Based on the fact that this study is aimed at bringing about a strategy that will increase educators‟ professional confidence through improved involvement in their own CPD, the issue of the motivation of educators will be addressed in this section. Educators cannot be expected to perform well and deliver good results if they are not well motivated. Therefore, the onus is on the school leadership to create an environment that motivates educators to continually develop themselves, professionally as well as personally.
Heystek et al. (2008:79), as well as Heystek, Roos and Middlewood (2005:38-39), all agree that motivation is the force that energises behaviour, gives direction to behaviour and forms the basis of people‟s tendency to persevere, even when faced
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by challenges. Heystek et al. (2008:79), as well as Heystek et al. (2005:38-39) further state that, in order to understand the concept of motivation, we need to be made aware of the nature of motivation and the factors affecting it. Motivation, they claim, is needed to achieve long-term goals and must therefore be considered with the culture and climate of the school, as well as the changes and resistance being encountered. All these authors argue that motivation is essentially an individual phenomenon, but there is no simple way to ensure that everyone is motivated. As motivation is a long term activity, it needs proper planning on the part of school leadership.
Heystek et al. (2005:39) further refer to McClelland‟s (1987) work on high achievers as leading us to believe that his theory of high achievers preferring to set their own goals may be relevant to many people. This suggests that school goals by themselves do not sufficiently motivate school staff members; they also need to have some sense of ownership of the goals or targets set. The staff needs to relate to a small enough group of people to allow a personal strategy to motivate the individual to be involved. Encouraging staff to work in teams is a powerful motivational tool to secure commitment to the school and high performance, to the benefit of both the individual educator and the school.
Citing Mills (1987), Steyn and Van Niekerk (2002:162-163) suggest the following guidelines for motivating teaching staff:
• Be aware of basic human needs and motivation processes. Human behaviour is determined by human needs. Insight into general and work- related needs and knowledge of the relationship between the variables influencing motivation is important for an understanding of motivation. • Put the motivation process in the context of the education system.
Motivation comprises more than human needs – it is also determined by the individual educator‟s post level and the climate of the school.
• Remember that individuals differ. In other words, their need structures will also differ. Something that motivates one person will not necessarily have the same effect on another. School leaders must determine the
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motivational level of each educator and the motivational tools available and then match the personal level to the tool.
• Know your staff member as a unique individual. School leadership should create opportunities to get to know the needs, aspirations and frustrations of each educator. They should note the important role that effective communication, mutual trust and openness between leadership and staff can play. If an educator is seeking promotion, provide opportunities for exposure and growth.
• Watch out for factors that threaten existing needs satisfaction. Changes to post structures, qualifications for promotion, procedures and policies can threaten individual needs that may be satisfied at present.
• Initiate changes that will further the satisfaction of human needs. There is the possibility, however, that these changes may be resisted by some educators.
• Leaders should first earn respect and credibility before developing the motivation process. The more respect and credibility the educator perceives the principal to have, the greater the motivational ability of the principal. People respond to other people based on their credibility in a specific area.
On the other hand, Bush and Middlewood (2005:79) are of the opinion that motivation is an extremely individual matter and since needs and desires are internal states, the task of the school leader in trying to analyse the factors influencing motivation is complex.
These authors claim that these factors can be categorised into the following four groups:
• Individual factors include the educator‟s gender, age and experience. The leader has no influence over these factors.
• Social factors pertain to work relationships; whether the educator is part of a team, has mentoring links and is involved in personal relationships at work or not. The leader has limited influence in this regard, as the educator selects his/her own groups.
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• Organisational factors relate to conditions of service. Included is the workload and work incentives, and opportunities for career development. Leaders have full responsibility for creating a fair and appropriate working environment.
• Cultural factors make the educators feel they work for a school in which they believe. By creating equal opportunities and showing consideration for work/life balance, the leader shows fairness and that he/she values educators as people.
Clarke (2007:39-43) maintains that research findings have shown that the things that matter and motivate most people are not the hard, tangible things such as money and material possessions, but the softer, less tangible things such as the freedom to develop their own ideas and a sense of being valued. In this regard, the author refers to the work of Maslow, who describes five levels of needs for all individuals, and ranks them in order of priority. This hierarchy is normally presented by a triangle, with the most fundamental need forming the base of the triangle and the most intangible need forming the apex. In thinking about the kinds of things needed to motivate staff members, leaders should think of the things they need to create a working environment that caters for the physical, emotional and professional needs of staff members.
FIGURE 3.1: Maslow’s hierarchy of needs
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The five needs identified by Maslow indicated in Figure 3.1, include:
• Survival: This is the most basic and immediate of needs and includes the need for things necessary to sustain life: food, water, shelter and sleep. Individual educators may not necessarily lack these, but may have problems related to ill-health, etc. The school can assist in guiding them towards counseling and/or treatment.
• Security: The second most basic need. This is the need for safety and freedom from fear of physical and emotional injury.
• Belonging: Individuals inherently have the need to belong to a group, bound by bonds of loyalty and support. The sharing of experiences, care and respect for one another creates a sense of belonging.
• Prestige: The need to be recognised and afforded status by others.
• Self-fulfillment: This refers to the individual‟s need to do things that he/she finds fulfilling. This relates to independence.
The message from Maslow is clear, according to Clarke (2007:40): no individual can work effectively if his or her basic needs are not met. In applying Maslow‟s principles to the management of staff, school leaders need to consider these principles as part of their strategy for creating a teaching environment which encourages educators to give their best.
However, Clarke (2007:43) argues that whilst Maslow‟s hierarchy provides the stepping stones for developing a positive working environment, it does not answer the question what it is that motivates people. This author further maintains that a wonderfully lucid analysis and summary of the research findings on the issue of staff motivation is provided by Herzenberg. Herzenberg contends that the things that make people satisfied and motivated in their jobs are different from those that make them demotivated and dissatisfied. In other words, the answers people provide as to what makes them dissatisfied and unhappy at work are not the opposite to the answers that they give as to what makes them enjoy their work and gain satisfaction from it. The interesting implication of this is that the removal of those things from the workplace that make people unhappy or dissatisfied does not make them more
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motivated, it simply makes them less dissatisfied. In his theory of job attitudes, which he terms the “motivation-hygiene theory” (see Figure 3.2), Herzenberg separates the factors that lead to extreme dissatisfaction, which he refers to as the “hygiene” factors, from those that motivate staff to do their best. It is interesting to note that the motivating factors are mostly intrinsic factors, while the hygiene factors are extrinsic factors.
FIGURE 3.2: Herzenberg’s “motivation-hygiene theory”
HYGIENE FACTORS MOTIVATORS
(In order of priority) Dissatisfaction with:
• company policy and administration • supervision
• relationships with supervisor • salary
• relationship with peers • personal life
• relationship with subordinates • status
• security
(In order of priority) Opportunities for: • professional growth • advancement • greater responsibility • interesting work • recognition • achievement (Source: Clarke, 2007:43)
Clarke (2007:43) further emphasises that improving staff morale and getting the best from one‟s staff therefore involves two things: (a) Hygiene – removing or changing those things that irritate them or interfere with their ability to get the job done; and (b) Motivation – providing individual members of staff with opportunities to grow and develop professionally. Individuals like to have control over decisions about what they do and how they do it. They need opportunities to be creative, to try new ideas and to take responsibility for their own performance. Making this possible is a matter of proper delegation and trust.
Citing Handy (1994), Bush and Middlewood (2005:21) divide motivation theories into the following three categories:
• Satisfaction theories. The assumption here is that satisfied workers are more productive, but Handy states that there is little evidence to support this, although they are more likely to remain with a specific school.
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• Incentive theories. The assumption of these theories is based on the principle of reinforcement, the “carrot” approach. Individuals work harder when given specific rewards or encouragement for good performance. Handy (in Bush & Middlewood, 2005:21) states that incentive approaches may work if:
- the individual perceives the extra reward to be worth the extra effort - the performance can be measured and attributed to the individual - the individual wants that particular kind of reward
- the increased performance will not become the new minimum standard.
• Intrinsic theories. The assumption here is that people work best if given a worthwhile job and allowed to get on with it. The reward will come from the satisfaction in the work itself.
All these theories, Bush and Middlewood (2005:21) state, are based on the assumption that motivation is essential if staff members are to perform well. People are motivated in different ways and knowing what works for each person provides the potential for enhanced long-term performance.
From the body of literature studied, it may be deducted that with regard to motivating their staff, school leaders should recognise individual differences and the diverse needs of their staff members; they should also set specific goals for staff and provide them with immediate feedback on their progress and, above all, leaders should ensure that staff members perceive the goals set for them as attainable. School leaders should also not lose sight of the very important fact that staff members are motivated by different types of rewards; hence motivation should be aimed at what motivates the individual educator.