The Determinants Of Job Satisfaction Among Secondary School Teachers
[MORO LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA, KWARA STATE, NIGERIA]

 Personal background or demographic factors are the factors which refer to such aspects as: an individual’s gender, age, educational background, teaching subjects and job experience among others (Bolin, 2007). According to Manson (1997), “the question whether or not gender differences in job satisfaction exist has been answered both affirmatively and negatively in the literature.” The research conducted among Canadian teachers revealed that job satisfaction levels differ significantly between male and female teachers (Ma & MacMillan, 2001). Similarly, the results of research that was conducted in the United States revealed that there were significant differences in the levels of job satisfaction between male and female teachers (Bishay, 1996). They say that female teachers. Whereas, Zhongshan (2007) found that elementary school male teachers in Shanghai, China were more satisfied with their salaries than their female colleagues.
    Conversely, Crossman & Harris (2006) conducted a study on job satisfaction among primary school teachers in United Kingdom and their findings indicated that their satisfaction levels did not differ significantly by gender. In addition, previous research data collected in various countries gave mixed results about the influence of age on job satisfaction. Findings of a study conducted among teachers in Finland revealed that there was a strong relationship between the teacher’s age and job satisfaction (Rasku&Kinnunen, 2003). They found that teachers job satisfaction was linked to their age. On the contrary, Crossman & Harris (2006) found that secondary schools teachers in United Kingdom did not differ significantly in their job satisfaction in relation to age.
    Moreover, Zhongshan (2007) found that work satisfaction among Chinese teachers increases with the increase in age. Similarly, it is argued that the higher the teachers age, the higher the level of job satisfaction and the lower the teachers age, the lower the job satisfaction level (Greenberg & Baron, 1995). This implies that earlier studies indicate that there is significant difference in job satisfaction caused by age differences. Additionally, Bennell & Akyeampong (2007) conducted a survey on teacher motivation found that young Tanzanian teachers were less satisfied with their older counterparts who felt being teachers by profession was a privilege. This implies that teachers differed significantly in job satisfaction with regard to age. However, results of the research on job satisfaction that was conducted among primary and secondary school teachers in Greece revealed that there were no significant differences in levels of teachers’ job satisfaction with regard to marital status (Koustelious, 2001). This implies that secondary school teachers in Greece did not differ in their job satisfaction levels in relation to marital status.
    Besides, teaching experience refers to the number of years a person has served as a teacher, Crossman & Harris (2006), call this the “length of service”. According to Koustelios (2001), the teachers with long teaching experience indicated higher levels of job satisfaction increased with the increase in years of service in the teaching profession (ibid). Similarly, Greenberg & Baron (1995) contend that employees with many years of service perceived higher job satisfaction that their colleagues with less job experience. Conversely Crossman & Harrris (2006) found that teaching experience or length of service did not contribute to any significant differences in job satisfaction among secondary school teachers in the United Kingdom. Empirical research data of a study that was conducted in the United Kingdom indicated that teachers differed in job satisfaction in relation to the type of school in which they worked (Crossman & Harris, 2006). The teachers who worked in independent and private schools in the United Kingdom indicated higher levels of job satisfaction than their colleagues in other types of schools (ibid). However, other research findings indicate that teachers in public and private schools did not differ in the job satisfaction levels significantly (Zhongshan, 2007).
    Furthermore, earlier study findings indicated that teachers who worked in schools that are in the remote/ rural area were less satisfied with their jobs than those working in urban areas (Bennel & Akyeampong, 2007). This implies that the location of school was a determinant factor of their differences in job satisfaction. Greenberg & Baron (1995), employees occupying managerial or leadership positions in the organization indicate higher levels of job satisfaction than others. This implies that teachers who occupied senior positions like being Headmaster, Senior Academic master/mistress, and Head of Department among others in their respective schools were more satisfied with their job than their colleagues without such promotional positions. Similarly, Dinham & Scott, (2000), found that teachers who earned promotions in their schools were more satisfied with their job than others.
    Job satisfaction is a multidimensional phenomenon and it is therefore argued that different scholars identity different job satisfaction factors or facets (Bolin, 2007). However, the facets or factors they identify are somewhat similar content wise. In this section, I review various scholarly works on the factors or facets that are associated with job satisfaction. The phenomenon of job satisfaction is associated with five main factors namely: “achievement, recognition, work itself, responsibility and advancement” Herzberg, Mausner & Synderman (1959) and they refer to these factors as the “basic satisfiers” or “motivators” (Herzberg et al. 1959). The seven major aspects/ factors of job satisfaction that Vroom (cited in Bolin, 2007) are:
1.    Administration
2.    Promotions
3.    Job nature,
4.    Superiors,
5.    Salary remuneration,
6.    Working conditions and colleagues