Influence of Working Environment on Teacher Attrition in Public Secondary Schools in Kilimanjaro and Manyara Regions, Tanzania

Abstract

Working environment is the key factor in determining the teaching and learning in schools worldwide. This study assessed the control of working environment on teacher who left teaching in Public Secondary Schools in Kilimanjaro and Manyara Regions. Specifically, the study aimed to examine the influence of working conditions on teacher attrition; and to examine the living conditions of teachers that influence their attrition. The study was premised on the theories of Herzberg's two factor theory and Bronfenbrenner's social-ecological theory. The study adopted cross-sectional research design with mixed approaches. The sample size of this study was 140 respondents. The study adopted simple random and snowball sampling for in-service teachers and those who had left teaching respectively. Data were collected through the use of questionnaire and interviews. Data was analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics using binary logistic regression. The study found that working conditions related factors has statistically significant influence on teacher attrition (P < 0.01) with 55.7%. Finding also revealed that 52.1% of the living conditions related factors influence teacher attrition with p- value of 0.002 which is statistically significant. The study therefore concluded that teacher attrition was exacerbated by unimproved working and living conditions related factors. The study recommends to the office of President Regional Administration and Local Government the introduction of special education fund to subsidize and improve education budget. Also, there is a need to make a policy decision of paying extra hours and teaching load allowances and provision of funds for identification and mentoring programmes.