BACKGROUND TOPIC: TEACHERS ‘COMPETENCES AFFECT STUDENTS’ PERFORMANCES

BACKGROUND

TOPIC: TEACHERS ‘COMPETENCES AFFECT STUDENTS’ PERFORMANCES

        (Teachers’ Competence In Relation To Students’ Academic Achievement)

Education is a very important human activity. It helps any society fashion and model individuals to function well in their environment. According to Boit, Njoki and Chang’ach (2012), the purpose of education is to equip the citizenry to reshape their society and eliminate inequality. Levin,Wasanga and Somerset (2011) reported that the academic achievement of students at secondary school level is not only a pointer of the effectiveness of schools but also a major determinant of the well-being of youths in particular and the nation in general. Yusuf and Adigun (2010); Lydiah and Nasongo (2009) noted that the performance of students in any academic task has always been of special interest to the government, educators, parents and society at large. Odhiambo (2005) contends that there is a growing demand from the Kenyan government and the public for teacher accountability. Schools are commonly evaluated using students’ achievement data (Heck, 2009). Teachers cannot be dissociated from the schools they teach and academic results of schools. It would therefore be logical to use standardized students’ assessments results as the basis for judging the performance of teachers. Teachers celebrate and are rewarded when their schools and teaching subjects are highly ranked. In Chile, for instance, teachers are rewarded collectively when they work in schools which are identified as high-performing by the National Performance Evaluation System of Subsidized Schools (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, 2005). In Kenya teachers who excel in their teaching subjects are rewarded during open education day held annually in every district (Cherongis, 2010). While appreciating the value of rewarding teachers who produce better results, teachers should also not escape a portion of blame when students perform poorly. It has been proved that teachers have an important influence on students’ academic achievement.

They play a crucial role in educational attainment because the teacher is ultimately responsible for translating policy into action and principles based on practice during interaction with the students (Afe, 2001). In their study, Wright, Horn and Sanders (1997) concluded that the most important factor influencing student learning is the teacher. Teachers stand in the interface of the transmission of knowledge, values and skills in the learning process. If the teacher is ineffective, students under the teacher’s tutelage will achieve inadequate progress academically. This is regardless of how similar or different the students are in terms of individual potential in academic achievement. According to Rivkin, Hanusheck and Kain (2005), there has never been consensus on the specific teacher factors that influence students’ academic achievement. Researchers have examined the influence of teacher characteristics such as gender, educational qualifications and teaching experience on students’ academic achievement with varied findings. Akiri and Ugborugbo (2008) found that there was a significant relationship between teachers’ gender and students’ academic achievement. This is contrary to Dee cited in Akiri and Ugborugbo (2008). Yala and Wanjohi (2011) and Adeyemi (2010) found that teachers’ experience and educational qualifications were the prime predictors of students’ academic achievement. However, Ravkin et al (2005) found that teachers’ teaching experience and educational qualifications were not significantly related to students’ achievement. Etsy (2005) study in Ghana found that the teacher factors that significantly contributed to low academic achievement were incidences of lateness to school, incidences of absenteeism, and inability to complete the syllabi. Oredein and Oloyede (2007) concluded that teacher management of homework and assignments given to students have an impact on student achievement especially when it is well explained, motivational, corrected and reviewed during class time and used as an occasion for feedback to students.

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