The Effect of High School English Teachers' Awareness of Pedagogical Competence on Students' Learning Achievements

The study examined the impact of high school English teachers’ awareness of pedagogical competence on student learning. A psychometric measurement instrument of English language teachers’ pedagogical competence (ELTPC) was first developed through factor analysis with ۳۲۰ high school teachers in Guilan, northern Iran. Based on the developed instrument, ۳۶ teachers were divided into two groups of aware and unaware teachers of pedagogical competence (PC) according to Contrasting Groups Method. Then, ۱۶۰ high school third graders received instruction from the aware and unaware teachers for ۷ weeks. Finally, a survey regarding the teachers’ implementation of pedagogical competence in classrooms was conducted with ۳۰ students. The findings showed that the students in the aware teacher group outperformed the students in the unaware group of teachers. Although based on the survey results, the aware teachers were reported to act better with regard to the students’ learning achievements, they were not reported as highly practicing the pedagogical competence. The findings can be practically used by teachers, teacher educators, and education administrators.

Keywords:

English Teachers , Awareness of Pedagogical Competence , High School