ABSTRACT
The theory on appraisal claims that it is a useful way of enhancing performance and fostering accountability in an organisation. This paper confronts the theory with practice in the context of a large institution over a five-year period. It explores the tensions between the manager’s concern to use appraisal as a tool for ensuring standards and the teacher’s concern that appraisal is an instrument for personal development. Actual use and evaluation of our appraisal system suggests modifications to existing theoretical frameworks, and suggests a number of ways in which the management of performance and appraisal can be managed.
