Factors contributing to job satisfaction among teachers of applied and technical subjects in Nairobi secondary schools

Abstract

The study investigated five factors that contribute to job satisfaction among teachers of applied and technical subjects in public secondary schools in Nairobi Province. The study also sought to investigate the relationship between job satisfaction and various variables such as sex, age, years of experience, status held, academic qualifications and type of school. The population consisted of I68 teachers of applied and technical subjects in 47 secondary schools in Nairobi Province. Random sampling was used to select a sample from the population. The sample consisted of 139 teachers of applied and technical subjects. The teachers who responded to the questionnaire were 111. The study used one research question and six hypotheses, which were analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) Programme. Data were gathered using a questionnaire for teachers of applied and technical subjects. The selected design for this study was Ex Post Facto. The findings of the study indicated that majority of the respondents, 51.4 % were in the age category 36 - 45 years; majority were bachelor degree holders 47.7% and that 52.3 % of the respondents had teaching experience of between 11 - 20 years. The findings on the level of job satisfaction indicated that 73.9 % teachers of applied and technical subjects were dissatisfied with the remuneration they get, their work content, recognition, job security and working conditions and environment. The findings showed that there exists no statistically significant relationship (p > 0.05) between the level of satisfaction among teachers of applied and technical subjects and their sex, that there existed no statistically significant relationship (p> 0.05) between the level of satisfaction among teachers of applied and technical subjects and their age; and that teaching experience did not significantly influence the level of satisfaction among teachers of applied and technical subjects (p > 0.05). The findings of the study showed that there existed no significant relationship (p > 0.05) between the level of satisfaction among teachers of applied and technical subjects and their highest academic qualifications. The study further found that there exists no significant relationship (p > 0.05) between the level of satisfaction among teachers of applied and technical subjects and the positions they held in their respective institutions. The study found that there existed a significant relationship between the level of satisfaction among teachers of applied and technical subjects and the type of schools they were in. The findings of the study on the levels of job satisfaction among the applied and technical teachers revealed that majority of the teachers were dissatisfied with their jobs, though, they were satisfied with the recognition they were accorded by their colleagues and their students the teachers were dissatisfied with their jobs irrespective of the type of school they were in. The findings also implied that the age of the respondents, gender, their experience, the positions they hold in their institutions and their highest academic qualifications were not significantly related to their level of satisfaction