Human Resource Management Practices and Teacher Performance in Private Early Childhood Development Education Centres in Machakos County, Kenya
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Date
2018-11
Authors
Mbithi, Robert Kitonyi
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Kenyatta University
Abstract
Human resources are unique assets which are viewed as principal factor for suitable competitive
advantage. Employees are major assets of any organization. The active role they play towards a
company’s success cannot be underestimated. As a result, equipping these unique assets through
effective human resource management becomes imperative in order to maximize the job
performance. However, there are many issues of employees still not performing up to the
required standard. This study examined the influence of human resource practices and teacher
performance in private ECDE centres in Machakos County. The objectives of the study were to
find out the extent to which training and development practices, employee recognition programs
practices, work life balance practices and work place environment practices influence ECDE
teacher performance. The four main theories that guided this study were resource based view,
two factor theory, Maslow hierarchy of needs, and equity theory. The study was also guided by
Herzberg’s two factor theory advanced by Fredrick Herzberg. The study adopted a descriptive
research design since it focused on large population. Target population was 98 private ECDE
centres and 8 sub county offices in Machakos County. The sample of the study involved 30 head
teachers, 60 ECD teachers and 8 sub county ECD coordinators having a total of 98 respondents.
Data pertaining to the influence of human resource practices on teachers’ performance in private
ECD centres was collected from head teachers and teachers by use of questionnaires. Interview
schedules were used to collect data from Sub-county ECDE coordinators. The Cronbach’s Alpha
was used to establish reliability and content validity was carried to ensure validity of the
instruments. Data was analyzed using descriptive analysis and regression analysis. The study
established that training and development, employee recognition, work life balance and work
place environment had a positive and significant influence on teacher performance. The study
concludes that the private ECDE centres undertakes training programs to its workforce to
strengthen their skills that each requires to improve and development programs are carried out to
raise the level of their employees so that they all acquire skills and knowledge that are similar.
Employee recognition leads to increased individual productivity, greater employee satisfaction
and enjoyment of work, direct performance feedback for individuals and teams is provided,
teamwork between employees is enhanced and retention of quality employees increases. Having
a positive work-life balance can help teacher carve out enough time for both work and the many
other facets of their lives. Healthy work environments can improve employee productivity as
employees feel better, have more energy and endurance, and are more capable of working hard at
their jobs and contribute to employee happiness. The study recommends that Private ECDE
centres in Machakos County should carry out training and development programs for tasks
leading to leading to successful operation, do an in-depth understanding of the institution
environment, an insight regarding training and development options and career development
approach to weld in employees into organizational effectiveness and knowledge sharing to
improve the performance of teachers. On employee recognition, Private ECDE centres in
Machakos County should thank the teacher by name, specifically state what they did that is being
recognized. It is vital to be specific because it identifies and reinforces the desired behavior and
point out the value added to the team or organization by the behavior. On work life balance,
Private ECDE centres in Machakos County should have a flexible working options, supporting
teachers with caring duties, implementing reasonable time and communication expectations. On
work place environment, Private ECDE centres in Machakos County should ensure that the
workplace environment is comfortable enough to support teacher performance by improving the
working conditions.
Description
A Research Project Submitted to School of Business in Partial
Fulfillment of the Requirements of a Degree of Masters in
Business Administration (Human Resource Management) Of
Kenyatta University.