Influence of extrinsic rewards on teachers’ job commitment in public primary schools, Sigor division, Chepalungu district, Kenya

Abstract

This study sought to investigate the influence of extrinsic rewards on teachers job commitment in public primary schools in Sigor division, Chepalungu district Kenya. The objectives of the study were to determine the extent to which provision of monetary rewards influence teachers’ job commitment, establish how provision of accommodation influence teachers’ commitment, establish how provision of meals influence teachers’ job commitment and to analyse the influence of household rewards on teachers’ job commitment. The study used descriptive survey research design and the data was gathered using questionnaires. The study targeted a total population of 455 teachers from the 65 public primary schools in Sigor division, Chepalungu district. The sample consisted of 136 teachers. The data was analyzed using descriptive statistics: frequencies, distribution tables and percentages. The study found out the majority (53.3%) of teachers in Sigor division were from schools that did not recognize the needs for motivating teachers on monetary terms. The study revealed that most teachers (52.5%) failed to get accommodation in school and this may have reduced contact hours with learners. The majority of the teachers (61.7%) noted that the household items offered to them were less diverse. The study also established that majority (71.7%) of public primary schools did not provide meals to teachers at its most basic level and hence this was very demotivative to teachers. The recommendations are; BOM in public primary school should ensure that they establish monetary policies provide households rewards that give teachers impetus to work harder and facilitate pupils performance both in class and outside classroom. TSC should ensure that they formulate policies that improve the terms and working condition of teachers by considering salary increment annually, house allowance so as to improve their level of job commitment. MOE should ensure that they provide free meals in public primary schools so that teachers get free time for assessing and marking pupils’ work and thus this in turn makes teachers to become committed in their jobs. They should also formulate strategies and measures that can improve commitment of teachers. School management should provide adequate household goods as rewards for teachers which could enhance job commitment and which ultimately could lead to better output which is good academic performance. Rewards that were given to teachers in most public primary schools did not meet the thresholds of the motivators and hence teachers were unlikely to commit to their respective tasks and 79 percent of the schools in the division had hardly embraced the culture of rewarding teachers and meals provided in the schools are less diverse. Most schools in the division did not recognize the need for motivating teachers by monetary terms and thus this has brought serious motivational challenges to teachers’ job commitment. Most of them also were insensitive to the implementation of distinctive household reward system. They do not provide all means and if any they are less diverse and finally majority of them do not provide accommodation arrangement.