Job satisfaction among deputy head teachers of public secondary schools in Nairobi province

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine the degree of job satisfaction among deputy headteachers of Nairobi Province public secondary schools. The study attempted to establish the job factors that cause job satisfaction in deputy headteachers in the province. It also investigated whether there is any relationship between job satisfaction and the independent variables of age, gender, marital status, academic qualification, job experience, and category of school. The research instrument used was a questionnaire, which was personally administered by the researcher to the target population of all the forty-seven deputy headteachers of Nairobi Province public secondary schools. The instrument contained thirty-one items. The questionnaires were collected after having been filled by the respondents. The data was analyzed to test the null hypotheses. The t-test method was used to analyze null hypotheses Ho 1 H02 and H03 which were concerned with determining whether there is any significant difference between job satisfaction of deputy headteachers of Nairobi Province public secondary schools and their gender or marital status respectively. One-way ANOV A technique was used to test hypotheses, H04,-H05 and H06. These hypotheses were used to test whether there is any significant difference between job satisfaction of the deputy head teachers and their age, academic qualifications, job experience or category of school respectively. All the null hypotheses were accepted at the 0.05 significant level. The demographic background of the respondents showed that 66 percent of the deputy head teachers in Nairobi Province secondary schools were female. Among the total number of deputy head teachers in the province, 76.6 percent were between forty-five and fifty-four years old. The study further showed that these deputy head teachers were well qualified. Those holding first degrees were 53.2 percent while those with masters' degrees were 6.8 percent. Another 6.8 percent were diploma holders and the rest were approved graduate teachers who had been promoted on merit. Most of these deputy head teachers had a long teaching experience with 91.40% having taught for more than ten years. They had served as subject teachers, class teachers, senior teachers and heads of departments. Most of them, besides being deputies, had a wealth of experience in other areas of the school organization. In the study, low salary was ranked first as a cause of job dissatisfaction followed by headteacher leadership styles, administrative responsibilities, recognition, working conditions and interpersonal relations in that order. The respondents did not rank job insecurity as a cause of job dissatisfaction because they considered teaching to offer job security. The study revealed that there was no significant difference between job satisfaction of deputy headteachers of Nairobi Province public secondary schools and their age, gender, marital status, academic qualification, job experience and school category. In the study, the deputy headteachers were asked to indicate job aspects that they disliked in their current job. Among the job aspects disliked were too many lessons and administrative duties, dealing with truant teachers and headteacher's leadership styles among others. The deputy headteachers indicated that deputy headship is supposed to be a post of authority but the headteacher did not allow them free decision-making. The study had major recommendations among others. It recommended that the headteachers should involve their deputy headteachers in decisionmaking in matters related to finance and administration of the school. These teachers should be adequately remunerated to prevent job dissatisfaction in them.