Perceptions of Stakeholders on the Comprehensiveness of the Novice Teacher Induction Programme in Namibia’s Kavango East Region

Teacher induction is a systematic and strategic process. It is a growth phase experienced by novice teachers as they begin their careers in education (Coleman, 2013; Baker-Gardner, 2014; Cunningham, 2024). This process aims to help new educators acclimate to their roles, enhance their instructional strategies, and integrate into the school environment. Heyes et al. (2019), emphasize that a well-structured induction program significantly influences both teacher retention and the overall quality of teaching and learning. Despite the growing global recognition of the importance of teacher induction, many nations still lack comprehensive and effective programs (Baker-Gardner, 2014; King, 2021) and the Republic of Namibia is not an exception to this global status quo regarding teacher induction. This is because since Namibia’s attainment of political independence in 1990, the teacher induction process presents unique challenges related to comprehensiveness and consistency with a majority of teachers requiring rigorous induction (Uugwanga, 2010). The introduction of the Namibia Novice Teacher Induction Programme (NNTIP) in 2011 marked a significant step towards improving teacher performance despite the fact that issues such as lax implementation, lack of comprehensiveness, and insufficient integration with mainstream staff and community stakeholders have hindered its success (Dishena & Mokoena, 2016; Shanyengana, 2021). Given the ongoing challenges in Namibia’s education system and the critical role that effective teacher induction plays in enhancing educational quality, there was an urgent need to revisit and improve the current NNTIP through the development of a contextualized comprehensive teacher induction framework particularly in Namibia. Kaveto (2025), took the initiative to develop a contextualized comprehensive teacher induction framework particularly in Nambia’s Kavango East Region in a study entitled ‘A qualitative inquiry into the development of a contextualized and comprehensive teacher induction framework in Kavango East, Namibia’. The findings of this study by Kaveto (2025), provides valuable insights into how to improve the current NNTIP in Namibia. The study was qualitative in approach and utilized a case study design. Targeted by the study were twenty (20) school teachers and four (4) school principals in Kavango East Region bringing the total study population to twenty four (24) research participants. Purposeful sampling, particularly non-probability sampling was used to sample all research participants involved in the study. In order to have an in-depth exploration of the perceptions of stakeholders on the development of a contextualized and comprehensive teacher induction framework in the Kavango East Region, the study collected data via semi-structured interviews, focus group interviews and document analysis. Thematic analysis was used to analyze data from the interviews and focus group interviews and qualitative content analysis was used to analyze data from documents. Drawing findings from this study, the article suggests what is perceived as a more comprehensive and contextually relevant induction framework that effectively supports novice teachers by enhancing their professional development, retention, teaching quality and ultimately contributes to improved educational outcomes for the learners in the region. The article also makes key recommendations for policy and practice in Namibia’s educational enterprise.