AN EXAMINATION ON THE EFFECT OF ORGANISATIONAL AURA AND TEACHERS' JOB PERFORMANCE IN SOME SELECTED SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN ANAMBRA STATE

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1       Background to the Study

The term "Organizational Culture" is currently popular, whereas the concept of organizational climate has generated much more research and until recently was used by most organizational theorists such as Daal (2020), Firestone and colleagues (2020), and Corbett (2019) to describe the general feeling or atmosphere of the schools, as opposed to culture. Organizational climate has been linked to the process of instrument development (Pace and Pace, 2018). Initially, climate was envisioned as a broad term to describe the persistent character of organizational life. Reno (2019) remarked that a certain configuration of permanent characteristics of the ecosystem, Milieu, social system, and culture would produce a climate, just as a specific configuration of personal characteristics would establish a person's personality. According to George and George (2020), organizational climate consists of those elements that separate a company from others and impact the behavior of its employees. They included in their definition of climate a collection of quantitative features of the work environment that are based on the collective impression of the individuals who live and work in the environment and have been shown to impact their behavior. Over the years, a consensus has emerged on the fundamental characteristics of organizational climate. Poole and Marshall (2018) provided the following summary of the properties:

a) Organizational climate is concerned with big units, since it describes the characteristics of a complete organization or significant sub- units.

b) Organizational climate characterizes an organizational unit rather than evaluating it or indicating emotional responses to it.

(c) Routine organizational practices that are significant to the company and its people contribute to organizational climate.

d) The organizational atmosphere impacts the actions and attitudes of employees.

School climate is a wide word that relates to instructors' opinions of the school's overall work environment. It is impacted by the official and informal organizational structures, the personalities of the participants, and the organizational leadership.

According to Bertes (2020), organizational or school environment is a collection of internal variables that differentiate one school from another and impact the behavior of its members. Bertes said that school climate is a relatively long-lasting aspect of the school environment that participants perceive, that influences their behavior, and that is based on their collective judgments of behavior in schools. According to Kunz (2016), the concept of Organizational climate collection of internal traits, resembles the definition of personality in certain ways. In fact, a school's climate may be approximately equated to its personality; that is, what personality is to an individual, climate is to the school or institution.

The open, closed, and climatic continuum is a distinguishing element of the school climate. The environment of an open school is characterized by a high level of trust and esprit, as well as low disengagement. This combination shows that both the principal and professors are sincere in their conduct. The principle leads by example by giving the appropriate combination of structure and direction, as well as support and consideration, depending on the circumstances. Arnold (2020) notes that in an open school environment, instructors collaborate well and are dedicated to the subject at hand. Given the reality-centered leadership of the principal and the dedication of the faculty, there is no need for a load of paperwork, strict monitoring of production, impersonality, or a profusion of rules and regulations (aloofness). In this style of school, leadership emerges naturally and properly as the situation demands. The open school is not solely concerned with either job completion or social needs fulfilment; both develop spontaneously. Sincerity and civility characterize the conduct of both the principal and the whole faculty. In this circumstance, there are relationships between teachers and principals, principals and students, and principals and the community at the school. This scenario of pleasant atmosphere in the school unquestionably leads to strong teacher morale and motivation, which in any case increases teacher output in the school organization (Uzomah, 2019).

The principal's vision is logically and intricately related to two other prominent and commonly recognized qualities of good schools: an academic school atmosphere (or culture) and high performance standards for pupils (Ajunwa, 2019). Typically, an organization's climate or culture is comprised of common values, norms, philosophy, objectives, and perceptions. Regarding the significance of school culture, Walter and Stanfield (2018) said, "Culture is the 'normative glue,' the consistency in values that binds the organization together." Staff and students are aware of and respect high accomplishment targets in an academic environment. Researchers concur that principals, under the authority of school boards and district superintendents, play a crucial role in fostering a positive learning environment via their beliefs, attitudes, and actions. Cohen (2020), for instance, stated that successful principals stress high accomplishment and are optimistic about all students' capacity to reach instructional objectives. Effective administrators believe and highlight, to begin with, that learning is the most essential reason for pupils to be in school; that all children are capable of learning; and that education is the difference between success and failure. Effective principals are able to foster a sense of community that includes shared values and culture, similar objectives, and high expectations for both student progress and staff performance, according to Good and Brophy (2020). One teacher at a school with a strong academic bent said, "I have taught in other states and other schools, but I never knew how fun teaching could be until I arrived here. It's not that the pupils are superior; rather, everyone here appears to cherish education." And yet another educator said, "we're all pulling together" (Rutherfond 2019). In less successful schools, instructors are not expected to have a shared knowledge of school-wide standards and goals. In secondary schools, if objectives are stated at all, they are often personal goals or departmental goals. A favorable school atmosphere or culture has an emotional component as well. Cohen (2020) said, for instance, that a strong sense of school community involves not just shared aims but also the establishment of a moral order that includes respect for authority, mutual trust, and a real concern for the emotions and attitudes of people. Odden (2021) also identified staff collegiality, staff-student collegiality, and caring attitudes toward children as crucial aspects of the educational environment. According to Ayo (2020), principals may take several actionable initiatives to support the establishment of an academic focus and high success standards, the vast majority of which reflect their instructional leadership position. The following eight types of recommendations are derived from observations of successful schools and administrators.

(1) Principals may play an active and personal role in bringing attention to the need for school reform and higher success standards, as well as achieving agreement for the changes. For instance, they might express the belief that educational programs can and will improve over time. Principals may enable teachers to collaborate on planning and implementing reforms. They may guarantee instructional improvement ideas have high awareness and attention. Principals may solicit parental and community support for school development goals by addressing PTA meetings (Patty, 2019).

(2) Principals may assist develop agreement on school policies and appropriate behavior patterns among faculty, students, and administration that are compatible with an academic focus and support it (Mundi, 2017).

(3) Principals may be actively involved in the creation of the tangible improvement. For instance, they can plan, secure, and monitor in-service staff development opportunities, obtaining staff input on the training's content, be active and supportive in helping teachers learn to use new instructional approaches, and establish expectations for good curriculum quality by employing standards and guidelines. They may assist personnel in establishing goals and planning instructional enhancements supervising and coordinating the execution of plan components, and observing the outcomes (Cobbler, 2019). Principals may recruit parents' time as office and classroom aids, parents' energy in arranging school-wide celebrations, and parents' money for school program growth to aggressively solicit parents' participation in the schools' educational initiatives (Hallinger and Murphy, 2019).

(5) Principals are able to develop incentive systems for students and instructors that promote an academic emphasis and encourage outstanding achievement by students and teachers. For instance, they may assist in the development of motivating tools such as school slogans, badges, T-shirts, and songs that emphasize school identity and academic accomplishment. "A child's right to an education is non-negotiable," "Move out of your comfort zone," and "Win with class, lose with dignity" are examples of school slogans that assist instill good values in instructors and students, as reported by Walter & Stanfieid (2018). Posters proclaiming a school's vision, expectations, purpose, direction, and objectives to anybody entering the facility (i.e., students, instructors, parents, community members, and others) is a common practice.

(6 Principals may ensure that student, staff, and school successes and accolades are shown for parents and the general public. Principals may create and sustain healthy staff connections by complimenting good work and individual qualities and by showing concern for their personal well-being.

(7) Monitoring students' progress, particularly as evidenced in test results for each grade, each class, and each student, is a crucial and well-documented behavior of good principals. This behavior organically indicates an academic emphasis and academic ideals. Principals are able to communicate findings with instructors and get consensus on standards. Standard deviations are used to inform remedial action.

(8) Principals are able to obtain the materials and personal resources necessary for successful teaching and employ them creatively according to academic priorities.

Principals are accountable for establishing a safe and orderly school environment. There are several interconnected recommendations for activities that principals may take. They may safeguard teaching and learning time by, for instance, restricting public address system announcements (or classroom phone calls) to specific periods, prohibiting class disruptions by message, etc.

1.2       Statement of the Problem

The opposite of the open school atmosphere is the closed school climate. In a school with a dosed environment, trust and esprit are low, and disengagement is high. In this case, both the administrator and the instructors seem to be just going through the motions, with the principal emphasizing routine inconsequential and needless busy labor (hindrance) and the teachers reacting little and displaying little job pleasure (Walter and Stanfieid,2018). Close observation demonstrates the concept of ineffective leadership in this circumstance (production emphasis). Formal statement and impersonality (aloofness), as well as disregard for the facility and incapacity and reluctance to present instances of dynamic individuals. This incorrect strategy, which is rarely taken seriously, produces discontent and indifference among teachers. In a closed school environment, the behavior of the administrator and instructors is the least authentic and their connection is the least amicable. Il actuality, inauthenticity permeates the school's culture; hence, instructors' morale, motivation, and interest are low, resulting in poor job performance and low production at the school.

1.3       Objective of the Study

The general objective of the study is to examine the effect of organizational aura and teachers' job performance in selected secondary schools in Anambra state. Other specific objectives of the study includes:

i.          To examine the extent at which  organizational aura predicts teachers’ job performance.

ii.        To investigate  the influence of teamwork and quality of teaching on teachers job performance.

iii.      To find out the level at which organizational environment predicts job performance of male and female teachers in secondary schools.

1.4       Research Questions

These research questions will help to guide the conduct of this study.

i.          What is the extent at which  organizational aura predicts teachers’ job performance?

ii.        What is the influence of teamwork and quality of teaching on teachers job performance?

iii.      What is the level at which organizational environment predicts job performance of male and female teachers in secondary schools?

1.5       Significance of the Study

This study will be beneficial to the following individuals.

(1)     School Principals: The study and recommendation of this study will be a great benefit to school principals, who will get more insights and more information on the essence of school climate in the school as it affects teachers’ overall productivity with this study many principals who adopt close leadership styles in the school as it affects teachers overall productivity would have a rethink and turn a new leap as that style of leadership does not augur well for high productivity of teachers and even students.

(2)  Teachers: Teachers will indeed, gain a lot in this study because, it will enable them to know the impact of school climate on their productivity in the school system. The findings and recommendations of this study will enable teachers have good rapport with their principals if they want a conducive atmosphere that will be beneficial to the students. The study will help teachers toknow that the kind of relationship they have with the principals will no doubt affect the students who are part of the stakeholders in the school system.

(3) Students:- The findings and recommendation of this study will give students the impetus to know that without good school climate where there should be principal-teacher relationship or student-teacher relationship, there cannot be conducive school atmosphere where meaningful teaching/learning process is carried out.

(4) Society:- The society will see this study as a veritable resource materials and a reference materials as well. With the findings and recommendations in this study, people in the larger society will be able to differentiate between open climate and the close one in the school. Also upcoming researcher will find this study a reference maternal too.

1.6       Scope of the Study

This study will examine the extent at which  organizational aura predicts teachers’ job performance. The study will also investigate  the influence of teamwork and quality of teaching on teachers job performance. Lastly, the study will find out the level at which organizational environment predicts job performance of male and female teachers in secondary schools. Hence this study will be delimited to Anambra state.

1.7       Limitation of the study

Like in every human endeavour, the researchers encountered slight constraints while carrying out the study. Insufficient funds tend to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature, or information and in the process of data collection (internet, questionnaire, and interview), which is why the researcher resorted to a moderate choice of sample size. More so, the researcher will simultaneously engage in this study with other academic work. As a result, the amount of time spent on research will be reduced.

1.8       Definition of Terms

Organizational aura: the atmosphere that surrounds a group, sets in motion a collective unconscious

Teacher: a person who teaches, especially in a school.

Job performance: assesses whether a person performs a job well

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