The effects of cost-sharing on the training of grade IIIA teachers in Tanzania.

The main purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of cost sharing strategies on the training of Grade IIIA teachers in Teachers Colleges in Tanzania. It specifically focused on the effects of payment of fees/other monetary contributions on: students access to teachers colleges with respect to students background variables such as location, income, gender, and religion; professional preparation of prospective teachers; attrition rates and on colleges financial sustainability capacity. All these were gaps not yet covered in the previous studies. Basing on Fleiss' approach to determining sample size the number of subjects involved in this study were 272 students and 60 teaching staff from the six teachers colleges surveyed. The colleges include Tarime, Bunda, Sumve, Tabora, Ndala and Morogoro. Questionnaires, interviews schedule and documentary reviews were three methods used for data gathering. The gathered data were analysed in the light of the four developed null hypotheses using both statistic and descriptive approaches. All the null hypotheses were rejected. The major findings were: 1. Students who did not have fees /other monetary contributions mainly came from disadvantaged/poor communities. Such students could not get access to Grade IIIA Teachers colleges 2. Fees/other financial contributions could not enable the teachers colleges prepare student teachers professionally. 3. Fees and other financial contributions affected selected internal efficiency indicators in Teachers colleges. A majority of students (76%) arrived late because of not having fees/contributions. Others dropped out of the training programme as a result of being unable to pay the same. 4. The tutor students ratio (TSR) was very high. The average TSR in the surveyed colleges was 1:7 instead of the recommended figure of 1:17. 5. Fees and other financial contributions, even when added to other sources of teachers colleges funding, were not enough to sustain the teachers colleges financially. Thus, teachers colleges programmes could not be effectively carried out .In the light of the above findings several recommendations for action and for further research were put forward. 1. The need to carry out a similar study that will have wider coverage of subjects for providing comprehensive information on the effects of fees on access to teachers colleges. The subjects would include selected students who failed to report to Teachers colleges, dropouts, and students' parents. 2. Conducting a study to determine misconduct in financial administration and management in colleges in Teachers colleges and educational institutions in general. 3. Studying why disadvantaged communities were under-represented in post primary/secondary school level so that they could be helped to get along with their advantaged counterparts.