Analysis of Teachers’ Work Characteristics in Enhancing Discretionary Work Effort in Public Secondary Schools in Isiolo County

The Ministry of Education (MoE), Teachers Service Commission (TSC) and principals are expected to create a conducive environment that enable teachers to demonstrate discretionary work effort in secondary schools. This study aimed to assess the influence of teachers’ work characteristics on discretionary work effort in secondary schools in Isiolo County. The study was guided by Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs theory. It utilized descriptive survey research design. The target population comprised of 720 teachers, 48 principals and 2 Directors (MoE and TSC) from 48 public secondary schools in Isiolo County. A sample size of 236 respondents was considered in this study. The simple random sampling technique was utilized in selecting school principals and teachers. Both Directors were purposively selected. Information for the study was acquired mainly through questionnaires and interview schedules. The reliability of the data was tested using Cronbach’s Alpha, while content validity of research instruments was assured accordingly. The frequencies, percentages and correlation analysis were used in the analysis of quantitative data, while common themes were identified from the qualitative data. The results of the study indicated that teachers’ attitude, mastery of the teaching content and co-workers support affected the degree to which teachers applied more effort for self-benefits and learners’ satisfaction. The study concluded that teachers’ work characteristics and teachers’ discretionary were positively correlated. The study recommended that the Ministry of education should provide training for teachers to enhance their mastery of content and foster professional commitment among teachers for improved discretionary work effort.