A Study on Causes of Stress among Teachers and its Effect on the Academic Performance at Schools in Nairobi, Kenya

Abstract

Stress significantly affects performance in terms of psychology, physiology, and academic achievement. The majority of research that has been done and published on the effects of stress on teachers has focused either on social ties in the classroom or on family dynamics. This essay's main objective was to raise awareness of the pervasive which often ignored problem of "stress" and how it affects teachers in schools. During research, the study involved 300 secondary teachers to evaluate the physiological responses to stress and how their work performance is affected, school relations, attitude and relationship among individuals. To arrive at the conclusion, the study used correlation approaches, regression analysis and descriptive analysis. The internal consistency of the questionnaire survey and reliability of the scale employed was assessed by the reliability static Cronbach’s alpha. The study found that work stress 'occupational stress' and job security to be specific was the main stress factor and contributed to moderate impact on teacher's performance in school. The response of the teachers to physiological stressors has mild effects. Some teacher develops long-term high blood pressure and diabetes due to stress factor. The researcher sought permission from the Ethics and Review Committee at Pwani University NACOSTI who accredited ethics certificate permit to carry on with research within the schools in Nairobi-County. The researcher also sought a permit from the Ministry of Education director office of Nairobi. The results were stressors had no correlation with performance, but the r-value-0.22 job-related stress has a negative impact on performance at a medium level. There is no correlation (r=-0.13) between overall stress (as determined by four stress indicators) and performance. The variance in performance in overall stress, B-value -0.02 which shows that performance increases by 0.02 units for every unit decrease in overall stress.