Science Teachers’ Motivation and Job Satisfaction in Relation to Perceived School Context

Abstract

The present study aimed to examine the relationships among science teachers’ motivation, job satisfaction, and perceived school environment variables. Teacher motivation was examined in terms of teacher self-efficacy, collective self-efficacy, and instructional goal orientations (i.e. mastery and performance). Perceived school environment variables included perceived discipline problems, supervisory support, relations with colleagues, relations with parents, and school goal structures (i.e. mastery and performance). A total of 134 science teachers participated in the study and they were administered self-report instruments. Data were analyzed through descriptive statistics and path analysis. Results indicated that perceived school mastery goal structure, relations with parents, and discipline problems emerged as important variables in science teachers’ motivation and job satisfaction. While relationships with parents and school mastery goals predicted science teachers’ motivation and job satisfaction positively, discipline problems predicted negatively. Supervisory support and relations with colleagues associated positively with job satisfaction. Perceived discipline problems and school goal structures (both mastery and performance) were influential on collective efficacy. Moreover, science teachers’ performance instructional approaches were only predicted by school performance goals. Results are discussed.