CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background to the study
Education is used all over the world as an instrument for the
achievement of national interest and objectives. Education is an instrument
par excellence for effecting national development (National Policy on
Education, 2004). It was reported in Mu’azu (2008) that teachers’ motivation
and morale have continued to be important features of teaching and learning
and we cannot ignore the importance of teachers to the success of educational
organization. This was elaborated by Oriahi (2009) when he noted that
because of poor motivation due to inadequate remuneration, poor teaching
environment as a result of inadequate basic teaching materials, and
unmotivated learners in the classroom, among others, therefore, the teachers
have become the obstacles in their profession. As a result of this, teachers no
longer teach effectively and the students in turn no longer learn properly.
Yobe state is among the educationally disadvantaged states in Nigeria.
Therefore, the problems of educational sector in the state are enormous The
researcher observed that the state tertiary institutions do not have enough
manpower, inadequate remuneration, poor teaching environments, lack of
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staff development, inadequate teaching and learning facilities, are among the
problems militating against the state tertiary institutions in Yobe state.
However, the inability of the government to provide good salary packages to
staff, provision of loans such as housing loan, furniture loan, car loan, etc.
made the lecturers to feel demoralized.
When lecturers are motivated not only in terms of psychological
rewards, but also in the provision of teaching and learning facilities, salary
and fringe benefits, good medical care, maintenance of discipline of staff and
students, staff development, involvement of lecturers in decision-making
process, etc., productivity will be enhanced.
According to the researcher’s investigation, it was observed that there
were serious problems of lecturers’ turnover as a result of lack of motivation.
Therefore, tertiary institutions in Yobe state are seriously suffering from the
problems of lecturers’ turnover, stress, frustration and workload. This means
that lecturers working conditions are not favourable, which resulted in a high
turnover rate, absenteeism and frustration. And this is equally a mark of poor
motivation.
The exodus of lecturers from tertiary institutions in Yobe state seems
to be in conformity with what Professor Babatunde Fafunwa said in weekend
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Vanguard, June 29, 1996, that the brain drain in our tertiary institutions has
reached an alarming proportion.
In addition, the study seeks to discover that poor conditions of service
could be one of the several reasons why lecturers often used teaching as
stepping stone to advance for better jobs at the slightest opportunity.
From the researcher’s point of view, lecturers are generally not happy
with their job due to low status attached to teaching job by the society and
government which has direct influence on teaching and learning in tertiary
institutions in Yobe state. Even the present salary structure earned by
lecturers in state tertiary institutions that is Consolidated Tertiary Institutions
Salary Structure (CONTISS) is not adequate enough compared with other
counterparts in Federal tertiary institutions earned.
Therefore, it is against this background that the study seeks to examine
Stakeholders’ Perceptions on the Management of Academic Staff in Tertiary
Institutions in Yobe state.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
The success of any organization is heavily dependent on the inputs of
its work force and that such inputs are determined to a large extent by
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personal characteristics and by people’s work environment that motivate
them to invest more physical and mental energy on their work. This research
work examined the perceptions on the management of academic staff in
tertiary institutions in Yobe state. Motivation is seen as the driving force to
pursue and satisfy one’s needs.
It has been observed that lecturers in Yobe state tertiary institutions are
not motivated with their job due to various factors. Some of these factors are
poor salary, insufficient instructional materials, staff development and
training, non-involvement in decision-making process, insufficient
Information and Communication Technology (ICT), poor reward and
incentives, etc. Lecturers have also said that they are not getting
commensurate reward for their job compared with other lecturers in federal
institutions. Qualified lecturers, students and material resources are the
bedrock for effective institutional administration.
However, investigation has revealed that the tertiary institutions in the
state are performing sub-optimally and their poor performance indeed
threatens the development of tertiary education in the state as a result of
exodus of lecturers from the state to more lucrative organizations both at the
federal and organized private sectors. This is due to poor salaries and other
quality services that have eluded this sector in the state. Another problem is
inadequate staff motivation such as housing loan, office accommodation, car