Exploring the Effectiveness of the Performance Management System in Appraising Teachers’ Performance in Botswana

Abstract

A key challenge for organisations, including schools, is enhancing employee performance. Performance Management Systems (PMS) help assess and improve employee behaviour, skills, and contributions to organisational success. This study examined the effectiveness of PMS in appraising teachers’ performance by exploring academic staff’s understanding of its purpose, impact on performance, implementation challenges, and possible interventions for improvement. Using a qualitative phenomenological design grounded in interpretivism and Vroom’s Expectancy Theory, this study conveniently selected ten teachers from five schools in Botswana’s Southeast region. Data were collected through interviews and analysed thematically. Findings showed that the purpose of PMS was to evaluate and
improve teachers’ performance through coaching, mentoring, and supervision. However, PMS failed to achieve its intended impact due to several challenges, including limited resources and misalignment between its structure and the education sector. These findings
underline the need to standardise PMS, recruit specialised PMS staff, and involve teachers in all facets of PMS planning and implementation.