Contribution of Teachers’ Professional Ethics towards Teaching Performance in Public Secondary Schools in Meru District, Tanzania
Robson Malabwa
Academic officer, Meru District Council
P.O Box 303, USA River, Arusha
Email; robistory@gmail.com
Dr. Christine Mnjokava
St. Augustine University of Tanzania (SAUT), Arusha.
P.O Box 12385 – Arusha, Tanzania.
Email: cmnjokava@yahoo.com
Abstract: The study investigated the contribution of teachers’ professional ethics towards teaching performance in public secondary schools in Meru District, Tanzania. Specifically, the was guided by the following objectives: to assess the influence of teachers’ professional ethics towards teaching performance among public secondary school teachers and to determine the strategies for enhancing professional ethics among teachers in public secondary schools in Meru district. Utilitarianism Theory guided the study. A mixed research approach under convergent design was employed. The target population for the study consisted of the district secondary education officers, district TSC secretary, school heads, teachers and form four students from secondary schools in Meru district. Stratified sampling technique was used to select 80 students and 80 teachers while 8 heads of schools, one DEO and one TSC secretary were purposively selected making a total number of 170 respondents. Questionnaire and interview schedule were used to collect data from the participants. Research experts ascertained the validity of the instruments while reliability was tested and found to correlate at Cronbach coefficient Alpha value of r= 0.75at teachers’ and students’ questionnaires. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and the results were presented in figures, tables of frequencies and percentages. Qualitative data were thematically coded and analyzed alongside research questions. The findings were presented in narrative forms. The study found out that there was positive effect of teachers’ professional ethics on students’ academic performance. The study concluded that teachers’ professional ethics is an important criterion for students’ academic performance.
