Teacher Professional Development as a Predictor of Innovative Teaching Practices in Primary Schools: Evidenced from Sankuri Sub-County, Kenya

Abstract

This purpose of study was examining the relationship between teacher professional development and innovative teaching in primary schools. The research was grounded in transformational leadership theory. A cross-sectional correlation design was employed to assess relationships between variables.  The study was conducted across all 28 public primary schools in Sankuri sub-county, targeting all 95 teachers via a census approach. Structured questionnaires were used for quantitative data collection from teachers. Data analysis involved Pearson correlation and regression models. The analysis revealed a strong, positive, and statistically significant relationship between professional development and innovative teaching strategies (r = 0.701, p = .000). Regression analysis further confirmed that professional development significantly predicts innovative teaching strategies (β = 0.691, p = .000). The model demonstrated strong explanatory power, with professional development alone accounting for 49.17% of the variance in innovative teaching strategies (R² = 0.4917). The study concludes that professional development significantly enhances innovative teaching practices in primary schools. The findings underscore the critical need for schools to enhance their teacher development programs to better support innovative teaching practices. Recommendations include prioritizing comprehensive and well-structured professional development programs, ensuring they are tailored to teachers’ needs, and providing adequate resources and support to maximize innovative teaching outcomes in primary education settings. However, the study employed a cross-sectional design, which limits the ability to infer causal relationships.