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ased in the UK (current membership figure 3,763 in 127 countries) and localteachers associations which operate mainly at the level of a particular country andits immediate neighbours.Teacher satisfactionSpratt (1994:80) asks teachers to rank the following list of factors, according tohow important they consider them to be in contributing to their job satisfaction:■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■security of tenureaccess to good school equipment and resourcesa good salarya good pensiona sense of achievement through worklong holidayswell-motivated studentsa pleasant school buildinga supportive head teacherother (please specify).Although there is no right or wrong answer for this activity, the task requiresteachers to assess their current post and to discuss why they are or are not happy,and which of the criteria mentioned above are important for their job satisfaction.Being able to clarify what is important for job satisfaction is important in anycareer, not least teaching which is often regarded as a stressful occupation.Spratt’s list of factors contributing to teachers’ happiness can be said to applyin general to all teachers, however in some contexts additional criteria may alsoplay a part. As mentioned above, overcrowded classes can lead to high levelsof stress for teachers, and research supports the fact that rural teachers oftenexperience lower levels of job satisfaction than urban teachers (Farrel & Oliveira,1993; Rozenholtz, 1985; Sargent & Hannum, 2003). A study by Abdullah, Uli &Parasuraman (2009) found that graduate teachers were more satisfied than nongraduates,higher-ranking teachers were more satisfied than ordinary teachers andolder teachers were more satisfied with their jobs than younger teachers, howeverit is not clear why this might be.Research designThe study consisted of a survey, delivered for the most part in electronic format,and in-depth personal interviews with teachers and Head Teachers around theworld.74 | Primary English Teachers