Teaching with Heart and Soul: The Missing Link among Lower Public School Teachers in Tanzania

Abstract

This study explores the extent to which teachers in public primary and secondary schools are motivated as well as satisfied with the teaching profession as a critical factor for improving students’ performance and positive learning outcomes. The participants of this study were 178 primary and 126 secondary school teachers from 12 randomly selected regions in Tanzania. A self-reported questionnaire to assess motivation and job satisfaction was filled in by a random sample of 163 female and 104 male teachers. The response rate was 87 percent.
Findings from the study indicated that 59 percent of teachers, about 70 percent of whom were female, reported being dissatisfied with the teaching profession, while 59.5 percent were unhappy with their status as teachers. Some 59 percent of teachers indicated that they would quit teaching if they had an opportunity to do so. Over two-thirds (69%) of the respondents felt that teachers lacked recognition by society, 72.8 percent reported receiving unsatisfactory financial incentives, while 59.5 percent indicated that teachers were given few professional development opportunities at their place of work. In terms of living and working conditions, the majority of teachers (81% and 79%) were dissatisfied with their living and working environment, respectively. In conclusion, there is low morale and lack of motivation to teach among public lower school teachers, which might impede the government’s Five-Year Development Plan of 2016/17-2020/21 which, among others, aims to improve students’ performance, learning outcomes and
the overall quality of basic education, as well as achieving sustainable livelihoods in line with the Sustainable Development Goals, 2030. The untapped asset is that a large number of teachers (80%) believed it was possible to improve students’ performance and learning outcomes, while 91 percent believed that resolving the issue of teachers’ motivation would improve their performance in school. This requires a participatory approach, such as an open debate with teachers, and a better allocation of resources based on needs to support the provision of allowances for teachers, to increase their salaries and improve their working and living conditions, particularly in rural and hard-to-reach places and areas that are difficult to teach.