Volume 9, Issue 2, September 2014, Pages 430–439
Jennipher Makanga1 and Samson Mutsagondo2
1 Midlands State University, Department of Applied Education, P.Bag 9055 Gweru, Zimbabwe
2 Center for Development Studies, Department of Business Management, P.O. Box 825, Gweru, Zimbabwe
Original language: English
Copyright © 2014 ISSR Journals. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
During the years 2005 to 2008, Zimbabwe plunged into an economic depression. Many social and economic systems were severely shaken, while others crumpled. The education sector was not spared. Many schools closed as teachers left their jobs for the informal sector while others crossed the borders in search of greener pastures. It was against this background that some parents mooted the idea of incentivising teachers as a way of retaining and motivating them. Many teachers were given financial incentives, while in a few cases, incentives were paid in kind. With incentives, some semblance of sanity returned to the education sector. Unfortunately, a few years down the line, the issue of incentives courted so much controversy, poisoning relations amongst stakeholders, especially between parents and teachers. This study assessed how incentives were administered and why they spoiled relations amongst stakeholders. This qualitative study made use of the survey research design where data were collected through questionnaires and interviews from teachers and parents in Chipinge district of Zimbabwe. The study recommended that incentives should be upheld, but the incentive scheme needed to be revisited in order to benefit all stakeholders in the education system.
Author Keywords: Incentive schemes, teachers' incentives, teacher motivation, parents- teachers' relations, Zimbabwean education system.
Jennipher Makanga1 and Samson Mutsagondo2
1 Midlands State University, Department of Applied Education, P.Bag 9055 Gweru, Zimbabwe
2 Center for Development Studies, Department of Business Management, P.O. Box 825, Gweru, Zimbabwe
Original language: English
Copyright © 2014 ISSR Journals. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Abstract
During the years 2005 to 2008, Zimbabwe plunged into an economic depression. Many social and economic systems were severely shaken, while others crumpled. The education sector was not spared. Many schools closed as teachers left their jobs for the informal sector while others crossed the borders in search of greener pastures. It was against this background that some parents mooted the idea of incentivising teachers as a way of retaining and motivating them. Many teachers were given financial incentives, while in a few cases, incentives were paid in kind. With incentives, some semblance of sanity returned to the education sector. Unfortunately, a few years down the line, the issue of incentives courted so much controversy, poisoning relations amongst stakeholders, especially between parents and teachers. This study assessed how incentives were administered and why they spoiled relations amongst stakeholders. This qualitative study made use of the survey research design where data were collected through questionnaires and interviews from teachers and parents in Chipinge district of Zimbabwe. The study recommended that incentives should be upheld, but the incentive scheme needed to be revisited in order to benefit all stakeholders in the education system.
Author Keywords: Incentive schemes, teachers' incentives, teacher motivation, parents- teachers' relations, Zimbabwean education system.
How to Cite this Article
Jennipher Makanga and Samson Mutsagondo, “Incentives in Zimbabwe's education system: Cure or curse?,” International Journal of Innovation and Scientific Research, vol. 9, no. 2, pp. 430–439, September 2014.
