Peer collaboration and teacher performance in selected schools of Kicukiro District

Abstract

Peer collaboration approach among teachers is the strategy that is considered as impetus for teacher performance. The collaboration is realized through different teams within the school where teachers are grouped into teams and associations through which they learn from one another. The purpose of this study is to assess practices through which teachers learn from one another for effective teacher performance. The objectives that guided the study include establishing the relationship between peer collaboration and teacher performance, determining the characteristics of collaboration among teachers, assessing the practices that engage teachers in collaboration, assessing the teacher performance, purposive sampling technique and simple random sampling technique were used for the study; whereby Headmasters, Deputy Head teachers in charge of studies, head of departments were selected purposively, given their strategic positions in the management of the schools, and teachers selected using simple random sampling technique. A sample used for the study was of 62 respondents constituted by 58 teachers, two Deputy Head teachers in charge of studies and two Head teachers. Data were collected using questionnaires and interviews. Collected data were analysed using descriptive statistics and Microsoft Office Excel. After data analysis, the results were presented in tables, figures for accurate interpretation. From research findings it has been noticed that respondents have considerable knowledge of characteristics of collaboration as the first step in implementing and sustaining school collaboration culture among teachers where the raising of awareness of teachers on characteristics of collaboration needs to be reinforced. The practices that reinforce the collaboration among teachers are not exploited by teachers effectively to enable them to learn from one another as it contributes to teachers’ performance. Finally, teachers have acquired different skills from their peers by visiting their fellow teachers while teaching, through departments’ discussions and peer review from fellow teachers during the training organized by different partners in education to enable them improve their current teaching practices. The relationship between peer collaboration on teacher performance has been established where peer collaboration was taken as impetus for teacher performance. Therefore, the research recommends teachers to be active learners from peers by breaking the walls of working in their isolated classrooms. The school Head teachers should set clear school vision for learning and share it with school community members, build system structures that enable school community members to work collaboratively to achieve the school vision and provide constant support for sustainability of school collaboration culture. The educational planners and policy makers should support and encourage initiatives of schools that contribute to the school based In-service teacher training as a cost-effective way of Continuous Professional Development of teachers.