E. Motivation.
Motivation can be defined as individual needs, desires and drives which cause people to act in a particular manner. Effiong (2000) defined motivation as the aroused, sustenance and direction of behaviour. He went further that it propels people to behave in a particular way and that motivated behaviour is goal oriented towards satisfying needs. By satisfying the needs of employees in an organization, including secondary schools and motivating them, the employee’s increases their performance and accord priority, to corporate goals. Despite all the above definitions, one thing still remain obvious and that is, motivation deals with internal drives which need external incentives in order to be fulfilled (Ogunsaju, 2006).
In recent years, emphasis has been placed on the important role motivation plays in getting employees to give off their best. Ubeku (1975), opined that the success of any organization depends on the effective mobilization of the efforts of all personnel that make up the organization; hence much attention is being paid to motivation. Various social science findings have revealed that people can only give off their best if their needs are satisfied .These needs range from the immediate ones to satisfying hunger and thirst to the ones of recognition and self-actualization. It is now established that the job of the school manager is to get result from people, thereof the school staff must be motivated to achieve such results.
There is need for the personnel managers to determine what motivates people to contribute their best. This will enable them to build motivational factors into organizational roles in order to direct and lead the employee effectively. This involves building into the school systems factors, which induce staff to make contributions as effectively and defiantly as possible. The personnel manager should:
• Ensure that conditions of employment are so arranged that the immediate needs of the school staff are satisfied.
• That conditions in the school are such that will provide challenges to the teachers
• There should be job enrichment in which teachers’ job is made more satisfying through restructuring.
• Proper definition of the area of authority and accountability so that the staff knows within what framework to operate
• The staff should know how he is performing or how he has performed during a specific period of time that is appraisal.
• Appraisal must be followed by guidance and advice as to the areas of weakness, which be strengthened, and the areas of strengths that must be maintained.
• Systematic development programmes can be drawn up or organized for school staff to enable them acquire the skills they lack which make them do their present jobs better and even qualify them for promotion to higher responsibility.
• Staff welfare should be well taken care of: this enhances high performance of jobs on the part of school personnel. For example, medical facilities, crèches for working mothers, transport facilities cooperative shops, assistance in housing, education should be provided for the staff (Ubeku, 1975).
Definition of Job Satisfaction
The Advanced Learners Dictionary of Current English defined job as a complete piece of work or bits of work not connected with one another.
Anderson (2001) defined job satisfaction as a pleasurable or positive emotional state resulting from the appraisal of one’s job experience . Anderson (2001) notes that the definition incorporates both cognition (appraisal) and affects (emotional state) thus, Anderson assumes that job satisfaction results from interplay of cognition, and affect or put differently; thoughts and feelings. Robbins (2005) conforms to Anderson (2001) by defining job satisfaction as a collection of feelings an individual holds towards his or her job. . A person with a high level of job satisfaction holds positive feelings towards the job while a person who is dissatisfied with his or her job holds negative feelings towards it.
Ubeku (1975), defined the term ‘job’ as a collection of tasks performed by a worker. Job satisfaction as defined by Ajayi (1982), is the resultant feeling brought about by any combination of psychological and environmental circumstances that causes a person to say “ I am satisfied with my jobâ€. There are hearths of definition of job satisfaction them of morale. Harzeberg et al (1988), has observed that job satisfaction lacks adequate definition and the many attempts at a precise definitions have failed to provide a scientific explanation. However, they agree that the factor approach is useful for explaining the term. Thus, there can be satisfaction with specific activities of the job, with the place and working conditions, or with such factors as economic rewards, security or social prestige.
The staff has some needs which when provided will make him settle down and perform well on the job so as to achieve the set goals of the organization. This is true of every human endeavour. According to Tosi and Carrol (1976), needs could be of primary and higher order. Higher order needs are self actualization , ego needs and social needs, while primary needs consist of security and psychological needs. It is the responsibility of the employer to make sure that these needs are met for enhances staff job satisfaction. When the above needs of the staff are met, the employer should no doubt expect the best and the most efficient performance from his staff (Ezeocha, 1990).
