Challenges and Problems To Be Encountere

Challenges and Problems to be Encountered by School Teachers in Bahrain
*Shemily.P.John, **Dr.K.R.Murugan
*Research Scholar, Department of Women’s Studies,**Professor and Head, Department of
Social Work, Alagappa University, Karaikudi
Abstract:
In the age of globalization and digitalization; we witness changes happening on a regular
basis. A teachers’ role in this age is diverse and dynamic. A teacher has evolved from a mere
knowledge sharer to a visionary. A teacher shapes the destiny of millions. In this era of global
citizenship; a teacher has a variety of tasks and procedures to undertake. A teacher has become
complex in its being. He is a facilitator, friend, guide, philosopher and guide. A teacher fathoms
the brilliance in every student and makes him a true world citizen.
This is not a single issue which is predominant in developing countries, as well as

developed countries. A thorough revamping of the whole system of Education is inevitable.
The aim of this research is investigate the ‘Problems of Teachers of these times’ and to
find some solutions to eliminate these issues as the future of the whole world relies upon its
upcoming generations.
The study will be conducted among Indian teachers working in Schools of Bahrain under
CBSE. The schools are international standards and equipped with high quality atmosphere and
faculty. The data will be collected from various levels in order to investigate the genuine and
authentic challenges and problems prevalent in the teaching profession. This study may
highlight the areas to be restored, the common issues which can be easily dealt with, the
challenges which can be eliminated by them.
Keywords: Teachers, Problems, Challenges, Globalization

Introduction
Leadership is generally regarded as the key factor in making a difference to the success
of schools and in promoting the learning of their students. Quality education requires quality
environment. It is here the teacher especially the Head teacher who plays a vital role in creating
the right environment for the future generation. For example, in Arabia and across many
countries in many southern country, head teachers are not sufficiently prepared for their role,
with few professional improvement opportunities to supply individuals with the skills they
require (Dejaeghere et al., 2008). Therefore, these countries face challenges within their schools
to overcome these obstacles.
Researchers in UK have found that leadership is one of the most aspect that determines
the quality of an educational institution and to know the success rate of the institution (Riely and
MacBeath, 1998; Fullan and Hargreaves, 1992). However, to my knowledge, other countries
such as Saudi Arabia have a lack of theoretical and experiential literature (school buildings,
students, parents etc.). The reason for this could be that the Saudi educational context has failed
to focus on preparing adequate ground for head teachers and the Ministry of Education in Saudi
Arabia has not placed enough emphasis on the head teacher’s role.
The study revealed challenges that are quite universal for learners with development of
the students. Teachers in this study expressed the need for smaller class sizes, availability of
modern teaching aids, keeping the morale of teachers high and ongoing additional support
services from the government. Teachers teaching children development are inadequately trained
in special education and their qualification do not match with required skills. This study
revealed that the classrooms for children with teachers facing challenges in Bahrain at large have
poor learning environment to support the learners.
This study addresses the analytical description of the reality of Challenges and Problems
Faced by the teachers working in schools of Bahrain. The paper identifies the challenges in
opportunity, and the extent of the impact on work in this sector. Results are followed by
recommendations that will help in improving and enhancing the situation of Bahraini teachers in
school sector. The study investigated the following:
To examine how effectively school head teachers are carrying out their roles and
responsibilities in their school.
To identify the challenges they might be facing and which might be affecting their daily
output level.
Literature Review
It is important to understand leadership and management as significant in educational

institutions, as both are demanded in schools and educational institutions. Bush (2004) reveals
that there has been a shift in the different definitions of management, and during the 1980s (and
most of the 1990s) management was considered a broad concept, whilst in the late 90s,
researchers returned to the former, narrower definitions of management. According to the
National College for School Leadership NCSL (2003), “Management is policy implementation
and running of current activities” (p. 10). Leadership, however, emphasizes the creation of a
clear vision for the school; therefore, a leader will look towards the future of the school rather
than at the daily processes.
According to Alzaidi (2008), the context surrounding the headship position in Saudi
Arabia has a number of features, such as a flat managerial structure and a centralized educational
system. Therefore, the role of the head teacher could be considered more as that of an operational
manager than that of an actual school leader. This has an effect on how they deal with the
challenges they encounter in their day-to-day work.
According to these characteristics, the quality and standard of leadership and the tasks
and responsibilities of head teachers in Saudi Arabia are far from being those of successful
leaders because the head teachers in Saudi have training and development needs such as
Information Technology, planning skills and evaluating teachers’ performance Alsharari (2010).
The professional skills of Saudi heads therefore are far removed from the competencies which
distinguish effective school head teachers listed in the job analysis of Jirasinghe and Lyons
(1996).
With regard to the challenges facing school head teachers, these may be said to be
derived from both internal and external sources. One of these challenges is presented by the
school building, and there is little doubt that the quality of a school building can determine the
quality of the school’s environment. In other words, if the school building is of a high standard
then there will be an increased probability of a high standard of teaching and learning. According
to Sanoff (2001), the physical environment can be considered as the second teacher, since space
has the power to organize the educational process and promote the relationship between student
and classroom.
It is obvious that Bernstein’s theories (1971 and 2000) such as classification and framing
are important in this paper and could be utilized as conceptual framework because it examines
the power relations that operate between head teachers, supervisors and teachers.
Methodological framework
The research approach used in the study described in this paper was a mixed method
approach. Generally speaking, in social sciences there are three main research types, qualitative,
quantitative and mixed methods. Each type has its advantages and disadvantages and successful
research may employ a combination of the two. There are two main reasons for this: firstly, to
achieve the aims of the main research; and secondly, to overcome the difficulties that may appear
during the research.
Results and Discussion
1. Majority of the teachers felt that there should be a direct relationship between
performance management and salary increment. They are of the opinion that such a system
should be established under the control; of the head teacher. On the other hand, three of the
interviewed head teachers argued that the application of such a system would be almost
impossible, for three reasons:
i. The community culture and its relationship with the school
ii. The influence of personal relations on the decision of the level of increment.
iii. In-competencies on the part of the Head Teachers to read the performance of the teachers.
2. One of the head teachers commented that when the head teachers are burdened with
more responsibilities, there will be a dearth of qualitative assessment. This will lead to
inadequate quality assessment and feedback. This will have its toll on administrative and
teaching duties to be performed by teachers and it will impact overall quality.
i. Identification of talents among teachers, recognizing talents, development and

strengthening of existing qualities; finding differences between individuals and
attributing these differences to bring about quality changes.
ii. Quality centric approach and finding out the best in the individual
iii. Adequate motivation through appreciation and motivational incentives financially in
order to strength the relationship and communication between the head teachers and
teachers.
Conclusion:
Since the various challenges discussed above are derived from both inside and outside the
schools, it could be claimed that the finding corresponds with Day et al. (2001), who propose a
people-centred model of leadership called ‘value-led contingency leadership’. In other words,
heads use their values to lead the community because there is no official preparation programmes
for the position of leadership. This study discussed in this article also demonstrated that there are
no clear solutions to situations which include within them so many factors, and that successful
leadership is driven by individual and collective value systems rather than by institutional,
bureaucratic or managerial concerns. The heads in Tabuk were thus concerned more with
cultural than with structural change because of their value-led approach guided by personal
experience, as mentioned by Day et al. (2001). These challenges are to be addressed with a
collective social responsibility. The cause is not an alien to the problems perpetrating the
educational system today.

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Challenges and Problems to be Encountered by School Teachers in Bahrain

*Research Scholar, Department of Women’s Studies,**Professor and Head, Department of

Social Work, Alagappa University, Karaikudi

This is not a single issue which is predominant in developing countries, as well as

Keywords: Teachers, Problems, Challenges, Globalization

It is important to understand leadership and management as significant in educational

Results and Discussion

i. The community culture and its relationship with the school

i. Identification of talents among teachers, recognizing talents, development and

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