Recommendations for effective deployment of primary school teachers

Ensuring a focused approach to the education and recruitment of female teachers and introducing sustainable teacher incentives in remote locations are among the key recommendations in a new Commonwealth Secretariat publication, which examines the deployment of primary school teachers.

‘Primary School Teacher Deployment’ concludes that countries should also target specific deployment barriers - like Papua New Guinea which has identified ‘disadvantaged’ schools - and that there is a need for them to identify clear designations of authority as well as ensure transparency and communication at all levels.

“Although it is understood that many countries in the Commonwealth are undoubtedly facing the problem of teacher supply, there are also serious challenges of effective teacher deployment,” says Fatimah Kelleher, a Senior Programme Officer at the Secretariat, who edited this publication.

“Uneven deployment patterns, with surpluses in certain schools and areas co-existing with shortages in others, exist even in countries where there are sufficient teachers.”

Contributing factors

Factors that contribute to this uneven deployment of teachers include: extreme geographic remoteness, stakeholder influences, local-level versus macro-level targeting, the growth of cities and the decentralisation of government, and the lack of management and support given at the local administrative level.

This publication presents four detailed studies on primary teacher deployment policies and practices in Nigeria, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea and the United Republic of Tanzania.

The book first identifies major concerns in a country, such as low levels of qualified teachers, and then addresses their teacher deployment policy at national and regional levels, which includes looking at training, selection and placement, along with continuing professional development and institutional support.

These policies and practices in a country, as well as its institutional arrangements, are then questioned in the book, which concludes by providing suggestions for both policy and institutional changes.

The implementation of transparent and objective deployment criteria and efforts which raise standards of teacher training, as well as introducing innovative teacher utilisation methods such as multi-grade and shift teaching, are among these suggested approaches.

HOW TO ORDER

This title can be bought through booksellers or online at http://publications.thecommonwealth.org/primary-school-teacher-deployment-645-p.aspx

A full catalogue of Commonwealth Secretariat and Commonwealth Foundation publications can be viewed on the website, which provides a secure online buying facility. Orders can also be made through email or by post. Pre-payment is essential. Payment by sterling cheque drawn on a UK bank, international money order, postal order or bank draft must accompany your order. Cheques should be made out to York Publishing Services.

If you require the order form as an attachment in Word format please email the Publications Section (see address below). Post and packaging charges should be added to every order in the following way: UK orders: 15 per cent of order value (minimum charge £2.00). Non-UK orders: 25 per cent of order value (minimum charge £3.50).

Send orders to: Publications Section, Commonwealth Secretariat, Marlborough House, Pall Mall, London SW1Y 5HX, United Kingdom. Tel: +44 (0)20 7747 6534; Fax: +44 (0)20 7839 9081; Email: publications@commonwealth.int.

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