Measures for improving teachers’ motivation in technical education field

International Journal of Marketing and Human Resource Management (IJMHRM),

ISSN 0976 – 6421 (Print), ISSN 0976 – 643X (Online), Volume 4, Issue 1, January - April (2013)

40

MEASURES FOR IMPROVING TEACHERS’ MOTIVATION IN

TECHNICAL EDUCATION FIELD

Dr. Amarja Satish Nargunde

Associate Professor, Department of Management Studies at Bharati Vidyapeeth University,

Institute of Management & Rural Development Administration, Sangli Maharashtra India

416416

ABSTRACT

The role of teachers in technical education is quite central and crucial. To be effective

in their task, the technical teachers have to maintain fine balance between their professional

competence and teaching potential. The job of technical teachers is multifarious, 'to guide and

inspire the students, to enrich self-discipline, to foster the area of specialization by keeping

abreast of the latest technologies and changing trends and ultimately, to provide services and

expertise to the industry and community for finding solutions to real life problems'.

The system of technical education has been affected by some crucial issues pertaining

to technical teachers which include: How to create, nurture and retain the inspired cadre of

teachers? How to fill up the present shortage of faculty, and how to face a likely wide gap to

be created because of mass scale retirement of senior teachers? How to provide challenges

thrills and R&D culture for a holistic development of the technical teachers? How to attract

brilliant engineering talent, especially, by motivating them during their student age towards

the teaching profession as one of the challenging careers?

In the following paper, major changes have been proposed regarding the policies

designed for motivating teachers, creating conducive working culture and thereby retaining

genuinely interested and talented teachers for the overall effectiveness in the technical

education field.

SETTING UP HR / ACADEMIC ADMINISTRATION DEPARTMENT

There is HR department in manufacturing, service industry which looks after the

human resources employed in the organization. In educational organizations human resources

are even more important. But most of the occasions most neglected one. So HR or Academic

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Administration department must be set up in technical education institutions which will bring

all the non-teaching staff under it. A new discipline can emerge as “Academic HR” which

would take over all the non teaching work from the teachers so that the teachers would be

able to concentrate on their primary work of teaching and research. Many of the big private

educational groups have already applied this concept. However the researcher has elaborated

the concept in her own way.

• The Head of Department: The head of this department can be called as “Academic

HR Manager” or “Academic Dean”. He would solely be responsible to the work assigned to

his department and should not be involved in teaching in any ways. He should be a person

formally belonging to the technical education field and having a considerable number of

years of experience in academic administration and overall teaching system in technical

education field. He should be a former teacher in technical education field who would get

salary at par with industrial HR Manager. All the non-teaching staff plus 2 or 3 of HR

executives can be made to work under him for his assistance.

VARIOUS DUTIES WHICH CAN BE PERFORMED BY THE DEPARTMENT

• Performance Appraisal-: There is a self-evaluation form prescribed by AICTE as

part of appraisal but no systematic appraisal system is there. This department can formulate

Performance Appraisal system. Appraisal made by –

• Students who have more than 80% of attendance record

• By Head of the Department

• Self Evaluation as per the guidelines of AICTE

Parameters can be set up by each individual institute; broadly based on “Number of

Lectures Taken” as Against the allotted, punctuality, teaching abilities, research and

knowledge. The evaluation can be carried semester wise (as most institutes do have semester

pattern) or annually. Teachers can be awarded various grades. Teachers getting “Excellent”

grade should also be rewarded with monetary benefits or can be selected for “Faculty

Exchange Program” with eminent national or international institute or a chance to visit any

foreign well known institute in the same discipline as the teacher can learn various updated

techniques of teaching or innovative programs carried on by the institute. It would obviously

depend upon the economic ability of the institute. But to give positive reinforcement for the

good performance, the excellent performing teacher must be rewarded with benefits which

are valuable for that teacher. Most of the time rewards of the kind rewards are of the kind

which has no value for the teachers.

Teachers falling miserable short of performance must be firstly counseled by the

Director/Principal, HoD and Academic Administrator. Complete transparency must be

maintained to show the records of performance appraisal to the teacher. To fill the gaps in

case of knowledge, teaching abilities the teacher can be sent to orientation program. But in

case of punctuality and sincerity, first counseling and then reminder can be given to the

concerned teacher.

The department should also carry performance appraisal of various Heads of

Department and Director based on the feedback from the teachers. Problem of poor

interpersonal relations with superiors can be traced in time and the superiors can be made

aware regarding the feedback to rectify the problem.



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• Organizing FDPs: This work too is normally loaded on the shoulders of teachers. But

the Academic department can find out various eminent organizations carrying FDP

programs for teachers and contact them for the sessions. For the knowledge upgradation

atleast 2 good Faculty Development Programs must be arranged which would be

conducted by national level eminent educationists or industrialist. The aim of FDPs

should be to pass on updated knowledge to the teachers. At the end of the FDP a test must

be conducted on the information provided and after passing the test only a certificate of

attendance must issued. This aspect should also be given weightage in performance

appraisal. This will bring a certain sincerity among participants while attending the

program and it will not prove to be just a ritual. The FDPs can also evaluate teacher’s

teaching abilities and can give him/her improvement suggestions.

Apart from it, as being suggested by one of the educationists, Surendran Jose, to

enhance teaching qualities among teachers, teacher training workshops of three to five

days duration can be arranged every year, by a group of colleges in a region. These

workshops should cover topics like classroom, communication, teaching methodologies,

lesson planning, mentoring and coaching, transactional analysis, emotional intelligence,

time management, stress management, class room management & interaction, student

appraisal and micro teaching analysis. All teachers should participate in these workshops

every year. Each teacher could get a chance in every four to five years.

• Preparation of Various Reports: There are various reports a technical education

institute has to prepare and send to various education bodies. The task of making these

reports is normally handed over to the teachers which consumes a huge amount of time

and efforts of teachers. This work too can be done by this proposed department.

• Information Disposal: All the information regarding various national and international

conference, workshops, symposia can be disposed to the concerned department teachers

by this department. Many of the times teachers do not get to know for such opportunities.

All the information will be disposed off from this department.

PROPOSED SYSTEM OF PERFORMANCE EVALUATION FOR TEACHERS

Collecting Feedback from the past students can also be one of the ways to measure

the effectiveness of teachers. Whom these students still remember as good teachers, where

these students have reached in their life as far as their standing in the society is concerned and

whom they give credit for this success can be some of the parameters to measure the

performance. These former students infact will give the feedback without any hesitation and

fear as teachers do not have any nuisance value for them.

Apart from one of this parameters, the other parameters can be:

• Quality of Teaching

• Research Writing

• Innovating Teaching Practices

• Publications of Books

• Research Guidance Given

• Qualification Upgradation



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SKILLED BASED PAY PLAN

In case of teaching profession skill based plan can be applied whereby a teacher

who can teach or has got qualification in diverse areas can be paid more accordingly. It

will also encourage the teachers to get qualified in other areas also. It can help the

institute reduce the dependence on visiting faculty; sometimes it’s difficult to find good

visiting faculties. The same work can be done by “in-house” faculty. Suppose, a

management teacher with HR specialization acquires diploma in Industrial Laws, his

compensation can be increased considering that he can be used for teaching some of the

legal aspects related to subject or may be a Marketing specialists faculty member acquires

a degree in International Business or Economics, payment can be upgraded since he is

more qualified and can fit to teach different subjects. It will encourage teachers to

continue learning and acquiring knowledge process. So apart from paying teachers on the

basis of seniority; skills and knowledge in different areas can be the criteria for

increments. It can also reduce the perceived feeling of inequity as the teacher will

perceive skill and diversified knowledge areas as critical variable in job performance. It

will also make his job more enriched as he will be motivated to learn different subjects

and imparting the knowledge on the same; rather than doing the monotonous job of

dictating notes on the same subjects for years together.

SOME OTHER ECONOMIC MOTIVATIONAL STRATEGIES POINTED OUT

BY THE EDUCATIONISTS

• As pointed by one of educationists, all the teachers should be encouraged to attend

work shops, seminars and conferences regularly by providing economic support.

Expenses for registering and attending a definite number of conferences per year

can be paid by the management.

• Similar support should be provided for availing membership of professional

bodies and academic societies.

• The faculty should be given annual budgets for purchase of books. They would be

free to purchase any book within limits and the cost would be reimbursed when

handed over to college library. Such books should be lent to the faculty for longer

periods.

• Special monitory incentives when a paper is presented at a conference or

published in a journal.

• Facility to carry put sponsored research work without any restriction, with

incentives when a sponsored project is bagged by the teacher.

• Appreciations and rewards for supervising research work successfully.

• Encouraging and promoting faculty members to take up sponsored research work

as well consultancy services would keep the teachers attached to the institution.



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CONCLUSION

No control, no admonishment, reminders, memos, notices can make a teacher

improve his performance. It at times may boom rang; as stifled or too much controlled

environment would make a teacher lose his autonomy in which he would find himself

suffocated. Then the obvious question would arise, how to maintain discipline?. The answer

is teacher only. He/she himself/herself must realize his duties and responsibilities and should

see that there is no harm being made to his image as a “teacher”. This “self-realization”

should come from within, that’s the reason only those who love teaching profession should

enter into it.

References

1. Various Volumes of “University News” Journal

2. E. Raj Kumar and K.Annamalai, “An Investigation on Faculty Development and Retention

in Technical Education” International Journal of Management (IJM), Volume 2, Issue 1,

2011, pp. 117 - 125, ISSN Print: 0976-6502, ISSN Online: 0976-6510

3. Dr.Amarja Satish Nargunde, “Application Of Various Motivators To Teaching

Profession’” International Journal of Advanced Research in Management (IJARM), Volume

4, Issue 1, 2013, pp. 11 – 15.

4. Dr.Amarja Satish Nargunde, “Aspects Of Teacher Turnover (With Special Reference To

Technical Education)’” International Journal of Advanced Research in Management

(IJARM), Volume 4, Issue 1, 2013, pp. 45 - 55.

Documents

Measures for improving teachers’ motivation in technical education field