Identifying Correlates of Occupational Commitment of Teachers

Abstract

Teachers are the saviours of a nation. They dispel darkness and bring light into everyone's life; they remove ignorance and spread knowledge. They steer the nation towards success and prosperity. Their role in national development is unquestionable. A nation therefore requires teachers to be totally committed and dedicated to their profession. Occupational commitment of teachers is a crucial input for school efficiency and they are held responsible for the academic performance of their students. Colaralli and Bishop (1990) opine that occupational commitment might be an important precursor of exemplary work performance. Wallace (1995) concluded that employees who are strongly committed to their occupation might be more likely to set a higher standard of performance quality and be more willing to work hard to achieve this standard than those with weak commitment. This study examines the relationship between occupational commitment of IX standard teachers and their work ethics, job involvement and perceived organizational support. The study further focuses on whether significant differences in the independent variables would account for significant differences in the dependent variable occupational commitment of teachers. The study was conducted on a sample of 120 IX standard teachers giving due representation to gender and type of school management. Four tools were administered of which three were adapted and standardized by the investigator. The data was analysed using correlation and t-test. The results revealed that there was a highly significant and positive correlation between occupational commitment and work ethics, occupational commitment and job involvement and occupational commitment and perceived organizational support. The t-test analysis revealed that teachers who had higher levels of work ethics, job involvement and perceived organizational support had higher levels of occupational commitment. The study conclusively reveals that teachers require to possess a high level of work ethics and job involvement to be committed. The study further pinpoints that perceived organizational support is vital for increasing occupational commitment of teachers. Educational organizations therefore need to value the contribution of teachers and care about their well-being. The teaching profession is a humane one and it requires its teachers to be treated with humaneness. Basic material rewards such as pay and promotion and social rewards such as approval and recognition would go a long way in enhancing the occupational commitment of teachers.