instance, many posts are

left vacant. The number of advisory teachers should be boosted

from eight to at least sixteen.

• Improved transport to allow staff to frequently visit schools. In

addition, greater budgetary allocation particularly in the area of

transport should be guaranteed, if meaningful results are to be

achieved.

• Provision of office accommodation should be investigated further.

The question should also be asked if it is acceptable for advisory

teachers to operate from the teacher resource centres? It would be

much better if they were allocated individual offices, or a bigger

space where they could provide a one-on-one assistance to teachers

which allows for privacy.





142

• Especially inspectors felt that they need more training, e.g. in how

to implement reforms and how they should assist principals in this

regard.

Finally, in order for change at school level to take place, schools

need to be provided with sufficient teaching and learning materials.

The services involved complained about late delivery of both teacher

and learner materials, to such an extent that sometimes books are

delivered during the last term making it impossible to effectively

utilize them. While this is an area in which supervision and support

staff are not directly involved, the absence of action in this field

seriously limits the possibility of schools to respond to supervision

recommendations.

2. Synthesis of main problems

The list of problems, mentioned at a national level or collected as

part of the case study, is quite long. At the risk of repeating some

points raised before, we have in the following paragraphs summarized

them.

Firstly, at the time of writing this report, a number of basic issues

in setting up an effective supervision system were not yet in place.

The functions of the different directorates were not clearly defined

and job descriptions for both inspectors and advisory teachers still

should be developed. In addition, co-ordination between services

needs to be given more attention.

There are, secondly, some problems related to recruitment. While

recruitment procedures are quite effective, there is a problem with

vacancies, especially among advisory teachers, as was seen clearly in

the case of Ondangwa West. Candidates are not lacking, but many do

not have the required qualifications. In addition, certain officials are





143

appointed to posts without having sufficient knowledge about their

environment and their own functions. This relates to a third issue:

training. Supervision and support staff request that newly appointed

inspectors and advisory teachers should always receive in-service

training or induction courses before they start working.

Material conditions offer a fourth challenge. Generally, good

facilities exist for officials in the head office and in regional offices.

However, budgetary constraints, which regularly occur, obstruct the

smooth functioning of the services. As a result, from time to time, no

transport is available or it is limited to a pre-determined number of

kilometres per month. This, because of the long distances to schools,

makes it in actual fact impossible to reach all schools. In some cases,

supervisors also feel that the support the regional offices offer them

is insufficient.

Supervisory staff have too many schools and teachers to cover to

be able to visit them all regularly. This implies that proper planning

and co-ordination of visits to schools should be done, particularly in

the face of budgetary and transport limitations. This however is not

evident, when many supervisors note that they face an unsatisfactory

flow of information and lack a proper management system.

Attitudes of supervisors are generally supportive to teachers, even

under conditions that are not always satisfactory. But it was noted in

the case study that their communications with schools could be

improved and that they should strive to establish discussion with the

parents on issues affecting the relationship between schools and

the community.

A particular problem concerns the level of salaries. The salaries of

inspectors should be rectified so that a principal of a secondary school

will not earn more than an inspector. This creates a situation whereby





144

an inspector’s authority may not be respected by the principals, which

makes it more difficult to recruit capable and experienced principals

to become inspectors.

3. Present trends and innovations

At national level, closer co-ordination is sought between the

different directorates involved in school and teacher supervision and

support. There was, at the moment of writing this report, talk of

amalgamating the Directorates ‘Inspectorate and Advisory Services’,

‘Educational Programme Implementation’ and ‘Special Education’.

A Performance Management System is being developed to cover

all public servants, including supervisors and teachers, with the aim

to enhance standards in school management.

The central level is also taking steps to offer more support to

supervisors and school managers. An administrative manual for

school principals has been compiled to serve as a reference document

and to be used for inducting new principals. Management courses

are being held at all regional offices and in headquarters to improve

the management skills of officials and to unite groups for better co-

operation and productivity.

Regional offices have taken, from time to time, steps on their own.

Three such initiatives can be mentioned with regard to Ondangwa

West:

• Appointment of counterparts: senior subject teachers are seconded

to do the work of an advisory teacher. This alleviates the pressure

created because of a lack of advisory teachers. Currently three

such secondments exist on the Ondangwa West establishment.





145

However, it is not certain if these staff, when successful, will be

appointed to become advisory teachers.

• Establish inspection circuits: the region has been divided into

circuits to bring the inspector, who is staying in the circuit, closer

to the school. This allows for problematic situations to be resolved

quickly.

• Within circuits, clusters are organized. There are three established

clusters in the Okahao circuit. Advisory teachers and counterparts

organize workshops for teachers of the clusters, which helps to

reach more teachers simultaneously. This is especially useful as

there is great shortage of advisory services to cover all schools. It

must be said, however, that the workshops also compound the fact

that advisory teachers seldom or never see the teacher performing

in the classroom.







Chapter III

School supervisionin Tanzania

J. S. MmbandoE. MnguuC. Shayo

N.B. Katunzi







149

CONTENTS

Pages


List of tables 151

Introduction 153


1. Historical background 1582. Overall structure of supervisory and support

services 1603. Official functions of the different services 1634. Relations with other pedagogical services 1665. Classical supervision and support services within a

broader perspective: school-site support andsupervision 167

II. Management of supervision services 1681. Basic facts and figures 1682. Critical management issues 1703. Budgetary and financial matters 1744. Working conditions 176

III. The daily operation of supervision services –report of a case study in Muheza district 179

Introduction 1791. Planning and workload 1842. Visits 1853. Reporting and follow-up 191

IV. Overall assessment 1951. Impact on school functioning and quality 1952. Synthesis of main problems 1993. Recommendations and present trends 202




150


BEMP Basic Education Master Plan

CIS Chief Inspector for Schools

DAO District Academic Officer

DBSPE District-Based Support of Primary Education

DCIS District Chief Inspector of Schools

DED District Executive Director


DSA Daily Subsistence Allowance

DSLO District Supply Logistics Officer

ETP Education and Training Policy

HQS Headquarters

LA Local Authority

MANTEP Management Training for Education Personnel Institute

MOEC Ministry of Education and Culture

PMO Prime Minister’s Officer

PSI Primary-School Inspector

SC School Committee

TRC Teacher Resource Centre

TTC Teacher Training College

TTU Teachers’ Trade Union

WEC Ward Education Co-ordinator

ZCIS Zonal Chief Inspector of Schools




151

LIST OF TABLES

1. The evolution of enrolments in primary education 154

2. Number of professionals working in the different services 168

3. Number of PSIs working in the different services –zonal breakdown 169

4. Distribution of district staff by zone 169

5. Distribution of personnel by age 170

6. Distribution of personnel by services – in terms of years 170

7. Distribution by level of qualifications 170

8. Exposure to specific in-service training for PSIs (total 428) 173

9. Expenditure 1991-1992–1994-1995 176

10. Number of school inspected, 1992-1995 176

11. Availability and condition of facilities in Muheza region 177

12. Enrolment in primary schools in Muheza district 180

13. Supervisors’ academic and professional qualifications 181

14. Names of schools, distance from headquarters, teachers,pupils and number of streams 182

15. Facilities and services at the schools 183

16. Duration and types of visit 186

17. Notice about visits 187

18. Full school inspection visits in Muheza district 190

19. Percentage of teachers visited during an inspection 191

20. Levels of impact of supervision 197







153

INTRODUCTION

Country background

The United Republic of Tanzania consists of the area formerly

known as Tanganyika and the Islands of Zanzibar and Pemba. It has

an area of 945,090 square kilometres, with a population of about

32 million in 1998. The official languages are Kiswahili and English.

The Republic is a federation and, as such, two separate Ministries of

Education exist: one for Tanzania Mainland and another for Zanzibar.

This diagnosis concerns Tanzania Mainland only.

Tanzania Mainland is divided into 20 administrative regions which

are subdivided into 113 districts. The regions have been grouped into

seven Educational Zones.

The seven zones are as follows:

Zones Regions Number of districts

Central Dodoma, Singida 9

Eastern Morogoro, Pwani, Dar es Salaam 14

Highland Mbeya, Iringa, Rukwa 18

Lake Mwanza, Mara, Kagera 18

Northern Tanga, Arusha, Kilimanjaro 22

Southern Mtwara, Lindi, Ruvuma 15

Western Tabora, Kigoma, Shinyanga 17

7 zones 20 regions 113 districts

The formal education structure is 2 – 7 – 4 – 2 – 3+, that is two

years pre-primary, seven years of primary, four years of secondary

ordinary level, two years of secondary advanced level and three or

more years of university education. Pupils can undertake a two-year





154

teacher-training course after successfully completing ‘O’ level (end-

of-secondary) or Advanced level.

Enrolment

Below in Table 1 are the enrolment statistics for primary education

for the period of 1992-1996.

Table 1. The evolution of enrolment in primaryeducation

Total % Female % Increase on previous year

1992 3,603,488 49.1 2.6

1993 3,736,734 49.2 3.7

1994 3,796,830 49.3 1.6

1995 3,877,643 49.4 2.1

1996 3,942,888 49.5 1.7

1997 4,057,965 49. 2.9

Source: Basic Statistics in Education, 1992-1997.

The above table shows that there is almost a balance in the

enrolment of boys and girls. However, to have complete equity

between sexes, the number of girls enrolled should be somewhat

greater than that of boys because census data have revealed that there

are more girls than boys in the country. It is also evident that there

has been a fluctuation in the rate of enrolment over this period.

Taking into account that the population growth over this period was

about 3.0 per cent yearly, there has been a decline in the enrolment

ratio. One major problem in primary education is drop-outs. The drop-

out rate is estimated to be 6 per cent per annum. As a result of the

decline in the enrolment ratio and a high rate of drop-outs, the

illiteracy rate has risen from 10 to 16 per cent between 1986-1992.




School supervision in Tanzania

155

This means that the number of illiterates has grown from 1.4 to

2.6 million over the same period.

The factors that contribute to the decline of the enrolment and

high drop-out rate are a decline in parental confidence in the value

of the present primary-school system, which is facing many problems.

Different studies have identified some reasons contributing to

truancy and drop-out in schools:

(a) teachers do not keep the children busy enough in instructional

activities, as a result the children feel they are not learning

anything;

(b) schools are poorly resourced and children feel that going to

school is a waste of their time;

c) some schools use corporal punishment for all types of

misbehaviour and misconduct, including failure to perform

well academically;

(d) in some schools, farm activities occupy most of the day and

therefore pupils do not get into classes to learn;

(e) many schools do not send children to secondary schools at the

end of primary because of poor performance in schools

examinations;

(f) over-sized classes account for pupil fall-out because they do not

receive individual attention;

(g) pregnancies among girls.

Finance

After 1967, with the declaration of Education for self-reliance, the

government committed itself to providing free education at all levels.

However, the government budget allocation to education has been

declining, as the government does not have enough resources to

continue financing primary education wholly. To date, school fees




156

and participation of the private sector have been reintroduced as a

way of increasing finance to education. However, the education sector

is still under-financed and it relies heavily on donor support. The

share of the national budget, excluding debt servicing, allocated to

education has declined since the late 1970s; this is especially true for

capital expenditure, as evidenced by deterioration in school quality,

equipment and performance.

Quality issues

The provision of basic education in Tanzania is compulsory.

Universal Primary Education, introduced in 1977, brought about a

surge in enrolment, accompanied by an increased need for

classrooms, more teachers, and more resources. Although there is a

decline in net enrolment, the number of those children who actually

attend school is still high. This has meant that most schools are in

need of classrooms, well-trained teachers and teaching materials, if

quality is to be ensured.

It is estimated that 70 per cent of the 11,130 primary schools are in

a state of disrepair. Furthermore, essential school facilities such as

instructional materials are in short supply. For example, it is estimated

that textbook availability ranges from one book per three students

to one book per 13 students. This is due to poor distribution, or

insufficient production and an under-developed book-care and

management system in schools. Exercise books and teachers’ guides

are also in very short supply.

These problems, together with inadequate deployment of

teachers, under-qualified teachers, and a weak teacher-support system

all contribute to low performance in basic education.





157

In 1996, the Ministry of Education and Culture (MOEC) launched

the Education and Training Policy (ETP), whose main objective is to

achieve an efficient, comprehensive education and training delivery

system.

The Basic Education Master Plan of 1997 (BEMP) has set out plans

to:

• arrest enrolment decline and stagnation;

• revitalize quality;

• optimize the use of existing resources; and

• ensure an equitable and effective system of financing education.

The BEMP seeks to improve quality by focusing on student

achievement, as well as encouraging low-enrolment districts to enrol

more pupils. Through budgetary aid and empowering school

committees as well as private-sector participation, the current

problems are expected to be resolved.




158

I. GENERAL OVERVIEW OF SUPERVISION ANDSUPPORT SERVICES

In Tanzania the supervisory and support system includes several

actors:

• Primary-School Inspector (PSI)

•· District Education Officer (DEO)

• District Academic Officer (DAO)

• District Supplies and Logistics Officer (DSLO)

• Ward Education Co-ordinator (WEC)

• School Committee (SC)

• Teachers’ Resource Centre (TRC)

• Teachers’ Training College (TTC)

• Teachers’ Service Commission (TSC)

• Teachers’ Trade Union (TTU).

In the context of this diagnosis, we will focus mainly on the

Primary-School Inspector, the District Education Officer, the School

Committee and the Teachers’ Resource Centre.


In pre-independent Tanganyika, formal education was provided

by government, local authorities, religious bodies and education

voluntary agencies. All these players had a way of monitoring what

was taking place in their schools.

Formalized supervision was introduced in 1922 under the then

Chief Education Officer. In 1925 three categories of supervisors were

introduced:





159

(i) Government school supervisors who had a mandate to supervise

all schools: government schools, local authority schools and

schools owned by other agencies;

(ii) Supervisors for schools under local authorities;

(iii) Education Secretaries for schools under other agencies.

In 1952, a Government Chief Inspector of Schools was appointed

and specific school inspectors were given the mandate to inspect

secondary schools. The 1957 to 1961 Five Year Development Plan

established the post of Education Assistants who assisted the

Education Secretaries to supervise schools owned by agencies. The

post of Primary-School Supervisor was established, whose main role

was to inspect primary schools owned by the government. The post

of District Education Officer was also introduced, whose main

function was to be in charge of all primary schools in the district.

The Education Act No. 37 of 1961 established the post of Assistant

Chief Education Officer Inspectorate. The main duties were to

supervise all schools. The post of Primary-School Inspector was also

established. The Education Act No. 50 of 1969 nationalized all schools.

The primary-school inspector then assumed the responsibility of

inspecting and supervising all primary schools.

Under the Decentralization Act of 1972 powers were transferred

from the centre to the regions and the districts. This meant that the

primary-school inspectors were now accountable to the District

Development Director and not the Ministry of Education

Headquarters. The central co-ordination system was therefore

abolished. However, the Education Act No. 25 of 1978 re-established

a centralized Inspectorate Department. This Education Act was

amended in 1995 to reintroduce privately owned schools, but the

supervisory structures remain unchanged. This therefore constitutes

the most recent change.





160

2. Overall structure of supervisory and support services

The Inspectorate Department under the Chief Inspector of

Schools (CIS) operates at three levels: the Headquarters, the Zone,

headed by Zonal Chief Inspector of Schools (ZCIS); the District,

headed by District Chief Inspector of Schools (DCIS). The regions,

which are an administrative and political division, do not have a role

in education administration or an inspection department.

Primary schools are managed by Local Authorities (LA) which are

under the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO). The Ministry of Education

and Culture (MOEC) provides professional support, syllabi and policy.

Below, in Diagram 1, is the structure of the MOEC and supervisory

and support services.





161

Dia

gra

m 1

.St

ruct

ure

of

the

MO

EC

an

d s

up

erv

iso

ry a

nd

su

pp

ort

se

rvic

es

PM

OM

OE

C

Prim

ary

Educ

atio

nC

o-or

dina

tion

Uni

t

Org

aniz

atio

nan

dC

o-or

dina

tion

Sect

ion

Org

aniz

atio

nan

dC

o-or

dina

tion

Sect

ion

Org

aniz

atio

nan

dC

o-or

dina

tion

Sect

ion

Pre-

serv

ice

teac

her

Educ

atio

nSe

ctio

n

In-s

ervi

ceTe

ache

rEd

ucat

ion

Sect

ion

Col

lege

A

dmin

istr

atio

nSe

ctio

n

Pre-

prim

ary

and

Post

-pri

mar

yEd

ucat

ion

Sect

ion

Pre-

scho

ol,

Prim

ary

and

Adu

ltEd

ucat

ion

Insp

ecto

rate

Sect

ion

Subj

ect

Div

ersi

ficat

ion

Sect

ion

Priv

ate

Scho

ols

Sect

ion

Seco

ndar

ySc

hool

Insp

ecto

rate

Sect

ion

Teac

her

Educ

atio

nIn

spec

tora

teSe

ctio

n

Prim

ary

Educ

atio

nD

ivis

ion

Dir

ecto

r

Seco

ndar

yEd

ucat

ion

Div

isio

nD

irec

tor

Teac

her

Educ

atio

nD

ivis

ion

Dir

ecto

r

Insp

ecto

rate

Div

isio

n

Dir

ecto

r

Adu

ltD

ivis

ion

Dir

ecto

r

Adu

ltEd

ucat

ion

Sect

ion

DEO

ZCIS

DC

IS

WEC





162

Diagram 1 shows that the district education officers have dual

accountability: firstly to the ‘Pre-primary and post-primary education

section’ within the MOEC, which appoints them, pays their salary and

generally looks after their welfare. Secondly, the DEO is accountable

to the Primary Education Co-ordination Unit, which forms part of local

government, and through it to the Prime Minister’s Office. This dual

accountability puts the DEOs in a dilemma as to who is actually their

boss.

The services provided to schools and teachers by the supervision

and support services are listed below, as well as the areas in which

they are involved:

PSI Inspects schools and advises teachers;

DEO Supervisor and manager of primary schools in

the district;

DAO In charge of academic matters;

DSLO In charge of school materials and upkeep of

schools’ data;

WEC Co-ordinator of schools and adult education

in the ward;

School Committees In charge of management of the school;

TRCs Centres of teachers professional and

academic development;

TTCs Centres for pre-service and in-service training;

TSC Career services, promotions, etc.;

TTU Conditions of service as Trade Union.

All these services are under the umbrella of the Ministry of

Education and Culture. The DEO, DSLO, DAO, TSC Secretaries are

located at District Headquarters, while the PSI and the WEC are

located in the wards.





163

The district education officer and the support staff under him, as

indicated above, provide administrative and logistical support to

schools. In the provisions of the Education Act, the DEO is the manager

of public primary schools on behalf of the local authority. The PSI,

on the other hand, inspects schools and provides feedback and advice

to schools, and to the DEO Office. This enables the school and DEO

to take necessary measures for improvement of education quality.

TRCs and TTCs use information from inspection reports to conduct

in-service seminars and workshops for teachers.

The DEO and PSI are involved in the establishment of private

primary schools. Management and supervision of private primary

schools is the duty of the Owner and Manager. External supervision

in both public and private schools is done by the PSI.


Primary-School Inspector (PSI)

The PSI is the main field inspector. It is his or her duty to work

with colleagues in inspecting schools on a regular basis. The duties

of the PSI are the following:

• to supervise the implementation of government education policy

and regulations;

• to ensure the effective implementation of the school curriculum;

• to advise on matters related to education when and where

appropriate;

• to execute the inspection programme;

• to write up all relevant inspection reports;

• to supervise all teachers on probation;

• to deal with any teacher rated as being ‘weak’;





164

• to liaise with colleagues when required;

• to supervise, to liaise and to hold conferences with WECs;

• to monitor the WECs in supervising and accounting for the

expenditure of any money allocated to schools or School Committee

for specific purposes;

• to hold conferences and seminars with headteachers, teachers and

school committees when necessary;

• to promote and support the establishment and work of the TRCs;

• other duties include books and syllabus reviews as members of

subject panels in curriculum development and acting as setters

and markers of examinations.

District Education Officer (DEO)

Their main tasks are:

• to act as adviser to the District Authority by interpreting the

Education Act and Education Policy;

• to oversee the development and management of all primary schools

in the district;

• to oversee implementation of district education plans;

• to supply school materials, post teachers and ensure infrastructural

upkeep in schools;

• to manage education grants;

• to act as secretary of the Education and Cultural Committee of the

District Council.

The DEO delegates some of the functions to supporting staff

comprising the DAO, DSLO, WECs and school committees.

The School Committee

The school committee is established by law to undertake the

following, among other tasks:




165

• to see that pupils are enrolled properly;

• to see that enrolled pupils attend school regularly until they

complete primary education;

• to help the headteacher improve the welfare of the pupils and

teachers in the school;

• to involve the village/town to ensure that the school has enough

land for buildings, farms, playgrounds for games and sports;

• to make sure that school boundaries are identified, demarcated

and maintained;

• to make sure that schools receive the full co-operation of parents

on where the school is built;

• to see to it that the school has sufficient buildings, such as

classrooms, staff quarters, offices, stores and latrines;

• to ensure that the school has adequate furniture, such as desks,

chairs, tables and cupboards;

• to assist the headteacher in collecting fees from parents and see

that the fees are properly used;

• to see that the school funds raised from income-generating activities

are used for improving the school;

• to confirm or disallow the dismissal of pupils from school;

• to plan the overall developments of the school;

• to advise the headteacher and the local authority on matters

relating to the management and conduct of the school; and

• to make sure that pupils are healthy by receiving food and medical

treatment.

Teacher Resource Centre

They were set up with the following objectives:

• to improve the classroom performance of the teachers through

training, development and involvement in curriculum issues;





166

• to be a focal point of disseminating skills and ideas related to

management, planning, teaching and learning methods;

• to unite teachers in a specific locality to share limited resources;

• to be a training and advisory centre for teachers and the community

at large;

• to develop skills in the production and use of local teaching

materials.

The functions of each category of supervisors complement each

other. On the one hand, the DEO oversees management

administration; on the other hand, the PSI gives information and

feedback on how the schools are functioning. Any shortfalls in

academic or administrative aspects are identified and addressed by

TRCs and TTCs through seminars and workshops for school

committees and teachers. DEOs and PSIs are normally called upon to

facilitate during such seminars/workshops.


External supervisors, i.e. PSIs, contribute to teacher pre-service

and in-service training by assessing and giving advice while inspecting

schools. At the same time, inspection reports highlight major

weaknesses in the teaching process. This information can be used by

TRCs to improve pre-service and in-service courses.

PSIs review curriculum, books and they are members of Curriculum

Panels of the Tanzania Institute of Education. They are also involved

in setting and marking examinations.





167


The school committees are established by Education Act No. 25 of

1978 as amended in 1995. The School Committee is the only organ

other than the PSI which has mandatory powers by law to supervise

implementation of education policy in the school. Its functions as

outlined above relate to implementation of regulations pertaining

to compulsory enrolment and attendance. The SC provides support

to headteachers and teachers, by solving problems related to

buildings, teaching-learning materials, other basic services and

discipline. As emphasized in the Education and Training Policy and

BEMP, the SC holds a very crucial role in supervision and management

of the school.




168

II. MANAGEMENT OF SUPERVISION SERVICES


The total number of professionals working in supervision and

support services, and their distribution by gender, are shown in

Table 2. There are no data available for the distribution by gender of

the DAOs, DSLOs and WECs. However, it is known that, as for other

staff, there are more males than females.

Table 2. Number of professionals working in the different

services

Types of professional Distribution by gender Total

Males Females

PSI 352 76 428

DEO 91 22 113

DAO 113

DSLO 113

WEC 2354

Table 3 shows the number of PSIs by zone and Table 4 the number

of district personnel.





169

Table 3. Number of PSIs working in the differentservices – zonal breakdown

Place Number of districts Distribution by gender Total

Male Female

HQs 1 2 3

Northern zone 22 75 22 97

Central zone 9 31 5 36

Southern zone 15 29 8 37

Western zone 17 55 7 62

Eastern zone 14 46 18 64

Southern highlands 18 65 6 71

Lake zone 18 50 8 58

Total 113 352 76 428

Table 4. Distribution of district staff by zone

Zone Number of DEOs Total Number of Totalnumber DSLOs

Male Female of DEOs and DAOs

Northern 18 4 22 44 66

Central 7 2 9 18 27

Southern 12 3 15 30 45

Western 11 6 17 34 51

Eastern 9 5 14 28 42

S/Highlands 17 1 18 36 54

Lake 16 1 18 36 54

Total 91 22 113 226 339

Tables 5, 6 and 7 – on age, experience and qualifications –

concern only the PSIs and the DEOs. PSIs are on the whole quite old:

almost two-thirds are over 50. It is not unusual that about 80 per cent





170

have experience in the education service of more than 25 years.

None has less than 15 years’ experience. Their qualifications are rather

basic, with most having only an ‘O’ level. The fact that many were

schooled a long time ago, when the tertiary education system was

poorly developed, accounts for this.

Table 5. Distribution of personnel by age

36-40 41-45 46-50 51-55 56-60 Total

PSIs 0 38 122 265 3 428

DEOs 2 25 43 43 - 113

Table 6. Distribution of personnel by service – in termsof years

11-15 16-20 21-25 26-30 31-35 N.A. Total

PSIs 11 64 266 82 5 428

DEOs 2 13 30 52 14 2 113

Table 7. Distribution by level of qualifications

‘O’ level ‘A’ level Diploma Advanced 1st 2ndDiploma Degree Degree

PSIs 310 2 114 1 1 -

DEOs 6 1 79 2 20 5


(a) Recruitment

The recruitment of PSIs follows two somewhat different

procedures:

• those teachers who were identified, interviewed and trained;

• those teachers who were identified and trained.





171

Identification relies heavily on views held by DEOs, PSIs, WECs

and headteachers. The teachers who are identified to become PSIs

are expected to meet the following criteria:

• minimum of five years’ teaching experience;

• minimum qualification: ‘A’ level (at the time of writing, this was

expected to become Diploma);

• must have shown outstanding performance as a teacher.

A first problem with the recruitment procedures is precisely that

these criteria are not standard criteria, known to all interested parties

and guiding those who are vested with the duty to identify suitable

candidates. There are no standard screening procedures, therefore

the best people are not identified. Appointees are not consulted to

indicate whether they are interested in working as inspectors. This

appointing procedure gives room to favouritism. A better procedure

would be to advertise the posts, to allow all competent and committed

teachers to apply, rather than to rely on identification only. This was

also the opinion of the staff interviewed in the district, where a case

study was carried out, namely the Muheza district in the Tanga

region.1

This staff also felt that strong qualifications are necessary for

supervisors and inspectors, and that therefore a Diploma in education

should be a minimum criterion.


The appointment of teachers to any of the supervisory posts, i.e.

PSI, DEO, DAO, DSLO or WEC, is a promotion, but within the same

career as that of a teacher. As such there are no different conditions

of service, salary structure and other benefits. This also implies that

1. See Part III of this paper.





172

the promotion route and process for supervisors are the same as for

teachers. It is therefore possible for a teacher to be of higher

promotional grade than a supervisor. In addition, many inspectors

feel that there are delays in their promotion, which demotivates them.

(c) Training

In principle, a three-month induction course is organized

regularly for all newly appointed inspectors. The training is conducted

by experienced inspectors in collaboration with Management

Training for Education Personnel Institute (MANTEP) staff. Those

who complete the course successfully are posted under a

probationary period of six months. Those who successfully complete

the probationary period are appointed school inspectors. The district

officials and the WECs do not have such a specific orientation

programme. However, in recent years, because of financial shortfalls,

the training has been of shorter duration or has not taken place at all.

The result is that some teachers are recruited into the Inspectorate

without induction training. In addition, the probation period is not

well supervised because those in charge do not use standardized

observation or appraisal criteria.

There have been in-service training courses conducted from time

to time, but a permanent in-service training programme for inspectors

does not exist. Table 8 shows that during their career all but one

inspector participated in courses related to inspection, while just over

15 per cent obtained a Diploma of education while working. But

recently opportunities have become more scarce. In the Muheza

district, of the 18 staff interviewed (including WECs and district staff),

only five had benefited from any in-service training courses over the

last three years. These lasted from one to three weeks and focused

on specific orientation in areas such as Primary School Leaving





173

Examinations and Evaluation of Adult Education. One of their main

demands is that such training be organized more regularly.

Table 8. Exposure to specific in-service training for PSIs(total: 428)

Topics Inspection TESL Special DEMA Adult Home Diploma B.Educ. Educ. Economy Educ. Ed

N u m b e r 427 11 6 8 8 4 78 1participating

The unavailability of funds is the main reason why training is not

on a regular basis. A number of other problems can be noted:

• Experience has shown that training has been focused on inspectors

but no corresponding in-service training has been conducted for

other supporting staff (e.g. WECs).

• There is no training manual, and no training needs assessment is

conducted prior to the training. Such items that are included in

the training programmes are deduced from field experience mainly.

• Trainees are of different backgrounds and it is therefore difficult

to tailor training to actual needs as well as levels of ability.


The PSI uses the inspectors’ handbook in conducting inspection.

The PSI also uses agreed formats in reporting inspection findings.

The handbook and the format have been developed at central level.

The DEO and support staff do not have any standardized forms

for reporting on schools.

There is no separate code of conduct for supervisors because, as

was pointed out above, the supervisors are not considered to belong

to a career different from that of teachers.





174


The team of supervisors working at District Headquarters is

technically accountable to the District Executive Director (DED).

Administratively, the DED monitors the work of these professionals.

There is no corresponding professional monitoring and evaluation

of these supervisors from the MOEC.

On the other hand, the PSI is evaluated by the CIS and ZCIS on a

more professional footing. The PSI is assessed on the number of

schools inspected and the number of seminars and workshops

attended as a participant or as resource person. Although these

performance indicators for PSIs are insufficient, the evaluation can

be of some value because the mere visit to a school can have a positive

impact. The supervisors in Muheza district pleaded for a more

objective system. They suggested that the government should provide

specific guidelines, as, under the present conditions, the system

allows some room for nepotism and oppression.

Both categories of supervisors, however, are required to fill in

special forms every year for assessment purposes. It is these

confidential forms that are used in considering promotion. The main

problem here is that these are not specifically developed to assess or

evaluate supervisors’ performance. The forms being used are the same

as those used for assessing classroom teachers.


(a) Salaries and allowances

Since supervisors are in the same career as teachers, there is no

special salary structure for them. Allowances and other benefits are

the same as those for teachers and they depend on qualifications and





175

length of service. When supervisors travel outside post, they are

entitled to a travel allowance which is pegged to the officers’ grade.

The teachers enjoy the same benefits if they travel on duty. They

receive a daily subsistence allowance (DSA) and this is reviewed from

time to time. At the time of writing, the DSA ranges from US$12.5 to

US$33.3 per day. The supervisors have no other official source of

income. Some individual officers might, by their own efforts, obtain

an unofficial income.

The supervision staff in Muheza district feel that their salaries are

unattractive. They consider them inadequate as they cannot provide

sustainable support to the officials throughout the month. However,

salaries are generally paid on time. The rates of allowances for travel

and subsistence, as stipulated in the civil service regulations, are felt

to be fair. But the problem lies with the fact that, because of budget

constraints, these allowances are seldom available to all officers. In

most districts, they have not been paid for some time now. Sixteen of

the eighteen respondents in Muheza pointed out that such funds had

not been released since 1995. The most affected are the WECs, who,

even when some financing is available, are given lowest priority. The

fact that budgetary allocations are insufficient to provide daily

subsistence allowances, compels the supervisors to fully depend on

the schools visited for food and accommodation.

(b) Budget

The supervisory services receive a budget to pay mainly for

salaries. There is no budget that is set aside specifically for the support

of these services (equipment, travel allowances, office

accommodation, electricity, car maintenance, etc.). This will come

from whatever money is available once salaries have been paid. Table 9

shows the percentage of these ‘other charges’ in the overall budget.

The share had decreased significantly between 1991 and 1995. It is





176

normal, moreover, that inspection will be paid after all essential

amenities have been met.2

Table 9. Expenditure 1991-1992 – 1994-1995 (in shillings,current prices)

Year Total allocation to salaries Other charges %and other charges

1991-1992 308,211,600 177,9978,100 57.7

1992-1993 378,724,300 176,478,500 46.6

1993-1994 462,402,300 223,665,500 48.4

1994-1995 446,736,176 123,936,462 27.7

The funds being issued are insufficient to meet demand and other

support. There has been a constant decline in the amount of money

being allocated for inspection of schools. This can be evidenced by

the decline in the percentage of schools inspected over the same

period, as shown in Table 10, because funds have not been available.

Table 10. Number of schools inspected, 1992-1995

Year Number Number % of schools Number ofof schools of schools inspected inspected inspectors

1992 10,793 2,876 26.6 541

1993 10,847 3,118 28.7 460

1994 10,920 2,440 22.3 465

1995 11,062 1,336 12.1 446


Working conditions are deficient for most officers. The situation

of the Muheza district, which is summarized in Table 11, is quite

representative.

2. No more recent financial data were available, at the time of writing.




177

Table 11. Availability and condition of facilities inMuheza region


Yes No Unsatisfactory Satisfactory Excellent

Office space Individual 10 - 9 1 -

Shared 8 - 8 - -

Transport facilities 2 16 - 2 -

Computer 0 18 - - -

Typewriter 2 16 - 2 -

Photocopier 0 18 - - -

Filing cabinet 10 8 10 - -

Telephone 1 17 - 1 -

Fax 0 18 - - -

Typist 2 16 - 2 -

Clerical staff 1 17 - 1 -

School inspectors in the whole country are faced with the

following main problems:

• Lack of offices: in most districts, office accommodation for the

inspectors is unsuitable. In quite a number of cases, inspectors

have to rent offices and sometimes, because of inability to pay the

rent, they have been evicted from these offices. As far as

accommodation is concerned, they generally have to rent. In

Muheza, most have found residential accommodation close to the

office (between 1 and 3 kilometres).

• Insufficient equipment and secretarial resources: in many

offices there is inadequate office equipment, such as typewriters,

filing cabinets, software, etc. In many cases secretarial expertise is

missing. The staff in Muheza stress that this impedes regular

effective communication with schools and makes the preparation





178

and especially the reproduction and dissemination of inspection

reports arduous.

• Shortage of transport: the lack of suitable transport is the greatest

difficulty facing inspectors, resulting in the fact that many spend

their time at base without the possibility to do their work. To look

again at Muheza district, the Inspectorate has neither a vehicle nor

a motorcycle. The DEO can use a vehicle owned by the District

Executive Director. The means of transport, used by the inspectors,

are the public bus services, which of course follow their established

routes. This means that some schools are not necessarily reached

easily, while others in the remote, inaccessible areas are very

seldom visited. Inspectors in those cases walk or use bicycles. The

bicycle is in any case the sole means of transport of the ward

education co-ordinators.

In view of the above, it cannot come as a surprise that 15 of the

18 respondents in Muheza indicated that they were totally unsatisfied

with their working conditions.




179

III. THE DAILY OPERATION OF SUPERVISION SERVICES –REPORT OF A CASE STUDY IN MUHEZA DISTRICT

Introduction

Muheza district is one of the six districts that make up Tanga region,

which, together with Kilimanjaro and Arusha regions, form the

Northern Inspectorate Zone. The District Headquarters are located

at Muheza. For administrative purposes, the district is divided into

six divisions: Amari, Bwembwera, Maramba, Mkinga, Muheza and

Ngomeni.

Agriculture is the main economic activity in the District. There

are some extensive sisal and tea estates which reflect modern/

commercial farming and many small-scale farms predominantly for

subsistence. The main food crops include maize, sorghum, banana

and citrus fruits. Other economic activities in the district include tea

and sisal processing industries, trade, commerce and tourism.

The district has primary and secondary schools as well as a Folk

Development College (FDC) which offers vocational skills to post-

literacy graduates. The district had in 1997 a total of 150 primary

schools with a total of 38,837 pupils, out of which 51 per cent were

boys and 49 per cent girls (see Table 12).





180

Table 12. Enrolment in primary schools in Muhezadistrict

Number Division Boys Girls Total

1. Armani 2,169 1,998 4,167

2. Bwembera 3,074 2,993 6,067

3. Maramba 4,184 4,105 8,289

4. Mkinga 2,952 2,526 5,478

5. Muheza 4,340 4,316 8,656

6. Ngomeni 3,029 3,151 6,180

Total 19,748 19,089 38,837

There are a total of 1,223 classes and 1,144 teachers. The average

number of pupils per class therefore is about 32 and the pupil/teacher

ratio is about 34.

Of teachers, 49 per cent are men; 346 (30.2 per cent) are Grade A

and 798 (69.7 per cent) Grade B teachers.3 There is a shortage of 29

Grade A teachers and a surplus of 133 Grade B teachers.

Within the framework of this study, the term ‘supervisor’ refers

to both inspectors and advisers, i.e. the district education officials,

the primary-school inspectors, the teachers’ service commission

officials and the ward education co-ordinators. A total of 18 staff were

interviewed.

The basic identification data of the respondents are analysed in

Table 13.

3. I should find out what this precisely means. Note by ADG.





181

Table 13. Supervisor’s academic and professionalqualifications

Sex Academic qualifications Experience inthe post (years)

M F T ‘O’ Diploma University 0-5 6-10 10+Level Education Degree

School 3 1 4 3 1 0 0 0 4inspectors

District 4 0 4 3 1 0 0 2 2educationofficials

TSC officials 2 0 2 0 2 0 0 1 1

Ward education 8 0 8 8 0 0 2 2 4co-ordinators

Total 17 1 18 14 4 0 2 5 11

The research team held interviews with these 18 supervisors, who

also completed a questionnaire. In order to gain an impression of

the opinion of school staff on supervision and support services, 20

primary schools were also included in the research, through random

sampling from among all schools in the district (see Table 14).





182

Table 14. Names of schools, distance from headquarters,teachers, pupils and number of streams

Ident. Name Distance Teachers Pupils NosNo. of school from Location Total of

headquarters Males Females Total streams(km)

001 Mashewa 15 R 2 6 8 363 7

002 Kimbo 22 R 2 3 5 168 7

003 Gare 12 R 1 4 5 159 8

004 Kwezitu 55 R 6 - 6 176 7

005 Zirai 50 R 3 - 3 168 7

006 Nkumba 10 R 5 1 6 139 7

007 Ubembe 6 R 5 3 8 283 7

008 Kiwanda 26 R 1 3 4 155 7

009 Mangubu 20 R 4 3 7 208 7

010 Matombo 13 R 3 2 5 146 7

011 Nkumba 7 R 5 4 9 300 7

012 Majengo - U 16 2 18 621 14

013 Mbaramo 1.5 U 12 3 15 416 7

014 Muheza 1 U 19 3 22 799 14

015 Amani Mgambo 46 R 1 5 6 192 7

016 Misalani 49 R 4 - 4 263 9

017 Mdote 2 U 2 13 15 897 14

018 Kisiwani 32 R 4 2 6 300 7

019 Msasa IBC 40 R 3 3 6 236 7

020 Amani 32 R 9 2 11 384 7

Note : R = rural U = urban

Out of these, 4 were located in the urban while 16 were in the

rural area. All the sampled schools taught from Grade I to VII. The

schools are owned by Muheza District Council. Distances between





183

the District headquarters and the schools ranged from 0.5 kilometre

within the town to 55 kilometres as the farthest sampled school within

the district. The number of teachers in these schools ranged from

3 teachers in Zirai Primary School to 22 teachers in Muheza Primary

School. Table 14 offers more details on each school.

Twenty headteachers were interviewed. Out of them, 16 were

male and 4 were female. Their ages ranged between 26 and 52 years.

The working experience of the headteachers ranged between 8 and

27 years. The duration as headteacher ranged between 1 and 20 years.

Sixteen (80 per cent) had ordinary level (Form 4) secondary

education, whereas four (20 per cent) were primary education

holders.

Table 15 shows the facilities and services available at the schools

and their condition.

Table 15. Facilities and services at the schools


Yes No Excellent Satisfactory Unsatisfactory

Separate 15 5 1 13 1headteachersoffice

Separate staff 18 2 1 16 1room

Telephone - 20 - - -

Classroom for 118 2 - - -every class

Some information was also available on the proportion of pupils

who have the required textbooks in mathematics and languages

(Kiswahili and English). None of the schools have 75-100 per cent of

the required books, about half of the schools have only 25-50 per cent





184

of the required books; and in about a third of the schools only a

quarter of the necessary textbooks are available. This situation

indicates a serious shortage of books in the schools.


Inspectors develop their plans, especially for school visits, in

consultation with their colleagues within the same district and

present these to the district education officer. Plans are seldom fully

implemented because of the financial constraints.

The total number of schools under the responsibility of an

inspector varies with the designation of an official. The distribution

is allocated according to the geographical disposition. On average,

one inspector has about 35 to 40 schools to supervise in Muheza

district. A WEC has responsibility for 3 to 8 schools.

There are no official norms and regulations that define the

workload of an official per month. The number of visits depends upon

the availability of the funds and the urgency of the issue to be probed.

Nevertheless, a WEC is expected to visit all the schools within his/

her area of jurisdiction, whereas schools visited by inspectors do not

exceed 10 per annum.

The different types of officers interviewed were asked to identify

what are the three tasks they considered most important. The answers

were as follows:

The district education officials feel that their main responsibility

is for the following three matters:

• overseeing the overall implementation of the Education and

Training Policy in their respective districts;





185

• management of educational supplies and logistics; and

• evaluation of the instructional activities.

For the inspectors, the three most important tasks include:

• supervision of teaching through school inspections;

• preparation of reports; and

• making follow-up visits for the inspections conducted in schools.

For the ward education co-ordinators, the three main functions

are:

• to regularly visit all the schools within the Ward;

• to make follow-up to educational activities/directives including

Adult Education; and

• to respond to instructions and directives as presented by higher

educational authorities.

For the TSC officials, the three main tasks are:

• to ensure that teachers’ salaries are promptly paid according to

their scheme of service;

• to keep personal records of all the teachers in the district; and

• to communicate with higher authorities on matters related to the

teaching profession.

2. Visits

Education officials are involved in different types of visits. Table 16

shows these types, the average number of officers involved and the

average duration. However, since there are different types of official,

it is not easy to establish the average duration of an individual or

team visit.





186

Table 16. Duration and types of visit

Type of visit Average number of Average durationofficers involved

Full inspection 4 8 hours

Teacher’s inspection 2 3 hours

Follow-up visit 1 3 hours

Advisory teacher visit 1 2 hours

Courtesy visit 5 1 hour

The selection of schools to be visited is based on three criteria:

• systematic visits to all establishments;

• follow-up visits; and

• response to particular problem(s) in a given school.

Before the visit, the type of information consulted includes:

• the report of the previous inspection; and

• the school’s monthly reports.

There were some discussions regarding the need to inform

schools beforehand of visits and the regularity with which this occurs.

Inspectors mentioned that, normally, in the full inspections, schools

are informed in advance. Prior information is considered good

because:

• it helps to specify the type and scope of the planned visit;

• it allows thorough preparation of essential elements to be

inspected; and

• it reduces fear and panic among teachers, thus facilitating good co-

operation between teachers and inspectors.





187

The 20 headteachers, when asked if they had prior notice about

the visit of a supervisor, responded, as indicated in Table 17,

concerning the visits they received.

Table 17. Notice about visits

Type of visit Never Seldom Regularly Always

Full inspection 3 4 4 1

Teachers’ inspection 13 2 2 -

Follow-up visit - - - -

Visit by advisers 1 1 - -

Courtesy visit - 2 1 -

As can be seen, the number of instances where schools were never

or seldom informed of a forthcoming visit, are more frequent than

when they received regular information. The latter mentioned that

they could be informed through written communications, transmitted

about one to two months before the visit, or through a more informal

oral message, especially where it concerned courtesy visits.

When schools receive notice, the headteachers inform the staff

of the type, nature and requirements of the visit. The preparations

made are the following:

For a full school inspection and follow-up visit:

• availability and accuracy of school records;

• instruments for implementation of school curriculum, i.e. schemes

of work, lesson plans, subject logbooks etc.;

• school timetables and routines;

• extra-curricular records;

• staff: establishment and performance;

• school’s plan of action; and

• general cleanliness.





188

In preparation for a courtesy visit, the school also needs to think

about:

• other services, i.e. accommodation, food for supervisors;

• liaison with local (village) administration;

• description and division of roles expected to be played by different

people.

School staff felt that these preparations were useful from different

points of view:

• an opportunity to meet requisite specifications;

• a means to reduce psychological tensions likely to result from

inspection;

• a significant contribution towards goal achievement of the mission;

• an opportunity to adjust and to make modifications in the work

performance;

• an increase in the confidence of teachers and greater degree of

participation in the whole exercise.

Asked whether prior notice should be given, 14 of the headteachers

agreed that the supervisors should give prior notice because of the

above-mentioned factors and, also, as such notice enhances co-

operation between teachers and inspectors as well as positive

attitude towards the inspectors.

However, six of the respondents were of the opinion that the

supervisors should not give prior notice. They argued that the

thorough preparations resulting from the prior notice would distort

the true image of work performance in the school; whereas an

inspection should reflect the day-to-day performance under normal

conditions.





189

Both headteachers and supervisors were asked to describe

briefly what occurs during a normal inspection visit. The supervisors

firstly mention that they are normally expected to follow the

guidelines provided in the inspection manuals. However, it is not easy

to follow them consistently, owing to the varying nature and scope

of visits to the schools. A typical school visit consists of the following

steps:

• discussion with the headteacher;

• briefing the teachers;

• classroom visits;

• inspection of facilities;

• discussion with individual teachers;

• discussion with the whole staff.

The description given by headteachers of such a visit is only slightly

different:

• prior information on the type and nature of the inspection visit;

• discussion with the headteacher;

• classroom visits/observations;

• inspection of facilities/records;

• discussion with individual teachers;

• discussion with all staff members.

Normally, the headteacher gets immediate feedback after

inspection.

Generally, the inspectors do brief the teachers on the objectives

of their visits. Out of the 20 respondents, 18 agreed to the question

while 2 disagreed. Briefing of teachers includes information on:

• the type of inspection;

• goals and objectives of the inspection;

• areas to be inspected;





190

• requirements to meet the goals and objectives;

• duration and modality of inspection.

On whether they ask for suggestions on how to proceed with

their supervision, only five (25 per cent) respondents said that the

supervisors ‘never’ ask for such suggestions, but only a few

headteachers were ‘always’ asked for their input.

Some data were collected on the number of school visits.

Inspectors in Muheza have been able to increase that number in

recent years, but financial constraints continue to make it impossible

to visit all schools regularly. Table 18 shows that after a complete

standstill of the service in 1996, nine full inspection visits could be

undertaken in 1998. It is worth noting that some schools received

much more attention than others. One school, Kwezitu, located at a

distance of 55 kilometres from the district office, was visited more

than five times during the preceding school year. Some others, for

instance Mangubu (at 20 kilometres) and Gare (at 12 kilometres) were

visited only once, and Mashewa (at 15 kilometres) or Ubembe (at

6 kilometres) received not one visit from an inspector or an adviser

over the same period.

Table 18. Full school inspection visits in Muheza district

Year Number of visits

1994 2

1995 5

1996 0

1997 6

1998 9

A more detailed question relates to the number of teachers visited

by supervisors when in schools. The answers by the 20 headteachers





191

(Table 19) show that, in less than half of the schools, supervisors

include almost all of the teachers in their inspection. In not one school

were all teachers looked at during an inspection visit. Twelve

headteachers thought the number of teachers visited during an

inspection to be sufficient.

Table 19. Percentage of teachers visited during aninspection

None Less than 25 % 25-50 % 50-75 % 75- almost 100 % 100 %

0 1 5 6 8 0

The information so far presented reflects the views of schools.

According to inspectors, the proportion of schools and teachers

visited in 1997 was, respectively, 40 and 45 per cent. In how far these

visits were full inspections, or brief courtesy visits, was not

mentioned.

3. Reporting and follow-up

A brief oral report after inspection is followed by a detailed

written report, usually released within one-three months.

The headteachers felt that the discussions that normally take place

after inspection are useful because they help to identify areas that

need immediate action in addition to providing an opportunity for

the clarification of reasons behind the performance of teachers in

their professional tasks.

In principle, after every visit, reports are written immediately.

On full school inspection, there is a standardized format for report

writing. Written reports are discussed with the district education

officer (on behalf of the district executive director) before they are

forwarded to the zonal inspector of schools. The discussion is useful





192

as it helps to highlight areas and strategies that need immediate

corrective actions. Copies of the reports are sent to the DED, the

inspected school and the zonal inspector of schools. The school

board/school development committees are informed about matters

related to their roles. Therefore an executive report is presented

together with the detailed report. In schools, inspection reports are

filed and kept in the headteacher’s office. Normally, teachers cannot

access the reports except through a special meeting convened by

headteachers to discuss the report soon after its arrival.

On whether the copies of school inspection reports should be

sent to the school development committees or school boards, exactly

half of the headteachers did not think this a good idea. They felt that

such material was too confidential to become public knowledge and

that, in any case, members of these committees would not really know

how to interpret inspection findings, or how to use the reports. The

other half of the teachers surveyed agreed with this idea, because:

• the report would enhance collective responsibility among the

staff and school committee members in solving the identified

problems;

• the committee would have a sense of ownership and, as a result,

feel obliged to participate in school functions;

• the report would provide information on work performance,

which could be useful for the development of the school.

Follow-up on reporting should be undertaken by the supervisors

and by the school itself. Normally, follow-up visits are planned by the

inspectors, to assess the execution of recommendations and advice.

However, three-quarters of the interviewed supervisory staff felt that

the amount of follow-up they undertake is insufficient, due to financial

constraints on the implementation of their own plans.





193

Within the school, normally, inspection reports are discussed with

the teachers and with the school committee. The focus of the

discussion with the latter is on the matters within its jurisdiction,

such as those related to pupil admissions and attendance, financial

contributions, school buildings, furniture and student discipline. The

supervisors’ recommendations which are of particular usefulness

cover the areas of:

• instructions and evaluation of lessons;

• school environment and cleanliness;

• school economic activities;

• staff and staff welfare;

• admission and attendance of pupils;

• school-community relations.

Respondents said that there are no recommendations which are

of little value. Normally there are suggested strategies for the

implementation of the recommendations. Moreover, teachers are

encouraged to identify problems and seek solutions to them. If the

problem concerns classroom teaching or pupil performance, teachers

would be advised to plan for remedial teaching, adjust the timetable,

improvize teaching-learning materials etc. Schools are also

encouraged to organize and carry out internal supervision and

follow-up mechanisms. Headteachers felt that the follow-up activities

undertaken by the supervisors (inspectors) are unsatisfactory, mainly

because:

• they rarely get an opportunity to revisit the schools;

• they do not provide adequate assistance in solving particular

problems such as shortages of teachers, teaching-learning materials

etc.;

• their operation through ward education co-ordinators (WECs) is

ineffective, as the WECs are less competent.





194

Despite the shortcomings, on the whole school inspection is

useful because of its diagnostic nature and the advisory support it

provides to the schools.




195



It is generally accepted that the school supervisors have a central

and crucial role to play in bringing about school improvement. This

view is reflected in the ETP, which states that “school inspection is

vital as a means of monitoring the delivery of education, adherence

to the stipulated curriculum and set standards and ensuring efficiency

and quality in education”.

The case study conducted as part of this research in the Muheza

district, collected information from among the supervisors and the

school directors on the impact of the work of supervisors, especially

through school visits.

A large number of the supervisory staff (16 out of 20) believe that

their supervision work has a strong impact on what goes on in

schools. In particular because: they help to identify areas and levels

of performance; they provide constructive advice and

recommendations essential for improvement of performance; and,

they provide a specific forum of experience between the educational

officials and the teachers.

However, in order to increase the impact of supervision upon the

school work, it is suggested that:

• the criteria and scope of inspection/supervision should be openly

known to teachers;

• prior information to notify teachers about the visit should be

given;

• the distribution of teachers in all schools should be equitable;





196

• provision of education inputs in terms of teaching-learning

materials should be increased; and

• financial resources should be increased to facilitate more frequent

visits to the schools.

Staff in schools identified the following as issues on which

supervision visits can have a useful impact: lesson preparation,

classroom instruction (teaching and lesson delivery), staffing and staff

welfare, school buildings, student performance, admissions and

attendance, school records and school-community relations.

Although teachers found inspection/supervision to be useful, they

felt that the impact of the visits was limited by the following:

• inadequate time spent by the supervisors in each school to

effectively diagnose, prescribe, recommend and discuss their

opinions with the teachers;

• limited resources to allow follow-up inspection/supervision;

• too long periods between inspection sessions for a school, some

schools have not been inspected for a period of two to five years.

Some of the solutions/recommendations needed for problems

such as teacher shortage and non-availability of teaching-learning

materials were not within the powers of inspector or schools to solve,

as these depend on MOEC’S financial ability to supply them. It was

difficult to effectively teach while such problems remain unsolved.

The 20 school heads were asked to identify the level of impact of

supervision visits on different aspects. Table 20 summarizes their

answers. As mentioned earlier, supervisors had no say on the

availability of teaching-learning materials, hence their impact is very

limited. More worryingly, their impact on teacher motivation is also

low. However, they have a more beneficial influence on areas such as





197

classroom teaching and lesson preparation, because they could assist/

require teachers to prepare them. They also had some effect on school

administration and, not surprisingly, on student presence.

Table 20. Levels of impact of supervision

Supervision elements Level

Negative None Limited Fair High Very high

Administration 2 10 5 3of the school

School infrastructure 1 9 5 4 1

Availability of teaching- 12 4 1 3learning materials

Teacher presence 4 8 4 4

Lesson preparation 1 11 7 1

Classroom teaching 2 6 11 1

Student performance 2 9 7 2

Relations between staff 3 6 7 4

Teacher motivation 4 7 5 3 1

Staff development 4 11 3 2

Student presence 1 6 11 2

Measures suggested by school staff to increase the impact of

supervisors’ actions on what goes on in schools include:

• provision of prior information about inspection;

• increased frequency of supervision;

• provision of more In-service Training (INSET) opportunities to all

cadres in the education sector, including the inspectors/supervisors

themselves;

• further decentralization of the Inspectorate services to the ward

level;





198

• change of inspectors’ role so that it is more advisory than fault

finding;

• provision of more teaching-learning materials to schools.

Three other studies were recently conducted which offer us more

information on the role inspectors actually play in the improvement

of education. An impact study undertaken in 1997 reveals that the

Inspectorate has played an important part in monitoring the

implementation of various aspects of the English Language Teaching

Support Project (ELTSP): “The inspectors have contributed

significantly to the progress and success of ELTSP. Without their

efforts far less would have been achieved” (ELTSP Monitoring Report

1991).

In a small survey conducted by the Inspectorate to obtain

teachers’ views on school inspection in Tanzania, it was revealed that

improvement as a result of inspection in school was achieved in the

areas of:

• the preparation and use of teaching documents;

• the use of English in the schools;

• evaluation of pupils’ work;

• general school administration.

However, in the same survey teachers singled out some areas as

those where inspectors had a negative impact:

• demoralizing teachers through harsh comments;

• giving impracticable advice;

• not conducting classroom observation.

In another recent survey, respondents, teachers and parents

remarked that the inspectors do not carry out their tasks and





199

responsibilities well. They had several complaints: inspectors are

poorly resourced, especially in relation to finances, and therefore

they do not visit schools regularly (some schools are visited once in

over five years). They do not advise teachers on academic and

professional matters; and they do not have a close relationship with

teachers and heads of school. In addition, some have low academic

ability or are outdated.

On the whole, opinions varied about the impact of inspection

work. The supervisory staff itself had a more positive assessment than

headteachers, who seemed to be less critical than teachers and

parents. Much depends, of course, on which aspect of school life one

talks about (e.g. teacher lesson preparation is not the same as teacher

motivation). Finally, it is worth remembering that inspectors are

victims of a lack of resources, which severely limits their impact.


The most serious problem facing supervisors is indeed the lack of

financial resources. This is reflected in different ways. The available

office accommodation and facilities are inadequate. The lack of

support staff creates a lot of difficulties in producing reports or even

organizing seminars for teachers. There is inadequate transport to

enable supervisors to visit schools and work with teachers. The

average workload would be quite manageable if transport were

available. Without transport and travel allowances, most of the time

the supervisors are idle while, in fact, there is a lot of work out in the

field. On the occasions that they succeed in visiting schools,

supervisors have to count on the school for board and, in some cases,

lodging, a burden about which most schools in, for example, Muheza

district, complain.





200

When asked what were the main impediments to their efficiency,

the supervisors in Muheza identified three, all related to the lack of

resources:

• unreliable means of transport to visit schools;

• inadequate budgetary allocations to meet subsistence allowances

and transport costs;

• shortage of information-processing facilities such as computers,

telephones, faxes.

The overall result is low working morale. This also emanates from

the fact that supervision is not a recognized career, with a suitable

salary and other benefits. The status of supervisors is therefore low,

although their work is said to be ‘crucial’ or ‘central’ or ‘very

important’. Another factor is that there are no standing programmes

for the supervisors’ development, so putting them at risk of applying

outdated methodologies.

A crucial problem, which is particularly stressed by headteachers

and other teaching staff, and deplored by inspectors themselves,

concerns the recruitment procedures and the resulting profile of

inspectors. Recruitment through identification and appointment,

without strict criteria, has resulted in having some supervisors that

are incompetent and so incapable of bringing about change in

schools. It is believed that if jobs were to be advertised, and proper

screening done, it would create a vibrant support cadre that would

have a high status in the education system. Low academic

qualifications among the supervisors is quoted by school staff in

Muheza as the main problem. Their qualifications are indeed more

or less the same as those of the teachers. This is particularly true for

ward education co-ordinators, who are the closest support that

teachers have.





201

There is also some concern with the attitudes of supervisors.

Sometimes supervisors, in particular those whose recruitment did

not take into account the necessary criteria, would fail to provide

pedagogical advice or would blame teachers in issues where they need

professional help. The status and crucial role of classroom teachers

is rarely recognized by such supervisors. Lack of appropriate

induction and in-service training makes people also do work for which

they do not have appropriate skills. In such situations there are cases

where teachers are mishandled or are given wrong advice. The school

staff, interviewed in Muheza, feel that supervisory staff should focus

more attention on advising and guiding the teachers with a view to

raising their performance. In this respect, they offer some more

practical advice: supervisors should develop guidelines on

supervision, including the methodology and approaches to teaching,

as well as the standards and indicators they expect from the teachers.

Effective feedback and control mechanisms should also be established.

They also believe that this would be easier to achieve, if supervision

and support services were decentralized to the ward level.

There is a problem of co-ordination. It has been pointed out above

that every supervisor has a job description and that these do not

overlap. However, individuals holding posts sometimes break

regulations and operate without co-operation and co-ordination. This

hampers the flow of information and provision of feedback. As a result

teachers and schools are badly affected, in the following areas, among

others:

• the appointment of headteachers;

• appointment of WECs;

• transfer and posting of teachers;

• distribution of school materials;

• dissemination of information;

• management of examinations.





202

The same issue of co-ordination also comes up when discussing

the TRC system, which is managed by several agencies.4 There has

not been any co-ordinating body for TRCs. There are therefore no

uniform criteria to measure their impact and the variety of plans they

implement are not monitored. These TRCs are so autonomous that

even DEOs and PSIs may be unaware of what they are doing. They are

therefore not being used fully for teachers’ development.

3. Recommendations and present trends

The case study on Muheza has shown that both teachers and

supervisors were in principle positive about the supervision service.

Teachers expected more assistance from the supervisors, while the

latter wished to make more visits to schools to assist the teachers.

Unfortunately, both parties are constrained in one way or another,

hence the limited impact on schools. These and other observations

lead to the following recommendations:

• Inadequate budgetary allocations should be made to allow

supervisors to make frequent visits to schools, otherwise it will be

difficult to justify their existence.

• Recruitment of supervisors should be based on acceptable criteria.

These criteria should be known to all interested parties. Under

normal circumstances, qualified teachers should be encouraged

to apply. Whenever possible, the education criteria should override

other qualifications.

• The Inspectorate should be decentralized by placing inspectors at

ward level. Since it is unlikely that budgets for supervision will be

increased in the near future, it will remain a problem to expect

4. TRCs in Tanzania are being managed by the following agencies: MS Tanzania (DANIDA),DGIS (Netherlands), UNICEF, Irish Aid, Aga Khan Foundation, Tanzania/MozambiqueFriendship Associations (TAMOFA), the British Voluntary Services Overseas (VSO), PEP-DANIDA, World Bank and District Development Councils.





203

inspectors to make frequent visits to schools. The Ward has about

20-25 schools which can be handled more easily.

• Ward education officers should be academically and professionally

upgraded. They should be given supervisory skills so that they are

able to do more supervisory work than they are doing now.

Subsequently, new WEC recruits should have a minimum of a

Diploma in education.

• In-service training should be regularly organized and conducted

to keep the supervisors abreast with innovation and new

approaches in their subject areas. This can be locally organized

using various approaches, including distance/open learning

methodology. This will increase supervisors’ competence and

consequently their commitment.

• Supervisors should see their role as more advisory than inspection.

Seeing themselves in this way, they will be able to work more

towards assisting teachers in classroom instruction and less in the

physical plant and school administration.

• Performance indicators (both qualitative and quantitative) need

to be developed and used to appraise teacher performance.

The government has recently taken different steps in order to

improve the efficiency of the education system. They include:

(a) Education and training policy

This policy was adopted in 1995 and:

• it emphasizes the decentralization of school management to school

committees, which shall oversee development and financing;

• it also recognizes the importance of cost sharing as well as inviting

private-sector participation in financing education as a means of

eradicating most of the infrastructural problems that primary

schools are facing;





204

• it declares government intention to strengthen and resource

supervisory services;

• it stipulates the qualifications for all education managers and

administrators and emphasizes the need to provide training for

specific jobs, including for the primary-school inspectors, the

district education officers and the ward education co-ordinators.

(b) Amendment of Education Act No. 25 of 1978

The Education Act was amended in 1995 to accommodate all the

changes brought about by the new Education and Training policy.

The Act maintains the legal status for school committees. It also

maintains the legal status of the inspectors in evaluating and assessing

education standards and promoting school improvement.

(c) The Basic Education Master Plan 1997

This Plan seeks to operationalize the Education and Training policy

within the basic education sector. The main objective of the BEMP is

to revitalize basic education, by providing inputs in all areas of

weakness:

• classrooms, furniture and teaching materials;

• teacher development, rationalization and redeployment;

• instituting a system of funding schools;

• monitoring and supervision;

• whole-school development planning;

• improving the school inspection system;

• development and co-ordination of TRCs through District-Based

Support to Primary Education (DBSPE).





205

(d) Other measures

In an attempt to create more transparency, the institution of

minimum qualifications for different posts is one major thrust in the

Civil Service Reform. It is being advocated that some or most of the

posts should be filled by a process whereby prospective candidates

apply and are interviewed before appointment.







Chapter IV

School supervisionin Zimbabwe

D. MoyoC.D. Mupande

S.P. MusaraS. Shumba







209

CONTENTS

Pages


List of tables 211

Introduction 213


1. Historical background 2232. The overall structure of supervision and support

services 2243. Official functions of the different services 2274. Relations with other pedagogical services 2295. Classical supervision and support services within

a broader perspective: school-site supportand services 232

II. The management of supervision services: basicfacts and critical issues 235

1. Basic facts and figures: 1997 2352. Management issues 2403. Budgetary and financial matters 2474. Working conditions 252

III. The daily operation of a supervision service 255Introduction 2551. Planning and workload 2592. School visits 2653. Reporting 2724. Follow-up, including use of reports 278

IV. Overall assessment 2851. Impact on school functioning and quality 2852. Synthesis of main problems 2903. Present trends and innovations 296

Conclusion 301

Appendix I 303




210


ATP Associate Teacher Programme

BSP Better Schools Programme

DDC District Development Committee


DRD Deputy Regional Director

DSO District Staffing Officer

ECEC Early Childhood Education Care


H/O Head Office

HOD Heads of Department

NAEO National Association of Education Officers

NAPH National Association of Primary Heads

NASH National Association of Secondary Heads

PTC Public Transport Commission

RD Regional Director

R/O Regional Office

SADC Southern African Development Community

SCU Standards Control Unit

SDA School Development Association

SDC School Development Committee

SEITT Science Education In-Service Teacher TrainingProgramme

TMS Teacher management Support

ZIMTA Zimbabwe Teachers' Association

ZJC Zimbabwe Junior Certificate




211

LIST OF TABLES

1. Number of primary schools, pupils, teachersand supervisors 214

2. Number of secondary schools, pupils, teachersand supervisors 215

3. Progression rates: primary schools 2164. Progression rates: secondary schools 2165. Proportion of female pupils in schools 2226. Number of primary-school supervisors and teachers 2367. Distribution of primary-school supervisors by age

and gender 2368. Distribution of primary-school supervisors

by qualification 2369. Distribution of primary-school supervisors by length

of service 23710 Distribution of secondary-school supervisors by subjects

and number of teachers 23811. Distribution of secondary-school supervisors by age 23812. Distribution of secondary-school supervisors

by qualification 23913. Distribution of secondary-school supervisors by length

of service 23914. Basic salaries for supervisors 24715. Basic budget allocations for Midlands region and

Kwekwe district 25116. Number of schools, pupils, teachers and supervisors

in Kwekwe district 25617. Data on supervisors in Kwekwe district 25818. Data on support staff in Kwekwe district 25919. Kwekwe district: number of teachers and schools

per supervisor 25920. Supervisors’ awareness of official norms 26121. Schools visited and teachers inspected by each

supervisor during the last year (as percentage of total responsibility) 262





212

22. Supervisors’ tasks 26323. Percentage of time spent by supervisors on

administrative and pedagogic work 26424. Average percentage time devoted to different activities

in an average month 26525. Types of visit to schools, average duration and

organization 26626. Regularity of supervision visits to teachers 26927. Activities carried out by external supervisors during

visits to schools 27028. Types and objectives of reports, official copies

and their distribution 27329. Heads’ responses on impact of supervision in schools 280




213

INTRODUCTION

Zimbabwe is a landlocked country in Southern Africa, with an area of

390,757 square kilometres and a population, according to the 1992

census, of 10, 401,767. The population, growing at about 3 per cent

annually is almost evenly distributed throughout the country with

some 75 per cent in rural areas. The population density is about

27 people per km². The literacy rate for those aged 15 years and over

has risen since independence from 20per cent to 80 per cent.

The situation of the education system

The education system in Zimbabwe experienced phenomenal

expansion soon after independence in 1980. The expansion was made

to redress the inequities that existed in the colonial past, where a

dual system was in place, one for whites and the other for blacks.

Soon after independence, education was made a basic human right

and racial discrimination was abolished in order to arrive at ‘Universal

Primary Education’ (UPE).

Education in Zimbabwe is divided into four levels, viz., early

childhood education and care, the seven-year cycle of basic primary

education; the four-year cycle (‘O’ level) of secondary school; and

2 years of high school (‘A’ level). Schools are either government

(Ministry of Education, Sport and Culture) or non-government (Rural/

District Councils, Missions, School Committees, Mines, Boards of

Trustees and Private Individuals).

Out of the 4,670 primary schools in the country, only 266 are

government, representing 11 per cent of total enrolment. Around

25 per cent of the total number of primary schools are in urban

centres with 75 per cent in rural and commercial areas. At secondary





214

level, 12,7 per cent of the 1,531 schools (28.3 per cent of the total

enrolment) are government schools. As at primary, about 25 per

cent of the schools are in urban centres.

The expansion of enrolment

The new mission of the independent State of Zimbabwe meant

that educational provision had to be expanded to accommodate the

social demand for education. Table 1 shows how, in terms of the

number of schools, pupil enrolment, number of teachers and the

number of supervisors, the Education System grew after 1979. The

average annual growth rates for these categories for the period 1979

to 1997 were 3.8 per cent, 6.4 per cent, 7.1 per cent and 7.9 per cent

respectively. This trend shows that, on average, the responsibility of

the primary school supervisor, as far as number of schools is

concerned, remained fairly stable over this period.

Table 1. Number of primary schools, pupils, teachers andsupervisors

Year Number of Number of Number of Number ofschools pupils teachers supervisors

1979 2,401 819,586 18,595 78

1984 4,161 2,132,304 54,086 192

1989 4,507 2,233,340 58,370 303

1997 4,670 2,501,065 63,900 309

The expansion in the secondary education sector was even greater

due to the fact that the majority of the African population had had no

access to this level of education (see Table 2). The period 1980 to

1989 saw the construction of schools in rural areas where no

secondary schools had been envisaged before. This enabled primary-

school leavers to be absorbed in schools nearer their homes. The

average annual growth rates for the period 1979 to 1997 were, for




School supervision in Zimbabwe

215

schools 12.7 per cent, for students 14.9 per cent, for teachers 12.4 per

cent and for supervisors 8.5 per cent. This shows that the growth in

schools, pupils and teachers outpaced that for supervisors and that

the average number of schools for which a secondary supervisor

was responsible, got larger as the years went by.

Table 2. Number of secondary schools, pupils, teachersand supervisors

Year Number of Number of Number of Number ofschools pupils teachers supervisors

1979 177 66,215 3,534 36

1984 1,182 416,413 14,718 64

1989 1,506 670,615 24,547 156

1997 1,531 806,126 29,074 156

A point worth making is that, as the number of teachers has grown,

the proportion of untrained teachers has been decreasing every year

since the expansion in teacher-training colleges in 1984. At the outset,

untrained and under-qualified teachers outnumbered trained

teachers.

Due to the expansion of the education system, teacher/pupil ratios

were fixed by the Ministry in agreement with the Treasury as follows:

(a) Primary schools – 1 : 40 including the Head.

(b) Secondary schools – Forms 1 to 2 – 1 : 33,

– Forms 3 to 4 – 1 : 30,

– Forms 5 to 6 – 1 : 20,

– Practical subjects – 1 : 20.

The teacher/pupil ratios for both primary and secondary schools

are strictly adhered to by schools. The Planning Unit of the Ministry

controls these ratios to ensure that there is no over- or under-staffing.

Overstaffing has financial implications.





216

The internal efficiency of the system

The primary school system operates on a principle of automatic

promotion. Only a small number of under-achievers, after

remediation, are allowed to repeat. To a large extent, therefore, the

children who do not progress from one grade to another, can be

considered as drop-outs. During the 1992-1996 years the mean

progression rates in primary schools were as follows (Table 3).

Table 3. Progression rates: primary schools

Grades 1-2 2-3 3-4 4-5 5-6 6-7

% Rates 88.7 89.8 95.9 96.0 100.0 95.7

The intention at primary level is that all children who enter school

should complete the seven-year cycle in order to achieve ‘Universal

Primary Education’. However, drop-out continues to exist and is

especially high between Grades 1 and 2, although primary education

in rural and commercial areas is tuition free. The Grade 7 to Form 1

transition rate has been close to 70 per cent, on average. At secondary

level, it is expected that students progress, without repetition, up to

Form 4. It can be observed that an average of 9.6 per cent of students

between Forms 1 and 6 drop out of the school system (see Table 4).

Perhaps, at this level, drop-out may be caused by school and

examination fees which rural parents are not in a position to afford

as these include building levies.

Table 4. Progression rates: secondary schools

Forms 1-2 2-3 3-4 VI/L-VI/U

% Rates 88.7 89.8 86.7 96.4

The effect of these drop-out rates in the school system is

redoubtable, particularly due to the fact that the unemployment rate

in Zimbabwe is high at this period.





217

Education budget

In line with the above expansion, the education budget increased

from about Zimbabwe $120 million in the 1979-1980 financial year to

more than Zimbabwe $11 billion during the 1997-1998 financial year.

In real terms, however, the budget shrunk from its 1979 value because

of the falling value of the dollar in comparison with other currencies

like the US dollar. In Zimbabwe, in recent years, the education budget

has ranged between 21 and 22 per cent of the national budget.

Approximately 92.7 per cent of this budget is used for salaries, the

remainder covering administrative and capital costs.

Quality issues and improvement policies

Although the rapid expansion of educational provision meant that

Zimbabwe has moved closer to the achievement of the

universalization and democratization of education, the issue of

quantity versus quality began to cause concern as early as 1981. It was

felt that the massive expansion of education could compromise the

quality on offer, as this expansion could not be matched with

adequate financial, material and human resources.

The Zimbabwean education system is examination driven and

examination results offer an interesting indicator of quality. Pupils

sit for national examinations at the end of the seven-year primary-

school cycle (Grade 7), at the end of the 2 year junior secondary school

(Zimbabwe Junior Certificate – ZJC), at the end of the two-year middle

high school (Form 4 – ‘O’ level examinations) and at the end of the

two-year high school (Upper 6th – ‘A’ level examinations). Results

obtained by pupils at Grade 7 and ZJC are not used for selection

purposes into the next higher classes, but those at ‘O’ and ‘A’ levels

are used for selection into sixth form and tertiary institutions, hence

the low transition rates between Form four and Lower 6th form. The





218

average national pass rate in Grade 7 examinations during the period

1992-1996 stands at 83.5 per cent. At ‘O’ level it stands at 23.0 per cent

and at ‘A’ level it is 69.6 per cent during the same period.

The Ministry, and indeed government, is aware that the education

system faces problems in the provision of quality education and has

put in place a number of strategies to address the problems:

• On the realization that central government funds alone could not

meet the needs of an expanding education system, an amendment

to the Education Act was made in 1991, allowing the formation of

School Development Committees/Associations. These associations

have authority to raise funds to meet certain shortfalls in their

schools, such as textbooks, construction of classrooms, etc. in

addition to the normal government inputs such as building and

per-capita grants. Most rural schools were put up through self-help

schemes funded by government and donors. Parental labour is

expected from the community, with government and donors

supplying building materials.

• Central government initially recruited expatriate teachers to afford

children an opportunity to be taught by qualified personnel. At the

same time, more teacher-training colleges were opened, which,

together with the universities, produce teachers to meet the

shortfalls which may take some time to overcome. Meanwhile, this

shortfall is met by untrained teachers. The Associate Teacher

Programme (ATP) was launched by the Ministry to give untrained

teachers survival skills in the classroom.

• A number of school focused and school-based courses exist to give

school heads resource management skills. The University of

Zimbabwe has launched a distance education programme for

school administrators, including on resource management. UNICEF





219

is currently running management courses for the heads of primary

schools.

• The Better Schools Programme (BSP) is jointly funded by the

Netherlands Embassy and the Ministry. The programme focuses on

the improvement of schools through the development of teachers

and the clustering of schools. Resource materials and equipment

such as typewriters, computers and photocopiers are made

available at teachers’ resource centres for teachers’ personal and

professional development.

• The Science Education In-service Teacher Training Programme

(SEITT), which is under the BSP programme, seeks to motivate and

extend the teachers’ knowledge in science and mathematics.

Currently under this programme about 49 teachers have been in-

serviced by the University of Zimbabwe and awarded Advanced

Diploma Certificates in science and Mathematics teaching to enable

them to assist other teachers at resource-centre level.

• The ADEA Teacher Management Support (TMS) programme

identified inspectors’ training needs for Zimbabwe and other

SADC member countries. The materials have been written at sub-

regional level and sub-regional workshops for training of trainers

to standardize training strategies, are also being held.

• The curriculum at secondary level includes the teaching of practical

subjects. In 1986, the Ministry approved a policy to vocationalize

the curriculum at middle-secondary level. A total of 42 vocational

courses, which have been designed with industry participation,

are on offer at this level. This is meant to give students wider career

choices.





220

• The Ministry, together with the Business Community in Zimbabwe,

has also launched a programme where school pupils and their

teachers at secondary level can be attached to industry for periods

of between four to five days. The programme aims at bridging the

gap that exists between education and industry so as to make the

curriculum more relevant to what happens in the adult world of

work. The programme also helps pupils to be realistic in choosing

their careers.

• The government has also set up an Education Review Commission

which seeks to make education more relevant to the socio-economic

needs of the country.

• The importance of supervision cannot be overlooked, especially in

the expanded education system in Zimbabwe. While teachers are

supervised on a daily basis by heads and occasionally by education

officers, there is need that an official record of their performance

be kept in the form of a performance appraisal. This is not meant

to be used as a punitive tool for teachers, but as a motivation tool

to bring about the best from each individual. The Ministry

introduced a performance appraisal system in 1996. While there

are fears by officers of victimization by their heads of offices, it is

believed that with training of the supervisors, the instrument will

at the end be accepted and serve its purpose of motivation.

Some educational achievements

There are a number of positive results that have been obtained in

the development of education in Zimbabwe. Four are worth

mentioning in particular.

Firstly, since independence, education has been declared a

birthright. This means that all parents who want education for their





221

children now have it at their door step. Government has provided

incentives to local authorities to provide education for the masses

by awarding grants as long as the schools are established and

registered in terms of the 1987 Education Act.

Secondly, a number of pre-schools have been opened to enable

young children to have access to standard and quality early childhood

education. This is considered important because a well-structured

early childhood programme provides a good headstart for primary

education. A number of rural centres have been registered to date to

afford rural children the same opportunities that are enjoyed by urban

children. A number of teachers for the same centers have also been

trained.

Thirdly, since independence, it has been government policy to

integrate the disabled into the mainstream school. The Ministry is

implementing three strategies to achieve this objective: provision of

adequate equipment and facilities in the schools, together with

specialist equipment at the Education Services Centre; supporting

institutions that have special classes, with staff salaries, per capita

grants, purchase of equipment and subsidies for buildings and

running costs; and training and providing specialist teachers at lower

teacher/pupil ratios.

Finally, the Ministry seriously considers the challenges of

providing equal education opportunities for male and female pupils.

The basic facts of this challenge can be discerned from Table 5 below.

The figures show that although at entry point there are slightly more

girls than boys (50.2 per cent), by the time pupils reach Grade 7, girls

are actually fewer (49.5 per cent). The percentage of girls keeps on

falling up to university level. The Ministry is constantly seeking and,

where feasible, implementing concrete policy actions to meet the

challenges to address the needs of the ‘girl child’ with all the energy,





222

resources and skills at its disposal, like awarding scholarships to

disadvantaged girls.

Table 5. Proportion of female pupils in schools

Educational level % of girls

Primary 50,2

Lower secondary (Forms 1-4) 45.0

Upper secondary (‘A’ level) 38.3

Teacher/Technical/Vocational colleges 34.0

University 26.0

Source: Ministry of Education and Culture: 1996.




223



Supervision and support structures for teachers in Zimbabwe

emanated from the United Kingdom, which was the initial colonizer

of the country. To begin with, supervision was given more emphasis

in European education through a system of inspectors. Education for

the white child was made compulsory way back in 1932. The

Inspectorate for African education was manned by the then Native

Commissioners, who lacked the requisite educational background.

It was only in 1972 that the first inspectors were introduced for

African education. This was followed up by the appointment of

Supervisors for primary schools in 1979. Each supervisor was in charge

of a circuit of schools, under an Inspector.

The Ministry of Education then was divided into two divisions,

one for European and the other for African education. The

Inspectorate was also split into two, where some inspectors were in

charge of either European or African schools’ supervision. The

European schools’ inspectorate operated from two regions (Harare

and Bulawayo) and supervised teachers in each half of the country

because there were fewer European schools. The African schools’

Inspectorate operated from four regions, comprising of Mashonaland,

Midlands/Masvingo, Matabeleland and Manicaland.

With the merger of the two divisions at independence, and the

resulting expanded education system, the staffing of the Inspectorate

was increased and its structure decentralized into nine educational

regions under a Regional Director who reported directly to head

office. The term Inspector was dropped in favour of the term

Education Officer which is still in current use.





224

2. The overall structure of supervision and support services

Supervisory and support services are carried out by Ministry of

Education personnel and no other Ministry or body supervises

teachers and heads in schools. Ministry personnel supervise both

government and non-government schools in a similar fashion. The

difference between the two groups of schools is that the Ministry is

solely responsible for all government schools in terms of finances,

construction of infra-structure and supply of teaching/learning

materials, while in non-government schools, other responsible

authorities supply these services. The Ministry supports them with

grants. As far as policy, curriculum and supervision are concerned,

the Ministry of Education is responsible for all schools.

Supervisory services are based at three levels, that is at District,

Regional and National levels.

At district level, as shown below, the supervisory team is headed

by an Education Officer (EO) and under him/her are four to five

District Education Officers (DEOs), depending on the number of

schools in the district, a District Staffing Officer (DSO) and clerical

staff. Each DEO is in charge of supervising a circuit of, on average,

22 to 23 primary schools. There are 63 districts in the country. The

DEOs are not responsible for supervising secondary schools; this is

the task of officers based at regional level.

Supervisory structure at district level

District Education OfficersX 4/5

District Staffing OfficerX 1

Education Officer





225

The district supervisors are at the point of service delivery, hence

the services they offer range from inspection of primary schools and

teachers to advising schools on strategies to improve the quality of

education. Most reading materials, books and pay advice slips that

are sent from head office, are distributed to various schools, both

primary and secondary, at this level. The DSOs functions involve the

recruitment and deployment of teachers at district level.

At regional level, as shown below, the supervisory team is headed

by a Regional Director (RD) assisted by two Deputy Regional

Directors (DRDs), one for secondary schools and the other for

primary schools. Under the DRD (Secondary), there are about 10 to

15 subject EOs, 2 EOs responsible for planning and buildings, 1 EO

responsible for professional administration and services, 1 EO (non-

formal) and 1 EO for staffing. Under the DRD (Primary), there are

about 5 to 7 EOs (Primary), each one in charge of a District and 4 to

5 DEOs based in that district. In addition, 1 EO (staffing), Schools

Psychological Services (SPS) officers and Early Childhood Education

Care officers (ECEC) also report to the DRD (Primary). While the

subject EOs and the EOs (primary) are directly responsible for

supervising teachers, the other EOs render critical support services

of staffing schools, teacher discipline, handling students’ affairs,

advising on special needs education for the disabled and advising on

adult and infant education.





226

Supervisory structure at regional level

Deputy DirectorPrimary

Deputy DirectorSecondary

Education OfficersIn District Offices

Education OfficersX 15/20

Regional Director

The RD oversees the regional education activities, while DRDs

are directly in charge of EOs and DEOs. The key roles of EOs/DEOs

are to advise and supervise teachers and produce reports on them.

The reports are, in turn, analyzed by the Senior Management Team in

the region. These are then passed on to the Standards Control Unit at

Head Office for further scrutiny. Good practice emanating from a

teacher or school is then cascaded to all regions.

At central level, the main unit in charge is the Standards Control

Unit (SCU), operating within the ‘Schools and Non-Formal’ Division.

This Division has three other sections: the Schools Psychological

Services (SPS), Early Childhood Education Care (ECEC) and Non-

Formal, each headed by a Deputy Director.

The SCU is the unit specifically tasked with the role of supervising

teachers in both primary and secondary schools. The Unit has 3 Deputy

Directors (DDs) (1 in charge of primary schools, 1 in charge of

secondary schools and the other in charge of professional

administration and services). These officers are assisted by

6 Education Officers (EOs), as shown below.





227

Supervisory structure at head office ‘Standards ControlUnit’

Deputy DirectorPrimary (SCU)

Deputy DirectorSecondary (SCU)

Deputy DirectorSecondary Admin.

Education OfficersX 2



Secretary

DirectorSchools and Non-Formal Division


At Head Office, the Permanent Secretary is in charge as head of

the Ministry. Under him are five Directors in charge of different

Divisions, i.e. Schools and Non-Formal, Sport and Culture, Education

Development, Human Resources and Finance.

The structure of the Schools and Non-Formal Division was

explained above. The Education Development Division has two

sections: the Policy Planning section and a section comprising the

Curriculum Development Unit (CDU) and Audiovisual Services (AVS).

The Human Resources Division is in charge of professional staffing

and administration. The Finance Division is headed by a Director

assisted by two Under-Secretaries: one responsible for finance and

the other responsible for supplies and revenue. Following the recent

merger of Ministries, Sport and Culture is now a Division in the





228

Ministry. The Division is responsible for the promotion and

development of sport and cultural activities in schools.

The Divisions in the Ministry all work to the accounting officer –

the Permanent Secretary. Divisions formulate their operational plans,

which are discussed by the five Directors who are the Heads of

Division (HODs) together with the Secretary. HODs advise the

Secretary on all professional issues and seek approval and authority

on programmes that need to be carried out. HODs meetings take place

almost every week throughout the year.

At Divisional level, weekly meetings are also held to carry out post-

mortems of work done the week before and programmes planned

for the future. It is through such meetings that items for discussion

at HOD meetings are brought forward.

Regional directors hold similar meetings with their officers to

formulate strategies for their operations. At least once a term the

Secretary holds Regional Liaison Committee (RLC) meetings with

Divisional heads and regional directors. It is at these meetings that

policies are clarified, and operational successes or problems

encountered are discussed and solutions sought.

Also, once a term similar meetings are held with organizations

such as the Zimbabwe Teachers’ Association (ZIMTA), National

Association of Secondary School Heads (NASH), National Association

of Primary School Heads (NAPH), Conference of Heads of

Independent Schools of Zimbabwe (CHISZ) and Church Education

Secretaries (CHES). These meetings serve to explain and clarify

Ministry policies and programmes. Interest groups also get an

opportunity to discuss their concerns with the Secretary and his/her

staff.





229


The need to enlist the services and support of other pedagogical

services has become more pressing, given the dwindling resources

available to supervisors to carry out their work. Among others, these

pedagogical services include those to do with pre-service and in-

service training, pedagogical research, curriculum development and

implementation (Curriculum Development Unit), and examination

and testing (Zimbabwe School Examinations Council). All these

services have one objective in common, to improve pedagogical

practices in the classroom.

Pre-service training of teachers is the responsibility of the Ministry

of Higher Education and Technology. Although the college lecturer

has the task of training student teachers, co-operation with the

external supervisor has been found to be critical as it is the supervisor

who will take over as soon as the teacher completes pre-service

training. The external supervisor has often been called upon to advise

on the structures, operations and conditions of service of the Ministry

of Higher Education. The external supervisor has also often been

called in as an external moderator/assessor/examiner, especially in

the teaching practice component. As regards in-service training, it is

part of the external primary-school supervisor’s mandate to initiate

and run such courses for heads of schools and serving teachers, while

secondary-school supervisors have to do the same for heads of school,

heads of department and teachers in their specialist subject areas. In

executing their in-service tasks, supervisors have enlisted the services

of pre-service trainers in the colleges to assist as facilitators. This

means that, in principle, a close relationship exists between the pre-

service trainers and the external supervisors.





230

This close collaboration can be illustrated by the situation in the

Kwekwe district.1 The district supervisors worked with college and

university lecturers in the assessment of student teachers on teaching

practice. District supervisors accompanied these lecturers on their

trips in the district. On occasions, supervisors were requested to make

reports on the performance of student teachers. The reports were

eventually sent to colleges to become part of the students’

assessment.

Another important service in which the external supervisors are

involved concerns curriculum development and implementation. The

Curriculum Development Unit is the Ministry’s organ tasked with the

responsibility to develop and modify school curricula as needs and/

or circumstances dictate. Some of these circumstances may be related

to ideological, political, technological and/or social changes that may

be taking place. Some of the key activities include writing new

syllabuses or updating existing ones, pilot-testing the syllabuses,

writing materials to go with the syllabuses, evaluating textbooks and

training teachers. It is in the execution of these tasks that the external

supervisor is found to be invaluable at both national and regional

levels. In this regard they work closely with the Curriculum

Development Unit officers in carrying out the outlined tasks. The same

supervisors also follow-up and monitor the implementation of the

new curricula and provide such support as may be required by

teachers.

Examination and testing are critical aspects in pedagogical

improvement. These are sometimes viewed as having a greater

influence on what goes on in the classroom than the official syllabus,

especially in Third World countries where examinations still play a

1. This district was selected for a more detailed case study on the daily operation of supervisionand support services (see Part III of this paper).





231

leading role. The external supervisors, especially education officers,

play an important role as item writers and markers of the

examinations. While serving teachers and lecturers also participate

in these important activities, it is believed that external supervisors

have the element of neutrality and can use their long experience as

both teachers and supervisors to the advantage of the system. After

this, they also participate in grading of candidates as well as in

compiling reports for use by teachers.

The Evaluation and Research Unit in Head Office carries out

research into various aspects of the education system that have a

bearing on pedagogical practices and the quality of education. While

its findings have been useful in informing debates on educational

policy, they have not adequately filtered down to the supervisor and/

or the teacher in the classroom. Various other organizations,

including the university, have also regularly carried out pedagogical-

related research. The results have not always been made known to

the supervisor or the teacher. In both cases the supervisor is an active

participant as far as field work for the research is concerned, but gets

to know very little, if anything, beyond this stage.

It must be mentioned that supervisors in Zimbabwe interact also

with other Ministries. Supervisors in Kwekwe district, for instance,

as in all other districts, worked with officers from the Ministries of

Health, Local Government and National Housing, who also visit

schools, for example, for health education programmes. They, in most

cases, shared vehicles with supervisors to overcome transport

shortages. This poses a problem of co-ordination of government

interventions. At district level, programmes of various Ministries were

co-ordinated through the District Development Committee (DDC).

The committee was chaired by the District Administrator, under the

Ministry of Local Government and National Housing. Its membership





232

included councillors from various wards within the district. The

committee articulated and prioritized developmental needs of various

wards in the district. By virtue of being at district level, external

supervisors were members of the DDC.

5. Classical supervision and support services within a broaderperspective: school-site support and services

In Zimbabwe, the Ministry has realized that it has become difficult

for external supervisors to effectively monitor all what goes on in

schools. As a result, their impact has become somewhat questionable.

In view of this, some supervision and support tasks have been

devolved to the school as well as to the school locality. School

suitability boards, school clusters and resource centres, fairly new

innovations, are becoming part of the supervisory process. School

Development Committees (SDCs) in non-government schools and

School Development Associations (SDAs) in government schools are

community organs that have long existed and have become involved

in school affairs, though their focus is on non-professional matters.

While they do not supervise teachers per se, they provide physical,

material and financial resources that enhance teacher effectiveness

in the classroom.

The responsibility for in-school supervision and support rests with

the school heads. However, it has become increasingly clear that they

alone cannot cope with this task, because schools are becoming larger

and administrative tasks more complex. Structures have been set up

whereby deputy heads and teachers-in-charge (in primary schools)

and heads of department (in secondary schools) play an active role

in the supervisory process. The heads of department are critical

players, due to the fact that they are specialists in a subject area of

which the school head may have little knowledge.





233

The introduction of performance appraisals in the public service

(including the teaching service) implies an emphasis on the role of

school-site supervisors. The district education officers and education

officers cannot supervise and assess all teachers in the country. As a

result, school suitability boards have been formed at every school:

their task is to assess the performance of the teachers and

subsequently recommend them for performance-related bonus or

otherwise. The district education officers and/or education officers

only play the role of moderator and arbitrator in the whole exercise.

This is another demonstration of the relationship that exists between

in-school supervisors and those located outside the school.

One way in which pedagogical support is provided is through

school clustering. In Zimbabwe, the concept was given shape in 1993

under the ‘Better Schools Programme’. According to the Chief

Education Officer Circular Minute Number 9 of 1994, the main aim

was to improve the quality of education through better school

management. Under this concept, on average five to eight

neighbouring schools (primary and secondary) cluster together. The

heads of school in the cluster are expected to share experiences on

professional matters that include school administration, supervision

and staff development. This was all based on the belief that peer

support was more likely to bring about change in management

behaviour than instructions from more senior officers. Meetings of

heads of school, visits to schools on a rotational basis, team

supervision, staff development meetings for teachers of member

schools and resource building are some of the key activities of these

clusters.

Cluster activities were not meant to replace, but to complement,

regional and district office supervisory activities. Regular cluster

reports are sent to the district and regional offices for their





234

information and to provide data upon which decisions and further

staff development and support can be based. While the original cluster

concept was meant to respond to and address immediate needs of

school heads, the programme was expanded in 1996 to include

teacher management and support. District resource centres have

become a feature of the expanded programme. All clusters within a

district can benefit from the resources which include networks for

professional support, multi-media training, teaching-learning

materials and facilities, and reprographic and other equipment. An

added feature of the resource centres is that they also service the

communities. Already there is growing evidence that the cluster

concept and the related resource centres have injected more co-

operation among the members (both teachers and heads) and have,

among other achievements, facilitated conflict resolution at the local

level.




235


1. Basic facts and figures: 1997

In presenting basic figures on supervisors, external supervisors

will be regarded as those directly in charge of supervising and giving

support to teachers, and based at district and regional levels. This

evidently includes the officers in charge of supervising primary and

secondary schools, but also officers like EOs planning, guidance and

counselling, buildings, non-formal, staffing and professional

administration, who provide support services and deal directly with

schools. Schools Psychological officers, remedial tutors and ECEC

officers are not included in the analysis. Head Office personnel whose

role is merely that of co-ordinating educational activities and charting

policy strategies for regions and schools, are not included either. The

analysis below has also left out regional directors and their DRDs,

who seldom visit schools.2

We examine first staff responsible for primary schools and then

those in charge of secondary-school supervision and support.

Primary school supervisors

Zimbabwe has 9 regional offices and 63 districts with a total of

4,670 primary schools. These schools, with a total of 63,900 teachers,

are supervised by 68 EOs and 241 DEOs. The national ratio is 1 EO to

69 schools and 1 DEO to 19 schools. The ratios of EOs and DEOs to

teachers is 1 to about 940 teachers and 1 to 265 teachers, respectively

(Table 6).

2. Some data can be given: there are 9 RDs (one female) and 18 DRDs (four females). Theseofficers have served the Ministry for over 20 years and are all above 50 years of age. TheRDs and DRDs are all certified graduates.





236

Table 6. Number of primary-school supervisors andteachers

Type of Number of Number of Number of School/ Teacher/officer officers schools teachers supervisor supervisor

ratio ratio

EO 68 4,670 63,900 69 940

DEO 241 4,670 63,900 19 265

EO + DEO 309 4,670 63,900 15 207

Table 7 on age distribution shows that 227 (73.5 per cent) primary-

school supervisors are over 50 years of age, which means that they

are nearing the retirement age of 60. This could mean a loss to the

system in terms of experienced officers and the resultant retirement

packages. Perhaps the system must seriously consider recruiting more

supervisors from the 30 to 45 year age groups.

Table 7. Distribution of primary-school supervisors byage and gender

Age 20 years+ 30 years+ 40 years+ 50 years+ Total

Male 0 4 61 218 283

Female 0 3 14 9 26

Total 0 7 75 227 309

Table 8. Distribution of primary-school supervisors byqualification

Qualification CE Diploma in B. Ed M. Ed Totaleducation

Male 150 13 115 5 283

Female 9 3 14 26

Total 159 16 129 5 309





237

The majority of primary-school supervisors (56.5 per cent) hold

Certificates or Diplomas in education (Table 8). These are teaching

qualifications obtained after four years of secondary education and

three to four years of teacher training. The remainder hold Bachelor

and Master of Education degrees. This reflects a well-qualified cadre

of supervisors for this level of education.

Table 9. Distribution of primary-school supervisors bylength of service

Years 0 years+ 10 years+ 20 years+ 30 years+ Total

Male 1 13 108 159 281

Female 9 11 6 26

Total 1 24 119 165 309

As shown in Table 9 the majority of primary-school supervisors

(53.4 per cent) have served the Ministry for over 30 years. This means

that the current pool of primary-school supervisors are quite

experienced, having been classroom practitioners before becoming

external supervisors.

Secondary-school supervisors

Table 10 shows that there are 156 secondary-school supervisors

in the whole of the country. They supervise 29,074 teachers in

1,531 schools. This gives ratios of 1 EO to 10 schools and 186 teachers.

However, it must be noted that 45 of these EOs do not directly

supervise teachers but provide other support services, as has already

been mentioned above. The number of teachers supervised by subject

officers varies from subject to subject. The number is in fact higher

than that indicated in the Table, as in small schools teachers may end

up teaching two or more subjects. The system of training in Zimbabwe

is such that each teacher specializes in teaching two subjects at

secondary-school level.





238

Table 10. Distribution of secondary-school supervisorsby subjects and number of teachers supervised

Subject Number of Number of Supervisor/Teacherofficers teachers ratio

English 14 4,058 290

Mathematics 11 3,490 317

Science 12 3,954 330

Geography 9 3,177 353

History 9 2,569 285

Shona/Ndebele 10 3,721 372

Religious education 6 1,214 202

Commercials 6 1,577 263

Home economics 9 1,884 209

Technical subjects 10 1,686 169

Agriculture 8 1,744 249

Guidance-Counselling 7 All (29,074) 4,153

Other oficers 45 All (29,074) 646

Total 156 29,074 186

Table 11. Distribution of secondary-school supervisorsby age

Age 20 years+ 30 years+ 40 years+ 50 years+ Total

Male 6 84 50 130

Female 12 4 16

Total 6 96 54 156

Of secondary-school supervisors, 61.5 per cent are in the 40 to

50 year age group (Table 11). This is quite a healthy situation because

it means that the officers have quite some time before they reach

retirement age.





239

Table 12. Distribution of secondary-school supervisorsby qualification

Qualification CE BA/B.Ed./B.Sc. MA/M.Ed./M.Sc. Ph.D. Total

Male 5 119 14 2 140

Female 0 12 4 0 16

Total 5 131 18 2 156

Almost all secondary-school supervisors (96.8 per cent) are

certificated graduates (Table 12). Their qualifications range from a

first degree with a Graduate Certificate in Education to a Ph.D.

Table 13. Distribution of secondary-school supervisors bylength of service

Years 10 years+ 20 years+ 30 years+ Total

Male 19 94 27 140

Female 2 12 2 16

Total 21 106 29 156

As shown in Table 13, the majority of officers (67.9 per cent) have

served the Ministry for between 20 to 29 years.

It would appear that a lot still remains to be done to balance

supervisors by gender, because only 9 per cent of them are female

officers, for both primary and secondary schools.

Data on school supervisors are available in regional offices and at

the Schools Division. However, these are not stored on computer.

Perhaps there is need to create a database for such information to be

easily accessed.





240

2. Management issues

(a) Recruitment

Recruitment of supervisors is done through open advertisement,

application and interview. Heads of office are also required to write

individually to qualified, eligible women inviting them to apply,

pointing out that it is in line with government policy to increase the

number of women in management positions. District education

officers are recruited from the ranks of headteachers of primary

schools (those at level ‘Head 1’). Those eligible for the post of

Education Officer (Primary) include officers who have served for a

minimum of one year as DEO, Head II or Deputy Head I Secondary,

Head III or Deputy Head 2 Secondary or Lecturer II.

For the secondary sector, the basic criterion for eligibility to the

post of Education Officer is that the applicant must be a certified

graduate. In addition, the post of Education Officer (Supervision) is

subject specific. Officers who have served for at least one year in the

grade of District Education Officer, Head III or Deputy Head 2

Secondary, Head 2 or Deputy Head 1 Secondary and Head 1 Secondary,

Principal Writer or Lecturer II are eligible. Senior teachers who are

certified graduates with at least five years’ experience are also eligible.

Unlike in the primary sector, where the chain of command is clear,

the situation in the secondary sector is obscure because ‘Head I’ is in

same grade as ‘Education Officer’. This raises problems as the Head Is

feel that they cannot be supervised and advised by an officer of

equivalent grade.

In Kwekwe district, and in keeping with the practice in Zimbabwe,

all external supervisors had risen through the ranks of teacher and

headteacher before their promotion to the supervisory grade. They

were all promoted through application and interview. However, they





241

expressed the view that promotion to such posts should be based on

performance rather than seniority. It was also noted that some

supervisors in the district had initially been recruited with low

academic qualifications, but had since studied privately to obtain

better qualifications.

It is fair to say that all school supervisors in Zimbabwe are ‘home-

grown’ because they were all classroom practitioners before rising

through the ranks of deputy head, head or lecturer until they got

promoted to supervisory grades. This has a disadvantage, especially

for primary schools where the majority of these officers are now

nearing retirement age.


The issue of career prospects, for any job, is critical, given its

implications on the motivation of the officers. For supervisors, it has

also become a thorny issue and has dominated debates on conditions

of service. The DEO aspires to become EO, while the EO’s next

promotion is to the grade of deputy regional director. However, given

that the structure of supervision is pyramidal, promotion prospects

are slim. Most officers retire before promotion comes their way.

Meanwhile, promotion prospects outside the Ministry are almost nil.

This situation does not augur well for the motivation of the officers.

Dismissal rules for the supervisory and support services officers

are the same as those that apply to all other civil servants. These are

stipulated by the employer, the Public Service Commission, on initial

appointment. A case that warrants dismissal must be related to a

serious breach of Public Service Regulations. In practice, the process

of dismissal is seldom initiated and very lengthy.





242

(c) Training

There is no specialized training for supervision and support service

staff. However, on appointment the DEOs and EOs undergo

orientation through an induction course at regional level. This usually

takes the form of attachment to an experienced officer (mentor) who

accompanies the appointee on supervision missions and offers

guidance and advice. In addition there is also a one-week induction

course organized by head office. It is at induction that the appointed

supervisors are issued with reporting guidelines and formats.

Three of the six supervisors in Kwekwe district indicated that they

had not been offered the opportunity to attend a headquarters

induction course. They had been in the posts for three, four and eight

years respectively. Since these officers were promoted from the grade

of experienced heads, the Ministry may have assumed that they knew

how supervision services functioned. One of the officers commented:

“Never exposed to induction...relying on my experience as a former

head”. The other three had been inducted for periods ranging from

two to five weeks. They indicated that they had found the induction

courses useful, as this gave them a good head start to their new

functions.

All six supervisors had been attached to experienced officers, who

accompanied them on supervision missions to offer guidance and

advice. All the supervisors in the district indicated that, soon after

their appointment to the supervisory grade, they had had such

attachments for periods ranging from two to three weeks.

In-service courses are an ongoing exercise at all levels: national,

regional and district. Most supervisors have attended management

courses that are run annually by regional offices and, occasionally, by

head office with external resource-person inputs. A few officers have





243

gone for short-term training courses abroad. Perhaps what is worth

mentioning, is that the University of Zimbabwe, through the distance

education programme, is running an invaluable education planning

and administration degree course that has attracted over 5,000

teachers and education administrators, including supervisors. Other

sections of the Ministry also run courses for supervisors from time

to time in an effort to broaden their perspective on the Ministry, its

functions and operations. For example, the Research and Evaluation

Unit runs training courses on data collection, survey techniques, data

building and data management.

More detailed information was collected from among staff in

Kwekwe. Five of the supervisors commented that they had not

attended supervision-related courses in the last three years. They all

expressed the view that such courses were necessary to enlighten

and further equip them for general school administration,

supervision, report writing, public relations, as well as on how to

run staff development courses for teachers and heads of school.

Support service officers such as Remedial Tutors and District Literacy

Co-ordinators, like external supervisors, undergo courses aimed at

improving their efficiency and effectiveness in the areas that they

are practising in the field. The officers also follow the same rung of

promotional prospects as external supervisors.

What emerges above is that supervisors in Kwekwe district were

well trained academically and professionally. However, they were not

receiving much support from the Ministry, in terms of courses, to

equip them adequately for their task of supervising schools. An

analysis of the situation in other districts and regions would be

needed to assess the extent of the problem.

The Ministry, with the assistance of UNICEF, conducts some staff

development courses on management for heads of primary schools.





244

They cover such areas as human and financial resource management.

Supervisors were also involved in these courses. Initially the

supervisors were trained to give them a thorough grounding in these

topics before assuming the role of resource persons.

With the introduction of Performance Appraisals, courses had

been held nationally to acquaint officers with the system. All

supervisors in Kwekwe had attended the appraiser courses, where

they were trained on how to appraise their subordinates, heads of

school and teachers. The duration of such courses ranged from one

to three days.

As a matter of policy, clerical support staff in the Ministry are also

expected to undergo in-service courses that are offered to improve

their effectiveness and efficiency. Such courses are offered through

the Public Service Commission at Public Service Training Centres or

through other private Commercial Colleges. Each region has a staff

training vote allocation that caters for the training needs of clerical

and administrative personnel.

Some Kwekwe district clerical staff had benefited from the facility.

Three of the officers had undergone upgrading courses. The two

clerks had done accounting, personnel and supervisory management

courses at Diploma level. The typist/stenographer had also done

elementary word processing. However, she was likely to lose the skills

since the district office had no word processor. Support service

officers obtain certificates specifying courses passed. These are used

for promotion purposes. The one category of support service officers

that were not offered packaged course materials was that of office

orderlies. However, in Kwekwe, they had also lately participated in a

one-day course on Performance Appraisals.





245


The Ministry provides information and guidelines to the officers

in an effort to enhance their effectiveness and also to ensure that

they operate within the law. Once appointed and inducted, the

supervisor is issued with a circular on reporting guidelines and

formats to be used (Chief Education Officer’s Circular Minute Number

14 of 1998). The document shows standard reporting formats that

can be used for different types of visit, to ensure uniformity. More

recently the Ministry, in conjunction with other SADC countries, has

embarked on a programme aimed at addressing the needs of external

supervisors. The programme involves production of modules to

support the overall supervisor training and development programme.

Besides the efforts outlined above, supervisors also receive

various circulars from the Public Service Commission, the office of

the Permanent Secretary, the Chief Education Officer and the Regional

Director. These circulars are meant to provide regular updates on

the regulations under which these supervisors are operating.

There are various professional organizations which have as one of

their recognized aims to provide support to education officers, to

teachers and schools. One of the provisions of the Education Act

(1987) is that the Minister shall recognize only one association of

teachers, which shall represent all teachers in Zimbabwe, the

Zimbabwe Teachers’ Association (ZIMTA). Some sub-associations

operate under the auspices of ZIMTA, including the National

Association of Secondary Heads (NASH), the National Association of

Primary Heads (NAPH),and the National Association of Education

Officers (NAEO). Teachers also have subject associations, especially

at the secondary level. The critical question is how these various

professional organizations relate to the supervisors located outside

the school system (education officers and district officers). There is





246

a strong relationship as regular meetings are often organized to

promote dialogue. The work of these organizations is also

fundamentally complementary to that of the supervisor in that both

sides aim at improving pedagogical practices in the classroom.


In the primary sector, the district education officers report to the

education officer in charge of the district. The latter monitors the

activities of the DEOs and requires them to produce a programme of

activities and targets in terms of the number of school visits,

supervision reports and staff development programmes to be

undertaken. The DEO is then expected to provide regular progress

reports on the ‘agreed’ programme of action and at the end of the

year, to write an annual report for submission to the education officer.

The education officers are supervised along procedures similar to

those outlined for DEOs, by their respective deputy regional director.

Supervisors have all along been appraised through a system of

confidential reports compiled at the end of each year by their

immediate superior. These confidential reports were used when the

officers were considered for promotion. With the introduction of

performance management throughout the public service, the system

is set to become more transparent. Promotional considerations, as

well as performance-related pay, are to be based on the appraisals. At

the moment of writing this report, the main problem seems to be the

absence of uniform performance indicators that are laid down for

use in all the regions. This is likely to result in variations in assessment.





247


(a) Salaries

Table 14. Basic salaries for supervisors3

Grade Title Salary scale Transport Allowance Housing(per year) $ (per month) $ allowance $

7 EO 165,864 189 208162,516159,096155,676

8 DEO 152,184 159 170148,692145,080141,468137,856

Table 14 above shows the basic annual salaries of the EOs and

DEOs at the time of writing (July 1998). The lowest salaries shown

here are those for beginning officers and they increase with their

length of service. Public service officers received a substantial pay

rise in mid-1997. For instance, a beginning DEO received Zim $97,368

in June 1996 as compared to Zim $137,856 in July 1998 (in US dollar

terms, this however would have represented a decrease, because of

the strong devaluation of the currency over that same period). In

addition to their salary, supervisors also receive allowances in respect

of housing and transport. Salaries and allowances are paid monthly

to the officers, as set out in the schedule of pay days for all Ministry

personnel. All supervisors and support staff were paid through their

bank accounts and they indicated that their salaries were received

on time each month.

3. In Zimbabwe dollars.





248

Salaries and allowances differ according to rank and level of

responsibility. At the time of writing, Performance Management was

being introduced to the system, but so far it has not yet been used to

award higher salaries to those officers who perform well. In terms

of Public Service regulations, civil servants cannot engage in any

activity for gain unless prior authority is given by the employer. This

means that supervisors do not get extra income, official or otherwise,

over and above their salaries and allowances. Those who do so are

flouting official regulations.

On the whole Ministry of Education salaries do not compare

favourably with those in the private sector or in parastatals. Ministry

officials earn much less, although they may have the same or similar

kinds of training and/or academic qualifications. Before the recent

salary increases, private-sector employees got 172 per cent and

parastatals got 82 per cent more than civil servants (Job Evaluation

Exercise, 1995). As a result of this Job Evaluation Exercise, civil

servants’ salaries were increased to reduce the gap. However,

disparities still exist and might start widening again due to the fact

that the private sector awards higher increases.

It is instructive to compare supervisors’ financial conditions with

those of headteachers. There are three grades of headteacher. Head

I and Head II in the secondary schools receive the same salaries as

education officers and district education officers, respectively. Head

III (Secondary) and Head I (Primary) receive salaries that are about

15 per cent lower, while the salary of Head III (Primary) is 40 per

cent lower.

Commenting on their salary levels, five of the six supervisors in

Kwekwe district felt that their salaries were far too low, describing

them as poor. Their main argument was that the salaries lagged

behind those offered in the private sector and that they were far





249

below the cost of living. Only one supervisor felt that salaries awarded

to supervisors were satisfactory.

(b) Travel allowances

District supervisors, like their counterparts at regional level, are

entitled to allowances to cover inspection visits. At the time of this

project, these allowances were pegged at $700 for hotel

accommodation and $50 as supplementary allowance per day.

Supervisors who opted out of hotels were entitled to $150 per day

for use of private accommodation. Allowances for lunch and dinner

were $70 and $80 respectively. Other allowances included $2.80 per

kilometre (on tarred roads) and $3.11 per kilometre (on gravel roads)

for the use of a personal vehicle on government duty. Those who opt

to use public transport can claim the normal bus/train/airfare by

attaching the receipt to the claim form. Some officers use government

vehicles. The Central Mechanical Equipment Department (CMED)

depots throughout the country supply such officers with fuel. CMED

then claims from the relevant government vote allocations specifically

meant for fuel and the payments are effected by the Finance Division

in the Ministry. Travel and subsistence allowances are revised from

time to time to keep them in line with the rising cost of living.

There are two ways of obtaining the money for travel and

subsistence. The first is that officers can use their own money and

then claim afterwards, producing the relevant receipts. The second

method is by applying for an advance and then returni,g whatever

balance there is, with receipts.

According to the Kwekwe supervisors, two main problems were

associated with the payment of these allowances: (a) that they lagged

behind the cost of living, and (b) that there were serious delays, of

even up to two years, in refunding those officers who had undertaken





250

field trips without applying for advances. Given the above scenario,

the sensible thing to do is to apply for advances before undertaking

trips. However, the district supervisors argued that it was equally

difficult to get these advances due to bureaucratic practices in the

system.

(c) The budget

It is difficult to get a precise idea of the budget made available for

supervision and support services. The total Ministry budget is

distributed among the different departments, as follows (indicated

is their share in the 1997/98 budget vote):

%

*Administration and General 3.80

*Audiovisual services 0.07

*Literature Bureau 0.03

*Secondary education 33.60

*Primary education 62.00

*Sport and Culture 0.50

Subsistence and travel costs are included for each sub-sector: for

example, Administration and General at Head Office has $429,374,000

of which $39,073,034 are for subsistence and travelling. This amounts

to 9.1 per cent of Head Office allocation, but only 0.4 per cent of the

total education budget. Subsistence and travel for the whole Ministry

amounts to $512,660,000 which is 0.5 per cent of the entire vote

allocation. In-service courses through which, among others,

supervisors are trained had a budget of $9,000,000. This represents

0.08 per cent of the education budget. Salaries for officers and other

support staff take up the largest chunk of the budget: about 93 per

cent in 1997-1998.





251

The budgets for primary and secondary education are allocated

to the different regional offices on the basis of the number of pupils,

the number of teachers and the number of supervisors and their

grades. Within the regions, each district is expected to be allocated

its share of the budget on the same principle. However, in the

Midlands region, where the case study was undertaken, only some

items had been allocated to district levels. The rest were controlled

at the regional office and all sections of the region drew from the

same pool. Table 15 shows those regional vote allocations that were

of interest to the supervisors and allocations for Kwekwe district.

Allocations for salaries were not included in the table.

Table 15. Basic budget allocations for midlands regionand Kwekwe district

Type of vote allocation Regional Allocation Allocation for Kwekwe

Official travel $150,000 Regional pool

Subsistence $1,198,000 Regional pool

Vehicle hire $909,000 $44,258

Books and periodicals $16,000 Regional pool

PTC services $364,000 $16,000

Printing and stationery $216,000 Regional pool

Staff courses $183,000 Regional pool

Office and miscellaneous $167,000 Regional pool

Water, light and electricity $90,000 Regional pool

Maintenance of equipment $85,000 Regional Pool

Total $3,378,000 $60,258

Only two items, vehicle hire and PTC services, had been

specifically allocated to the district. The EO in charge of the district

controlled the use of these funds and accounted for them to the

regional director. Individual supervisors had no control over the





252

budget. Comments from supervisors indicated that they had no idea

how the budget was controlled. They all agreed that the arrangement

was unsatisfactory as they were often told not to travel because the

budget had been blown. This indicates that the budget was insufficient.

One supervisor described the situation as: unsatisfactory ... more

often sitting in the office reading newspapers.


(a) Offices and office equipment

A government complex of offices has been built in the main urban

centres of each region. The Ministry of Education, Sport and Culture

has its share of these offices. Unless the number of staff exceeds the

available office units, each regional supervisor has his/her own

furnished office. A similar programme to provide district-level

supervisors with office accommodation has been underway in many

districts. This has gone a long way in providing suitable office

accommodation in many districts. However, this programme has not

covered all districts due to financial constraints. As a result, some

education officers (Primary) and the district education officers who

are supposed to operate from the district offices are forced to operate

from regional offices, while others have to use rented offices. The

main problem at the district offices, however, has been the lack of

adequate and suitable furniture.

The situation in Kwekwe district can serve as an illustration. The

six external supervisors were provided with individual offices in a

rented building on one floor of a fairly new three-storey building.

On the same floor, they were provided with two toilets and a

conference room of about 16 square metres. Each office had a

telephone receiver, a desk and a chair. There were offices for a

remedial tutor, a pre-school trainer, district literacy co-ordinator,





253

clerks and a typist (the typist also doubled up as a telephone operator

and a registry clerk). While supervisors expressed satisfaction with

their office accommodation, they showed some dissatisfaction with

furniture items, especially the lack of filing cabinets.

Another problem is linked to the lack of residential

accommodation for supervisors especially in the urban centres. Some

officers are forced to commute daily from their home town to their

place of work, while in other cases the entire regional staff have

preferred to operate from offices outside their region. Not only does

it mean that the offices built for them are not being utilized, but also

that the supervisors are far removed from the teachers whom they

are supposed to serve. The situation in Kwekwe, which is not a big

urban centre, is quite satisfactory. Although neither supervisors nor

support staff were provided with residential accommodation by the

Ministry, as officers were expected to buy their own private homes,

all but one officer lived within a manageable distance of 2 to

10 kilometres from the office. One officer travelled 23 kilometres

to work.

(b) Transport

Each region is supposed to have a f leet of cars for use by its

officers, including those located at district offices. This arrangement

has been in place since the early years of independence. However,

these cars have outlived their usefulness. Most of them are grounded,

while those that are still on the road will break down every now and

then. It is not surprising to find an entire region with only one reliable

vehicle for all its administrative and professional operations. The

shortage of cars has seriously handicapped the operations of

supervisors. Planned trips to schools have had to be called off because

the only vehicle has suddenly become unavailable due to a mechanical

breakdown or because it is to be used for some more urgent





254

administrative work. Again, Kwekwe district can offer a useful

example. The office was provided with only one light lorry that can

sit three people. The original purpose of the light truck was to ferry

materials to schools, but it is now also used for supervision of schools.

This, in fact, had a negative impact on the number of schools that

supervisors were able to visit. In some cases supervisors used

transport that was provided by other Ministries, particularly the

Health Ministry, and some book sellers. The issue of shortage of

transport has dominated the debate on supervisors’ conditions of

service. All officers in Kwekwe expressed dismay at the level of

transport availability. They indicated that this was a major impediment

to their operations.

(c) Secretarial facilities

Secretarial and clerical services are in many cases inadequate.

Sometimes it takes several weeks to have reports typed and

despatched to schools. As a result feedback is often late and,

therefore, less effective than was originally meant. Kwekwe district

is somewhat of an exception. The supervisors had two clerical

support staff who assisted in staffing matters, especially the

deployment and management (leave, transfer and payments) of

teachers. They also offered advisory services to teachers, especially

on the interpretation of policy circulars and public ser vice

regulations. The typist/stenographer, on the other hand, assisted with

the typing of reports made by supervisors after their inspection visits.

Supervisors were provided with one office orderly who also served

as a messenger and cleaner. The supervisors were satisfied with these

services, which three out of the six rated as excellent, while the other

three described them as satisfactory.




255

III. THE DAILY OPERATION OF A SUPERVISION SERVICEIN KWEKWE DISTRICT

Introduction

The district

The case-study examined Kwekwe district in the Midlands region.

The district was chosen for this project because, of the eight districts

in this region, it is the most centrally located and therefore

representative of the province as a whole. Its population includes of

all the major ethnic and language groups in the country. It also has a

balance of the communal, commercial farming, urban and

resettlement areas whose varied socio-economic activities give a true

picture of the region. At the last census in 1992, Midlands province

had a population of 1,307,679 people of which 48.60 per cent were

female. Kwekwe district had a population of 223,146 people,

representing 17 per cent of the population in the province. About

one third lived in Kwekwe urban and the rest in commercial farms

and communal areas. The main socio-economic activities in the district

included industry, mainly in gold and iron mining, retail and

commercial ventures in the urban centres and maize, fruit and cotton

farming in commercial farming and rural areas. Good road and rail

networks link Kwekwe city with the rest of the country’s urban and

commercial centres. However, the network in rural areas was poor, a

situation that did not augur well for supervision of schools in such

areas.

The district situation in terms of the number of schools,

supervisors, teacher establishments and pupil enrolments is shown

in Table 16.





256

Table 16. Number of schools, pupils, teachers andsupervisors in Kwekwe district

School level Number of Number of Number of Number ofschools pupils teachers supervisors

Primary 112 60,733 1,554 6

Secondary 36 20,226 736 Regionalsupervisors

Total 148 80,959 2,290 6

The district had, at the moment of undertaking the study,

112 primary schools with a total enrolment of 60,733 pupils. The

district was also served by 36 secondary schools with total enrolment

of 20,226 pupils. The percentages of female pupils were 49.6 and

47.9 for primary and secondary schools respectively. The pupil/

teacher ratio was 39. The class/classroom ratio of 1.2 classes per

classroom indicates the inadequacy of classroom accommodation.

Nearly all teachers in the district were trained, with basic professional

qualifications of at least Certificate in Education. However, there

were a few instances where some elderly teachers holding Primary

Teachers’ Lower (PTH) or Primary Teachers’ Higher (PTH) certificates

were still in employment. With the launching of the Better Schools

Programme of Zimbabwe, school clusters had been formed: Kwekwe

district alone had 21 such clusters, serviced by one main resource

centre in the urban centre.

Schools in the urban part were generally well provided for in terms

of infrastructure, furniture and equipment. However, they were

heavily enrolled and characterized by the double-session system.

Provision of classrooms in commercial and communal schools ranged

from fair to poor. In some cases these were inadequate for the number

of pupils enrolled in the schools, leading to some pupils learning

under trees or sitting on floors. Book/pupil ratios ranged from 1:1 in

the most endowed urban primary schools to, at times, 1:12 in the





257

remote rural schools, particularly in environmental science and social

studies.

Data collection methods to gain an insight into the daily operation

of the supervision service comprised of focused group discussions

with 6 external supervisors (all male) based in the district office,

12 heads of schools (9 male and 3 female) and 35 teachers (17 male

and 18 female).4 Supervisors and heads of school also completed

questionnaires. These were used to validate responses obtained

during focused discussions. Teachers were interviewed and their

responses recorded by data collectors. The study was carried out on

a preferred 10 per cent sample of primary schools in the district. The

schools were split into three categories of urban, peri-urban and rural.

The rationale was to get a feel of supervision and support services in

schools located in the three different socio-economic environments

within the district.

The supervisors in Kwekwe district

The six supervisors based in this district consisted of 1 education

officer (EO) who was in charge of all primary schools in the district,

5 district education officers (DEOs), each in charge of a circuit of

about 22 primary schools, and 1 district staffing officer (DSO), who

was responsible for recruiting and deploying teachers. Secondary

schools, as elsewhere, are supervised by the regional office directly.

In addition, some officers work more in the field of support to schools

and teachers. These included one remedial tutor under the Schools

Psychological Services, two district literacy co-ordinators (DLCs)

under Non-Formal Education and one pre-school trainer under Early

Childhood Education and Care (ECEC).

4. Two tables in annex give some data on these headteachers and teachers.





258

Some basic facts regarding supervision staff in Kwekwe district

are shown in Table 17. All the six supervisors in Kwekwe are male.

Their age range is between 45 and 61 years and their mean age was

nearly 52 years, the same as the national mean age of primary-school

supervisors. All held at least the standard basic academic qualifications

of ‘O’ levels. Five of them actually held post ‘O’ level qualifications

(three with Advanced-level certificates and two with university

degrees). As far as professional training is concerned, three of the

six supervisors are holders of the standard teaching qualification of

a Certificate in Education. The other three held degree qualifications,

a situation that is somewhat better than for the region as a whole.

Their working experience was both wide and relevant. They had all

served as classroom practitioners for an average of 13 years, heads of

primary school for an average of 10 years and as supervisors for an

average of 8 years. Such experience was expected to enable them to

offer sound advice to both teachers and heads of schools.

Table 17. Data on supervisors in Kwekwe district

Post Gender Age Experience Qualifications

Teacher Head Supervisor Total Academic Professional

EO M 50 20 1 8 29 ‘A’ level Grad+ BA CE+MEd

DEO M 61 15 13 12 40 ‘A’ level CE

DEO M 48 5 18 4 27 ‘A’ level BEd

DEO M 45 10 10 3 23 ‘A’ level CE

DEO M 55 12 12 11 35 ‘O’ level CE

DEO M 50 16 5 9 30 ‘A’ level Grad CE+ BA

Mean 51.5 13 9.8 7.8 30.7





259

The four staff who work in the area of teacher support, consist of

three women and one man, who are all younger than even the

youngest supervisor (see Table 18).

Table 18. Data on support staff in Kwekwe district

Post Gender Age Experience Qualifications

DLC M 41 16 ‘O’ level Diploma Adult Educa-tion

F 33 13 ‘O’ level Diploma Adult Educa-tion

Remedial F 43 19 ‘O’ level B Philosophytutor

ECEC F 32 11 ‘O’ level Nursery Certificatetrainer


Each supervisor is allocated a quota of schools, which are situated

close to each other, to minimize travelling costs on the part of the

supervisor. The norm in Zimbabwe is that each supervisor at DEO level

should be in charge of 22 or 23 primary schools. In the case of Kwekwe,

the supervisors were operating within the norm (see Table 19).

Table 19. Kwekwe district: number of teachers andschools per supervisor

Post held Number of schools Number of teachers

Primary Secondary Total Primary Secondary Total

EO 112 36 148 1,554 736 2,290

DEO 22 6 28 268 94 362

DEO 23 10 33 266 136 402

DEO 22 7 29 455 282 737

DEO 22 6 28 271 130 401

DEO 23 7 30 294 94 388





260

The number of teachers under their charge ranged between a

minimum of 266 in rural circuits, characterized by small schools,

and a maximum of 455 in the central urban circuits. This shows that,

while the allocation was done on the basis of the number of schools,

the actual workload varied when the number of teachers was taken

into account. In addition, the same supervisors were each responsible

for an average of 7 schools and 147 teachers at the secondary level.

However, their work in this regard was less pedagogic as they did

not inspect teachers and/or heads at this level. Rather, they

concentrated on administrative work such as carrying out

investigations, collection of statistical data, handling various Ministry

returns, conflict resolution, issues related to the supply of materials,

staffing, building construction and attending to general problems and

complaints. The supervisors, nevertheless, often have to visit these

secondary schools to carry out the administrative tasks which

consume much of their time. Their core pedagogical functions suffer

in the process.

The education officer is in charge of the whole district. Since all

the DEOs report to him, all schools come under him. His main tasks

are to supervise DEOs and to co-ordinate educational activities in the

district.

Supervisors’ workload is increased by the multiplicity of,

sometimes, conflicting roles they have to play. Apart from their core

tasks, as outlined in their job description, DEOs had to perform a

variety of other tasks, some of which had little to do with their main

supervisory functions. Their responses showed that they were indeed

aware of what they were expected to do, but this did not always tally

with what they actually did. They were also expected to attend

meetings, funerals, political rallies and other intersectoral

assignments, resulting in an accumulation of duties in a single post.





261

Supervisors were asked to indicate whether there were any official

norms defining their workload and what these norms were. Three of

the six supervisors indicated that there were official norms. Their

responses are shown in Table 20. The others said they were not aware

of any norms.

Table 20. Supervisors’ awareness of official norms

Norms (per term) Respondent 1 Respondent 2 Respondent 3

Schools to be visited 8 8 10

Teachers to be visited 33 24 30

Reports to be written 8 32 30

Table 20 shows that there exists little clarity about these norms:

the number of schools to be visited ranges from 8 to 10, the number

of teachers from 24 to 33 and the number of reports from 8 to 32 per

term. It seems that individual regions, districts or even supervisors

define their own norms. One supervisor had this to say: “I set myself

to inspect 20 schools a year, but I normally manage 15 because of lack

of transport”. While it is generally understood in Ministry circles that

each school should be visited three times a year (for initial inspection,

follow-up and consolidation), and each teacher be supervised on each

occasion, this requirement is not found anywhere in black and white.

Norms on frequency of visits and time devoted to different activities

were not specified either.

Planning is central to the work of supervision and support service

staff. Since each supervisor was responsible for his or her circuit,

individual plans were prepared, usually on a monthly basis. The

programme of planned activities was given to their immediate

supervisor for moderation and approval. This was done for two main

reasons, to facilitate budgetary control and the synchronization of

activities with other programmes. However, in spite of these good





262

plans on paper, the supervisors often found themselves unable to

follow them to the letter. Unscheduled programmes and activities

such as meetings and workshops cut across their plans.

As far as their workload was concerned, supervisors were asked

several questions: how many schools could they visit; what did they

consider their most important tasks; how much time did they spend

on administrative and pedagogic aspects of their job and on the

different activities?

Pertinent revelations emerged when supervisors indicated

(Table 21) what percentage of their allocated schools and teachers

they were able to visit and inspect in the course of the previous year.

Table 21. Schools visited and teachers inspected by eachsupervisor during the last year (as percentage oftotal responsibility)

Supervisor Percent of schools visited Percent of teachers inspected

EO 20 16

DEO1 64 25

DEO2 80 30

DEO3 68 7

DEO4 70 20

DEO5 75 20

The DEOs succeed in visiting between two-thirds and four-fifths

of their assigned schools, but never more than 30 per cent of teachers.

The main problem encountered was shortage of transport.

Supervisors had to team up with officers from other Ministries,

booksellers or had to resort to public transport to carry out school

visits. Inadequate travel and subsistence allowances and too much

involvement in administrative work also detracted from their efforts.





263

The question of workload also needs to be examined from the

point of view of what supervisors perceived as their main tasks as

opposed to what it is that they actually did. Their responses are shown

in Table 22.

Table 22. Supervisors’ tasks

Category of tasks Actual tasks Number of supervisors

Taking most of the Supervision 6 supervisors’ time Report writing 5

Administration 4Staff development 2

Rated by supervisors Supervision 6as the most important Staff development 6

Report writing 5Planning 1

Rated by supervisors Meetings 6as the least important Administration 4

Investigations 2Other (e.g. pastoral, funerals ) 3

Supervisors in Kwekwe regard supervision of teachers, staff

development and report writing as their most important tasks. Least

important are: attending meetings and administration. From their

responses, we learn that among the tasks on which they spend most

of their time, are two which they consider the most important:

supervision and report writing. However, they also spend a lot of

time on administrative duties which they consider of little substance.

On average, supervisors spent more or less the same time on

administrative and on pedagogic work (Table 23). When asked to

indicate what these two terms precisely imply, they agreed that

administration involved office work, investigations, correspondence,

discipline, attending meetings, examinations and resolving disputes,

while pedagogical work had more to do with supervising the

teaching/learning process, including staff development of teachers





264

with a view to improving the delivery of the curriculum. But there

were quite big differences between individual officers, with some

spending about three-quarters of their time on administration and

others a similar amount on pedagogy. The EO, head of the office, spent,

as could be expected, most of his time on administrative issues, some

of which were referred to him by the DEOs. Variations among the

DEOs are probably an indication of the different circumstances in

their circuits.

Table 23. Percentage of time spent by supervisors onadministrative and pedagogic work

Respondent Percentage of time spent Percentage of time spenton administrative work on pedagogical work

EO 70 30

DEO1 30 70

DEO2 70 30

DEO3 25 75

DEO4 30 70

DEO5 80 20

Mean 50.8 49.2

An analysis of the two preceding tables, as well as some of the

supervisors’ comments, showed that they would be happier if left

to attend to pedagogical issues rather than administrative ones. This

view was consistent with one of the key functions in their job

description, which is to develop pedagogical standards in schools by

staff development of heads and teachers.

Supervisors were asked finally, how they actually distributed their

time over given activities in an average month. Individual responses

were used to compute the mean time for the group and the results

are summarized in Table 24.





265

Table 24. Average percentage time devoted to differentactivities in an average month

Activities Average time spent on activity (%)

Office work 28

School visits 23

Report writing 18

Staff development 15


School functions 3

Investigations 1

Pastoral 1

Total 100

Responses showed that school visits, which form the core part of

the supervisor’s mandate, were overshadowed by office work. Again,

administration-related activities tended to consume a sizeable portion

of the external supervisor’s time.

2. School visits

In an effort to improve pedagogical and administrative practices

in schools, Kwekwe district supervisors made different types of visit,

including full inspections, institutional school inspections, teacher

supervision, follow-up visits, courtesy visits, advisory visits and spot

checks on heads, deputy heads and teachers in charge. Table 25 shows

the types of school visit, their average duration and in how far they

were undertaken by an individual or a team.





266

Table 25. Types of visits to schools, average duration andorganisation

Type of visit Average time in school Members

Full inspection 4 hours Team

Institutional 2.5 hours Team

Teacher supervision 2.5 hours Individual

Follow-ups 3 hours Individual/Team

Courtesy 1 hour Individual/Team

Advisory visits 2 hours Team

Spot checks 1 hour Individual

The type that lasts by far the longest was full inspection, which

was carried out by a team. This was to be expected, given that such a

visit looks at all aspects of the school. Institutional, teacher

supervision and follow-up visits were the next in line in terms of

duration. Spot checks and courtesy visits each lasted only one hour,

on average. An important trend is that of the prevalence of team

inspection as opposed to visits by individual supervisors.

Responses from the heads corroborated to a large extent what

the supervisors indicated. There was some difference of opinion

between and among heads and supervisors on the average duration.

This was not surprising given that this also depends on the size of a

school.

When visits are undertaken to schools, it is expected that their

purposes are clear in order to give them focus. Supervisors were asked

to explain the main purposes of school visits. They were unanimous

that the main goal is system improvement, but that the specific

objectives varied from one type to another. The objectives of a full

inspection visit, for instance, were to assess the overall operations of

the school with a view to rendering advice and guidance where





267

necessary. On the other hand, the objectives of teacher supervision

were to assess how individual teachers were imparting knowledge

to students. In the process they could also give suggestions for

improvement while searching for good practice for dissemination

to other schools and teachers. A summary of some of the objectives

is given later in Table 28 of this document.

The principle of pre-announced visits seems to be more of an

intention than a reality due to practical constraints. Urban schools

usually received advance warning of impending supervision visits.

However, unannounced visits were unavoidable due to changes

resulting from transport and financial constraints. Urban school heads

indicated that unannounced visits had become more of the norm

rather than the exception. Peri-urban and rural schools rarely

received advance warning, because of the lack of communication

facilities. A rural school head said for instance: “At times we learn

about such visits if we happen to meet supervisors informally during

our shopping visits to urban centres”.

The question of whether it is really necessary for schools to receive

advance notice of supervision visits, was put to both supervisors and

heads of school. The responses revealed contrasting views. Four of

the six supervisors felt that schools should not be informed. Their

reason was that schools would display artificial performance which,

in most cases, would not reflect how they functioned on a day-to-day

basis. On the other hand, 10 of the 12 heads felt that they should be

informed in advance. One reason being that “some teachers are

nervous by nature ... such advance notice may help them. In any case

guerrilla warfare tactics are outdated”. Another head pointed out that

advance warnings enabled heads to prepare relevant information for

the expected visit.





268

Two-thirds of the heads felt the number of visits to be inadequate.

More worryingly, all rural heads felt the number to be totally

inadequate. One head said: “Inadequate, new teachers go for years

without supervision”, while another said: “Not sufficient, untrained

teachers would benefit”. Peri-urban heads expressed mixed views,

while heads of urban schools indicated that visits to their schools by

external supervisors were quite adequate. One urban head brought

up an important dimension by responding: “I have senior teachers

needing fewer visits. Besides, supervision is done mostly by the school

head.” This comment suggests that some heads start to feel that

emphasis should now be on in-school supervision as opposed to

external supervision

In addition to institutional school inspections, teacher-targeted

visits are important and should be undertaken as regularly as possible.

This is meant to monitor the quality of instruction, which depends

to a large extent on the processes in the classroom. Another objective

is to offer professional support and guidance, to ensure that

education delivery is on course. To what extent were such visits

adequate from the teachers’ point of view?

Answers to this question followed the same trend as for heads of

school. Those in urban and peri-urban schools had, comparatively,

been supervised more adequately than those in rural schools. To

obtain further insights into the issue, data were obtained from all

teachers, to determine how regularly teachers in each category of

schools had been supervised. Such data consisted of total teaching

experience of each teacher, the total number of visits for each teacher

during his or her entire teaching experience, and the number of times

he or she was supervised in the last year. These data were collated by

school location to obtain the total experience of all teachers in each

category, total number of visits and those undertaken during the last





269

year. For each category of teachers, the average years per visit were

computed by dividing total years’ experience by total number of visits.

The results are shown in Table 26. Characteristics of all interviewed

teachers are shown in Appendix I.

Table 26. Regularity of supervision visits on teachers

Location Number of Total Total Average FrequencyTeachers experience number of years of visits

Interviewed in years visits per visit in 1997

Urban 12 132 42 3.14 2

Peri-urban 13 112 66 1.70 3

Rural 10 114 27 4.22 0

Total 35 358 135 2.65 5

On average, a teacher in Kwekwe district was visited by a

supervisor every 2.65 years. In Kwekwe urban, teachers were

supervised every 3.14 years. Peri-urban teachers were seen more

regularly, every 1.7 years, and Kwekwe rural teachers only every

4.22 years. During 1997, only five of the interviewed teachers were

seen by external supervisors, of whom none in Kwekwe rural. This

is undesirable as rural schools are staffed with the least experienced

and untrained teachers.

Why were visits as rare as this? Urban schoolteachers seemed to

think that supervisors rarely visited their schools because the majority

of heads in the schools were experienced, hence supervision of

teachers was mostly left to them. On the other hand, teachers in rural

schools felt that supervisors had critical shortages of transport, a

situation further exacerbated by inaccessibility of these schools. They

further expressed disquiet that on the few occasions when

supervisors got to their schools, with the little time on hand, they

mostly concentrated on the head and sampled only a few teachers.





270

This not only created an artificial picture of the teaching and learning

conditions in such schools, but also left the unsupervised teachers

unguided.

Generally, it can be argued that teacher supervision was weak.

This was mainly because of transport shortages faced by external

supervisors, particularly for rural schools. This is further supported

by the fact that within 1997 alone, supervisors in Kwekwe, on average,

visited only 63 per cent of their schools and supervised only 19.7 per

cent of their teachers.

When preparing for their visits, supervisors mainly referred to

previous reports if available. This served as a point of departure on arrival

at the school: to check if previous recommendations were implemented.

In selecting schools, they gave priority to problem schools as well as

those schools that had not been visited for a long time.

During actual visits to schools, what were the main activities that

external supervisors carried out? This question was put to heads of

school. Table 27 shows the various activities by type of visit.

Table 27. Activities carried out by external supervisorsduring visits to schools

ActivitiesType of visit Examining Classroom Discussing Discussing Discussing Meetingor inspection records observations with head (whole staff) with with

individual communityteachers

Full inspection ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔

Institutional ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔

Training supervision ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔

Courtesy ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔

Follow-up ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔

Spot checks ✔ ✔ ✔

Advisory

Note: Activity carried out (✔).Activity not carried out (empty)





271

Table 27 can be analyzed in two ways, by type of visit and by activity

carried out. The analysis by type of visit shows that advisory visits

were very different from an inspection and therefore devoid of any

of the activities in the table. An additional explanation lies in the fact

that, in many cases, this type of visit was not carried out in its own

right, but incorporated in the other types. For spot checks, half of

the activities (classroom observations, discussion with whole staff

and discussion with individual teachers) were not carried out.

An analysis by type of activity shows that discussion with the head

forms part of every visit. Individual teachers and the community were

sidelined in a number of visit types, perhaps a regrettable trend given

that these two groups are key players in what goes on in schools.

Both supervisors and heads of school offered some information

about the data collected by supervisors during each type of visit.

During full inspections, all data pertaining to the smooth running of

the school were collected, including the general administration of

the school, type, quantity and quality of infrastructure, lesson delivery,

resource provision, numbers of pupils and teachers and past

performance of the school in terms of examination results. During

institutional visits, data collected pertained mainly to the

administration of the school, infrastructure and resource provision

and parental involvement in the development of infrastructure.

During teacher supervision, the focus was mainly on the interactions

between teachers and students, quantity and quality of work given

and produced, resources available for use and teacher records. For

courtesy visits, supervisors mainly focused on relations in the school

and relations amongst all stakeholders. During follow-up visits,

supervisors mainly concentrated on previous recommendations made

to the school, to check how far these had been followed and

implemented or even improved by the school. Spot checks were





272

normally very short visits that aimed at checking on some particular

aspect in the school, like teacher and pupil attendance, school records

or even school cleanliness.

3. Reporting

The Ministry attaches great importance to reporting by

supervisors. The point is stressed in the Chief Education Officer’s

Circular Minute No. 14 of 1988, which states: “Much value is attached

to report writing as the report is a permanent record and, in the majority

of cases, is the only means by which the Ministry gets to know about

the state of education provision in schools”. Whenever supervisors

make inspection visits to schools, reports are mandatory. The Ministry

has provided reporting guidelines on how these must be structured.

This is to ensure uniformity and adequate reporting on all aspects of

the education system.

The main reports include those on teachers, school heads, deputy

heads, full and institutional inspections. Supervisors’ comments

indicated that they always wrote these reports, because it was a

requirement except for courtesy visits. However, what was found in

Kwekwe was that supervisors tended to concentrate more on reports

on heads and teachers, rather than on institutions and other aspects.

In writing reports, the supervisors are expected to articulate the

specific purpose of the visit, so as to think clearly about what it is

that they want to report on, even before departure to the school.

This appears logical as it would be the basis upon which

recommendations would be made.

Before finalization, the reports are always discussed with various

parties concerned. All reports are discussed with the school heads,

who give their own observations. To some extent, this influences

the final version of the report, including the recommendations.





273

Reports on teachers are also discussed with the individual teachers

and those on departments with the respective heads of department.

Reports on teachers were never discussed with school

communities. Supervisors, heads and teachers argued that such

reports were on professional issues which communities had nothing

to do with. However, they all indicated that some aspects of

institutional reports, related to school enrolment, infrastructural

development and finances, were discussed and distributed to the

senior management in the school, school development committees

and the responsible authority. Supervisors in Kwekwe produced

reports and distributed them as shown in Table 28. At times an

additional copy was produced for the supervisor’s own record.

Table 28. Types and objectives of reports, official copiesand their distribution

Type of report Number Distribution Objectivesof copies

On teachers 4 2 to Head (1 for teacher) • Assess effectiveness1 Regional Office • Identify training needs1 Head Office • Propagate good practice

On heads 3 1 to Head • Assess administrative,1 to R/O • professional effectiveness1 to H/O • Identify training needs

On deputy heads 4 2 to head (1 for Reportee) • Assess administrative,1 R/O • professional effectiveness1 H/O • Identify training needs

Heads of 4 2 to Head (1 for Reportee) • Assess effectiveness ofdepartment 1 R/O department in implementing

1 H/O the curriculum• Render advice

Institutional report 3 1 to Head • Assess availability of1 R/O administrative, physical and1 H/O professional inputs in a

school• Render advice





274

The distribution shown in Table 28 is as per Ministry

requirements. The reportee always receives a copy to provide

feedback and/or advice. The copies for other of for a long time fices

are for their information and also to enable them to supervise and

monitor the implementation of recommendations. The school head

plays a pivotal role at the local level and, receives, for this reason, a

copy of every report produced by supervisors. All heads indicated

that they received the reports within an average period of two weeks

to two months.

All reports were written following guidelines provided by the

Ministry. While it may be argued that provision of guidelines ‘kills’

originality and initiative, this was meant “to streamline all reporting

procedures in our system to ensure uniformity and adequate reporting

on all aspects of our education” (Circular Minute No. 14 of 1988).

All reports invariably started with the personal details/data on the

reportee. This included identification details of name and code

number, qualifications (including where and when obtained), type

of appointment, date of joining service, experience, name and code

of school and its responsible authority. Information relating to date

of last visit was also included. Needless to say, these data were

necessary for filing purposes and also to give the history of the

reportee to the reader of the report.

An important feature of all reports is the specific purpose of the

visit. For example, a report on a teacher stated its purpose as “to assess

the competence of the classroom practitioner”, a report on a head as

“to assess the administrative ability of the head and assist where

possible”. Meanwhile, the purpose of the institutional visit was “to

assess the effectiveness of the head as an administrator and the impact

he had generally on his subordinates, the public and the community”.

These examples reveal that the visits could have a pedagogical and/





275

or administrative focus and that they incorporate an advisory element

(though not always stated). However, there were occasions when

some supervisors compiled reports without a deliberate statement

of purpose.

All personal reports (on teachers, teachers-in-charge, deputy heads

and heads of school) go on to summarize the reportee’s workload:

their teaching assignment, post of special responsibility and co-

curricular responsibilities. This is followed by the supervisor’s

comments. For example, a report on a teacher had the comment

“teacher is fully utilised and is playing an active role in the school” or

“quite suitable for teaching infants”. A report on a TIC mentioned:

“the TIC felt she was underutilized, with her teaching experience, her

management experience as a TIC and as an Acting Deputy Head. Now

equipped with a Bachelor of Education in Administration and a Policy

Studies Degree she could handle a higher post than being just a Teacher

in Charge of infants”.

The comments are valuable to those responsible for deploying

and assigning teachers to responsibilities. If the comment reflects a

mismatch, between class allocation and qualification and/or

experience for example, this may result in reassignment. The

comment could also highlight cases of teacher over- or under-

utilization.

The coverage of each report depends on its type and purpose.

Reports on a teacher mainly covered pedagogical aspects: the

learning environment, progress of the lesson observed, teaching

documents, supervision of pupils’ written work and personal

qualities of the teacher. The report on a head was more encompassing.

It covered administration (enrolment and staffing, office

organization, infrastructure, development plans, funding),

professional duties (curriculum implementation, professional contact





276

with teachers etc.), tone and discipline, relations , and school

achievements.

At times factual evidence was cited in the reports to show that

conclusions were based on hard evidence. The following are some

examples drawn from teachers’ and heads’ reports: “Written work has

received little attention. Jabulani’s four essays of 01/02, 23/02,02/06

and 20/06 had only one of the four marked” (from report on a

teacher). “On the day of the visit, seven creative work exercises had

been written and marked” (from report on a teacher). “The head had

conducted two staff meetings ... parents’ meetings had been held o 22 01,

29/01, 05/02 and 26/02 (from report on a head).

It was also noted that attempts were being made to balance praise

(strengths) and criticism (weaknesses). This has the advantage that

even a negative comment would be seen, by the reportee, in positive

light: “A comprehensive school policy was in place. Highlights on

professional and administrative discharge of duties were clearly

explained. However, there was room to further elaborate on the school’s

standard expectations in writing, quality and quantity of written work

(from report on head). “The head was commended for that efficient

use of the grant. Textbooks too were generally in adequate supply

except in grade seven where in some cases two pupils share a textbook.

The head was, however, advised to encourage class teachers to insist

on proper care for books …”(from a report on an institution).

Almost invariably, reports ended with a summary of the main

points before appropriate recommendations were made: “The teacher

performed well in classroom appearance, scheme plans and

mathematics written work. She was advised to improve on quality and

quantity of media on display, volume and quality of written work in

all other subjects and keeping progress records (from report on a

teacher). Reports on heads in particular had, as part of their format,





277

a section on noteworthy achievements before the summary and

recommendations. This always ensures that some positive elements

are captured in the report.

In general, recommendations to reportees were feasible as they

were based on observations made. For example, recommendations

made to the TIC involved, among others, the need to complete

scheming in one subject, the need to enrich the media column of the

scheme of work and the need to give pupils more practice in sentence

construction and mental mathematics. Those made in one head’s

report, i.e. to introduce more co-curricular activities and to step up

supervision of teachers, were also considered to be within the

capacity of the reportee to implement. However, there were some

which were slightly vague or outside the reportee’s authority, e.g. the

head should construct more teachers’ houses (it requires more than

just the head), the head should take a serious view of education with

production (rather vague).

It was pleasing to note that some supervisors had gone beyond

the stage of making recommendations like a ‘wish list’. They stated

what should be done, by whom and, in some cases, within what time-

frame. For instance: “through this report, the headmaster is advised

to report the teacher’s progress within four months” (from report on a

teacher). Another example is that of a recommendation where the

supervisor set himself a target date for a follow-up visit to check on

recommendations.

The features mentioned above should not be taken to suggest that

supervisors in Kwekwe district had become perfectionists. Rather,

they serve to highlight some positive trends observed in their reports.

They seem to have succeeded in moving from a position where a

report is a chronicle of faults and criticisms, to one where the report,

while stressing what needs to be corrected, gives credit for what has





278

been done well. In this respect, it serves both as an instrument to

motivate, while encouraging the professional development of the

reportees.


Follow-up

When reports have been sent to schools, the question of follow-

up becomes important, not only to check on implementation, but also

to assist reportees in implementing recommendations. Questions

were asked first about the regularity of follow-up and how satisfied

both supervisors and heads were in this respect. Of the six

supervisors, two indicated that they made regular follow-up on their

recommendations with heads and teachers. The remaining four either

never made any follow-up (1) or did so irregularly (3). They cited

shortage of transport and travelling and subsistence funds as the

cause. This was corroborated by 75 per cent of the heads, who

indicated that supervisors did not undertake regular follow-up to

schools and cited the cause of this as: “supervisors were too few to

cover all schools and, of course, shortage of transport”. Four of the six

external supervisors indicated that they were not satisfied with the

follow-up by the school, but five said that they were quite happy with

what was done at administrative levels. The heads (58 per cent) on

the other hand, indicated that they were in general satisfied with the

level of follow-up. On further analysis, it emerged that those who

were satisfied were urban and some peri-urban heads. Rural school

heads were dissatisfied with the level of follow-up made by

supervisors. Heads were particularly concerned with the fact that

supervisors were not systematic in their follow-up. Some heads

indicated: “when they come they rarely find out if anything was done

about their recommendations”. Another head responded:





279

“recommendations made by one supervisor were completely ignored

by the next one because they take too long to make follow-ups”.

According to the heads, follow-up seemed to receive more

attention at school level. All heads indicated that they discussed

supervision reports with all their teachers in a staff meeting and

developed action plans on how recommendations would be

implemented. However, recommendations pertaining to individual

teachers were discussed only with the teachers concerned.

Supervision reports relating to provision of facilities in schools and

their funding were discussed further with school development

committees and responsible authorities.

Given the various issues and problems highlighted above, could

supervision be said to have any impact on schools? The views of both

supervisors and heads were sought on this issue. Of the six

supervisors, three believed supervision to have a ‘very strong’ impact,

one thought impact was ‘strong’ and two ‘fair’. They said their overall

satisfaction was based on the fact that their recommendations were

usually implemented. As a result, administrative and professional

competences of heads and teachers were improving in schools.

Headteachers were asked to rate supervision impact levels on a

six-point scale ranging from negative (1), no impact (2), limited

positive impact (3), fairly positive impact (4), high positive impact

(5) and very high positive impact (6), with reference to different

aspects of school functioning. As shown in Table 29, responses from

heads show that impact was, on average, quite high. The mean rating

of 4.6 lies between fairly positive and high positive.





280

Table 29. Heads’ responses on impact of supervision inschools

Area Mean rating

Urban Peri-urban Rural Allschools schools schools schools

Administration of school 5 . 7 4 . 3 4 . 4 4 . 8

School infrastructure 5 . 0 3 . 3 4 . 0 4 . 1

Availability of teaching 4 . 3 4 . 3 4 . 6 4 . 4and learning materials

Teacher presence 5 . 3 4 . 5 4 . 8 4 . 9

Teacher lesson preparation 6 . 0 4 . 5 5 . 2 5 . 2

Classroom teaching 6 . 0 4 . 3 4 . 2 4 . 8+ Lesson delivery

Student presence 6 . 0 4 . 3 4 . 2 4 . 8

Student performance 4 . 3 4 . 3 3 . 8 4 . 1

Relations with staff 5 . 3 4 . 3 3 . 8 4 . 5

Teacher motivation 5 . 7 4 . 3 3 . 4 4 . 5

Staff development 5 . 7 3 . 8 4 . 6 4 . 7

Development and use of resources 6 . 0 4 . 0 4 . 0 4 . 7

Mean 5 . 4 4 . 2 4 . 3 4 . 6

When rated by school location, urban schools rated the impact

higher, at 5.4, than peri-urban and rural school heads, 4.2 and 4.3,

respectively. The mean ratings also show that the greatest impact was

felt in the areas of teacher lesson preparation, teacher and student

presence and administration. The least impact, on the other hand,

was felt in the areas of school infrastructure and student performance.

Supervisors expressed the view that improvement in transport

supplies, availability of funds, staff development for both teachers

and heads and reduction of their workload could increase the impact

of supervision in schools.





281

In discussions with supervisors, heads of school and teachers, it

was clear that supervision visits were irregular. Did this affect relations

between supervisors and schools? Both supervisors and heads

indicated that this was not the case, because both parties were aware

that transport problems affected the regularity of supervision visits

to schools. One head felt strongly, though, that schools needed to be

visited more often to create better professional working relations.

As part of impact assessment, the heads were asked to identify the

type of visits and activities that they felt were most useful. Teacher

supervision was rated as the most useful, followed by full and

institutional inspections. Courtesy visits were also considered as

important, because they were less threatening and allowed a free

exchange of views and ideas.

On activities during supervision visits, post-supervision meetings

were considered the most useful because these afforded staff the

opportunity to share ideas and discuss their views openly with

supervisors. It was further indicated that these meetings enhanced

dialogue and discussion which facilitated an accurate assessment of

the school’s strengths and weaknesses.

A majority of heads of school (58 per cent) felt that time devoted

to each of the activities was inadequate, especially in rural schools.

This was, perhaps, a result of the fact that travelling to rural schools

took time, leaving very little time to spare for school supervision.

The view was corroborated by teachers who were interviewed in

one of the rural schools.

Use of reports

The production of reports is not an end in itself. These reports

are meant for use by various levels and actors in the Ministry to





282

improve the performance of the system, through spreading good

practice or by following up on poor performance. It is primarily for

these reasons that each report ends with recommendations which, if

implemented, should see improvement in the identified areas. The

critical question to ask is: how were reports being used by the

Ministry in general and by Kwekwe district in particular?

In Zimbabwe, reports are not published. Instead, the report is

expected to be most useful to the reportee to consolidate strengths

and improve on the identified weaknesses. Other recipients, like

heads, are expected to play a supportive role in assisting the reportees

in this regard. At times, however, the report could well have a

demotivating effect, especially if it dwells only on weaknesses. The

opposite could be true, where a glowing report could make the

reportee sit back and assume that all was well. In Kwekwe district,

the reports were found to be generally balanced in the sense that

they highlighted both strengths and weaknesses and subsequently

made recommendations.

The reports on schools and teachers should be filed at four levels:

at school, district office, regional office and head office. The reports

make a telling permanent record of the reportee and should be

available for consultation as and when necessary. The reports should

be filed and stored in cabinets or shelves in registries at each level.

Schools in Kwekwe generally had copies of reports. The district

office, although it should file copies, generally did not have any. It is

true that the relevant official circular (No. 14 of 1988) does not include

the district office in the distribution list. Perhaps this calls for the

revision of the circular, as this undermined efforts of supervisors

when they wanted to make follow-ups on previous reportee

recommendations. Without these reports, supervisors had nothing

to go by when visiting schools.





283

The Ministry makes use of the reports at various levels. At the

school level, the head uses the report to identify staff development

needs, mainly based on the recommendations made by the supervisor,

and to monitor the teachers’ progress. At central and regional levels,

the report is used for monitoring, correction and promotional

purposes. It is the duty of the Standards Control Units at these two

levels to scrutinize the reports and identify weaknesses in curriculum

delivery. Interventions in the form of staff development are then

instituted. Where good practice exists, this is disseminated to all

regions, districts and schools for consideration and adoption.

Supervision reports can therefore have wide implications on the

education system. They have a bearing on allocation of resources to

schools and within schools. At the school level, a report could

influence the reallocation of classes among teachers. In discussions

with supervisors, it emerged that teachers were redeployed from one

school to another on the basis of recommendations made in the

reports (for instance where there was a concentration of untrained

teachers in one school). At national level, reports have been used to

obtain external assistance from funding agencies when the plight of

some schools had been highlighted in the reports. As a result, some

schools have benefited from donor-funded teachers’ houses,

classrooms and textbooks. Supervision reports are also used as a

sensing mechanism of what goes on in teacher-training colleges.

Should deficiencies be found in the newly qualified teachers, head

offices of the two Ministries liaise to take corrective action on the

basis of the reports.

Promotion prospects of teachers depend on good performance.

At times the supervisor’s report happens to be the only independent

testimony of such performance outside the school. In Zimbabwe

appeal procedures exist in cases of unfavourable reports either on





284

performance or misconduct as laid down by the employer (the Public

Service Commission) in the Public Service (General) Regulations. In

cases of dissatisfaction, teachers can appeal directly to the employer

provided all other channels of communication have been exhausted.

These are that, if a complaint is directed against a head, the teacher

writes a letter to the DEO/EO stating areas of dissatisfaction. The letter

should be acknowledged by the head before posting. On receipt of

the letter at district level, supervisors would investigate the matter

and try to reach an amicable solution. Should this fail, the matter will

be referred to the DRD/RD who will also try to resolve the matter.

Should this also fail, the matter will be referred to head office and,

ultimately, to the employer. Appeal and disagreements over reports

have been rare. It has often been argued that this is because these

reports have a professional character. However, the bureaucratic

nature of the appeal process may also be discouraging to genuine

cases of grievance.




285


This final part focuses on the critical issues of impact, problems

and emerging trends. It is based on the views and perceptions of the

external supervisors, heads of school and teachers in Kwekwe district

and on the more general information collected in the country as a

whole.


In Zimbabwe, like in many other countries, supervision has

evolved from its traditional thrust of policing and enforcing rules

and regulations to that of advising, guiding, information dissemination

and stimulation. Its targets include schools and those who operate

within them, the ultimate objective being to influence what goes on

in the schools so as to improve the quality of education. We will first

pose the question: to what extent are supervision and support

services having an impact on what goes on in the schools in Kwekwe

district? An evaluation of the level of impact was based on comments

obtained from interviewed supervisors, school heads and teachers

in that district. A number of more general remarks on the impact of

supervision will conclude this section.

The Kwekwe supervisors expressed the view that they were

having an impact on the functioning of schools. During their visits,

they identified needs of schools and teachers, incorporated these in

the form of recommendations in their reports, and disseminated them

to various interested parties. They indicated that they were pleased

with responses to their recommendations, especially with school

heads, who were always willing to implement them. As a result, heads

in the district were reported to have improved the administration of

their schools. The same reports were also ‘creating’ vital information





286

and making it available to other users who, in their various ways,

influenced the development of schools.

In spite of these positive perceptions, external supervisors

consistently complained of various constraints that inhibited their

work. Transport was one of them and workload another. They spent

more time on what they considered less important tasks (e.g. attending

meetings) at the expense of their most important tasks (e.g. supervising

schools and in-servicing teachers and heads). Given these sentiments,

their perception of impact must be viewed with caution. Among

strategies to improve their approach, supervisors suggested the

provision of adequate transport and allowances as well as rationalizing

their workload.

The opinion of heads of school regarding impact was on the whole

‘highly positive’, but somewhat more mitigated than that of

supervisors. They identified the areas where the greatest impact was

felt as school administration, teacher presence, teacher lesson

preparation and delivery and student presence (See Table 29). The

heads, however, felt that current visits were inadequate, hence,

provision of more resources would further enhance the functions of

supervisors. There was also a feeling, among urban heads, that daily

functioning of schools could only be improved if some supervisory

functions were devolved to the school level. In other words, some

urban heads were suggesting that they should be given the

responsibility to supervise the teachers in their own schools.

Interviewed teachers expressed sentiments that varied by school

location. All nonetheless agreed that supervision visits were too

infrequent: most indeed are only visited once in a while. This is

especially disturbing in rural schools, since these have more recently

appointed and untrained teachers. The low frequency of visits also

tended to affect promotional prospects, since these depended, to a





287

large extent, on external reports. In the event of partial assessment

of teachers by heads, supervisors’ intervention as mediator was also

needed. In terms of frequency of visits, therefore, the peri-urban and

urban teacher benefited more than the rural teacher and the impact

of supervision was accordingly greater.

One aspect that both heads and teachers appreciated was the post-

supervision conference, when reports were discussed between the

supervisor and heads and teachers. This gave some of them an

opportunity to engage in a serious two-way dialogue with external

supervisors, which was viewed as the best strategy to improve

teaching and learning in schools. Teachers in rural schools expressed

a reservation that this was ineffective as long as the majority of

teachers had not been visited by supervisors. They felt that only

would then any critique towards improvement make sense.

Another issue to consider in assessing impact is that of norms to

be set for supervisors on the number of schools and teachers they

are expected to visit within a certain period. At the moment

supervisors visit schools without any official guidelines, following

only their individual plans. Norms existed before the massive

expansion in educational provision at independence. But because of

this expansion, norms (that each school should be visited three times

a year and each teacher supervised on each school visit) seem to have

been forgotten about. Even documentary evidence to that effect also

seems to have vanished. The Ministry should seriously consider

resuscitating and reformulating pertinent norms to guide officers in

planning and assessing their own work. The Ministry needs also to

be more clear as to the number of teachers that should be allocated

to each supervisor. In Kwekwe district, one supervisor is in charge

of 266 teachers in rural areas and another of 455 teachers in urban

centres. One could say that the differences are compensated for by





288

the fact that the rural supervisor travels long distances to schools as

compared to the urban supervisor. However, one cannot expect that

a supervisor can visit and make reports on all these teachers within a

year. Considering the high expectations of teachers, this ratio must

be reduced, maybe through putting in place a policy that the

supervision of teachers will be decentralized to heads of school.

Looking at Zimbabwe as a whole, the study identified several ways

in which supervision and support services are having an impact on

school functioning and the quality of teaching. The following are

some of these aspects:

(a) Identification of the needs of schools: Supervision visits have

resulted in the identification of specific needs in the schools.

The supervisors compile reports and make recommendations

that have sensitized both the Ministry and the donor community.

In response, new/special schools in disadvantaged areas have

been opened and existing schools have been assisted with the

provision of classrooms, teachers’ accommodation, sanitation

facilities and the supply and distribution of teaching and learning

equipment and materials. Analysis of, and reporting on, the

staff situation in schools by supervisors has resulted in improved

deployment and better teacher utilization.

(b) Community involvement in the running of schools: Reports

compiled by supervisors on schools include how they relate to

their communities. On the basis of such reports, courses have

been organized for heads of school, for School Development

Committees (SDCs) and School Development Associations

(SDAs) to advise them on how to cultivate and nurture

community participation. SDCs and SDAs have since emerged as

key players and partners in school development.





289

(c) Advising schools on Ministry regulations: Supervisors conduct

courses to advise heads and teachers on their conditions of

service and Public Service (Disciplinary) Regulations. Such

workshops also serve to inform the participants on various

developments in the education sector and on the provisions of

current circulars.

(d) Improved school management: Supervisors advise heads on

various aspects of school management and administration. These

include mission statements, office organization, filing, record-

keeping, public relations, etc. In-service workshops are also

organized to address identified needs in these areas at cluster

or district levels. It is also at such fora that the good practices

seen in some schools are disseminated by the supervisors. As a

result, heads of school have reported improved school

attendance by both teachers and pupils, with more staff

commitment and better examination results.

(e) Government/Ministry support to schools: The Ministry pays all

registered schools per-capita grants for the purchase of teaching

materials. These are based on the enrolment data provided by

heads through the regional offices. The Ministry also pays

building grants-in-aid to non-government secondary schools

for the construction of classrooms, workshops, laboratories,

libraries and toilet facilities. Their disbursement is based on

recommendations contained in the reports compiled by

supervisors in general and the education officer (Buildings) in

particular.

(f) Specific school and teaching improvement initiatives: In-service

workshops on lesson preparation and planning, classroom

management assessment and evaluation and maintenance of

records for both trained and untrained teachers have become





290

an ongoing strategy by supervisors to improve pedagogical

practices. Provision of specifications of different types of

buildings and advice on the maintenance of school buildings

and school grounds has resulted in a more conducive

pedagogical and physical environment in schools.


The fact that supervisors and school staff assess supervision as

having a positive impact on schools, does not imply that no problems

are experienced. At a general level and in Kwekwe district, the general

opinion was that more could have been achieved were it not for a

number of factors that have impacted and continue to impact

negatively on the system. A distinction can be made between four

areas: structure and organization of the service; management issues;

the working conditions; and, finally, the daily operation, in particular

the attitudes of supervisors.

Structural and organisational problems

• Centralization by Ministry

Although government preaches decentralization as a policy, some

critical areas, such as finances, remain centrally controlled. In

Kwekwe, most funds to facilitate the running of the district office

were kept and accounted for at regional level, except those for use

of telephones and vehicle hire. Because district offices were not in

control of their budget, funds could be exhausted without their

knowledge, which made planning difficult. It would be better that

district offices be accountable for all their funds. Regions are not in

a much better position. While they seem to control their own funds,

vote allocations are centrally controlled through the Central Payments

Office (CPO), which eventually releases cheques as required by





291

districts or regional offices. While this can be regarded as a budgetary

control measure, it causes delays, including in the payment of

travelling and subsistence advances, and thus undermines the

operations of supervisors. If the decentralization policy is to work

effectively, this situation needs to be changed.

• Marginalization of communities

In Kwekwe district, communities are only involved in the physical

development of schools. Supervisors rarely met communities when

visiting schools, a situation that can be regarded as retrogressive to

the development of schools. Supervision reports were not made

available to communities. Perhaps, it is now high time communities

were given prominence in both administrative and professional

issues. This may ensure transparency in the way schools are run, may

ensure a sense of ownership of schools amongst local communities

and could, to some extent, help in lightening the workload of

supervisors.

• Absence of clear norms

The lack of supervision norms – relating to the numbers of schools

and teachers per supervisor or the frequency of visits – seems to have

contributed to creating more disparities between schools. There is a

need for the Ministry to establish basic supervision norms for

supervisors, which will allow for an easier assessment of their

performance. This will ensure that supervisors work to targets and

that schools benefit optimally from such services.

Management related problems

• Recruitment

The hierarchy for primary supervisors is well defined and does

not present problems of accountability. However, at the secondary





292

level, the EO and heads of large schools occupy posts which fall within

the same grade. As a result, some heads do not accept advice from

EOs. Another problem is that, due mainly to bureaucratic delays, some

posts lie vacant for long periods, especially for secondary-school EOs.

This sometimes forces other officers to cover two different subjects,

undermining their effectiveness and compromising quality in some

subject areas. A third problem concerns the scarcity of women

supervisors. Females tend not to apply for this post. They feel that

the distances to be travelled are too long and absence from the family

would be too prolonged.

• Induction training

Specialized training in supervision does not exist. This in effect

restricts recruitment to officers of a certain level of experience and

therefore of a certain age. There are no opportunities for young

teachers who demonstrate relevant potential. In Kwekwe district,

for instance, the majority of officers had not undertaken any induction

course that would fully prepare them for their role as supervisor.

However, all had been attached to experienced officers for the first

few weeks in their job. This is not a bad system, but is insufficient: it

appears to be some sort of ‘fire fighting’ to enable officers to be

functional, rather than to give them a thorough grounding in their

expected functions.

• Support

Most supervisors need to be periodically updated on current

innovations in content and pedagogy which the young teachers may

have been exposed to in their training. This is to avoid conflict

between the application of the old and the new methodologies.

Current in-service provision is inadequate and, where it is undertaken,

does not fully cover these trends. This leaves supervisors starved of

much-needed information in this area.





293

Some assistance can be obtained from the reporting formats for

use during inspection. But another predicament appears: regional

offices have demanded that reports be written in long narrative form

to capture detail. This has made supervisors’ reporting tasks more

arduous and more time-consuming and does not seem to give them

the necessary flexibility. An offshoot of this are lengthy delays in

providing feedback to reportees.

• Monitoring and evaluation

Field monitoring of supervision and support service officers is

lacking in Zimbabwe. The analysis of work plans and reports, as well

as performance of schools under their charge, remain the only key

measures of the performance of supervisors. This is not adequate. It

is envisaged that monitoring and evaluation will be facilitated by the

introduction of the new performance appraisal system as this will

require discussion and agreement over work plans as well as their

implementation.

• Career development

‘Supervision and support’ is not regarded as a career in its own

right and no efforts to transform it into that direction are evident.

Career opportunities are scarce: DEOs and EOs can aspire to the jobs

of DRD (only 18 posts at present) and RD (only nine posts at present).

The road to those heights is often bumpy and unenviable for most

officers in the supervisory grade of DEO and EO.

Working conditions

Several aspects need to be discussed here, most of which are

related to a scarcity of resources and a scarcity of personnel. The lack

of resources leads to serious difficulties with transport, a crucial

problem.





294

• Transport

The problem of transport shortage for supervisors seems to have

come to stay. Some teachers are known to have gone for close to a

decade before being visited by a supervisor, even in schools that are

accessible. Report after report by successive Secretaries for Education

have lamented the shortage of transport. As an example, the Annual

Report of the Secretary for Education (1994:10) noted that: “in districts

where vehicles were not available, low levels of supervision were

experienced” or “Education officers did a sterling job in the

supervision of schools despite the lack of transport.” In Kwekwe

district, the unavailability of transport was by far the biggest problem

that affected the quality and frequency of supervision services. From

discussions and questionnaires completed by the supervisors, it

emerged clearly that while the officers were motivated to visit their

schools, this was thwarted by lack of transport. This forced officers

to even travel with booksellers, a situation that tended to compromise

professional standards. Firstly, travelling with one supplier means that

heads of school should buy educational resources from that supplier.

Secondly, should a supervisor want to spend more time in one school

than the other, this is likely to be at variance with the interests of the

supplier, who may want to sell books to as many schools as possible

by the end of the day. This forces supervisors to cut short their visits

to needy schools. The lack of transport also hinders the

implementation of follow-up visits.

• Travelling and subsistence allowances

Financial constraints in school supervision have been a feature of

every annual report to the Ministry. Supervisors complained that

travel and subsistence allowances were insufficient and also that there

were delays in processing advances and reimbursements. This has

impacted negatively on the commitment of the supervisory staff.





295

• Workload

The workload of officers in the supervision and support services

is too heavy. There are two aspects to this. Supervisors are expected

to perform too many different activities, such that, in Kwekwe for

example, about 28 per cent of their time was spent on office work

rather than supervising teachers. Obviously, it cannot be expected

that supervisors would be fully free from performing some

administrative tasks or attending meetings. District supervisors are

arms of development for the Ministry and, as officers at the point of

service delivery, attending meetings cannot be avoided altogether.

But the Ministry needs therefore to streamline the functions of

supervisors to avoid role conflict. The seond aspect of the overload

of work concerns the numbers of schools and teachers under one

supervisor (300 on average). This has made it impossible for

supervisors to visit all teachers within, say, a year.

• Salaries

This was felt to be an issue in the Kwekwe district. The majority

indicated that salaries paid to them were far below the cost of living

and were lagging behind those paid to workers in the private sector.

• Office accommodation and secretariat

While office accommodation is generally adequate at regional

offices, several district offices do not have these facilities and have

to rely on rented offices or operate from regional offices. The result

is that some officers live far away from their place of work and from

their schools. In Kwekwe district, the problem was not so much one

of office accommodation, but of the absence of requisite equipment

in these offices. Such equipment includes computers, photocopiers

and filing cabinets. Their provision would facilitate speedy processing





296

of reports, as well as provide secure storage of important documents.

In addition – and this is a general problem – both human and material

resources within the clerical service departments are inadequate. The

main effect of this is that of lengthy delays in the processing of reports

and in feedback. Cases of reports reaching intended reportees a year

or more after the date of supervision have been acknowledged, by

which time they will have lost their effect.

Daily operation

• Unfavourable supervisors’ attitudes

These seem to emanate from the fact that supervisors feel that

the recommendations they make after school visits are being ignored

or not prioritized by senior Ministry officials. Moreover, the

recommendations made to schools are sometimes not being

implemented by the schools themselves, either due to shortage of

tutorial materials and equipment for both teachers and pupils, or

heavy teaching loads for heads and heads of department. Also, some

Ministry policies undermine supervisors’ work. One example is the

policy of ‘free education’, which makes it difficult to persuade parents

to contribute towards infrastructural development in schools.

3. Present trends and innovations

The problems encountered in the provision of supervision and

support services have awakened both policy planners and supervisors

to new realities. This section focuses on current attempts to rise to

the pertinent challenges as presented by these problems.

• Devolution of supervision to the local level

Clusters

Under the Better Schools Programme of Zimbabwe, clusters of

schools have been formed throughout the whole country, with the





297

aim of strengthening local capacities for in-servicing teachers,

carrying out instructional supervision in schools, as well as sharing

expertise and resources. In Kwekwe district, for instance, there were

altogether 21 clusters. These are linked to the main district resource

centre, which has been provided with a library and typing equipment

through combined community, donor and government efforts. This

programme has been received with enthusiasm. Both the schools and

the district office see it as having potential to improve the quality of

education in the district.

At the same time, the introduction of ‘Home EOs’ in secondary

schools who are expected to assume a fatherly position with their

schools and serve as the first port of call for teachers and heads in a

district, has brought supervision closer to the school level.

School autonomy and in-school supervision

This trend is gradually taking root in Zimbabwe and has the full

backing and support of the Ministry. Each school has a board

composed of members of the administration and teacher

representatives. Not only does this board supervise, assist and advise

teachers on a day-to-day basis, but it also assesses and recommends

them for salary advancements and/or promotion. In Kwekwe district,

the impact of such boards was felt most in urban schools, where there

was less mobility and hence better retention of experienced heads.

In-school supervision also involved School Development

Committees on aspects such as construction projects, maintenance

of infrastructure and dealing with ‘difficult’ parents. Each school in

Kwekwe had such a functional committee whose efforts had resulted

in improvements in school infrastructure and school-community

relations.





298

To strengthen headteacher capacities, a Programme for School

Heads in Africa has prepared seven modules to serve as resource

materials for school heads within what has become popularly known

as the Better Schools Programme. The programme is supported by

Ministries of Education in Africa, the Commonwealth Secretariat,

UNESCO and the Netherlands Embassy in Zimbabwe. The modules

cover, among other things, core elements of supervision aimed at

improving management and professional skills of heads.

• Changing role of supervisor

The supervisor’s role in Zimbabwe has been redefined. The

supervisor is seen as the adviser and confidant rather than an

inspector. The supervisor does not charge teachers any more in cases

of misconduct. That function has been left to one of the external

support service officers (EO Professional Administration and

Services). As a result, relations between supervisors and heads and

teachers were reported to be cordial. There is also more emphasis

on clinical supervision rather than traditional inspection.

• Openness and transparency

Linked to the above change, is a trend towards more openness

and transparency. This has the full backing of the Ministry, which has

taken the lead through its promotion procedures, where vacant posts

are advertised nationally and suitable applicants are invited to apply.

The Ministry also convenes a promotions committee that involves all

regional directors to interview short-listed candidates and the most

senior, effective and good performers are recommended for

consideration by the Public Service Commission. This system of

promotion ensures that the most suitable candidates are promoted,

while motivating those that do not perform well, to do so. The list of

those that are finally promoted is also advertised nationally. With the





299

restructuring of the Ministry, regional posts will be advertised

nationally, but individual regions will interview the applicants. This

strategy is seen as bringing the responsibility for appointment and

promotion closer to the point of service delivery, that is, the schools.

There is also a gradual departure from unannounced visits to pre-

informed visits. In Kwekwe district, the intention was to be open

and transparent by ensuring that visits to schools were announced.

However, these appear to remain only intentions as, in practice, they

have not been easy to implement due to a variety of constraints. The

trend is more evident in the fact that supervisors have adopted post-

supervision conferences as a strategy. They have become more of the

norm rather than the exception and have been well received by all

heads and teachers in the district. The expectation is that these

measures will dispel the suspicion with which many supervisors had

been viewed.

• Whole school supervision concept

There is an increased emphasis on whole school supervision rather

than individual teacher supervision. Some of the activities in line with

this trend involve staff from Standard Control Unit at head office,

who visit sampled schools within a region so as to get first-hand

information on curriculum implementation and innovation,

management, relations and developmental programmes. On the basis

of their findings, strong recommendations are sent to the regional

director for consideration and probable action.

• Training

Attempts are made to improve the preparation and updating of

supervisors. Course materials have been finalized for external

supervisors through co-operation amongst the Southern African





300

Development Community (SADC) states and the Commonwealth

Secretariat. The course materials serve as a staff-development base

for external supervisors in understanding their roles and functions

towards schools.




301

CONCLUSION

This study of external supervision and support services has revealed

a number of lessons from which the Ministry of Education can learn,

in its quest for enhancing the quality of education.

What emerges is that the services are manned by officers who are

well qualified and experienced both academically and professionally.

However, qualifications alone are not enough to guarantee efficiency

and effectiveness. Related training in the form of induction and in-

service, which were glaringly lacking in, for instance, Kwekwe, are

needed. The Ministry needs to address this.

A variety of problems, that included lack of means to visit schools,

poor working conditions and heavy workloads, emerged as

characterizing supervision and support services. These resulted in

less visits to schools, especially rural schools where, regrettably, such

services were needed most. This situation does not augur well for

the motivation and effectiveness of supervisors. During discussions

with supervisors, there were even growing fears among them that

the much talked about rationalization of the public service, in general,

and the Ministry of Education, Sport and Culture, in particular, might

result in a reduction in the number of supervisors. However, it was

hoped that the Commission of Enquiry into Education and Training

would address, among other issues, supervision-related problems.

On a more positive note, it was observed that external supervisory

services were still considered necessary and useful by heads and

teachers, in spite of sentiments expressed on the need to empower

heads to do more supervision. This gives the impression that the

external supervisor is still held in high esteem as a source of new

ideas and arbitrator in situations of conflict.





302

Other positive trends noted were the need to mobilize local

resources and the need for more openness and transparency. These,

coupled with the need to improve working conditions of supervisors,

can only help to improve education delivery in the schools.




303

APPENDIX I. DATA ON INTERVIEWED SCHOOL STAFF INKWEKWE DISTRICT

Data on heads of School

Head Gender Age Experience as: Qualifications

Head Head Teacher Other Academic Professional(in school)

1 M 56 12 11 12 ‘O’ level CE

2 M 41 14 3 6 ‘O’ level CE

3 M 50 22 16 8 ‘O’ level T3

4 F 50 2 2 26 ‘O’ level DE

5 M 49 13 10 12 ‘A’ level BED

6 F 44 1 1 21 ‘O’ level T3

7 M 44 13 3 8 ‘A’ level CE

8 M 54 14 7 13 ‘O’ level DE

9 M 58 20 10 18 ‘O’ level CE

10 M 54 26 6 32 ‘O’ level CE

11 F 42 2 1 18 1(TIC) ‘O’ level CE

12 M 33 6 1 7 ‘O’ level CE

Mean 47.9 12.1 5.9 15.1





304

Data on teachers

Gender Age Experience

Category Number Years Number Years Number

Male 17 21-25 1 1-5 1526-30 8 6-10 831-35 13 11-15 636-40 6 16-20 1

Female 18 41-45 1 21-25 246-50 2 26-30 051-55 2 31-35 356-60 2 36-40 0

Total 35 35 35

Academic qualifications Professional qualifications

Qualification Number Number Qualification Number Numberfemale female

Standard 6 5 1 PTL 5 1

ZJC 0 0 T3 1 0

Grade 11 2 2 CE 13 7

‘O’ level 28 15 D E 15 10

‘A’ level 0 0 B. Ed. 1 0

Total 35 18 Total 35 18




IIEP publications and documents

More than 1,200 titles on all aspects of educational planning havebeen published by the International Institute for EducationalPlanning. A comprehensive catalogue is available in the followingsubject categories:

Educational planning and global issues

General studies – global/developmental issues

Administration and management of education

Decentralization – participation – distance education – school mapping – teachers

Economics of education

Costs and financing – employment – international co-operation

Quality of education

Evaluation – innovation – supervision

Different levels of formal education

Primary to higher education

Alternative strategies for education

Lifelong education – non-formal education – disadvantaged groups – gender education

Copies of the Catalogue may be obtained on request from: IIEP, Dissemination of Publications

[email protected] of new publications and abstracts may be consulted at the

following website: http://www.unesco.org/iiep









The International Institute for Educational Planning

The International Institute for Educational Planning (IIEP) is aninternational centre for advanced training and research in the field ofeducational planning. It was established by UNESCO in 1963 and is financedby UNESCO and by voluntary contributions from Member States. In recentyears the following Member States have provided voluntary contributions tothe Institute: Denmark, Finland, Germany, Iceland, India, Ireland, Norway,Sweden and Switzerland.

The Institute’s aim is to contribute to the development of educationthroughout the world, by expanding both knowledge and the supply ofcompetent professionals in the field of educational planning. In this endeavourthe Institute co-operates with interested training and research organizationsin Member States. The Governing Board of the IIEP, which approves theInstitute’s programme and budget, consists of a maximum of eight electedmembers and four members designated by the United Nations Organizationand certain of its specialized agencies and institutes.

Chairperson:Dato’Asiah bt. Abu Samah (Malaysia)

Director, Lang Education, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Designated Members:

Torkel Alfthan

Head, Training Policy and Employability Unit, Skills DevelopmentDepartment, International Labour Office (ILO) Geneva, Switzerland.

Eduardo A. DoryanVice-President, Human Development Network (HDN), The World Bank,Washington D.C., USA.

Carlos FortínDeputy Secretary-General, United Nations Conference on Trade andDevelopment (UNCTAD), Geneva, Switzerland.

Edgar OrtegónDirector, Projects and Investment Programming Division, Latin Americanand Caribbean Institute for Economic and Social Planning (ILPES), Santiago,Chile.

Elected Members:José Joaquín Brunner (Chile)

Director Education Programme, Fundación Chile, Santiago, Chile.Klaus Hüfner (Germany)

Professor, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany.Faïza Kefi (Tunisia)

Minister of Vocational Training and Employment, Tunis, Tunisia.Teboho Moja (South Africa)

Professor of Higher Education, New York University, New York, USA.Teiichi Sato (Japan)

Special Adviser to the Minister of Education, Science, Sports and Culture,Tokyo, Japan.

Tuomas Takala (Finland)Professor, Department of Education, University of Tampere, Tampere,Finland.

Michel Vernières (France)Professor, Laboratoire d’économie sociale, University of Paris I, Paris,France.

Inquiries about the Institute should be addressed to:The Office of the Director, International Institute for Educational Planning,

7-9 rue Eugène-Delacroix, 75116 Paris, France.



Documents

School supervision in four African countriesunesdoc.unesco.org/images/0012/001248/124823e.pdf · School supervision in four African countries: ... The actual operation of supervision