Job Satisfaction and the Teaching of Social Studies among Primary School Teachers

Job Satisfaction and the Teaching of Social Studies among Primary School Teachers

ABSTRACT

The study investigated job satisfaction and teaching effectiveness among Social Studies teachers in primary schools in Nsit Ubium Local Government Area. The study focused on examining the relationship between teachers’ job satisfaction and their effectiveness in carrying out their instructional responsibilities. Job satisfaction is an important factor in the teaching profession because it can influence teachers’ commitment, morale, motivation, and willingness to perform their duties effectively. The study therefore examined how specific employment-related factors, including promotion, payment of salaries, and conditions of service, relate to teachers’ effectiveness in the classroom.

The population of the study comprised all teachers in the thirty-eight (38) primary schools in Nsit Ubium Local Government Area. Three research questions and three research hypotheses were formulated to guide the study. The research questions provided direction for investigating the relationship between job satisfaction and teaching effectiveness, while the hypotheses established the relationships to be examined statistically. The study was designed to determine whether teachers’ promotion, salary payments, and conditions of service were significantly related to their effectiveness in teaching Social Studies.

A survey research design was adopted for the study because it enabled the researcher to obtain relevant information from the selected respondents concerning their job satisfaction and teaching effectiveness. The design was considered appropriate because the study focused on collecting data about teachers’ experiences, perceptions, and working conditions without manipulating the variables under investigation. Through this approach, the researcher was able to obtain information that could be used to examine the relationship between employment-related factors and teachers’ performance in the study area.

A sample of fifty (50) respondents was randomly selected from the population using the simple random sampling technique. This sampling method was employed to provide members of the population with an equal and independent opportunity to be selected for participation in the study. The use of random sampling was intended to reduce selection bias and ensure that the selected respondents provided relevant information about job satisfaction and teaching effectiveness among primary school teachers. The sample served as the basis for collecting data needed to answer the research questions and test the formulated hypotheses.

The questionnaire was the main instrument used for data collection. It was designed to obtain information on teachers’ perceptions of promotion opportunities, salary payments, conditions of service, and their effectiveness in teaching Social Studies. The questionnaire approach enabled the researcher to gather responses from the selected teachers in a structured and systematic manner. The information obtained provided a basis for examining how the identified aspects of job satisfaction were associated with teachers’ professional responsibilities and classroom performance.

The data collected were analysed using Pearson Product-Moment Correlation analysis, which was considered appropriate for examining the relationships between the variables under investigation. The three hypotheses were tested at the 0.05 level of significance to determine whether the observed relationships were statistically significant. The results of the analysis indicated that teachers’ promotion, payment of salaries, and conditions of service were significantly related to teaching effectiveness. These findings suggest that opportunities for career advancement, regular remuneration, and favourable working conditions are important considerations in understanding teachers’ job satisfaction and professional performance. However, the relationships identified do not, by themselves, establish that these factors directly cause changes in teaching effectiveness.

Based on the findings, the study recommended that the government and relevant educational authorities should improve teachers’ conditions of service and establish clear procedures for working hours, overtime duties, and appropriate compensation for additional work. It was also recommended that teachers should be promoted fairly and promptly, salaries should be paid regularly, and adequate welfare measures should be provided to improve job satisfaction. Furthermore, school administrators and policymakers should create a supportive working environment that recognises teachers’ contributions and encourages professional development. Implementing these recommendations could help strengthen teachers’ morale, improve their commitment to instructional duties, and promote greater teaching effectiveness in primary schools in Nsit Ubium Local Government Area.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1     Background to the Study

Teaching is a highly noble profession and teachers are always a boon to the society. The ultimate process of education could be simplified as a meaningful interaction between the teacher and the taught. The teacher thus plays a direct and crucial role in moulding a pupil towards education. Since a teacher is a role model for the pupils, job satisfaction and eventually performance of teachers become very vital in the fields of education.

Job satisfaction is either a global feeling about the job or a related constellation of attitudes about various aspects of facets of the job. The facet approach is used to find out which parts of the job produce satisfaction or dissatisfaction. The more important factors conducive to job satisfaction include mentally challenging work, equitable rewards, supportive working conditions and supportive colleagues. For most employees work also fills the need for social interaction and so, friendly supportive employees also lead to increased job satisfaction (Drago and others, 2012). Job satisfaction can also be seen as an indicator of emotional well-being or psychological health.

The relevance of job satisfaction is very crucial to the long-term growth of any educational system around the world. It probably ranks alongside professional knowledge and skills, centre competencies, educational resources and strategies as the veritable determinants of educational success and performance. Professional knowledge, skills and centre competencies occur when one feels effective in one’s behavior. Teachers‟ opportunities for promotion are also likely to exert an influence on job satisfaction. By supporting this Robbins (1998) maintains that promotion opportunities provide for personal growth, increased responsibility, and increased social status. Limited or lack of opportunities of teachers for promotion affects educational outputs negatively. According to Luthans (1998), salaries not only assist people to attain their basic needs, but are also instrumental in satisfying the higher level needs of people. Monetary and other kinds of equitable incentives encourage teachers‟ job satisfaction.

According to Boone and Kuntz (1992), offering employees fair and reasonable compensation, which relates to the input the employee offers the organization, should be the main objective of any compensation system. Included in the category of compensation are such items as medical aid schemes, pension schemes, bonuses, paid leave and travel allowances. Generally, schools will not be operate smoothly and cannot achieve their objectives and goals if the teachers are not satisfy in their job. While almost every teacher works in order to satisfy his or her needs in life, he or she constantly agitates for need satisfaction.

There are many factors which play an important part in the success of educational institutions like teachers, money and other resources. but from them, “teachers” are the most important factors for success rate of educational institutions. So, it is essential for every management to effectively utilize their teachers. In an educational institution every teacher is assigned certain set of tasks to perform where he or she is working and these set of tasks is known as his or her job in an educational institution. As teachers are very important in any educational institution, it is vital to track on their performance, attitude and feelings. Every management believes that “satisfied teachers can bring their institution success” so it is very important for every management to identify whether their employees are really satisfied or not? And Job satisfaction survey is a tool to check whether a teacher is happy with his job or not. It is important for every institution to know job satisfaction level of their employees because success of their institutions is dependent to a great extent upon the satisfied employees of the institution. Satisfaction refers to individual elements of one’s job, like as salary, promotion, growth prospects, physical environment, working hours, so on and so forth

Teacher Job Satisfaction is a measure of organizational or school effectiveness. When teachers are not satisfied with their jobs to the extent that attrition rate is high, it means that the schools are not effective. Igwe (2010) sees an effective school as one that could provide admission opportunities and turn out reputable students which in turn would project the image of the catchments to the outside world. Griffin (2014) is of the opinion that an effective school is one that meets the following criteria: (1) ability to acquire the resources needed (2) ability to operate smoothly and efficiently without strain (3) ability to satisfy the demands and expectations of the groups that have a strong interest in the organization.

When schools meet the above criteria, they can now be regarded as effective. Schools in Nigeria cannot be said to be effective with the present situation of things. Classes are overcrowded, basic facilities are lacking, teachers’ salaries are irregular and teacher job satisfaction is lacking. A lot still needs to be done to ensure that our schools meet up with the goals for which they are established. In the light of the foregoing therefore, this study seeks to explore job satisfaction among primary school teachers in Nsit Ubium local government area.

Job Satisfaction and the Teaching of Social Studies among Primary School Teachers

1.2 Statement of the Problem

In ideal situation, all employees, teachers included, should enjoy performing their duties each day and retire to their homes with an eagerness of seeing the next day so as to go back to their jobs. This is because such workers have no reservations on their jobs hence they give their all. It is however observed that in Nigeria, as is indeed with most developing countries, most teachers are not satisfied with their jobs.

There has been so much complaint about the falling standard of education in Nigeria. Parents and the government complain that teachers are to blame as they have not been alive to their responsibilities. They accuse teachers of abandoning their duties for other businesses, truancy, absenteeism and dereliction of duty, leaving the pupils to their fate. Teachers on their part blame the government for late payment of salaries and allowances, poor working conditions, poor salary structure, lack of incentive, poor motivation leading to job dissatisfaction. The Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT) has used incessant strike actions to press for salary increase and better condition of service. The non-professionalization of teaching has also compounded the problem of teachers as teachers do not receive the same treatment as their counterparts in other professions who have better salary structure and conditions of service.

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) recommended that developing nations spend 26% of their annual budget on education but Nigeria spends only about 10% or less of its budget on education. This has led to the inability of the government to equip school with modern facilities. Teachers work under very poor conditions and this situation cannot make for school effectiveness and efficiency. Furthermore, most government policies that concern education are formulated by politicians who know little or nothing about education. These policies are then pushed down to teachers to carry out and they end up most times not working as those policies run parallel to the educational problems of the nation. It is for this reason that the study seeks to establish the level of job satisfaction and determine the degree of teacher effectiveness among primary schools in Nsit Ubium Local Government Area.

 1.3    Purpose of the Study

The main purpose of this study is to investigate the influence of job satisfaction and the teaching of social studies among primary school teachers in Nist Ubium Local Government Area. Specifically, the study intents to:

1. Determine the influence of prompt payment of teachers’ salary and teaching of social studies among primary school teachers in Nsit Ubium Local Government Area
2. examine the influence of teachers’ promotion and the teaching of social studies among primary school teachers in Nsit Ubium Local Government Area
3. Determine the influence of teachers’ condition of service and the teaching of social studies among primary school teachers in Nsit Ubium Local Government Area

1.4     Significance of the Study

It is anticipated that the study will:

1. Provide school teachers and head teacher with information about job satisfaction and what factors are affecting it. This will be used to improve their relationships and management approaches.
2. Provide public primary schools with insights on correct management styles that will improve their performance.
3. Provide useful information to the Ministry of Education on how to develop best education management practices and policies to enhance job satisfaction of teachers in public primary schools.
4. Stimulate further research on appropriate practices that will enhance job satisfaction and effectiveness among employees thus improving productivity and develop commitment of public servants.

1.5 Research Questions

The following research question guided the study;

1. What is the influence of prompt payment of teachers’ salary and teaching of social studies among primary school teachers in Nsit Ubium Local Government Area?
2. What is the influence of teachers’ promotion and the teaching of social studies among primary school teachers in Nsit Ubium Local Government Area?
3. What is the influence of teachers’ condition of service and the teaching of social studies among primary school teachers in Nsit Ubium Local Government Area?

1.6     Research Hypotheses

The following research hypotheses guided the study;

1. There is no significant influence of prompt payment of teachers’ salary and teaching of social studies among primary school teachers in Nsit Ubium Local Government Area
2. There is no significant influence of teachers’ promotion and teaching of social studies among primary school teachers in Nsit Ubium Local Government Area
3. There is no significant influence of teachers’ condition of service and teaching of social studies among primary school teachers in Nsit Ubium Local Government Area

1.7 Delimitation of the Study

This study was designed to examine the influence of job satisfaction and teaching of social studies among primary schools teachers in Nsit Ubium Local Government Area. All public primary schools in the study area were considered for the study. The study only public primary schools teachers.

1.8    Limitation of the Study

This study is limited to how job satisfaction can encourage and impart into the teaching of social studies in primary schools in Nsit Ubium Local Government Area. The researcher in the course of carrying out the study encountered several challenges that posed a threat to the success of the study. Such among the challenges encountered was financial problem and time constraint as these could not allow the researcher to cover all the primary schools in the study area due to the area large land mass. The study was also carried out along with other academic activities.

1.9     Operational Definitions of Terms

The following is the definitions of major terms as they are used in the study.

Satisfaction: A state of contentment.

Dissatisfaction: The fact or condition of having feelings or expressions of discontent

Job: A piece of work especially one done for hires or profit.

Teachers’ Job satisfaction: The term job satisfactions refer to the attitude and feelings teachers have about their work. Positive and favorable attitudes towards the job indicate job satisfaction.

Job Satisfaction and the Teaching of Social Studies among Primary School Teachers

CHAPTER TWO

LITERATURE REVIEW

This chapter is concerned with the review of works done by other authors that are related to this study. The review is carried out under the following sub-headings:

1. The Concept of Job satisfaction
2. Prompt Payment of Teachers’ Salaries and the Teaching of Social studies in Primary Schools
3. Teachers’ In-services Training and the Teaching of Social studies in Primary Schools
4. Teachers’ Promotion and the Teaching of Social studies in Primary Schools
5. Summary of Literature Review