Teacher Motivation in Low-Income Contexts An Actionable
Framework for Reform Emily E Richardson Co-Chair of the Teacher
Motivation Working Group
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Presentation Agenda 1.Introduction & Background 2.The Study
3.Review of the literature 4.Findings & Analysis
5.Recommendations 6.Q&A
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Introduction There is growing concern that teachers in low-
income contexts are increasingly de-motivated (Bennell &
Mukyanuzi 2005) Teaching profession has become characterized by
absenteeism, high attrition, turnover and teacher shortages in many
low-income countries
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Rationale for the Study Teachers motivations matter both in the
short and longer-term, not only for their own well- being and
career satisfaction, but also for how they relate to and interact
with students, and their teaching effectiveness (Richardson et al.,
2014, p. xv). What personal and contextual factors sustain teacher
commitment, interest and enthusiasm?
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Goals of the Study 1.To map the literature on teacher
motivation across a variety of contexts 2.To identify trends in
teacher motivation around the world 3.To obtain insight from key
experts- researchers and practitioners- in the field of (teacher)
education 4.To develop actionable recommendations
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The Literature on Teacher Motivation WHY IS THE RESEARCH SO
LIMITED? 1.Difficult to define and measure o Commitment,
satisfaction, morale & attitudes o Subjective; not easily
observable 2.Small-scale qualitative studies o Ethnographies o Very
few studies of beginning teachers
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Definitions & Theories There is no universally agreed upon
definition of teacher motivation. Some of the theories: Maslows
hierarchy of needs Extrinsic vs. intrinsic vs. altruistic
motivation Principal-agent theory TMWG defines teacher motivation
as the internal and external factors that stimulate desire and
energy in teaching to be continually interested and committed to
making their best effort to help support student learning
goals
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Trends in Teacher Motivation Teacher motivation, in general, is
low and/or decreasing in low-income contexts In some countries,
teacher motivation is not as critically low as predicted In a study
of 11 Save the Children country offices, staff reported that the
majority of permanent public school teachers with whom they worked
in both Africa and Latin America were somewhat unmotivated A VSO
study across Zambia, Papua New Guinea and Malawi found teachers
motivation is both fragile and declining
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Urban vs. Rural Lower motivation in urban schools in Tanzania
Lower motivation in rural schools in Northwest China Public vs.
Private Higher motivation among private school teachers in Malawi
Higher motivation among public school teachers in Pakistan, Turkey
& Oman Primary vs. secondary Lower motivation among secondary
school teachers in Tanzania Lower motivation among primary school
teachers in Malawi Trends in Teacher Motivation
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Gender Differences Female teachers were altruistically or
intrinsically motivated to enter teaching in studies across
Sub-Saharan Africa & Asia and Turkey (Bennell 2004; Topkaya
2012) Men were more intrinsically motivated to enter teaching in
Pakistan (Razzaque 2013) Several studies found that there were no
significant differences in motivation between male and female
teachers Age/Experience Younger and less qualified teachers were
less motivated in Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, South Asia and
Northwest China (Bennel & Mukyanuzi 2005; Thomas et al. 2014;
Kadzmira 2006) Older more experienced teachers reported a greater
sense of job security, higher salary and a greater connection to
communities (Alcazar et al. 2006) Teachers who are not certified
are less satisfied (Sargent & Hannum 2005).
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Factors that Influence Teacher Motivation Workload and
challenges Remuneration and incentives Recognition, voice &
prestige Institutional environment & accountability Career
development
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Workload and School Challenges Teachers housing is an issue in
many low- income contexts Remote postings with no incentives No
health insurance, transportation, or other basic amenities
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Remuneration & Incentives Low and/or declining salaries
Irregular salaries Corruption in bonuses, raises and other
incentives Mixed evidence on monetary incentives
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Leadership & Accountability Teachers do not feel
accountable to principals, parents or the community Corrupt hiring
decisions Little supervision leads to absenteeism and
misconduct
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Recognition, Voice & Prestige Teachers want to be viewed as
professionals Teachers want a voice in curriculum development and
school-based decisions
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Career Development New teachers need the most support!
Professional developed tailored to classroom needs, such as
classroom management for large classes, multi-grade classes, etc.
Corruption in career ladder; promotions
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Policy level Deployment policies Hiring process Distance to
family Retention policies Job security Accountability Professional
development Remuneration Sufficience Regular payment Promotion
policies Career ladder Merit pay vs. political ties Assessment
policies Evaluations School level Type and level Primary vs.
secondary Private vs. government Multigrade vs. single grade
Location Urban vs. rural Distance from family School conditions
Class size Infrastructure Curricula Working environment Housing
Collaboration Leadership and supervision Support/mentoriship
Accountability Teacher level Entry into the profession Altruistic
vs. extrinsic vs. last resort Experience New vs. veteran
Qualification level Recognition and prestige Appreciation Social
accountability Relationship with the community Opportunities for
growth Career ladder Professional development
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Teachers want a place to live, respect within their schools and
communities, adequate teaching and learning materials for their
students, to be deployed to schools that are not too far from their
families and career and professional development that encourages
them to thrive within the profession.
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Study Participants NameTitle/AffiliationArea of Expertise Dr.
Abhijit Banerjee Co-founder, J-PAL, MITTeacher incentives and
teacher job satisfaction in South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa Dr.
Alison Buckler Research Associate, TESS-IndiaTeacher education
through school-based support and online education for teachers and
teacher educators Dr. David Chapman Birkmaier Professor of
Educational Leadership, University of Minnesota Quality of teacher
work-life and teacher incentives in the Middle East, South Asia and
Sub-Saharan Africa Dr. William Firestone Distinguished Professor,
GSE, Rutgers University Effects of leadership, professional
development, student testing and teacher evaluation Dr. Mark
Ginsburg Technical Advisor- Teacher Professional Development,
FHI360 Education research, monitoring & evaluation, and teacher
professional development in developing countries Dr. Richard
Ingersoll Professor of Education and Sociology/Board of Overseers-
Chair of Education, GSE, University of Pennsylvania Teacher supply
and demand, turnover, retention, status of teaching as a
profession, teacher induction and mentoring in the U.S.
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Interview Findings The importance of Teacher Motivation If
teachers arent motivated, even if they are trained well, they wont
do a good job. And that affects student outcomes Dr. D. Chapman If
they [teachers] are motivated, they are more likely to seek out
other resources to impact student outcomes Dr. A. Buckler Teacher
motivation and student learning are reciprocal Dr. M. Ginsburg
Defining teacher motivation
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Interview Findings Personal & Contextual Factors that
motivate teachers Interfering responsibilities Incentives
Curriculum Policies Working conditions How a school is set up and
managed can shape the quality of teachers. You can take an
excellent teacher and make him poor and take a poor teacher and
make him excellent Dr. R. Ingersoll
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Interview Findings Measuring teacher performance as a means of
motivation Peer feedback Teach teachers how to measure student
learning Transparent evaluation framework Combination of formative
and summative assessment Measuring teacher motivation in low-income
contexts Job satisfaction and attendance Need for multi-dimensional
measure No more research!
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Interview Findings What can we do to enhance teacher
motivation? 1.Improve recruitment policies 2.Address working
conditions 3.Make systemic changes 4.Adopt a longer-term approach
5.Find incentives that work
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Recommendation 1 Ensure that teachers have a voice Work with
school administration and local education officials to ensure that
teachers are represented in school-level and district-level
meetings Establish a forum for teachers to come together and share
their frustrations and concerns Work directly with teachers in
establishing a definition of motivation and quality in
education
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Recommendation 2 Ensure that teachers basic needs are met
Ascertain which of teachers needs are not being met Work with local
education departments to ensure that teachers are consistently paid
on time Check-in regularly with teachers regarding any complaints
they have related to housing, etc. Offer housing incentives or
related benefits to teachers in hard-to-staff areas
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Recommendation 3 Provide quality support for beginning teachers
Develop low-cost quality induction and mentoring programs for
beginning teachers Involve veteran teachers in coaching and
mentoring strategies Offer professional development tailored to new
teachers specific needs Provide new teachers with adequate planning
time in their school-day schedules and help these teachers improve
their planning by giving feedback on lesson plans
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Recommendation 4 Improve and expand teacher professional
development programs Ensure that teachers in hard-to-reach areas
have access to professional development opportunities Explore and
test alternative mechanisms for delivering teacher professional
development (cluster schools, teacher-learning circles, etc.)
Adjust existing professional development programs so that are
tailored to teachers specific needs within a particular context and
its classroom realities Ensure that teachers are recognized for
participation and completion of professional development
programs
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Recommendation 5 Provide the right incentives to enhance
teacher motivation Create teacher recognition campaigns, such as
Teacher of the Year Provide teachers with positive verbal feedback
and praise for their accomplishments Offer merit-based
(non-monetary) awards, such as scholarships for training or extra
teaching materials Work with local education bodies to conduct
campaigns to stress the importance of teachers in society Create
forums for teachers to show-off their ideas and best practices
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Conclusion
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Thank You! Emily E Richardson Co-Chair, Teacher Motivation
Working Group Doctoral Student Teachers College, Columbia
University [email protected]