Abstract
The study was carried out to investigate the influence of school climate on teachers’ motivation in Enugu-East Education Zone of Enugu State. The study adopted ex-post factor design. The sample size is 526 respondents representing the entire population of both the principals and teachers in the zone. A researcher designed questionnaire was used as instrument for data collection. Three experts face-validated the instrument while Cronbach Alpha method was used to compute the reliability estimate for the study. Four research questions and two null hypotheses tested at 0.05 level of significant guided the study. A 27 item structured questionnaire was subjected to statistical analysis using mean and standard deviation for the research questions and t-test for the hypotheses. The results of the findings showed that the most common available school climate types in secondary schools are closed, paternal and familiar which does not encourage motivation of teachers. The study identified adequate facilities and equipment, maintenance of school plant and conducive accommodation as important motivational factors for teachers. Other highlights include open climate, adequate attention to teachers’ welfare, recognizing teachers’ worth, ensuring their professional growth and proper delegation of duties are effective strategies for enhancing the influence of school climate on teachers’ motivation.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background of the study
Generally, workers come to organizations with expectations on their personal needs to be met by the organizations. In many organizations like the school, the ability of the teacher to perform effectively is based usually on the conduciveness of the school atmosphere or the prevailing school climate. In order to achieve the goals and objectives of the educational system, there has to be an appropriate and a conducive school climate to ensure teacher effectiveness in the schools. The school climate describes the environment in which teaching and learning take place, which has to be conducive and congenial for everyone to stay and work in relative comfort and security.
The school climate is an orderly environment in which the school family feels valued and able to pursue the school mission from concerns about descriptions and safety. (Mgbodile, 2004). Agusiegbe (2004) defines school climate as teaching and learning environment as the setting, physical and conceptual in which teaching and learning are carried out as deliberately planned. Marshall (2002) describes the school climate as the atmosphere of school that consists of attitude shared by
members of group such as the principals, teachers and parents as
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experiences that affect their behaviour based on their collective perception in the school.
Many scholars have perceived school climate as a very vital aspect of school organization. Hence Chukwunwike (2005), emphasized that poor school climate in secondary schools has affected the influence of teachers tremendously. This has gone along way to reduce the quality of secondary school products. A conducive atmosphere exists when the teachers and the students feel safe, happy, comfortable, wanted, valued, accepted and secured, in order to achieve the objectives of education and for it to have high standard. The principal must adopt appropriate management strategies, these strategies include planning, organizing, coordinating, directing and controlling for effective running of the school. Mgbodile (2007) also states that a well managed school climate can greatly enhance the production of a school which in turn contributes to the achievement of the overall goals of education.
Many scholars have classified and defined school climate in different forms such types as available include: autonomous, controlled, familiar, paternal, open and close. According to Halpin and Croft (1963) autonomous school climate is defined as an atmosphere that allows teachers’ to carry out their duty freely in the school system in order to achieve their goals. Controlled involves an atmosphere of hard work at the expense of social life. This climate tends to be impersonal and task
oriented. Familiar climate is an atmosphere of sociability at the expense of task performance while paternal is characterized as one in which the principals discourages the emergence of leadership acts from the teachers. Open climate is an atmosphere that welcomes teachers input into the administration of the school while close climate sees the principal as behaving like all knowing in the affairs of the school and most often does not allow free flow of information and motivation of teachers staff and students in the school.
The important role of motivation especially in the school system cannot be overemphasized. Motivation channels, causes and sustains people’s bahvaviours. It enables the school authorities to influence teachers to perform in the ways that the authorities find desirable. Mgbodile (2004) defines motivation as an inducement, incentive, inspiration, encouragement in order to incite an individual to action. In the same vein, Enyi (2004) sees motivation to mean to move someone to action. In this context, motivation is seen as all the efforts of the school principals in encouraging the teachers in the discharge of their assigned responsibilities in the school.
The principal is the chief executive of the secondary school in Nigeria. (Ogbonna, 2004). Hence, the success or otherwise of the school rests on his ability to evolve, encourage as well as promote harmonious school climate to ensure proper school administration. He is to plan,
direct and motivate the teachers in order to achieve the objectives of the school. Alike (1995), sees the principal as someone who supervises the affairs of the school so that it can run very smoothly for effective productivity of teachers. It is how the teachers perceive the principal and the school climate that largely influences their attitude and motivation to work.
Against this backdrop, the current study intends to investigate the influence of school climate on teachers’ motivation in secondary schools in Enugu State with a view to enhancing their effectiveness in the system.
Statement of the problem
The issue of poor quality teaching and learning in Nigeria secondary education has been of great concern to the educationists and other citizens. This becomes pertinent because the educational standard have been faced with lack of spirited efforts by the government at instilling discipline in secondary schools, lack of commitment, dedication and loyalty on the part of the principals and teachers, lack of incentives or poor teacher-motivation.
Most schools have dilapidated buildings out-dated equipment and facilities, staff irregularity in school attendance, inadequate exercises to students, and lateness to school, and absence from class among others. What is then responsible for this ugly state of affairs in our secondary
schools? The principals’ poor attitude towards school improvement and teachers is bound to influence the achievement of school goals. It is against this background that the researcher intends to find out the influence of school climate on teachers motivation in secondary schools in Enugu East Education Zone of Enugu State.
Purpose of the study
The main purpose of this study is to investigate the influence of school climate on teachers’ motivation in secondary schools in Enugu East Education Zone of Enugu State. Specifically, the study will seek to:
1) Identify the types of school climate available in secondary schools in Enugu State Education Zone.
2) Identify the factors that influence teachers’ motivation in schools.
3) Identify how open school climate influence teachers’ motivation.
4) Determine strategies for enhancing the influence of school climate on teachers’ motivation.
Significance of the study
The findings of the study would be theoretically significant in advancing knowledge on school climate on teachers’ motivation in secondary schools while it will provide practical benefits to the following: the principals, educational planners, researchers, the students, and the society.
The school principals will use the findings as strategies to be adopted to influence teachers in the school in order to enhance conducive teaching and learning. It will help the principals develop better leadership styles or behaviours that are vital for creating the right of school climate which will facilitate effective teachers-motivation and improve standards of learning.
It would be useful for educational planners and state education commissions for proper formulation of policies with regards to evaluation of school principals and transfer of teachers. It would help to raise the awareness of the government in providing adequate facilities and equipment to schools to ensure motivation of teachers in the schools.
The findings of the study would enrich the literature on school climate on teachers’ motivation for researchers in Enugu State Education Zone in particular and Nigerian in general.
Students would benefit from the findings as it would lead to provision of conducive learning environment. It would enable the students to make appropriate choice of schools to attend that would positively influence their learning in the schools.
Society would use the findings of the study as a means of influencing their involvement in the school management, guiding them on what to do to supplement the efforts of principals, teachers and
students in creating appropriate school climate for teachers’ motivation for teaching and learning.
Scope of the study
The geographical scope covers all the public secondary schools in Enugu East Education Zone of Enugu State. The content scope include, the identification of types of school climate in public secondary school in Enugu East Education Zone, how open and close school climate influence teachers’ motivation, the factors that influence school climate as well as strategies for enhancing the influence of school climate and teachers’ motivation.
Research questions
The following research questions guided the study:
1) What are the types of school climate available in secondary school?
2) To what extent do the following factors influence teachers’
motivation?
3) To what extent does open school climate influence teachers’
motivation?
4) What are the strategies for enhancing the influence of school climate on motivation of teachers in schools?
Hypotheses
The following null-hypotheses were formulated to guide the study. Each was tested at 0.05 levels of significance.
1) There is no significant difference between the mean ratings of principals and teachers with regard to the types of school climate available in secondary schools.
2) There is no significant difference between the mean ratings of principals and teachers with regard to factors that influence teachers’ motivation in schools.
This material content is developed to serve as a GUIDE for students to conduct academic research
INFLUENCE OF SCHOOL CLIMATE ON TEACHERS’ MOTIVATION IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN ENUGU-EAST EDUCATION ZONE OF ENUGU STATE
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