Importance of Instructional Supervision in the Performance Lag Address Program (PLAP)
1Importance of Instructional Supervision in the Performance Lag Address Program (PLAP): A Comparative Study of Former Group A (SI) and Former Group B (S2) Secondary Schools in Mutare Urban, Zimbabwe
Layman Abstract : In 2012, Zimbabwe’s Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education introduced the Performance Lag Address Program (PLAP) to help students who were struggling due to the country’s economic crisis from 2006 to 2008. The program focuses on revisiting difficult topics in the syllabus and teaching students from the last point where they succeeded. This study examined how well PLAP was being supervised in secondary schools by analyzing responses from 100 teachers from two different schools.
The study found that while teachers believe all students can learn with the right support, there were significant differences in how schools handled curriculum changes, staff training, and classroom supervision. Many teachers felt that headteachers were not actively supervising lessons, and staff development was lacking. While resources were similar across schools, teachers noted that there was little teamwork among educators. Overall, the findings suggest that more effort is needed in supervising PLAP at the secondary level. The study recommends peer coaching, where teachers collaborate in small teams to improve their teaching methods.
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Original Abstract : The Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education in Zimbabwe launched the Performance Lag Address Program (PLAP) in October 2012 in Manicaland Province after realizing the underachievement of students at both primary and secondary schools which was caused by the socio-economic meltdown from 2006 to 2008. The PLAP program aims to improve the achievement of primary and secondary students by revisiting the syllabus and targeting concepts that have proven persistently difficult for pupils to catch up on with the overall aim of teaching from the last point of success. The study sought to determine instructional supervision of the Performance Lag Address Program (PLAP) at the secondary school level. Two schools participated in the study (one from former group A (S1) and the other from former group B (S2) schools). A total of 100 volunteer teachers (fifty from each school type) participated. A questionnaire with closed and open questions was used. Data was analyzed using a chi-square for independence while open-ended questions showing similar themes were grouped together. During the study, teachers agreed that all students can learn implying that given the right environment, all students can achieve to the best of their ability. The results show significant differences by school type on vision, curriculum modifications, staff development classroom supervision by HODs and head teachers. Teacher comments indicate that head-teachers do not supervise classes and there is little staff development. No differences were found in collaborative work and resources but teacher comments indicated that there are no teacher teams in the same subject areas or different subjects. All the findings indicated that not much effort is being put into the Performance Lag Address program in terms of instructional supervision at the secondary school level. Henceforth, the effort of all participants involved in the supervisory process is important. Peer coaching, wherein teachers work collaboratively in small teams to improve instruction is recommended.
View Book: https://doi.org/10.9734/bpi/aoller/v9/3050
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