Assessment of the effectiveness of in-service training programmes for basic school teachers in the Atiwa District

Abstract

The study set out to assess the effectiveness of in-service training programmes of the Atiwa District Directorate of Education. A descriptive design was adopted to study 168 teachers who were participants of the teacher training programmes conducted by the Ghana Education Service for teachers in the Atiwa District. Questionnaires were used to collect data from teachers and statistical tools used to analyse the data collected included means, medians, frequencies, and percentages. The study revealed that there were adequate processes to inform participants of the objectives of the programme and the techniques adopted by the programme design were relevant to the performance needs of the participants. The influence of training programmes on teachers’ performance included improvement in teaching styles, classroom delivery, discipline maintenance, assessment methods, and teacher-student relations. Also, the overall performance of teachers was evaluated as improved due to the training programme. The major challenge of the programme had to do with timing. The study recommended that the Atiwa District Directorate of Education needs to schedule training programmes appropriately and to provide the necessary equipment and materials for the training sessions. Providing further incentives to sustain teacher’s interest in the programmes and linking training to direct outcomes, such as promotions were also recommended.