أطراس
Volume 7, Numéro 2, Pages 185-198
2026-07-15

When Schools Run Lean: The Structural Determinants And Consequences Of Teacher Understaffing In Public Secondary School In Nigeria



Authors : Okunola John . Oduntan Muideen .

Abstract

Teacher understaffing in public secondary schools remains a persistent challenge that undermines the quality of education weakens organizational effectiveness, and compromises students’ intellectual and social development Herberg’s Two-Factor Theory of Motivation to examined the structural determinants of teacher understaffing. A current methods (quantitative and qualitative) design was employed and a simple random sampling technique was used to select 420 teachers from public secondary schools in Osun State, Nigeria. A structured questionnaire and In-depth Interview were used to elicit information from selected stakeholders. Quantitative data were analyzed using desciriptive statistics and independent sample t-tests, while qualitative data were examined through thematic analysis. Findings revealed the lack of incentives ((x̄ = 4.75), high workload (x̄ = 4.69), high attrition rates (x̄ = 4.21), insufficient funding allocation (x̄ = 4.14) and inadequate professional development (x̄ = 4.12) were identified as major causes of understaffing among teachers. The study found a significant negative effect of understaffing on teachers’ job satisfaction (x̄ = 3.25), while no statistically significant impact was observed on curriculum coverage (x̄ = 1.50) or job performance (x̄ = 1.50). Irregular salary payments (x̄ = 3.35), poor infrastructure (x̄ = 3.20) and inadequate institutional support (x̄ = 3.04) were identified as key structural factors influencing teacher shortages and job satisfaction in state schools. The study recommends that policymakers and educational stakeholders develop clear staffing standards, increase funding allocations, streamline administrative processes and implement teacher wellness initiatives to address understaffing in public secondary schools in Osun State, Nigeria.

Keywords

Job satisfaction ; Teacher experience ; Motivation ; Organisational performance ; School administration ; Low staffing

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