WITH PRINCIPALS IN MIND – PMAP
By Karan Mahabirsingh, Industrial Relations Officer, South

It has come to the attention of the Association that some principals may be of the view that the imminent Performance Management and Appraisal Process (PMAP) is intended to operate in a negative way against teachers with whom they are having difficulties. It is important to note that PMAP is not intended for use as a punitive measure and any attempt to use it in this way would be counter–productive.

The reasoning behind the change from the current Confidential Staff Report to the proposed Performance Management and Appraisal Process is twofold –

It is expected that with any system not every participant will be responsive, nor will they all respond to the same degree. However, the primary focus is, and must be, to evoke that responsiveness in the first instance and only where that responsiveness is not forthcoming, as a very last resort, punitive measures may be instituted.

The system is intended to avoid blame–sharing and negative criticism. It is possible to criticise constructively and that is the primary focus of the exercise. The responsibility of Principals will be that of facilitating effective performance on the part of their members of staff, which of course, the large majority of them already do with minimal difficulty. That minority of Principals who are unable to succeed in motivating their teachers will need to work towards achieving this or seek assistance in so doing.

The system requires that the administrator (Head of Department, Vice Principal or Principal) conduct four (4) conferences with each Teacher. The first conference would set the standards which the Teacher would be expected to achieve by the end of the year under review.

These standards would focus primarily on the teaching duties to be performed. This is why it is so absolutely necessary for each Teacher to be in possession of a personal copy of the job description to allow for the teacher’s full understanding of his/her duties. In addition, there is need for thorough training in the use of the job description for setting achievable and meaningful standards. The Association will be involved in the development of the training programme and will ensure that all the important areas are dealt with in great detail.

This does not mean, however, that standards will not be set in other areas of the Teacher’s operations as well, since a Teacher’s job cannot be limited to classroom duties only. After the initial standard–setting conference, there must be two interim conferences. At this time an assessment of the Teacher’s progress is to be done and special attention will be paid to removal of barriers which could prevent the achievement of the Teacher’s objectives. The final conference will focus on the successful achievement of the pre-set targets, and will in effect examine the role of the administrator in the achievement or otherwise of these goals.

Prior to this final conference, the Teacher will be required to complete a self–analysis using the Appraisal Form, the use of which will form part of the training referred to above.

At this conference, the Teacher will be expected to defend his/her initial markings, especially those with which the Principal does not agree. This conference will assess the Teacher’s performance in areas defined by the Job Description and will be limited to these areas. It is not, for example, to be based upon how much funds a Teacher raised in the bazaar or cake sale, or whether the Teacher came out on Saturday to paint the school. The final marking will be done by the Principal but this must be informed by the representations of the Teacher.

Fundamental to the application of the PMAP is the role of the administrator in facilitating the achievement of the objectives. Should barriers be identified at any of the interim conferences and the administrator not succeed in assisting the Teacher to surmount them, then clearly the Teacher cannot be penalised for failing to achieve the objectives. The process is intended to empower Teachers and this must allow for the objective determination of conflicts which may arise, even at the standards-setting stage. Should there be disagreement on the standards, an appeal process will be established to resolve problems. The appeals procedure will be clearly outlined by circular. The focus will shift from being punitive to being supportive and developmental, with greater emphasis on facilitating and motivating in the first instance.