Rethinking teacher evaluation in the third world: The case of Kenya

Abstract

In a Third World country such as Kenya, the need to provide quality education has been emphasized by several writers. A major factor associated with education quality relates to teacher quality. The quality of teachers is important in three main ways: it is key to the development of the principal attitudes towards learning and self-image of the learners; it determines the foundation on which subsequent learning will be built; and it is central to the improvement of the quality of schooling. In this article, the writer considers the evaluation of teachers’ performance. It has the following three main objectives: (a) to review the meaning, functions and processes of evaluation; (b) to examine current practices in Kenya, for evaluation of novice and veteran teachers; and (c) to present an alternative framework for the improvement of Kenya’s teacher evaluation system.