Teacher Job Satisfaction within Intellectual Schools in Kazakhstan: A Mixed Methods Study

摘要

This study explored local and international teachers' job satisfaction within Nazarbayev Intellectual Schools in Kazakhstan. The purpose of the research was to gain understanding of the teachers' values, attitudes, perceptions, and evaluations of the job-related facets in their current jobs. The study necessitated the collection of quantitative and qualitative data resulting in an explanatory sequential mixed methods design informed by a pragmatic worldview of the researcher. The data collection and analysis were structured around the Value-Percept Theory (Locke, 1976) and the Job Characteristics Model (Hackman & Oldman, 1976). The data were collected through an online administration of the Teacher Job Satisfaction Survey, developed and designed for the purpose of the study, and personal interviews.;The findings of the study emerged from the quantitative and qualitative data integration and made a significant contribution to new knowledge and understanding of the issues related to teacher job satisfaction with their current positions in schools aiming to educate intellectual elite of the country. The results indicate that teachers are mostly satisfied with salary, which was found to be the most valuable job factor, student support, and coworkers. The local teaching staff are content with professional development opportunities and career advancement prospects, whereas international teachers are not provided such. Lower levels of satisfaction were reported by both groups as regards administrative support and the work itself aspects. Teachers who reported higher levels of satisfaction with the job-related factors indicated a likelihood of continuing on in their current positions and willingness to recommend their job to friends. Among job facets that would influence teachers' decisions to leave or consider leaving their current jobs, work itself, administrative support, and a salary decrease were the most dominant.;Based on the participants' suggestions and overall outcomes of the study, policy recommendations for change are presented as discrete actions that should be pursued to enhance teacher job satisfaction and improve the quality of education in the country.