Abstract
This chapter reports on findings from a qualitative case study conducted in four rural Ugandan public secondary schools in two districts from March to October 2018. The study explored why some teachers stay while others leave rural teaching positions. Data collection methods included interviews, policy document analysis and researcher’s journal reflections. Interview data were collected from 20 teachers, 4 head teachers, 3 Parents & Teachers Association chairpersons, 2 Board of Governors chairpersons and 2 community leaders. A thematic analysis of data was pursued using an iterative process. The central findings reported in this chapter include the dynamic interaction between the Ministry of Education (MoE) policy, the government officials, schoolboards, head teachers and parents; the inherent trade-offs, massaged tensions and changing dynamics that have major impact on teacher retention, teacher quality and student outcomes; and the role of history of religion and culture in influencing the staffing of schools.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Similar content being viewed by others
References
African Centre for Media Excellence. (2017). UCE results by school 2011-2016. Retrieved November 20, 2019, from http://catalog.data.ug/dataset/uce-school-results-2011-2016.
Asankha, P., & Takashi, Y. (2011). Impacts of universal secondary education policy on secondary school enrolments in Uganda. Journal of Accounting, 1(1), 16–30.
Aspland, T. (2006). Changing patterns of teacher education in Australia. Education Research and Perspectives, 33(2), 140–163.
Bazeley, P. (2013). Qualitative data analysis: Practical strategies. London, UK: Sage.
Bernsten, J. (1998). Runyakitara: Uganda’s ‘new’ language. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 19(2), 93–107. https://doi.org/10.1080/01434639808666345.
Birt, L., Scott, S., Cavers, D., Campbell, C., & Walter, F. (2016). Member checking: a tool to enhance trustworthiness or merely a nod to validation? Qualitative Health Research, 26(13), 1802–1811. https://doi.org/10.1177/1049732316654870.
Boyd, D., Lankford, H., Loeb, S., & Wyckoff, J. (2005). The draw of home: How teachers’ preferences for proximity disadvantage urban schools. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, 24(1), 113–132. https://doi.org/10.1002/pam.20072.
Boylan, C., & McSwan, D. (1998). Long-staying rural teachers: Who are they? Australian Journal of Education, 42(1), 49–65. https://doi.org/10.1177/000494419804200104.
Bradley, S., Draca, M., Green, C., & Leeves, G. (2007). The magnitude of educational disadvantage of indigenous minority groups in Australia. Journal of Population Economics, 20(3), 547–569. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00148-006-0076-9.
Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3(2), 77–101. https://doi.org/10.1191/1478088706qp063oa.
Burton, M., & Johnson, A. S. (2010). “Where else would we teach?”: Portraits of two teachers in the rural south. Journal of Teacher Education, 61(4), 376–386. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022487110372362.
Chapman, D. W., Burton, L., & Werner, J. (2010). Universal secondary education in Uganda: The head teachers’ dilemma. International Journal of Educational Development, 30(1), 77–82. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijedudev.2009.08.002.
Cherubini, L. (2008). New aboriginal teachers’ experiences: An undiscovered landscape. Canadian Journal of Native Education, 31(2), 34–50.
Corra, M., & Willer, D. (2002). The gatekeeper. Sociological Theory, 20(2), 180–207.
Creswell, J. W., & Poth, C. N. (2017). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five approaches (2nd ed.). London, UK: Sage.
Early, M., & Norton, B. (2014). Revisiting English as medium of instruction in rural African classrooms. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 35(7), 674–691. https://doi.org/10.1080/01434632.2014.908890.
Education Act. (2008). The education (Pre-Primary, Primary and Post-Primary) Act, 2008. Entebbe: Government of Uganda Retrieved from http://www.unesco.org/education/edurights/media/docs/5d1b721a509097c2833561341ead3d788906cf4a.pdf.
Engel, M., & Cannata, M. (2015). Localism and teacher labor markets: How geography and decision making may contribute to inequality. Peabody Journal of Education, 90(1), 84–92. https://doi.org/10.1080/0161956X.2015.988533.
Fantilli, R. D., & McDougall, D. E. (2009). A study of novice teachers: Challenges and supports in the first years. Teaching and Teacher Education, 25(6), 814–825. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2009.02.021.
Gersten, R., Keating, T., Yovanoff, P., & Harniss, M. K. (2001). Working in special education: Factors that enhance special educators’ intent to stay. Exceptional Children, 67(4), 549–567. https://doi.org/10.1177/001440290106700408.
Gudmundsdottir, S. (1990). Values in pedagogical content knowledge. Journal of Teacher Education, 41(3), 44–52. https://doi.org/10.1177/002248719004100306.
Hardré, P. L. (2009). Nurturing the rural teacher experience: Lessons from the United States. Paper presented at the International Symposium for Innovation in Rural Education University of New England, Australia.
Heikkinen, H. L., Jokinen, H., & Tynjälä, P. (2012). Teacher education and development as lifelong and lifewide learning. In Peer-group mentoring for teacher development (pp. 19–46). Routledge.
Ingersoll, R. M. (2004). Why do high-poverty schools have difficulty staffing their classrooms with qualified teachers?. Retrieved from https://repository.upenn.edu/gse_pubs.
Irizarry, J. G., & Raible, J. (2011). Beginning with El Barrio: Learning from exemplary teachers of Latino students. Journal of Latinos and Education, 10(3), 186–203. https://doi.org/10.1080/15348431.2011.581102.
Kilpatrick, S., & Abbott-Chapman, J. (2002). Rural young people’s work/study priorities and aspirations: The influence of family social capital. The Australian Educational Researcher, 29(1), 43–67. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03219769.
Kilpatrick, S., Cheers, B., Gilles, M., & Taylor, J. (2009). Boundary crossers, communities, and health: Exploring the role of rural health professionals. Health & Place, 15(1), 284–290. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.healthplace.2008.05.008.
Kline, J., White, S., & Lock, G. (2013). The rural practicum: Preparing a quality teacher workforce for rural and regional Australia. Journal of Research in Rural Education, 28(3), 1–13.
Kuteesa, F., Magona, I., Wanyera, M., & Wokadala, J. (2007). Uganda: A decade of budget reform and poverty reduction. OECD Journal on Budgeting, 6(2), 1–25. https://doi.org/10.1787/16812336.
Lindqvist, P., Nordänger, U. K., & Carlsson, R. (2014). Teacher attrition the first five years–A multifaceted image. Teaching and Teacher Education, 40, 94–103. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2014.02.005.
Liu, S., & Onwuegbuzie, A. J. (2012). Chinese teachers’ work stress and their turnover intention. International Journal of Educational Research, 53, 160–170. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijer.2012.03.006.
MacBeath, J. (2008). Stories of compliance and subversion in a prescriptive policy environment. Educational Management Administration & Leadership, 36(1), 123–148. https://doi.org/10.1177/1741143207084064.
Masinire, A. (2015). Recruiting and retaining teachers in rural schools in South Africa: Insights from a rural teaching experience programme. Australian and International Journal of Rural Education, 25(1), 1–13.
Mayer, D., Dixon, M., Kline, J., Kostogriz, A., Moss, J., Rowan, L., et al. (2017). Employment pathways, mobility and retention of graduate teachers. Studying the effectiveness of teacher education (pp. 99–119). Singapore: Springer.
Ministry of Education. (2017). Education Abstract. Kampala: Ministry of Education. Retrieved from https://www.education.go.ug/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/Abstract-2017.pdf.
Mulkeen, A., Chapman, D., DeJaeghere, J., & Leu, E. (2007). Recruiting, retaining, and retraining secondary school teachers and principals in Sub-Saharan Africa: World Bank.
Mulkeen, A., & Crowe, T. N. (2010). Teacher attrition in sub-Saharan Africa: The neglected dimension of the teacher supply challenge. Paper presented at the 9th Meeting of the High level Group on Education for All, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Muwagga, A. M., Genza, G. M., & Ssemulya, R. (2013). School leadership and denominational identity: The case of Roman Catholic-founded schools in Uganda. American Journal of Educational Research, 1(8), 327–333. https://doi.org/10.12691/education-1-8-10.
O’sullivan, M. (2006). Professional lives of Irish physical education teachers: Stories of resilience, respect and resignation. Physical Education and Sport Pedagogy, 11(3), 265–284. https://doi.org/10.1080/17408980600986314.
Olivarez, M. M., & Arnold, M. (2006). Personal and demographic characteristics of retained teachers of special education. Education, 126(4), 702–711.
Oliver, C. (1991). Strategic responses to institutional processes. Academy of Management Review, 16(1), 145–179. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.1991.4279002.
Opfer, D. (2011). Defining and identifying hard-to-staff schools: The role of school demographics and conditions. Educational Administration Quarterly, 47(4), 582–619. https://doi.org/10.1177/0013161X11400598.
Reid, J.-A., White, S., Green, B., Lock, G., Cooper, M., & Hastings, W. (2011). TERRAnova: Renewing rural teacher education for rural and regional Australia–Volume 2: Case study reports. Charles Sturt University, Australia.
Reid, J.-A., White, S., Green, B., Lock, G., Cooper, M., & Hastings, W. (2012). TERRAnova: Renewing teacher education for rural and regional Australia. Volume 2: Case study reports. New South Wales, Australia: Charles Sturt University, Australia.
Reininger, M. (2012). Hometown disadvantage? It depends on where you’re from: Teachers’ location preferences and the implications for staffing schools. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 34(2), 127–145. https://doi.org/10.3102/0162373711420864.
Rice, S., Richardson, P. W., & Watt, H. M. G. (2017). Hard-to-staff Australian school: How can we ensure that all students have access to quality teachers. In Educating Australia: Challenges for the decade ahead (pp. 279–295): Melbourne University Press.
Ritchie, J., Lewis, J., & Elam, G. (2003). Designing and selecting samples. London: Sage.
Robinson, O. C. (2014). Sampling in interview-based qualitative research: A theoretical and practical guide. Qualitative research in psychology, 11(1), 25–41. https://doi.org/10.1080/14780887.2013.801543.
Ssekamwa, J. C. (1997). History and development of education in Uganda. Kampala, Uganda: Fountain Publishers Limited.
Suri, H. (2011). Purposeful sampling in qualitative research synthesis. Qualitative Research Journal, 11(2), 63–75. https://doi.org/10.3316/QRJ1102063.
Tembe, J., & Norton, B. (2008). Promoting local languages in Ugandan primary schools: The community as stakeholder. Canadian Modern Language Review, 65(1), 33–60. https://doi.org/10.3138/cmlr.65.1.33.
The Observer. (2018). 2017 S4 results: ALL 2594 schools ranked The Observer. Retrieved from https://observer.ug/special-editions/56969-2017-s4-results-all-2594-schools-ranked.html.
Trinidad, S., Sharplin, E., Lock, G., Ledger, S., Boyd, D., & Terry, E. (2011). Developing strategies at the pre-service level to address critical teacher attraction and retention issues in Australian rural, regional and remote schools. Education in Rural Australia, 21(1), 111–120.
Urwick, J., & Kisa, S. (2014). Science teacher shortage and the moonlighting culture: The pathology of the teacher labour market in Uganda. International Journal of Educational Development, 36, 72–80. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijedudev.2013.11.004.
Weldon, P. R. (2015). The teacher workforce in Australia: Supply, demand and data issues. Policy insights. Australian Council for Educational Research (Issue 2).
White, S., & Kline, J. (2012). Renewing rural and regional teacher education curriculum. Final report (1921916435). Retrieved from https://eprints.qut.edu.au/109112/.
Yin, R. K. (2017). Case study research and applications: Design and methods. London, UK: Sage publications.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2020 The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Arinaitwe, G., Williamson, J., Kilpatrick, S. (2020). ‘Birds of a Feather Flock Together!’: Rural Teacher Recruitment Policy and Retention in and for Hard-to-Staff Ugandan Schools. In: Fox, J., Alexander, C., Aspland, T. (eds) Teacher Education in Globalised Times. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-4124-7_16
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-4124-7_16
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore
Print ISBN: 978-981-15-4123-0
Online ISBN: 978-981-15-4124-7
eBook Packages: EducationEducation (R0)