Analysis Of Motivational Effect On Implementation Of Merit Pay For Compulsory Education Teachers

Since January 1st,2009, China has comprehensively implemented the strategy of merit pay for teachers in compulsory education phase. According to Blue Paper Surveys, there's an increasing in teachers' salary, especially for rural teachers, however, there are many issues underlying implementing process of this strategy, which need further practice and improvement. Implementing merit pay for teachers in compulsory education schools establishes a favorable mechanism to encourage and absorb talents to engage themselves to a long-term or life-long career as teachers, as well as evaluation system of teachers' performance appraisal, which explicitly requires teachers to fully implement the Party's education policy, further carry out quality-oriented education, care about every student, especially those who have difficulties in their study or deviation in their qualities. Furthermore, this strategy forbids treating the rate of admission into higher schools as teachers' evaluation index, at the same time, requires insistence of close integration between performance appraisal and merit pay distribution, establishes a reasonable motivating orientation of income distribution, insists on preferable treatment for frontline teachers, backbone teachers and class supervisors. All of these is conducive to guide teachers to be loyal to their duties, love their careers, be a worthy example and educate people, which motivates converge their intelligence, wisdom, enthusiasm to the magnificent cause of promoting balanced development in compulsory education, furthers implementation of quality-oriented education, boosts students'comprehensive healthy growth, and makes every compulsory education school a success.There are many issues underlying this beneficial strategy, merit pay system is like a "double-edged sword", which has not only positive effects, but also negative ones due to its uniqueness. For example, in motivating teachers' working enthusiasm, it doesn't work out; it even causes slack working, which leads to severe influence. The main issues are:new equalitarianism's replacement of old-fashioned "the big rice bowl", employers'and employees' incomplete of information, emphasis on material rewards and ignorance of psychological obstacles.According to investigation and research, the uniqueness of compulsory education as public goods, lack of communicating and feedback mechanism between employers and employees, emphasis on remuneration motivation and ignorance of contextual performance motivating effects, these are the main reasons of issues emerged from the implementation of merit pay system. There are several solutions as follows:performance appraisal should be more scientific and comprehensive, intensifying target motivation; communication should be emphasized, strengthening power motivation; teachers' need should be understood practically, reinforcing spirit motivation.