Perception of Students and Administrators on Staff Performance Appraisal in Southern and Northern Polytechnics in Ghana.

Perception of Students and Administrators on Staff Performance Appraisal in Southern and Northern Polytechnics in Ghana

Vida Adubea Oppong, G. K. T. Oduro, Y. A. Ankoma, G. K. Toworfe

Regent University Of Science and Technology, Ghana

DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.47772/IJRISS.2024.803177

Received: 23 February 2024; Revised: 12 March 2024; Accepted: 16 March 2024; Published: 20 April 2024

ABSTRACT

The study examined the perception of students and administrators on staff performance appraisal in Polytechnics. It examined how respondents perceive appraisal in administrative duties in the polytechnics, challenges faced by administrators and students in the implementation of staff appraisal and factors that can promote or enhance the implementation of appraisal in the polytechnics. The study sought to find out the nature of appraisal practiced in the polytechnics and how it is affecting administrative work in the institutions. The study involved 340 respondents who were purposively sampled. A questionnaire was designed to collect data as well as an interview guide for additional information which might not be necessarily found by the use of the questionnaires alone.  On the overall, the study revealed that both students and administrators are aware of staff performance practices but the respondents gave several challenges faced by students and administrators in its implementation. The study concludes by recommending some practices to polytechnics to enhance performance of students and staff.

Keywords: Appraisal, Appraisee, Supervisor, Subordinates

INTRODUCTION

Appraisal is the assessment of employee performance in a systematic and planned way, grouped into two categories – formal and informal (Cole, 1993). Similarly, performance appraisal is a process that involves determining and communicating to an employee on the job and ideally, establishing a plan of improvement (Byars and Rure, 1997). It could also be described as a process intended to help individual teachers with their professional development (Bolington, Hopkins and West, 1991)

LITERATURE REVIEW

Conceptual Frame Work

General education which includes general technical education.provides the foundation for gaining the technical knowledge and skills provided by technical university and on the job training.(Bozick & Deluca,2005)Investment in technical education are seen as a means of employability and promoting long-term national development.( Wallenborn 2010) According to Akerele (2007) only through scientific research and thoughtful use of science and   technology and skill can a nation experience quick and sustained growth. Technical education in accordance with Okoli and Onwachu (2009) offers the means for a countries social, and economic political and economic advancement

Theoretical Frame Work.

Teachers’ performance appraisal has been identified as an effective instrument for promoting teacher-performance quality.  The quest for an improved teacher performance in the classroom has led the Ghana Ministry of Education to intensify its search for a more appropriate and related means of improving teaching quality at the basic level through the Basic Sector- Improvement Programme (Oduro, 1988).

In the addendum of the Head teachers Handbook by the Ghana Education Service, performance of teachers is seen as a process where teachers collaborate with their Head teacher in evaluating the teachers’ performance. Thus, appraisal generally is intended to offer those appraised the needed support aimed at helping them execute their assigned tasks effectively and efficiently. Appraisal could therefore be said to be an instrument not for victimization or witch-hunting, but rather the development of human resource so as to achieve organizational goals.

Mathias and Jones (1989) have grouped performance appraisal measures into three categories: traits, behaviors and results where supervisors, heads and managers of institutions who perform appraisal are expected to provide feedback or results to the teachers so as to see how they are performing. Appraisal provides information for making salary adjustments, promotions and laying-off, developmental system that diagnoses training needs, career planning and setting targets which are achieved through feedback on appraisal information which provides the basis for improving day-to-day performance (Mathias and Jones, 1989).

In pursuit of strategies for promoting quality in polytechnic education, staff performance is critical. The polytechnics have designed staff performance appraisal schemes which have been in operation for some time now. Implementation schemes provide the necessary education, training, communication and cordial relationship among managements, staff and students to provide them with the necessary skills and knowledge to be productive in future.

Employee performance appraisals are systems where managers find out how best things have been in the human resource development programme. It is a systematic evaluation of the performance of individuals on the job. Bansul (1991) posits that formal performance appraisal plans are the means of telling a subordinate how he is doing and suggesting needed changes in his behavior, attitudes, skills or job knowledge. Employee performance appraisal is used to provide feedback on current performance and determines future development needs and promotion potential, wage increases, transfers and offs by providing feedback to the individual to change or improve upon his working habits. Managers also use employee performance appraisal to judge future job assignments and compensation (Luthan, 1982). Related to employee performance is performance contract, which aims at controlling public organizations by results requiring that goals and targets should be agreed upon through discussion at the beginning of the period or the year so that targets could be achieved (Tarrington and Hall, 1991).

Figure 1:  Features Contrasting Evaluation and Appraisal

Source: Oduro, G.K.T. (1988),

Appraisal has the potential to strengthen and develop the quality both of the teaching and of management in schools in ways which will lead, over time, to better education for pupils. It provides an opportunity for individual teachers and heads to explore ways of improving their professional skills, and enhancing their contribution to the overall management and development of their schools (West & Bolington, 1990). To understand the purpose of the schemes as they relate to the school and more especially, to the teacher West and Bolington (1990) have delineated the objectives as follows:

1. an overall picture of INSET needs and priorities.
2. to help schools to think and talk about whole-school policies, and the relationship between these policies and individual roles and tasks.
3. to facilitate development planning, process and activities in school.
4. to provide an informed basis for teacher references and to improve the quality to promotion or selection decisions within the authority.

Objectives of Appraisal for the School

The following are some of the objectives of appraisal for the school.

1. to ensure that the individual targets or objectives are related to school objectives and priorities ii) to help individuals improve performance in their current jobs.
2. to increase teacher determination, involvement and commitment to securing their own targets.
3. to identify individual strengths and weaknesses and improve the match between individual and organizational tasks.
4. To improve quality of information, which INSET planning, is based.
5. to identify interest in, and potential for promotion to specific jobs, and to help individuals to prepare.

Objectives of appraisal for the Teacher

Just as the school derives some objectives from appraisal, so does the teacher. These includes

1. to increase the scope for personal achievement, job satisfaction and, where appropriate, career development.
2. to improve working relationships with colleagues.
3. to provide balanced, objective feedback on previous performance and guidance, support, reassurance and motivation for the future. iv) to provide opportunity to express views about the school or how it is managed in the expectations that appropriate action will be taken where possible and necessary.

 It is clear, therefore, that the professional development of teachers is a major purpose for appraising teachers, although inadvertently, deviations exist in some instances. Mathias and Jones (1989) justify the purpose of professional development of teachers and argue that the present rapid pace of change within the education sector has far reaching implications for the quality of teachers’ teaching and ultimately that of pupils’ learning. No member of the profession can realistically enter teaching and remain in it for several decades possibly without the necessity for frequently updating their professional knowledge and skills – there is a need for the professional development process to be managed in a systematic way for both the individual teachers and schools to benefit (Mathias and Jones, 1989).Unfortunately, as has been intimated earlier, this purpose is least emphasized by some schemes for evaluating teaching in Ghanaian polytechnics.

The Appraisal process: Teacher Appraisal

Since the development of teachers’ appraisal is based on data derived from a two-way communication channel between the appraiser and the appraised, interview, as a data collection instrument, was identified as a pivot around which the whole process of teacher appraisal revolves (Mathias & Jones, 1989: West & Bolington, 1990). West & Bolington (1990) however observe that, the success of appraisal interviews has been seen, for the most part, to hinge on effective preparation. The first process involved in teacher appraisal is therefore preparation.This stage provides appraisers and appraisees the opportunity to prepare adequately for the appraisal session. It involves a meeting between the head and appraisers to find answers to questions related to the scope, procedure and time frame for the appraisal process. It also involves an initial meeting between the appraiser and the appraisee to “arrange a mutually convenient date, time and venue for the meeting, to discuss the objectives of the interview, and the procedure to be used by both parties, including the documentation” (Mathias and Jones, 1988 p. 22). Such a meeting offers the appraiser and the appraisee the opportunity to establish rapport and trust between them. This is very essential because, without the assurance of confidentiality, it will be difficult for the appraisee to frankly disclose his weaknesses and his feelings to the appraiser during the interview stage. As stated by Oduro (1988), the Graham Report of 1985, for instance, stresses that appraisers must have credibility and inspire the trust and confidence of the staff they appraise. After establishing an agreement regarding which of these areas the appraiser and appraisee will want to focus on, they have to decide on how the data on selected areas can be collected .West and Bolington (1990) have identified self-appraisal, task observation/job shadowing, collecting the views of relevant people by interview or questionnaire, classroom observation, analysing documentation, looking at pupils’ work and analysing test or examination results as some approaches to information gathering to adopt. There is also the need for parties to agree on the criteria for using whichever approaches they decide on. The second component of the appraisal process is the interview phase. As mentioned earlier by Oduro (1988), the appraisal interview is central to the appraisal process: appraisal programs should, in all cases, include an interview (NSG Report 1989 p. 48). The success of the appraisal interview largely depends on the skills of the appraiser in terms of facilitating and maximizing the potential of the process (Mathias & Jones, 1989) and the availability of a clear and mutually agreed agenda.  It is essential that the appraiser should take particular note of the interviewee’s interests and career aspiration and also create a congenial atmosphere for the advancement of the interview session.

One issue that needs stressing is the fact that training people prior to the introduction of any appraisal scheme is very essential (Oduro, 1988). Generally, the programme of training in appraisal skills is to include three distinct but particularly interrelated phases: awareness raising, information giving, and skill training and must be based on a format that at least includes establishing job descriptions and identifying performance criteria; recording and documenting, methods of assessment, counselling and reviewing (Mathias & Jones, 1989).

The third component of the appraisal process involves follow-up activities. This stage offers both the appraiser and the appraisee the opportunity to systematically monitor the progress of targets set during the appraisal interview session, identify problems related to the process of attending to those targets and, where possible, agree with review the targets. Two major areas of concerns are covered during this phase: the production of an agreed statement between the appraiser and the appraisee’s recent work performance.

Problem Statement

Polytechnics in Ghana serve as the source of middle level manpower supply for industries and commerce.(Adumado Report,2014).It is therefore, crucial that the performance of the staff be appraised to ensure effective utilization of talents and skills towards .Technical universities now offer both degree and diploma courses, grounded in both  theoretical but technical instructional knowledge and this call for special attention for appraisal of lecturers to evaluate their instructional knowledge and pedagogy for the attainment of desired outcomes of technical universities in Ghana (Owusu ,Koranchi & Nanyele 2018).The lecturers in Technical universities are deficient in content knowledge and pedagogy,it affects the product of technical universities (Teado Isaiah,2011)Current performance appraisal system aimed to assess Ghana technical university performance and feedback..

However it is uncertain as to the nature and extent of staff appraisal in the Ghanaian polytechnics. and the need for performance appraisal is vital to the development of educational institutions, since it seeks to give the teacher an overview of his or her performance.

Purpose of the Study

The purpose of the study was to find out the perception of administrators and students on the state of staff performance appraisal in the Ghanaian polytechnics. Specifically the study sought to find out: the nature of staff performance appraisal practised in the polytechnics; the challenges administrators, staff and students experience in the implementation of staff performance appraisal and what can be done to enhance staff performance appraisal practices in the Ghanaian polytechnics.

Research Questions

Two research questions raised to guide the researcher in the study were as follows:

1. How do students and staff perceive the nature of staff performance appraisal practised in the polytechnics?
2. What factors influence the implementation of staff performance appraisal?

Significance of the Study

The study could remind administrators about the effectiveness of staff performance appraisal and the need to start implementing it. It could make students and administrators aware of the use of staff performance appraisal as a tool to improve on talents, and knowledge of workers. The study could bring to light probable challenges administrators and students would encounter and then guide them with the suggested solutions and recommendations. The findings of the study would bring to the fore how administrators, lecturers and students of polytechnic institutions perceive staff performance appraisal in relation to their work and studies.

The study tries to find out if there is any structured criteria or standard for measurement of performance of staff.  The study looks at storage facility for information gathered, the extent to which the information is utilized for development of staff performance and whether there is any independent or organized body set to take decisions based on appraisals conducted in the polytechnic.

METHODOLOGY

The research was conducted in Polytechnics in the southern and northern parts of Ghana, while the pre- testing of the instruments for collecting data was done in a polytechnic in the south-central part of the country to check the validity of the instruments and to correct any shortfalls before their administration.

The research covered a target population of about twenty administrators, a cross-section of students, teaching and non-teaching staff in both institutions. Questionnaires and interview guides were used to collect the data.

Segbefia and Osei-Bonsu-(2019) triangulation strategy or design.especially employing a mix Method technic for data analysis.It was focus on performance appraisal (PA) and staff development at the university of education Winneba.

Secondly. The administrative staff of technical university was not satisfied with current ranking Performance appraisal technic or system ,Denkyira (2014) utilized a descriptive research design and quantitative approach to especially focus on building effective performance evaluation practices in Ghana Civil Service.

Research Design

A descriptive sample survey was adopted as the research design for the study, which, according to Best and Kahn (1989), describes what is recording, analyzing and interpreting conditions that exist.It involves some type of comparisons or contrasts and attempts to discover relations between existing non-manipulated variables. The survey design helped the researcher to gather data from a relatively large number of cases at a particular time. Based on the statistics of the sample, generalization’s were made for the entire population. The research design was considered appropriate for the research because it helped the research to obtain as much information as possible from a large sample of individuals.

An interview guide was also designed by the researcher to provide additional information to the questionnaire and to address any weaknesses of the questionnaire which could have affected the degree of authenticity and significance of the study. One weakness was that since the questionnaires were restrictive and did not allow for expatiators responses, there was the probability of respondents giving partial responses, especially since questionnaires generally do not allow probing, prompting and clarification or offer opportunities for motivating the respondent to participate in the survey.

To solve this problem, the researcher employed the purposive sampling to select five departments from the southern based Polytechnic because these were the only ones found at the Polytechnic in the northern section of the country, which is relatively new .Purposive sampling refers to a group of non probability sampling technic in which units are selected because they have characteristics that you need in your sample.In order words Units are selected on purpose,it is also called judgemental sampling.

Creswel (2004) suggest beign purposive in identifying participants that might provide insight into research Purposive sampling involves selective participants because it is believe that they might contribute something to your analysis

Arikanto (2010) says it is the process of selecting by taking subjects that is not based on the level or area, but it is taken on specific purpose

Koley Crossmu (2020) A non probability sample that is selected based on characteristics of a population and the objective of the study .Purposive sampling is different from convenient sampling and is known as judgemental selective or subjective.

Robinson (2014) argues that purposive sampling enables researchers to intentionally select research participants with a wealth that will help explain the social problem of the study. Random sampling was used to select the respondents from each of the five departments.

Table 1: Selected participants of Northern and Southern Polytechnics

Purposive sampling was used to select the five departments at the southern institution in comparison to the northern-based Polytechnic to that of the south. The polytechnic situated in the north which was new had only five departments which were also commonly found in the older polytechnic in the south. Stratified sampling was chosen because the population consists of a number of groups.

There is the first group that is made up of all administrators including Deans, Principals, Heads of Departments of schools and sections who are supposed to perform administrative functions of appraising their subordinates. The second group consist of teaching and non-teaching staff comprising lecturers, instructors, support staff and junior staff who receive appraisal from their supervisors. Thirdly, a cross section of students selected from the five departments (simple random sampling) in both Polytechnics. The stratified sampling enabled the researcher to study the difference and similarity in opinions that might exist between the three groups mentioned earlier.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Data collected on the gender of respondents are illustrated in figure 3. In terms of respondents’ years in service, majority of respondents had been working between one and five years in the polytechnics. As illustrated in Figure 3, the situation is not different in both polytechnics. The southern polytechnic had approximately 91.4% and polytechnic in the north had 91.6% of respondents working at the polytechnics between one to five years. The northern Polytechnic is one of the newly established polytechnics and most workers there have spent less than five years. They were aware of the existence and implementation of staff performance appraisal. At southern polytechnic, most of the respondents seem not to 14

be aware of the implementation of staff performance appraisal. They also expressed the view that they were not aware of any staff appraisal practices before they were employed. The differences in opinions at both locations lead the researcher to find out from respondents the number of times appraisal was implemented in the different institutions.

Research Question 1

In response to the research question about how staff and students perceived the nature of staff performance appraisals practiced in the polytechnics, Tables 2, 3, 4 and 5 presents an analysis of issues under different captions. Table 2 discusses the number of times appraisal is used in supervisory duties. Table 3 is a summary of the impact of staff performance appraisal on cordial relationship between workers. Table 4 shows the perception of respondents on how performance appraisal enables the supervisors to set achievable targets.

Table 2 Opinions on whether Staff Performance Appraisal should be Done Yearly

 In Table 2, the frequency distribution of views of students sampled at the departments in the southern polytechnic was analyzed alongside the views of others who are mostly administrators, artisans, clerks, teaching staff and lecturers. It was revealed that under the strongly agree option, management students had the highest frequency of responses, they had 24 representing 9.8%. Others, who are mostly administrators, had the least responses at 6 representing 2.4%. Under agree, students of statistics had the least: they were represented by 11 responses giving 4.5%. Under disagree, the administrators had no response, only a few responses were recorded: students of management and secretary-ship recorded 4 out of the total of 12 respondents for the column. Under strongly disagree, students of marketing and management had 2 respondents each represented, Students of all the other departments and others recorded frequency of 1 respondent which was 0.4% each.

In the northern polytechnic, however, the trend was different, under strongly agree, students of accountancy and engineering had the most responses. They had 9 each out of the total of 46 responses; marketing students recorded 6 which was the least. Under agree, the administrators had the highest frequency they had 11 representing 11.6% students of engineering had no score under disagree. The administrators recorded 3 representing 3.2%.

Figure 2: Aggregated opinions of Respondents on whether appraisal should be done yearly.

From the information gathered departmentally, the researcher sought to find the general perception of respondents at their different locations, aggregated opinions of both polytechnics, on the number of times appraisal is used in supervisory duties as shown in Figure 2 From the data presented on figure 2 at the two institutions, the statistics at both locations show more than fifty percent of the total respondents agreeing that staff performance appraisal should be used at least once a year. At southern polytechnic, 47.7% strongly agreed and 44.5% agreed, summing up to 92.3%. At the polytechnic in the north, 48.4% strongly agreed to the suggestion and 36 representing 37.9% agreed adding up to 86.3%. From both views expressed at the departmental and institutional level, it could be seen that most respondents agree that staff performance appraisal could be implemented once a year in the institution. Their views affirm the assertion by Mathias and Jones (1989) in their definition which describes staff performance as a process of promoting effectiveness of the teachers’ work in the classroom.

From the ideas expressed by the educationists, it could be seen that it is very necessary to implement staff performance appraisal in the institution to improve performances.

Analysis of another response to a question as to whether respondents thought Staff Performance Appraisal promoted cordiality between the Supervisors and subordinates is illustrated in Table 3.  In comparing views expressed within the department level, in the southern polytechnic, students of accountancy had the highest frequency of those who strongly agreed with the statement that staff performance brings about cordial relationship between workers and students. They had 16 respondents, followed by 13 for marketing. Engineering, statistics and management student had 9 responses each represented; the administrators who are mostly non-teaching staff who fall under others scored 3, the least. Again, under agree, the administrators under others had the least: 14 responses. Under disagree, the students of accountancy and engineering had 5 each next to management students who scored the highest at 6, marketing student had 4, statistic and others had 2 each. At the southern polytechnic, administrators who are mostly grouped under others disagreed From the interview and data collected, the figures show that though the administrators had most respondents expressing their view in support of the statement that staff performance appraisal brings about cordial relationship between supervisors, subordinates and students, some still did not agree with the statement because they said it provides students the opportunity to say nasty things about their lecturers and administrator

Table 3: Views illustrating if Staff Performance Appraisal brings Cordial Relationship  

Under strongly agree the administrators at the northern polytechnic, grouped under others, scored the most at 5. This gives a clear difference in perception between the administrators at northern polytechnic and those in the southern polytechnic. At northern polytechnic 21 students from engineering said they agree with the statement that staff appraisal brings cordial relationship, between workers and students. Other administrators were represented by 3 followed by accounting and management department at 9 each. Whilst the southern polytechnic administrators disagree with the statement that staff performance appraisal brings cordial relationship between workers and students, northern polytechnic administrators strongly agree with it.

It was also noticed that the students at northern polytechnic recorded greater figures under strongly disagree and disagree which contributed to the increase of the figures subtotal under this column. The sub-total for disagree was 40 frequency. Though the figures disagree were not significant, in an interview the students explained that staff performance appraisal implementation had started only about two years ago and therefore they could not see any significant impact their contributions or suggestions have had on administration. The believed, however, that if their suggestions are taken into consideration by management, it would help bring about cordial relationship between workers and students.

The frequency analysis goes to support the statement made by Rebore (2001) that the need for appraisal stems from the fact that there is an integral relationship between employees and that one employee’s performance affect the other. Again, according to the

GES addendum to head teacher’s handbook, published by the Ministry of Education in 2002, performance appraisal of teachers is a process in which a teacher collaborates with a superior in evaluating that teacher’s performance. Mathias and Jones (1989) also explain that there should be a meeting between the appraisers and appraisees to develop a rapport and trust between themselves.  The two writers therefore underline the need for integral relationship, collaboration and rapport. When these are developed at the staff performance appraisal implementation, it would bring about cordial relationship between workers and students and thereby minimize the rampant riots in the polytechnics. In terms of the role Staff Performance plays in helping workers and supervisors to set achievable targets, varied responses were given. Table 4 illustrates the responses. At the departmental level in the southern polytechnic, mostly Administrators had no score under strongly agree. Under strongly agree, they had 9 scores, the least among the scores under agree.

Management students had 27 under disagree followed by marketing 26, engineering 23, accountancy 15, and other 9. At the southern polytechnic, the figures reveal that because staff performance appraisal is not being implemented, both students and workers do not have any clear idea about the statement as to whether it enables workers to set achievable targets, the trend of the figures did not follow any particular pattern, probably because respondents seem to be guessing to give their responses.

However at the northern polytechnic, the administrators grouped under others recorded the highest response that was 7 and 9 under agree. The administrators scored the least under disagree at 4 responses and 1 under strongly disagree. Since the statement was directed to workers, the students seem not know much and responded in the negative. When the views of respondents were aggregated the following results emerged (Table 4).

Table 4: Respondents’ view on whether Staff Performance Appraisal promotes the setting of Achievable Targets

Figure 3: Aggregated opinion on whether Staff Performance Appraisal’s helps in setting Achievable Targets.

On views expressed per institution, the results suggest that the respondents who disagreed to the statement that staff performance appraisal enables supervisors and the workers to set achievable target were most at the southern polytechnic, but not at the north. The polytechnic in the south had 46.5% responses and 5.6% under strongly disagree adding up to 51.8%. The northern polytechnic had 42% and 4.2% for disagree adding up to 46.3%.  This could be attributed to the number of departments with students being more than the administrators and therefore their views overshadowed that of the administrators. The majority views at the southern polytechnic therefore contradicted the assertion made by Duham (1995) that appraisal can be used in two different ways, namely, to appraise performance and to review development. He explained that appraisal concerns itself with setting achievable goals and giving feed-back to staff on their workers performance so that the objective of the organizations can be achieved.

From the statement made by Duham (1995) it is very necessary for the appraiser and appraisee to set achievable targets. From the set targets, individuals could be informed if they are improving on their work or not. Another research question that guided the study was related to how the implementation of staff performance appraisal influences the performance of staff in the polytechnics. The responses are represented in Research Question 2

Under strongly agree in the southern polytechnic, administrators termed ‘others’ scored the least at 6. Again under agree, they recorded 11, the least score under that column. However, most of the administrators in the southern polytechnic agree with the statement that appraisal enhances performance. Only 1 respondent was represented under disagree and strongly disagree. Generally, students under different departments also agree with the above statement. Accountancy had 21 under strongly agree and 24 under agree. Engineering had 20 under strongly agree and 25 under agree; marketing had 23 under strongly agree and 30 under agree. Statistics had 13 under agree and 19 under agree.  Management had 10 under strongly agree and 30 under agree. The figures under disagree were less than those under agree column.

At the northern polytechnic, the highest score under strongly agree was the others at 9 followed by students of engineering at 6, the other departments had 4 frequency each under agree again the administrators under others had 10 frequencies each with the students of management, accountancy and engineering had 9 each followed by statistics at 8 and marketing the least at 6.The representation under disagree and strongly disagree was insignificant. At the departmental level the administrators under general ‘other’ responded strongly in agreement to the issue under discussion at northern polytechnic more than those in the south, under agree both respondents at both institutions, under ‘others’ agree with the issue being discussed.

CONCLUSIONS

The two research questions that were addressed in this study included the following: How students and staff perceived the nature of staff performance appraisal practised in the polytechnics.  Staff and students had the notion that appraisals were only meant to demote and promote staff, but not for development. Staff and students expressed the feeling that their administrations are fraught with corruption and unfairness. The next research question that was addressed in this study was what factors influenced the implementation of staff performance appraisal and that there was no particularly-designed structure for appraisal implementation at the polytechnics.

In view of the findings gathered from this study, it is clear that improper implementation of the staff performance appraisal initiative results in drawbacks and many untapped potentials, talents and skills in personnel or the relevant workforce. These potentials and talents could have been engaged for rapid development and improvement on administrative functions in the institutions. The inability of students, staff and administrators to conduct effective appraisals results in poor communication.

Students and staff need to be educated about the purpose of appraisals, the procedure to follow and the importance and utilization of feedback given to the appraised, since some staff may be new and might not have had any exposure to how appraisals are done. Students should also be educated on how to give relevant information for appraisal record data collected in the polytechnics. In that way, students would indirectly be involved in the decision- making process in the nation’s polytechnics since they are at the receiving end of all policies that are implemented in the institutions.  

LIMITATIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

The long distance between the two polytechnics caused a difficulty, as the researcher had to travel over long distances to collect data for the research. Secondly, the targeted population was limited to only eight departments since the Polytechnic in the north is newly established and does not have as many departments as the southern Polytechnic. Thirdly, the use of the Likert scale by the researcher might have restricted respondents to choose from only the alternative responses provided, possibly causing some information not to have been captured by the study. As a result of financial constraints the study was limited to only two polytechnics in the country. The researcher suggests that the research could be done on four to six polytechnics or even includes all the ten polytechnics in the country to enable one to have an idea of what is happening in all the institutions in the country.  Results and reports on appraisals should be effectively used by administrators, heads of department and deans of schools in the human resource management in the institution to help develop and utilize talents and skills for the betterment of the nation.

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