A RESEARCH ON THE INFLUENCE OF MOTIVATION ON PRIMARY SCHOOL TEACHERS JOB PERFORMANCE IN PRIMARY SCHOOLS

ABSTRACT

The study examines the relationship between motivation and teacher’s job performance in Alimosho Local Government Area. The study was guided by four research questions and four hypotheses. Relevant literature on the variables of the study were reviewed. A descriptive research design was adopted for the study. The sample comprises 100 public primary school teachers in Alimosho Local Government Area. A researcher constructed instrument tagged “Motivation and Teachers job performance” questionnaire was used for data collection. Data obtained was analyzed using Pearson Product Moment Correlation Co-efficient to test the stated hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. The findings showed that motivation is an important role for teachers because it helps to achieve the target in an efficient way. Therefore, teacher motivation is very important because it improves the skills and knowledge of teachers because it directly influences the performance. Motivation is an input to work and job performance is an output from this motivation.   

CHAPTER ONE

1.0     INTRODUCTION

1.1            BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY

Motivation is of enormous importance with regard to enhancing performance and commitment in any organization. Motivation and performance are very important  factors in terms of organization success and achievements. Motivation plays an important role in terms of organization because it increase the productivity of employees and the goals can be achieved in an efficient way. The behavior of employees can be change through motivation in any organization. From situation to situation, the level of motivation differs within an individual (Robbins, Judge, and Sanghi, 2005). Motivation also takes part in an important role of teachers because in helps to achieve the target in an efficient way. Teacher motivation is very important because it directly influences their performance (Mustafa, and Othman, 2010). The level of motivation and satisfaction of the teachers has appositive effect on their job. The source of the high motivation of the teachers includes opportunities to use special abilities, secure future and the chance to earn good money. if in schools, teachers do not have sufficient motivation then they are less competent which directly influence the students and the education system.

The relevance of motivation and job performance are very crucial to the long- term growth of any educational system around the world. They probably rank 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. In other words, professional knowledge, skills and competencies can be seen when one is taking on and mastering challenging tasks directed at education success and performance (Filak & Sheldon, 2003). The above factors are closely similar to efficacy, and of course, it is well known that many teachers lose or fail to develop self-efficacy within educational settings (Dweck, 1999). In addition, needs satisfaction and motivation to work are very essential in the lives of teachers because they form the fundamental reason for working in life. While almost every teacher works in order to satisfy his or her needs in life, he or she constantly agitates for need satisfaction. Job satisfaction in this context is the ability of the teaching job to meet teachers’ needs and improve their job or teaching performance.

In recent years references have been appearing in literature regarding series of motivational practices that are dubbed on high performance, high commitment or innovation and are said to help institutions to achieve significant improvements in performance. The aim of motivation is to exert high commitment among teachers to improve in performance. For institution such as teaching service commission to increase performance, it should have highly committed teachers with right attitude toward work (Bame, 1975). Globally, employers are not just interested in people turning up for work, it is their performance at work that the employer pays wages and salaries for because the effort that employees put in their work will obviously affect the level of quality output they attain, an effort is related to the motivation of employees (Bame, 1975). Teachers occupy such a central and vital position in any educational system that their attitudes and commitment have been of paramount interest not only to education authorities and other stakeholders but also to many researchers (Mensah, 2009).

Teachers are needed in developing countries such as Nigeria, but due to poor and unattractive remuneration some professional teachers have left the classrooms to seek for greener pastures elsewhere. However, it is assumed that teachers’ agitations and demands are beyond the resources of the ministry of Education or the government. As a result, the government in Nigeria and the Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT) are in a constant stand-off over the increase in salaries, benefits, and improvements in working conditions of teachers. The federal and state governments have argued that the present economic realities in the country cannot sustain the demanded increase in salaries, benefits, and improvements in working conditions. Specifically, they argue that teachers’ demands are beyond the government resources.

Another problem is the government’s position concerning the job performance of the teachers; they accuse the teachers of negligence, laziness, purposeful lethargy, and lack of dedication and zeal top work. They further argue that teachers’ level of efficiency and effectiveness does not necessitate the constant request for salary increase, incentives and better working conditions. While teachers on their part argue that the existing salary structure, better motivation and enhanced working conditions. They feel Nigeria’s economy is not properly balanced, hence, their demands.

Teachers are expected to render a very high job performance, and the Ministry of Education is always curious regarding the job performance of its teachers. Also, the Ministry of Education demands a very high measure of loyalty, patriotism, dedication, hard work and commitment from its teachers (Ubom & Joshua, 2004). Similarly, the roles and contexts of educations’ motivational methods and tools cannot be underemphasized because high motivation enhances productivity which is naturally in the interests of all educational systems (Ololube 2005).

1.2          STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Teachers in Nigeria have expressed a lot of dissatisfaction about the lack of human resource development, poor working conditions, poor remuneration and poor human  relations that exist in schools. This has resulted in high teacher turnover coupled with poor results in senior high schools due to lack of commitment towards work. Some newly recruited teachers stay at post for barely one year. The operating conditions of service appear to fall short teachers expectation manifesting in resignations, vacation of post, non-resumption at post after teachers leave of absence and study leave.

The general mood of those remaining is not encouraging as they exhibit other forms of withdrawal behavior such as absenteeism, lateness and passive job behavior. Unfortunately, in spite of the importance and complexity of these issues, there is very limited good quality literature has been published on them (Bennel 2004). This research focus on the above mentioned factors. The researcher set out to throw more light on factors influencing teacher commitment to teaching so that management of education institutions can do something to motivates teachers to improve their level of performance.

1.3         PURPOSE OF THE STUDY

The purpose of this study is to find out how ‘Motivation’ influences performance of primary school teachers in Katcha Local Government Area of Niger State.

          Specifically, the study intends to investigate:

1.     The factors determining teaching job satisfaction.

2.     Teacher job satisfaction translate into learning outcomes

3.     The cost efficient measures suggested in order to simultaneously increase both teachers job satisfaction and education quality.

4.     The relationship between motivation and job performance of primary school teachers.

5.     Strategies used to improve the job performance of teachers.

6.     The extent does the motivation programmes influences teaching performance.

1.4            SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The study addressed the issue of teacher motivation as essential factor for classroom effectiveness and school improvement, teacher motivation has to do work teacher desire to participate in the education process.

Considering the importance attached to teachers motivation globally and in Nigeria Particulars the finding of this study will serve as one of the intellectual or academic contribution to the studies of teacher motivation in Katcha local government area of Niger State.

In addition, the study will be of great benefit to the state government to further improve teacher’s motivation apparatus in the state. The finding of this research will enable the government at national, state or local government levels appreciate the relevance of teacher’s motivation in teaching and learning  process effectively.

The importance of this study will provide students wide useful suggestions that might help them improve primary school in Nigeria.

  Finally the findings of this research will assist policy-makers in designing a policy document that could guide administrative behavior in Nigeria in the design of the strategies and implementation of teacher’s motivational scheme.

1.5   RESEARCH QUESTIONS

The research has adopted the follow with research question to guide the study.

1.     Does motivation of teacher affect their moral to perform?

2.     How does motivation increase teacher’s performance in a school?

3.     To what extent those intrinsic motivation increased teacher’s moral to perform

4.     How motivation does relates wide job performance of primary school teachers.

5.     What are the motivational factors that best ensures teachers job performance?

1.6    SCOPE OF THE STUDY

This is examining how motivation influence teachers job in Katcha local government area of Niger State for depth treatment however and in order to be more focused, Katcha local government is chosen for empirical studies.

  This case study approach is necessary here in order to keep the work within a manageable level of discussion ever, this work is not without constraint, financial constraint and time limit would not permit the researcher to go beyond selected schools in Niger State.