How frequently are teachers absent?
Confirming much of the existing literature, data drawn from the TTT survey – which was administered to 1,955 teachers working in 160 purposively selected schools across the ESA region – indicate that primary school educators are absent in various ways, albeit with varying degrees of frequency.
Across the region, 15.5 per cent of surveyed teachers reported being absent from school at least once a week. The highest national rates of school absenteeism were reported in South Sudan (30 per cent) and the Comoros (20.6 per cent) and the lowest in Kenya (8.9 per cent) and Rwanda (9 per cent).
Almost 17 per cent of surveyed teachers reported arriving to school late or leaving school early on a frequent basis (i.e. once a week or more). Among participating countries, the highest national rates of late arrival/ early departure were reported in Uganda (25.7 per cent), South Sudan (23.7 per cent) and the Comoros (22 per cent) and the lowest in Puntland (5.3 per cent), and Kenya (8.9 per cent).
As much as 15.7 per cent of surveyed teachers reported missing lessons while at school at least once a week. Teachers in South Sudan and in Zanzibar reported the highest rates of classroom absenteeism (26 and 22.7 per cent respectively) and teachers in Rwanda and Kenya the lowest rates (7.6 and 8.4 per cent respectively). Absence from teaching, defined as reduced time on task while in the classroom, was reported by 17.8 per cent of surveyed teachers as occurring at least once a week.
At the country level, the largest percentages of teachers reporting spending less time on teaching than originally planned at a rate of once a week or more were in South Sudan (31 per cent) and Zanzibar (20.7 per cent) and the smallest in Puntland (11 per cent), Rwanda (12 per cent) and Kenya (12.1 per cent).
Which schools and teachers are more likely to experience absenteeism?
Analysis of the TTT survey data shows that differences in the frequency of self-reported absenteeism exist within countries and across school type and location, and teacher characteristics such as work status and level of education. The findings summarized below are those for which the differences are statistically significant.
School location: Across the region, absenteeism is higher in rural areas (18 per cent) than in urban/ peri-urban areas (15 per cent).
School governance: Overall, approximately 13 per cent of private schools across the countries are affected by teacher absenteeism compared with 17 per cent of public schools.
Gender: There is no statistically significant difference between male and female teacher self-reported absenteeism in the region as a whole.
Level of education: Absenteeism rates differ according to the highest level of education a teacher has received. Vocational school graduates reported the highest level of absenteeism (20 per cent) followed by secondary school graduates (17 per cent) and university graduates (14 per cent). Teachers who reported completing primary school as their highest level of education reported the lowest rate of absenteeism (12 per cent).
Work status: In all countries, teacher absenteeism is higher among volunteer teachers (28 per cent) than non-volunteer (civil servant or contracted) teachers (16 per cent).
Earnings: Teachers who supplement their teaching income through non-teaching activities have a higher rate of absenteeism (20 per cent) than those who receive income from teaching only (16 per cent). In all countries, being the sole earner in the household does not have a significant association with absenteeism. Teachers who report being in the highest third of salaries within their country report lower rates of absenteeism (15 per cent) than those who report being in the lowest third of salaries (18 per cent). Receiving salary payments on time is also strongly associated with lower levels of absenteeism across the region. Teachers who report receiving their salary in a timely manner are less absent (14 per cent) compared with those who report delays (19 per cent).
Benefits: Receiving a cash benefit is associated with lower absenteeism across the countries than receiving no cash benefits (15 per cent vs 19 per cent). Teachers who receive a non-cash benefit are also less likely to report being absent than those who do not receive non-cash benefits (14 per cent vs 19 per cent).
Why are teachers absent?
Overall, in the eight countries, ill health is the most frequent answer given for the absence from school, late arrival/early departure and reduced time on task forms, and the second most frequent answer given for absence from the classroom. Weather – in particular for late arrival/early departure – and family reasons were also very frequently mentioned.
Education system factors affecting teacher attendance
- Teacher monitoring
- Teacher training
- Teacher salaries, benefits and career development
- Teacher workload, recruitment and allocation
- School resources and infrastructure
Non-system factors affecting teacher attendance
- Health
- Family obligations
- Weather
- Community infrastructure
- Conflict