TEACHING EXPERIENCE AND ACADEMIC QUALIFICATIONS AS CORRELATES OF PEDAGOGICAL CONTENT KNOWLEDGE OF BIOLOGY TEACHERS IN ANAMBRA STATE

Abstract

This study investigated teaching experience and academic qualification as correlates of pedagogical content knowledge of secondary school biology teachers in Anambra state. Two research questions guided the study and two null hypotheses were tested at 0.5 level of significance. The study adopted a correlational research design specifically. The population of the study comprised of six hundred and forty-two biology teachers in Anambra State. A sample of 309 biology teachers was selected using a multi- stage sampling procedure. Data was collected using Biology Teachers’ Pedagogical Content Knowledge Questionnaire (BTPCKQ), validated by two experts in the in the Department of Science Education, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka. The reliability of the BTPCKQ was established using Kuder Richardson 20- formula (KR-20), yielding a reliability coefficient of 0.81. Data were gathered with the assistance of three trained research assistants. Pearson Product -Moment Correlation was used to answer the research questions and regression analyses were employed to test the null hypotheses at 0.5 levels of significance. The result revealed that there is a positive relationship between secondary school biology teachers’ teaching experience, academic qualification and their pedagogical content knowledge in biology. It also revealed that teaching experience and academic qualification were significant correlators of pedagogical content knowledge of biology teachers. Based on the findings, it was recommended that among others that, training programme for pre-service teachers and new teachers should be made to be experiential. This involves giving them ample opportunities for classroom teaching environment.