Comparison of professional competency of upgraded grade b/c teachers and regular grade a teacher

The purpose of this study was to assess the professional competency of upgraded Grade B/C teachers in comparison to regular Grade A teachers. The sample of this study consisted of 12 teachers, who were sampled from three primary schools in Kilolo District, Iringa Region. Among the 12 teachers, 6 were upgraded Grade B/C teachers and the other 6 were regular Grade A teachers, and every teacher was observed three times. The study's observation focused on the actual behaviours of teachers in the teaching and learning process for the purpose of assessing teacher effectiveness. The findings showed that in lesson preparations, upgraded Grade B/C teachers were less effective than regular Grade A teachers, especially in setting up specific objectives and relating lesson notes to the specific objectives. However, both upgraded Grade B/C teachers and regular Grade A teachers were found to be incompetent in improvisation and the use of teaching aids. As regards to subject matter mastery, upgraded Grade B/C teachers were observed to be less competent as compared to regular Grade A teachers. In the use of classroom questions and the ability of teachers to involve learners, it was found that, closed questions and teacher-pupil interaction in the upgraded Grade B/C teacher classes were characterized by authoritarian classroom management style. From this fact, classes conducted by upgraded Grade B/C teachers were found to be rigid, routinized and mechanical. To conclude, the study tend to suggest that upgraded Grade B/C teachers have not successfully academically and professionally upgraded to grade A equivalent as it was intended in the course program. For administrative actions, this study recommends that, Grade B/C teachers should pursue ordinary secondary education before going through in-service upgrading course for them to improve academically and professionally, and to open up avenues for future emend. For further research, the study recommends that, a study can be done self-advance on the effectiveness of Grade B/C upgrading program in terms of impact on pupils' academic achievement