Teacher Morale in Rural Northeast Tennessee

The purpose of this quantitative study was to investigate the factors that influence the morale levels of teachers in the public school systems of 3 contiguous counties in rural northeast Tennessee. The level of teacher morale was measured using the Purdue Teacher Opinionaire. Data associated with the Tennessee Value-Added Assessment System (TVAAS) teacher effect score, grade level taught, years of service, gender, and level of education were gathered. The morale score and the teacher effect score were then examined to ascertain if there was a relationship with the other factors. Data from this study were examined using the Statistical Process for Social Sciences (SPSS) data analysis program. By determining if there was a relationship between teacher morale and factors such as Tennessee TVAAS teacher effectiveness scores, grade level taught, years of service, gender, and level of education, further research could be completed related to indentifying and improving the morale of teachers in rural northeast Tennessee. Improved teacher morale might increase student learning. The sample for this study consisted of 209 licensed teachers who were employed in rural northeast Tennessee during the 2011-2012 school year. Four research questions were used to direct the study and 20 hypotheses were used to test the data. The findings revealed that the overall level of teacher morale was significantly positive. There was not a significant relationship found between teacher morale levels and the TVAAS teacher effect scores. There was no significant difference in teacher effect scores by years of experience nor by level of education. A significant relationship was found between TVAAS teacher effect scores and the grade level taught. It appears individuals who teach at the secondary level had significantly lower TVAAS teacher effect scores than teachers who teach at the elementary and middle levels. There was not a significant relationship found between teacher morale level and the teachers\u27 levels of education and gender. However, there was a significantly negative relationship between teacher morale level and teachers\u27 years of experience. A significantly negative difference was also found in the relationship between teacher morale level and grade level taught