CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1     Background to the Study

Performance appraisal is an evaluation done on an employee’s job performance over a specific period of time. It is the equivalent of a report card on an employee and how their managers assess their performance over the prior year. Anyone who has worked in more than one department or in more than one company will attest to the fact that not all performance appraisal processes are the same. The varying systems and processes are applicable in many organizations. Unfortunately, some are done so poorly that they are not only designed to fail, but also to create a negative experience for both the manager as well as the employee. Performance appraisal has also been looked at as the method by which the performance and productivity of each worker is measured in order to determine his or her contribution to the effort of the organization towards the achievement of the set goals and objectives. The method used in the measurement and evaluation of a worker's performance differ from one organization to another. But the ultimate purpose is to estimate the job performance of each employee towards the achievement of organizational objectives. Performance appraisal is also carried out for the purpose of promotion and transfer to new job tasks and positions within an organization (Eldman, 2009).

According to Chen and Yee, (2009), Performance Appraisal System (PAS) gives a thorough consideration of the components and various aspects of performance with attention given to how each component plays part to the desired performance outcome in the organizational, departmental, team and individual level in the whole process of accomplishing organizational mission and targets.

The fact that there are scarcely few employees who would not like to know exactly what their manager thinks of their performance makes performance appraisal schemes a controversial subject. In small organizations with few employees, the level of interaction between the manager and employees is so close that employees generally know what their boss thinks of them. However, in large organization, the degree of interaction is so remote that many employees find it difficult to predict precisely what their managers think of them and what the outcome of their performance appraisal would be (Donli, 2008).

In contemporary business environment with keen competition among firms and economic downturn, many firms use performance appraisal to scale down the size of the workforce in order to retain only those ones which are more productive. Downsizing the workforce helps an organization to reduce the total cost of labor and to shore up the profit figures of the enterprise. In other words, if performance appraisal is properly utilized, it will go a long way in assisting an organization in its human resources planning and development (Dipboye, 2001).

Performance management is basically concerned with improvement in performance so as to accomplish organization‟s objectives and goals. (Bana and Shitindi, 2009). Performance appraisal systems being part and parcel of performance management are always of imperative concern of any organization while managing its human resources. At Organization level, performance appraisal system impacts other Human resource system as well as organizational strategy. (Rasheed et al., 2011). In education institutions, to carry out Performance Appraisal of its teachers and provide feedback of their performance is important in order to improve the quality of education.(URT, 2012). According to Longenecker and Goff (1992) Performance Appraisal System is a good tool for human resource management and performance improvement and if well designed and implemented it can benefit both the employees and the organization. The studies done by Harris 1988; Roberts, 2003; Tziner and 5 Kopelman, 2002; Abraham, 2010; Donaldson and Stobbe, 2003; Goddard and Emerson, 1995; Bana and Shitindi, 2009; provide good evidence on the importance of appraisal feedback in enhancing organizational performance. If the system is not effective resources are being wasted and can lead to negative impact to the society and nation at large.

1.2     Statement of the Problem

Teacher-based evaluations (teacher performance management) had numerous inconsistencies; most teachers did not see their fellow teachers as critical evaluators but rather “soft” friends, yet on the other hand the individual’s teachers were also unfair to themselves since they did not invest in evaluating themselves and showing tangible evidence of personal growth. Such issues created numerous inconsistencies such as poor student performance, poor teacher performance, these issues were believed to be associated with poor class management, poor team work, decreased teacher motivation which consequently affected the quality of teaching. Such issues were perplexing due to the fact that the existing appraisal system had been put in place to motivate teachers yet performance was increasingly decreasing, it was assumed that the problem at hand was the gap between actual appraisal and effective teacher performance. By this, (Nkozi 2005) implied that the appraisal process and its results did not seem to stimulate improved teacher performance. Consequently the appraisal process tended to promote low enthusiasm, demotivation and reduced teacher performance.

1.3     Objective of the Study

The main objective of this study is to find out the role of performance appraisal on improving teacher job performance, specifically the study intends to:

1.     Find out how effective performance appraisal is in academic world

2.     Analyze the effect of performance appraisal on job performance of teachers

3.     Examine the challenges of performance appraisal in education institutions

4.     Find out the effectiveness of performance appraisal in organizations

1.4     Research Question

1.     How effective performance appraisal is in academic world?

2.     Is there any significant effect of performance appraisal on job performance of teachers?

3.     What are the challenges of performance appraisal in education institutions?

4.     How effective of performance appraisal in organizations

1.5     Research Hypothesis

Ho: there is no significant effect of performance appraisal on job performance of teachers

Hi: there is significant effect of performance appraisal on job performance of teachers

1.6     Significance of the Study

The information gathered from this study will help the employees and supervisors to ascertain the strengths and weaknesses regarding performance appraisal system. The study will also enable the supervisors and teachers to identify whether the teachers‟ performance appraisal is effective or not, be able to make necessary suggestions on how the performance appraisal system for teachers can be improved and structured to motivate teachers to perform effectively and take necessary action thus improve the quality of education in public secondary schools.

The findings of the study will benefit the Ministry of Education, teacher educators and curriculum developers in various ways like formulation of policies and strategies for implementation of the system to improve performance in secondary education.

And finally this research will serve as a guide and reference points for other research on performance appraisal in the education sector.

1.7     Scope of the Study

This research will cover performance appraisal and the role it plays in job performance of teachers, the concept, strategy and the merits of performance will be also be examine in this research. This research will also be conducted in public secondary schools in Abeokuta south Lga, Ogun state.

1.8     Delimitation of the Study

Finance for the general research work will be a challenge during the course of study. Correspondents also might not be able to complete or willing to submit the questionnaires given to them.

However, it is believed that these constraints will be worked on by making the best use of the available materials and spending more than the necessary time in the research work. Therefore, it is strongly believed that despite these constraint, its effect on this research report will be minimal, thus, making the objective and significance of the study achievable.

1.9     Definition of Terms

Performance Appraisal: referred to as a performance review, performance evaluation, development discussion, or employee appraisal is a method by which the job performance of an employee is documented and evaluated.

Job Performance: Job performance assesses whether a person performs a job well. Job performance, studied academically as part of industrial