Teachers’ Competence and Students’ Academic Performance in Senior Secondary Schools Chemistry: Is There Any Relationship?

Abstract

This study investigated the influence of teacher’s competence on students; academic performance in senior secondary chemistry. A random sampling technique was used to select 6 secondary schools out of 10 secondary schools in Tai Local Government Area of Rivers State. 200 students, 20 teachers and 6 principals were used in the study. A survey design was adopted for Teachers Competence Questionnaire (TCQ) and Chemistry Achievement Test (CAT) was used to gather data for the study. Three researcher-made instruments namely School principal Questionnaire (SPQ), Teachers Competence Questionnaire (TCQ) and Chemistry Achievement Test (CAT) were used to gather data for the study. Data were analyzed using the Pearson product Moment Correlation (PPMC) and t-test. Results revealed that there is significant relationship between teachers’ competence and students’ academic performance in chemistry. Chemistry students taught by qualified teachers performed significantly better than those taught by unqualified teachers. Also chemistry students taught by experienced teachers performed significantly better than those taught by inexperienced teachers. Recommendations were made on how to promote further development of science teachers in Nigeria.