Job Discussion Forums

[jdl]

Perhaps a merit pay initiative will satisfy the criteria of recruiting the 'best and brightest' and promoting excellence if a thorough screening and monitoring process is elemental to the initiative? A great deal of research related to retention and job satisfaction highlights the concepts of workplace culture, employee efficacy, goal/vision focused activity as key factors in employee retention/satisfaction and institutional success with salary being considered a 'hygiene factor'. This research seems to fall in line with Maslow's heirarchy in that salary addresses the survival/security needs while efficacy etc relate more to belonging/self actualization needs. It is fair to say that higher level needs will not be satisfied automatically when survival/security needs are addressed; nor can 'higher level' needs be satisfied without 'lower level' needs being satisfied. Somewhat holistically organic isn't it?

Perhaps a multifaceted strategy, internally integrated but differentiated according to institutional (this includes employee/boss/client) needs can be considered?

Unfortunately an ethos of 'take the money and run' may exist to such an extent that any change may be a 'hard row to hoe'.

[kuberkat]

Well put. The trouble - certainly in MoHE colleges - seems to be recruiting the " best and brightest" in the first place, and then getting them to stay.

The "best and brightest" often find the working and living conditions intolerable, and rightly so: many of the workplace practices that have persisted in the colleges are simply not up to par. The advent of Quality Assurance and rapidly approaching accreditation process has not yet had a deep impact on actual practices outside of the national programmes, where gradual progress is being made with a great struggle from some mid-level policy makers. There remains a long way to go.

[jdl]

QA may be the most unexpected opportunity for change at the local level since it has a strong intervention component that can be controlled by an alert staff and opportunistic manager. QA although largely seen as a means to accreditation and international recognition has flung open the door for local initiative through the 'action plan/improvement plan/strategic plan' component. The QA process has actually given the local staff and administration the lead to initiate growth in a rational, justifiable and yes, measurable manner. It is an unparalleled opportunity for the quick and nimble. A good administrator is always looking for advantage in creating a vibrant work place growing out of the motivated self interest of staff...QA is the advantage if utilized. It has the potential for building based planning/authority along with accountability; a new balance. And since it seems to be here to stay..an alert staff and admin will put it to their advantage; i.e., to initaite the change we all know is needed, beginning at the building level where we do have some influence and chance of success/efficacy. Who knows a building based initiative on retention and reward for meritorious work may just work?

[Geronimo]

You may wish to take a look at the British Council's recruitment policy model:-
http://www.britishcouncil.org/teacherrecruitment-recruitment-policy.htm

Take a look at the Behavioural Competencies and Technical Skills pages... Pointers here for progression through pay scales, perhaps? Or too culturally incongruent? Appraisal interviewing is so easy to get wrong!

The British Council's Behavioural Competencies Dictionary is available for download at:-
http://www.britishcouncil.org/new/about-us/working-for-us/working-for-the-british-council/

Following on from jdl's point about QA affording opportunities for change; what major implications for MoHE teaching staff do you anticipate the move into a VLE (Blackboard?) will bring in its wake?

In Klapper's expression, will the sage on the stage become the guide on the side?

[kuberkat]

In theory Blackboard has already been implemented. In practice it is in use in Nizwa, which is the college that has my bet as the best of the six sisters. Some other colleges may have limited functionality - mine has none, although the training initiative is perhaps the best work I have seen in this country. This campus has roughly one computer to every ten students, most of them in varying states of disrepair and all riddled with viruses, since Antivirus software was considered a waste of money*. It is very clear that Blackboard can eliminate many of our struggles: time-consuming paperwork, low-level marking, cheating and plagiarism. Yet the Old Guard have expressed extreme resistance, largely because of technophobia and the troublesome need to learn new tricks.

* Flashy furniture, automatic doors and a dozen jumbo plasma screens - for the college hallways, no less - were deemed worthier causes. This curdles my blood, but the local staff and students are delighted. Our priorities clearly differ. But whose call is this? The "educated" foreign experts or the "engaged" local stakeholders?

[jdl]

BC is certainly on track; not only are there policies, procedures and competency indicators....they are published! I am sure BC has its share of 'staffing issues' but at least they have a viable and visible process for guidance. One can argue with the competencies and the scales but that is institutional specific as it should be, since each institution serves a different population. Another institution may have a sharper focus upon 'teaching competencies' but BC certainly has its eye on staff culture. For much of this work on performance and competency rubrics we may have to acknowledge the various national K-12 systems and their recent (20 year) emphasis on teaching/learning accountability. This is actually the first time I have seen them applied/mentioned in the ESL industry. Thank you Geronimo.

Kudos!

Virtual Learning Environments? Shades of Bucky Fuller and his 'community of scholars'; the technology to realize interactive learning independent of the physical limitations of time or space. Many of our colleges are new on this learning curve and working their way through 'projectors', whiteboards, smart boards, video conferencing, print libraries, reliable internet and photocopied textual material.

The implications are countless. Is there actually such a VLE pilot in the country? If there is we need to hear more about it!

[jdl]

Kuberkat...we feel your pain. A great idea is only as good as its implementation....and that is another story. As the arabic saying goes 'death by a thousand cuts' or in the language of the change agent 'disjointed incrementalism'. The need for a pilot of vle would be so helpful to judge its potential for Oman. Is the 'blackboard project' salvageable in Nizwa?

[Geronimo]

Maybe GUtech is further down the VLE implementation route than most colleges in Oman, jdl.

I've never been on its campus, so I'm guessing....
however, its website indicates that current students have a range of options online already.

Maybe it's a potential pilot study of VLE implementation in Oman in the offing?
Sample at:-
http://www.gutech.edu.om/index.php/current-students
(Note that GUtech's security protocol will rule out full exploration of the services on offer only to its own students.)

It would be very interesting to learn of the experiences and views of someone who is working at GUTech...
I'm Aachen to find out about it!