Performance Appraisal Practices and Their Effects on Employees’ Performance in Kenya: A Case of Nairobi City County

Abstract

The main objective of this study was to examine the effects of Performance Appraisal Practices on employees’ performance in public secondary schools in Kenya. Performance appraisal practices are the independent variable and Employees’ performance is the dependent variable. Since 2012, the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) has been appraising teachers across the country using a system of appraisal whose effectiveness has not been fully tested. Past research findings have depicted the current performance’ appraisal  practices in Kenyan Secondary School’s to exhibit weaknesses, which need to be urgently addressed if it is to improve employees’ performance in Kenya. With these findings, this research sought to analyse the current state of employees’ appraisal practices in Kenya’s Public Secondary Schools. This study examined the key issues related to teacher appraisal in public secondary schools with special reference to Embakasi Sub-county in Nairobi city County, Kenya. The research was anchored on Hardner performance standards theory and the Resource based view theory. The target population consisted of the teachers employed by the Teachers Service Commission and working within Embakasi sub- County. The research adopted census technique in data collection hence there was no sampling of respondents. The study involved 119 respondents for the study which included; 105 teachers and 7 principals and 7 Deputy Principals. Data collection in this study was done using a structured questionnaire. The instrument reliability was tested using Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of 0.5 philosophy. Descriptive and inferential statistics were undertaken using SPSS V.22 and the results were used to derive conclusions and make inferences. ANOVA analysis model was fitted to explain the relationship between the independent and the dependent variables. The study recommended that other teacher preparation, the school authorities should ensure conformity with Ministry of Education guidelines on adequate classroom physical space; there should be a regular appraisal of teachers’ responsibility by school authorities as a standard measure of their preparedness prior to service delivery and finally create a conducive environment that enhances teachers’ creativity and innovation.