Methods to Motivate School Teachers in Afghanistan

Abstract

Teaching as a profession has gained nobility and respect for its service to society. The application, dedication and selfless devotion of school teachers in Afghanistan to their line of work has received accolades from all quarters. Even so, it is an undeniable fact that the tedious and repetitious everyday classroom activity, lack of positive initiatives from the government and low salaries are responsible for the adverse impact on teacher’s mental health, decreasing job satisfaction levels, burnout and a major cause for their regular absenteeism. Additionally, stress due to immense work pressure affects their performance in the classroom and raises doubts about their professionalism. This also impacts the enthusiasm and interest of the students in a negative manner. It is, therefore, an immensely important issue that needs to be addressed by taking a holistic approach by analysing the cause and effect of the various factors that lead to teacher’s feeling uninspired and demotivated, be it professional or personal. It is the need of the hour to chart out programs that get educators - primary to high school - acquainted with modern pedagogies through proper training and get them enthused with policies that keep their flame of motivation burning.