Abstract:
Retention of teachers in the basic schools in Ghana has been a worry. In the
interest of understanding the role of motivation and job satisfaction on the
retention of teachers in the basic schools, this study examined the impact of
motivation and job satisfaction on basic school teacher retention in the Ejura Sekyedumase Municipality of Ghana. Positivism philosophy, quantitative
approach and descriptive survey were respectively considered for the study. An
adopted questionnaire on teacher motivation, teacher job satisfaction and
teacher retention was used as the instrument for the study. Cluster sampling
double-stage and random number generator software were used as the
technique to select 302 basic school teachers. Partial Least Squares Structural
Equation Modeling, inferential and descriptive statistics were used to analyse
the data collected. According to the objectives of the study, it was found that:
motivation has a direct relationship and influences teachers‘ retention in basic
schools. It was again found that motivation has a positive relationship with job
satisfaction and both conspire to influence teachers‘ retention in basic schools.
In addition, job satisfaction was found to have an indirect relationship with
teacher retention in basic schools. The study finally established that job
satisfaction positively and significantly mediates the relationship between
motivation and basic school teachers‘ retention. Considering the study‘s
relevance for teacher retention in basic schools, the researcher, therefore,
recommended that stakeholders of basic education should create relevant and
equitable satisfactory motivation systems as conditions of service to
significantly attract and retain teachers in basic schools.
