SUPERVISION FEEDBACK PRACTICES AND TEACHERS' JOB PERFORMANCE IN PUBLIC SECONDARY SCHOOLS: EVIDENCE FROM MBEYA CITY COUNCIL, TANZANIA

Author

Rahel Nicodemus, Dr. Flora O. Kasumba, Dr. Egidio Chaula


Abstract

 This study examined the effects of heads of school supervision feedback practices on teachers' job performance in public secondary schools in Mbeya City Council, Tanzania. Guided by three specific objectives to explore the supervision feedback practices used by heads of schools, to examine teachers' perceptions regarding those practices, and to explore how supervision feedback influences teachers' job performance the study adopted a qualitative approach using a case study design. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with twelve purposively selected participants comprising three heads of schools and nine teachers. Thematic analysis was used to organize and interpret the data. The findings revealed that supervision feedback in the studied schools is predominantly verbal, rarely documented in writing, and frequently delayed due to competing administrative responsibilities. Feedback content focuses mainly on lesson preparation, classroom management, syllabus coverage, and learner participation, with limited attention to instructional methodology and pedagogical innovation. Follow-up support after feedback sessions is largely absent, leaving teachers to implement recommendations without structured professional guidance. Teachers' perceptions of supervision feedback are shaped by its usefulness, tone, fairness, and the degree of openness permitted during feedback discussions. Constructive, respectful, and dialogical supervision improves lesson preparation, classroom instruction, classroom management, student assessment, motivation, and professional commitment, while harsh or fault-finding feedback reduces confidence, increases anxiety, and causes compliance-based changes that do not translate into sustained professional growth. The study concludes that supervision in Mbeya City Council still operates largely as an inspection mechanism rather than a developmental professional support system. It recommends that heads of schools introduce written feedback forms, provide timely post-observation discussions, conduct follow-up supervision visits, and shift toward a coaching-oriented model of instructional leadership.



Keywords

Supervision feedback, instructional supervision, teachers' job performance, Instructional Leadership Theory, Feedback Intervention Theory, secondary schools, Mbeya City Council, Tanzania



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