Motivational Strategies: A Predictor of Teachers’ Job Performance In Public Secondary Schools

Abstract

In Nigeria, concerns over decreasing teacher motivation and inconsistent job performance in public secondary schools have emerged. Recent studies highlight ongoing issues such as inadequate incentives, limited opportunities for career progression, poor working conditions, and a lack of recognition. In view of this, the researcher investigated if provision of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation could be a contributing factor. Thus, this study investigated motivational strategies: A predictor of teachers’ job performance in public secondary schools in Kwara State. The study adopted a quantitative method, specifically adopting cross-sectional survey design. The target population of this study comprised 7,416 teachers in public secondary schools in Kwara State, Nigeria. A total of 380 teachers were selected applying Taro Yamane’s formulae at 5% margin of error. Adapted questionnaires titled Motivational Strategies Questionnaire (MSQ) and Teachers’ Job Performance Questionnaire (TJPQ) were used to obtain from the selected teachers. Descriptive statistics of mean and standard deviation were used to answer the research questions and inferential statistics of Multiple Regression Analysis statistic was used to test the formulated hypothesis. The findings of the study revealed that the level of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation was moderate, the level of teachers’ job performance was high and intrinsic and extrinsic motivation were potent predictors of teachers’ job performance in public secondary schools in Kwara State. It was concluded that improving teachers' job performance in public secondary schools requires not only appropriate extrinsic incentives but, more critically, a focused enhancement of intrinsic motivational practices. Therefore, school administrators and policymakers should emphasise supportive leadership, recognition frameworks, and professional development opportunities as part of a comprehensive strategy for teacher motivation and performance enhancement.