Reward system and teachers’ job commitment in public secondary schools


 CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Background to the study

A reward is a benefit, incentive, or recognition given to someone for their efforts, achievements, or contributions. Rewards can be tangible, such as a bonus or a gift, or intangible, such as public recognition or praise. They are often used to motivate and reinforce desired behaviors and outcomes, and can be an effective tool in promoting performance, engagement, and job satisfaction in various settings, including education, business, and healthcare. However, it’s important to design reward systems that are fair, meaningful, and aligned with organizational goals to avoid potential negative consequences such as demotivation and resentment.

Research suggests that a well-designed reward system can positively impact teachers’ job commitment in public secondary schools. When teachers feel that their hard work and dedication are recognized and appreciated, they are more likely to feel a sense of job satisfaction and be committed to their job. However, it’s important to note that reward systems need to be implemented fairly and consistently in order to have a meaningful impact on teacher job commitment. Additionally, other factors such as supportive leadership, a positive work environment, and opportunities for professional growth and development also play a significant role in teacher job commitment.

Over the years, the significance of job commitment among employees in both private and public organizations has been widely emphasized. As stated by Fajana (2010), job commitment is crucial for organizations to attain their set goals. It refers to an employee’s level of attachment and satisfaction with their work, as described by Werther (2010.). One effective way to increase job commitment is through employee rewards, either financial or non-financial. Financial rewards refer to the economic benefits received by an employee from their job, and they play a crucial role in organizations by strengthening the employment relationship and promoting job satisfaction.

The commitment of secondary schools teachers in River state , Nigeria as reflected in students’ performances shows that it is below expectation due to incessant industrial conflicts between the teachers and state government (Bawalla and Nafiu, 2018). The state government and public secondary schools teachers had been at loggerheads over issues the River state  chapter of the National Union of Teachers (NUT) identified as ‘Teachers Plight’ and the problems bedeviling education and teachers in the state. These include instability in gross net pay of teachers’ salaries, delay of staff promotion, failure to upgrade teachers’ salaries after obtaining additional qualification or certificate; failure on the part of the government to pay the agreed 27.5% federal government increment, teachers poor conducive environment of work, government delaying the payment of teachers’ salaries and so on (Bawalla, 2020).

A report from Akande, (2017) revealed that the Nigerian teachers were prone to poverty as their profession does not attract first-class graduates of higher institutions. Many young graduates of today no longer wish to make a career in the teaching profession; instead, many pick up chalk as the last resort when their desired job is not forthcoming and decide to remain in the teaching profession till they find the job of their choice.

The consequences of these agitations as claimed could be a serious contributory factor to public secondary schools teachers’ job commitment in terms of teachers getting late to work, absenteeism, redundancy at work, indiscipline among students, and teacher’s the willingness to prepare lessons notes to time and poor performance of students in the examination. The country continued to witness a downward slope in performance of academic in public secondary schools and this may continue to occur and cause irredeemable damages to the lives and future of the students, if government’s attitude does not change regarding the management of schools (Kobojunkie, 2011). For instance between 2017 and 2010, River state  was in fifth position for examination malpractices as indicated by Nigeria Federal Ministry of Education Examination Malpractice report of 2011. The top five states out of the thirty-six states of the federation and Federal Capital Territory that involved in educational malpractice are: Edo (19.4%), Benue (11.1%), Lagos (8.3%), Enugu (7.1%) and River state  (6.8%). It is to be noted here that, if this menace is not adequately addressed, public secondary schools in the state will completely lose its reputation. Based on the foregoing, this paper focuses on the effect of financial rewards on job commitment among public secondary schools in River state .

However, productivity can only be achieved if teachers effectively and  efficiently carry out their obligations and duties as expected. Productivity in the school system could simply be described as positive or negative educational outcomes of students’ academics, character development and self- Improvement. In support of this view, a study carried out by Joshua (2006) observed that students’ academic scores does not determine teachers’ productivity and thereby disregard the belief that it is the only major indicator of teachers competence and ability to achieve results. Famade (2003) points out that the quality of teachers is an essential indicator in the measurement of productivity in the school system and suggested the need to enhance the professional competencies of teachers through seminars and in-service programme. In addition, teachers’ attitude to work could determine productivity through the discharge of their duties. The desire of all stakeholders is to ensure higher productivity in educational outcomes and objectives. Thus, Taiwo (2012) reported that Nigeria Union of Teachers in September 2012, as they ordered teachers to go on strike over the nonpayment of the 27.5% increase agreed upon by the Governors Forum in 2018. The government owed teachers several deductions which are yet to be paid back.

Hence, it is also made known that insufficient reward is the most important factor  making teachers withdraw, seek other jobs and not pick up the teaching job. (Organisation for Economic Coperation and Development, 2005).

Statement of the Problem

Teachers’ commitment to work could determine their productivity in schools. This is in addition to teachers’ rewards which are meant to compensate teachers and as well ginger them to do more and be productive. However, for public senior secondary schools in Akure South., the reward for teachers to perform well seems not encouraging. This seems to have resulted in a good proportion of teachers in seeking to earn secondary income from private tutoring and other activities. Also, young and vibrant teachers in the profession tend to go in search for better jobs where remunerations are captivating, motivating and encouraging thereby making them not committed to the teaching job. Thus, reduced productivity could be attributed to improper reward system of teachers, thereby contributing to teachers’ unwillingness and lackadaisical attitude to work. It is expected that teachers who displayed positive attitude and behavior would have a positive effect on students’ character development, self improvement and success while teachers with negative attitude and behavior would have a negative effect on students’ character development, selfimprovement and success. Here, the question then arises as to whether or not public senior secondary school reward system attracts, retains and motivates teachers to carry out their duties and thereby optimizes productivity in terms of job assessment/ performance and work habit of teachers and reduced rate of truancy, discipline, character development, self-improvement among students. The question similarly arises regarding the influence of the reward system on teachers’ commitimemt to work.

PURPOSE OF STUDY

The study was designed to examine    reward system and teachers’ job commitment in public secondary schools in Rivers State

Specifically, the study was to:

  1. investigate the relationship between reward system and teachers’ commitment to work in ——— local government area .
  2. find out the impact of Financial Rewards and Job Commitment Among Public Secondary School Teachers  river state State.
  3. examine the relationship between teachers’ attitude to work and their productivity in secondary schools.
  4. Find out the relationship between reward system and teachers’ productivity in  secondary schools

RESEARCH QUESTIONS

Three questions were raised for this study:

  1. What are the relationship between reward system and teachers’ commitment to work in ——— local government area ?
  2. What are the  impact of Financial Rewards and Job Commitment Among Public Secondary School Teachers  river state?
  3. What are the relationship between teachers’ attitude to work and their productivity in secondary schools?
  4.  What is the relationship between reward system and teachers’ productivity in  secondary schools?

 

RESEARCH HYPOTHESES

The following null hypotheses were formulated to guide the study

  1. There is no significant relationship between reward system and teachers’ commitment to work in ——— local government area
  2. There is no significant relationship beteen Financial Rewards and Job Commitment Among Public Secondary School Teachers  river state
  3. There is no significant relationship between teachers’ attitude to work and their productivity in  secondary schools

Scope of the study

This research work will focus on reward system and teachers job commitment  teachers attitude to work. This study will be restricted to Akure  South Local Government Area of Ondo State. The researcher will consider teachers from both public and private schools in the area.

  Significance of the study

The findings of the study will benefit the  ministry of education, future researchers, school administrators, teachers and students who need to know and learn from connection between reward system and attitude to work. Teachers and students will also benefit from the findings of this study in areas of improve work and academic performance.

  Limitations of the study

Limitations are conditions beyond the control of the researcher that may place weakness on the conclusion of the study and their application to other situations. Personal characteristics of the respondents had an effect on data gathering. Some respondents did not exhaustively respond to all items. Some concealed information deeming it personal. The researcher had less mitigating mechanism upon this as respondents were simply not willing to respond the items at the time of carrying out the interview.

There are some factors that the researcher was not able to control such as the responses of the respondents which could be affected by factors such as suspicion and fear of the repercussions of their responses. The respondents could therefore give socially acceptable responses in order to avoid offending the researcher  thus resulting in responses that are less reliable and valid. To overcome this, the researcher assured the respondent’s confidentiality so as to minimize the effects of these limitations.

  Definition of terms

Attitude:-The way one behaves, thinks or feels towards somebody or something.

Influence:- The power to change or control something or somebody. The power to control or change academic performance of pre-school children.

Ministry of Education:- A government department concerned with giving people useful knowledge

Reward system:- Reward system, a positive stimulus that can be presented in the process of reinforcing behavior

Teacher:- also called a school teacher is a person who provides education for students

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