133 SCHOOL CLIMATE AS CORRELATES TO TEACHERS’ JOB PERFORMANCE IN PUBLIC SENIOR SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN LAGOS STATE NIGERIA Lilian IjeomaAmaechi Ph.D Email: ijeakuibe2005@yahoo.co.uk Department of Educational Management, Lagos State University, Ojo, Lagos Nigeria ABSTRACT This study examined the relationship between school climates as correlates to teachers’ job performance in public senior secondary schools in Lagos State. A hypothesis was (tested at 0.05 level of significance) and a research question was set to serve as guide for the study. With the study’s foundation anchored on Systems theory. Correlational and descriptive research designs were adopted. The study population comprised 322 Principals, 644 Vice-principals, 966 head of departments and 960 teachers in public senior secondary schools in Lagos State. The sample sizes were 96 Principals, 192 Vice-principals, 288 head of departments and 960 teachers after stratifying the population into Education Districts and thereafter selecting through purposive and simple random sampling techniques. Two instruments were used to collect data after ensuring their validity and establishing their reliability using Cronbach Alpha Coefficient method. These included ‘School Climate Questionnaire (SCQ) (r=0.890) and Teachers’ job performance Questionnaire (TJPQ) (r = 0.837) Analysis of data was carried out using both descriptive and inferential statistics (Pearson’s Product-Moment Correlation). The findings was that a positive, negligible and non-significant relationship exists between school climate and teachers’ job performance in public senior secondary schools in Lagos State (r = 0.008, ρ > 0.05) The study concluded that, the more conducive the school climate, the higher teachers job performance in public senior secondary schools in Lagos State. The study therefore recommended that Principals and School Authority should make the school climate conducive for teachers to perform their duties well. Keywords: School climate, Teachers Job Performance, Public Senior secondary Schools. INTRODUCTION The School is a social organisation with a unique formation that influences behaviour of the human components. The human components in the school includes the students, teachers and administrators. Peretomode, (2014) conceived the school as a social system involving two classes of phenomena that are independent and at the same interactive with the individual behaviour and the social behaviour in a social system. The social behaviour is the normative dimension that ensures that behaviour is geared towards achieving organizational (school) goals. The personal dimension or the idiographic dimension consists of three interrelated elements, individual, personality and need deposition. The school as a social system is therefore characterized by the existence of organisational goals and individual goals. The attempt to balance the organisation and individual goals results to the creation of school climate. Conceptualized as multi-faceted concept, Petrie (2014) defined school climate to include the unwritten personality and atmosphere of a school including its norms, values, and expectations. Wang and Degol (2015) also postulated that school climate includes academic, community, safety, and institutional environment dimensions that encompass just about every feature of the school environment that impacts cognitive, behavioral, and psychological development. There are other views about the meaning of school mailto:ijeakuibe2005@yahoo.co.uk Lilian Ijeoma School Climate As Correlates To Teachers’… 134 climate. Hoy and Miskel as cited in Peretomode (2014) opined that school climate is an end product of school group – students, teachers, administrators (the formal and informal organisation leadership and personality of participants) as they work to balance the organisation and the individual of a social system. The quality of a nation’s educational sector depends considerably on teachers as well as on the collective interactions of the internal and external forces that intervene in the fulfillment of the purpose for setting up schools. The effectiveness and stability of the schools are mostly based on their school climate and the performance of teachers (Wentzel & Watkins, in Emu, 2018). Teachers are the backbone of an education activity, the success and failure of education activities highly depends on their performance (Muhammad, Rahmat & Malik, 2013). Meanwhile, job performance is the duties carried out by teachers in the school which is aimed at achieving both education and school objectives, it is defined as putting knowledge and skills into practice so that work can be done effectively and efficiently. (Griffing, 2012; Adejumobi, 2018). Muhammad (2013) also opined that teachers’ job performance is directly linked to process and product of education which is emphatic for the improvement of education. Peretemode, in Muhammad (2013), adds that job performance is determined by the worker’s level of participation in the day to day running of an organisation. Teachers’ job performance can be defined as the skill, knowledge and competence with which a person executes the duties and responsibilities associated with job description. It is also fulfilling of an obligation, carrying out of one’s duties and accomplishing a specified job or duty. It therefore means the accomplishment of set goals and objectives. This involves the teacher’s role in the dissemination of knowledge and providing guidance and counseling service for both on and off school activities. Thus, it is observed that teachers’ job performance is more than teaching in the class. It also comprises punctuality to class, finishing the scheme of work for each term, writing up- to- date lesson plan and notes, satisfying the students through their teaching style and quality management of class discipline, students motivation and improvement of their achievement; assisting students to solve their academic and learning difficulties, interaction with students, interaction and relationship with other teachers and high officials, performance of other assignments by the principal and the department (Muhammad, 2013). In the words of Adejumobi and Ojikutu (2013), teachers’ job performance is shown in terms of teachers’ lesson presentation which ranges from introduction of the lesson to teachers mastery of the subject, interaction with the students, evaluation, conclusion and students external examination. Teachers’ performance can be determined or measured using several yardsticks such as their effectiveness in delivery of lessons, writing of lesson notes, selection and usage of instructional materials, completing number of periods per week and scheme of work, as well as involvement and commitment to other duties that will lead to the realization of school goals. The success or failure of any educational programme then depends on the performance of teachers. Thus, stakeholders have continued to express interest in identifying the factors that enhance teachers’ appreciable performance in secondary schools in Lagos State. STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM Teachers constitute human resource that makes school and educational objectives a reality. The failure or success of educational activities highly depends on teachers’ job performance. In spite of government and school management efforts to enhance effectiveness and efficiency among teachers in public senior secondary schools, however, there seems to be challenges such as overcrowded classrooms which may impinge upon the school with the ratio of 1:100 instead of expected ratio of 1:40 in some public senior secondary schools in Lagos state Nigeria Aquino Journal of Philosophy, Vol 5 Issue 2, August 2025. ISSN: 2786-9792 135 (FRN2013), also as observed by Ogundare (2018). The autocratic leadership style of some public-school principals, lack of collaboration and interpersonal relationship among teachers and colleagues, teachers and principals, teachers and students, teachers and parents are also characteristics of the school that present a climate that may hinder the adequate performance of teachers. PURPOSE OF THE STUDY The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship that exists between School Climate and Teachers’ Job Performance in public Senior Secondary Schools in Lagos State, Nigeria. Specifically, this study was to examine the relationship between school climate and teachers’ job performance in public senior secondary schools in Lagos State, Nigeria RESEARCH QUESTION Q1. Is there any relationship between school climate and teachers’ job performance in public senior secondary schools in Lagos State, Nigeria? RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS Ho1: There is no significant relationship between school climate and teachers’ job performance in public senior secondary schools in Lagos State, Nigeria. THEORETICAL FRAME WORK The study anchored on Systems Theory. A system is comprised of a whole made up of interacting parts, and therefore, systems scientists in both the natural and social sciences study the interaction between parts to better understand the complexities of reality (Lalande and Baumeister, 2015) Arnold and Wade (2015), further define a systems as, “groups or combinations of interrelated, interdependent, or interacting elements forming collective entities”. A system therefore denotes a set of parts that are interrelated so as to function as a whole in order to achieve a common purpose. For example; school organisations with all their institutional components that make them function as a whole (Bozkus, 2014). A system is a set interrelated parts working together as a whole to achieve a common goal. The system theory has been used to describe and explain the universality of bodies, It is a set of interrelated and interdependent parts, such that the interaction of any part or sub-system affects the whole structure (Ndu & Okeke, in Rufai, 2018).This theory rests on the assumption that school is a system which comprises different parts that are inter-related (students, teachers, administrators etc.).What affects one part affects the other in the same system and environment. Thus, systems theory is a transdiciplinary study of systems in general, with the goals of elucidating principles that can be applied to all types of system in all fields of research (Yahya, 2014).As a transdiciplinary and multi-perspectival domain, the systems theory brings together principles and concepts from other disciplines. System theory thus serves as a bridge interdisciplinary dialogue between autonomous areas of study as well as within the area of systems science itself. Bertalanffy, (1968) is the proponent of the system Theory. According to this theory, behaviour, relationships, emotions, effectiveness and efficiency, thoughts are influenced by personal characteristics and surrounding climate. Human development occurs through the complex, reciprocal interaction that an individual has with others in the school and the surrounding. The environment is made Lilian Ijeoma School Climate As Correlates To Teachers’… 136 of internal (teachers, students, administrators) and external (parents, community) that affect the system (Jason 2020). Meanwhile, the secondary education production function is a system of human resources, physical resources, methods, procedures and processes working together in a definite environment to deliver desirable outputs(Mwangeka, 2020). Systems theory is the interdisciplinary study of systems, which are cohesive groups of interrelated, interdependent components that can be natural or human made. Every system has causal boundaries, is influenced by its context, defined by its structure, function and role, and expressed through its relations with other systems (wiki loves2022). RESEARCH METHOD In this study, descriptive survey and correlational research designs were considered suitable. The study population comprised all public senior secondary schools in Lagos State in the six Education Districts. There are 322 Senior Secondary Schools of Lagos State. THE SAMPLE AND SAMPLING TECHNIQUES The sample of the study consisted of 96 schools that were selected from the population of 322 public senior secondary schools in Lagos State.A multistage sampling technique was used to select schools from each Education districts for this study. This enabled every public senior secondary school to have a chance of being selected in the existing six Educational Districts in Lagos state. A disproportionate stratified sampling technique was used to select 16 public senior secondary schools randomly from each Education District for the sample size making a total of 96 schools. Lastly, a purposive or judgmental non- probability sampling technique was used to select principal or principal cadre, two vice principals, three head of departments and ten teachers who have spent not less than five years in each sampled school making a total number of 96 principals, 192 vice principals, 288 head of departments and 960 teachers, making a total number of 1,536 as the study participants or respondents. RESEARCH INSTRUMENTS The instrument used for this study is structured questionnaire constructed by the researcher. The structured questionnaire is made up of the following; School Climate Questionnaire (SCQ) and Teachers Job Performance Questionnaire (TJPQ). The SCQ was divided into two parts, Part A consists of items on personal data of respondents, part B consists of 5 structured items to get information on the school climate. The TJPQ was divided into two parts. Part A consists of items on personal data of respondents; Part B consists of 5 structured items to obtain information on Teachers’ job performance. The principals, vice principals and head of departments were the respondents to the questionnaire. The School climate and teachers job performance response options were Strongly Agree (SA), Agree (A), Disagree (D) and Strongly Disagree (SD). HYPOTHESES TESTING The hypothesis for this study was tested using Pearson’s Product Moment Correlation (PPMC) DECISION RULE The level of significance for the hypothesis in this study is 0.05. The null hypothesis assumed that there is no significant influence of the independent variable on the dependent variables. In Aquino Journal of Philosophy, Vol 5 Issue 2, August 2025. ISSN: 2786-9792 137 this study, if the SPSS output significant value of the tests exceeds the significant level (0.05), then the null hypothesis is accepted and the alternative hypothesis rejected, but if the p-value is lesser than 0.05, the null hypothesis is rejected and the alternative is accepted. Furthermore, the researcher employed the Cohen (1988) table to interpret the correlation strength. The rules of thumb to interpret the strength of correlation (r) are 0.10-0.29 signifies weak correlation; 0.30-0.49 represents moderate correlation; 0.50-1.00 represents strong correlation (Cohen, 1988). HYPOTHESES H01: There is no significant relationship between school climate and teachers’ job performance in public senior secondary schools in Lagos State Nigeria. In order to test the hypothesis, Pearson’s Product-Moment Correlation Analysis was conducted between school climate and teachers’ job performance. The scores of responses on items of school climate were computed and used as a single variable to correlate the sum of scores on items of teachers’ job performance. The result is presented in Table Table 1: Relationship between school climate and teachers’ job performance in public senior secondary schools in Lagos State, Nigeria School climate Teachers job performance School climate Pearson Correlation 1 0.008 Sig. (2-tailed) 0.862 N 933 467 Teachers job performance Pearson Correlation 0.008 1 Sig. (2-tailed) 0.862 N 467 467 The result of the test performed indicates that there is a positive, and non-significant relationship between school climate and teachers’ job performance in public senior secondary schools in Lagos State, Nigeria (r = 0.862, ρ > 0.05). The implication of this is that there is no linear association between school climate and teachers’ job performance in public senior secondary schools. This depicts the lack of association (r approximately = 0) between school climate and teachers’ job performance. Hence, the null hypothesis which states that there is no significant relationship between school climate and teachers’ job performance in public senior secondary schools in Lagos State, Nigeria is hereby rejected. CONCLUSIONS The conclusion can be drawn from this study that the more conducive the school climate, the more teachers perform their duties in public senior secondary schools in Lagos State, Nigeria.. Meanwhile, the two variables are interrelated and interdependent, school climate relate to teachers’ job performance in public senior secondary in Lagos state, Nigeria. RECOMMENDATIONS Based on the findings of this study, the following recommendations are hereby made. 1. Principals and school authority should make the school climate conducive for teachers to perform their duties well. Lilian Ijeoma School Climate As Correlates To Teachers’… 138 2. Government should continuously improve the school climate to provide conducive atmosphere for teachers to perform their duties 3. The government and school management staff should ensure regular training and re-training of teachers through in-service training, seminars, conferences and workshops towards enhancing school climate and job performance. 4. Government should try as much as possible to provide public schools with adequate facilities to stimulate a climate that will enhance teacher job performance. 5. Teachers should prepare adequately to improve in their job performance. REFERENCES Adejumobi, F.T. (2018) Organisational climate and teacher job performance in public and private secondary schools in Lagos state, Nigeria. (Unpublished thesis submitted to the department of educational administration in partial fulfillment of the award of the degree of doctor of philosophy (Ph.D.) in educational administration) University of Lagos. Adejumobi, F. & Ojikutu, R. (2013). 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