PurposeAs teachers are considered “knowledge workers,” the present study explores teacher performance in schools. A particular emphasis is given to assessing the performance of female teachers in the rural part of South India.Design/methodology/approachAfter collecting data from 563 female teachers from four blocks in Nilgiris District (Ooty, Kotagiri, Coonoor and Gudalur) consisting of 37 government schools in the southern part of India, all the female teachers were surveyed, and the data were analyzed after checking the instrument's psychometric properties by performing confirmatory factor analysis. Hierarchical regression was employed to test the hypotheses.FindingsThe findings revealed that (1) empowerment, organizational communication and work–life balance (WLB) and recognition and rewards are positively and significantly related to teacher performance; (2) recognition and rewards moderate the relationship between (a) empowerment and performance, (b) organizational communication and performance, (c) WLB and performance, (d) organizational culture and performance and (e) quality of work-life (QWL) and performance.Research limitations/implicationsAs with any survey research, common method bias and social desirability bias may be potential limitations. However, proper care is taken to minimize these biases. The findings from this study contribute to the growing literature on education and training. In addition, the study highlights the importance of creating a climate for empowerment, recognition and rewards to foster teacher performance.Practical implicationsThe study helps administrators and policymakers to understand the antecedents of teacher performance and take necessary steps to motivate the teachers for superior performance.Originality/valueThe conceptual model the authors developed and tested is, according to the authors' knowledge, the first of the model's kind. A clear understanding of the predictors of teacher performance may guide the administrators and teaches in fostering performance in schools. The exclusive focus on female teachers is considered in this study because of the several problems the female teachers encounter in rural areas. Despite the disadvantages, female teachers perform well and contribute to students and the country as a whole.