A case study of the experiences of newly qualified teachers during their first year of teaching in secondary schools in Zimbabwe

This thesis focuses on research that was conducted in secondary schools in Zimbabwe in 2003. This study was inspired by the researcher's growing interest in continuing professional development, which started from the experience of working with newly qualified teachers (NQTs) as a headteacher in Zimbabwe in the 90s. This interest was further enhanced by the study of the induction of newly qualified teachers in Oxfordshire in 2000, and the absence of published research into the learning of novice NQTs in Zimbabwe. The study focused on exploring the experiences of NQTs during their first year of teaching in secondary schools in Zimbabwe. The purpose of this study was to generate an in-depth understanding of the experiences of NQTs, their professional development needs and the forms of support they received. Such an understanding, in a context where no research of this nature had been conducted, required a strategy that could enable the researcher to get as close to the researched as possible in a manner that could allow for great flexibility in adapting research to contextual realities. An exploratory/descriptive qualitative case study was considered the most suitable strategy against the background of no previous research on this focus. Data was generated through interviews and observation from two samples with schools in Harare and Mashonaland East regions, which the researcher considered safe to research in, given the political climate in Zimbabwe at the time. The learning of the NQTs during the first year of teaching is one of the key issues underpinning this study. This thesis explores what and how NQTs learn during their first year of teaching in secondary schools in Zimbabwe. Models of teacher learning are reviewed and used in analysing the experiences of the NQTs. There is an on- going debate on support for novice teachers in schools in literature in the Western world. On the one hand there are proponents of formal induction while on the other hand any planned support is viewed as interference with the new teacher's learning. Literature on learning in the workplace provides scope on the significance of the school climate on the learning of teachers. Findings reveal that NQTs had negative experiences at the beginning of the year with major problems in their deployment, delays in processing of salaries during the first term and a critical shortage of resources. The participants indicated professional development needs of NQTs including classroom management and control, teaching methods, adjusting subject content to the level of students, the need to be observed and to observe other teachers and support in implementing new ideas. The study also revealed that there were varying formal and informal provisions for support in schools, as there is no formal national policy guiding the induction of NQTs in schools. The findings of this study provide a basis for key recommendations for educational practice and research.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo