Current literature leaves key questions unexplained about the impact of teacher qualification on student learning outcomes (measured by GPA scores). According to the 2014 Family Survey, this study answered this question with 251 schools in Indonesia. This study included regression analysis, as well as many descriptive statistics and an analysis of variance. The regression was used to estimate the model's parameters. To answer research question 3, ANOVA was used. The study found a significant negative relationship between teacher's highest level of education and students GPA score in Indonesia. However, a combination of the highest level of education and gender did not significantly predict students GPA score. The data used for the study was from archival data for "Indonesian Family Life Survey 2014" in which some vital parts of the data for the study was in Indonesian. Since the researcher relied on google translation for identification of teachers in the survey possibility of exclusion of some teachers in the data are very high. The other limitation is the difficulty in identification of a direct causal effect of trained teacher and learning outcome of students.
Table of Contents
Abstract 2
Table of Contents 3
Introduction 4
Literature on Teacher Training and Learning Outcomes of Students 6
Policy Design 11
Research Questions 12
Hypotheses 12
Data 13
Data Screening 13
Statistical Analysis 14
Empirical Strategy 14
Results 15
Descriptive Data for Continous Variables 15
Descriptive Data for Categorical Variables 18
Regression Analysis 22
Discussion, Conclusions and Limitations 25
Limitations of the Study 26
References 28
Introduction
Globally, governments face the challenge of improving the teaching quality in the educational institutions within their countries. Training of the teachers and certification is one way of enhancing the quality of education in an academic system. Past studies have failed to clearly establish the relationship between training and certification of teachers on the learning outcomes of the students. The educational system of Indonesia continued to experience poor outcomes in the results of the students in the recent decades. The government of Indonesia has since introduced ambitious certification programs in an attempt to find solution to the deteriorating education system (Kusumawardhani 2017, p. 591). The program aims at improving teacher's capabilities of producing competent learners. The plan originated from the fact that when comparing the educational productivity of Indonesia to its neighbors such as Malaysia and Singapore, Indonesia performs poor overall.
Teacher’s qualification is a multi-meaning term which is highly contested with a reflection of interest and perspectives of different policymakers, researchers, and writers (Strong 2012, p. 13). Some of the researchers connect it to academic ability (as indicated by qualifications) while others relate it to classroom practice quality. Moreover, for policymakers interested in effective qualities of the teacher relates to improving learning outcomes for the student. Additionally, the term ‘quality teacher' is often used with adjectives such as good and efficient which implies a particular definition of quality teachers.
One of the ways to advance the gauge of the teacher’s qualities is by observing their classroom activities. However, this technique has proved impractical and challenging. In view of the methodology, the presence of observers in the classroom can affect the behavior of teachers and students. While observation schedules can be designed to be as objective as possible, written records of a lesson will always include some degree of subjective reporting by the observer. These effects can be mitigated (though not overcome entirely) through videoing classes which can reduce the observer effect and enable several researchers to review the lesson and to apply and verify coding consistently. TMSS video studies link data on the background of the teacher and the outcomes of the students on the behavior of the teacher in the classroom. The video studies provide a robust methodology for evaluating the linkages between teacher preparation, teacher performance, and student learning.
Usages of the term among the international donors also take assumption of the meaning. Even though many references are made on the term, little efforts have been made to define its purpose. Cochran-Smith (2001) provides a useful historical overview of the emergence of the term and its different usages: First, Initial debates (the 1950s through the 1960s) about teacher quality were about the attributes that make up a good teacher. The critical question was: what are the different psychological and behavioural characteristics of a good teacher? Also, what attributes contribute to excellent teacher education programs. This was slowly introduced in the late 1960s to the late 1980s with a focus on effectiveness. The critical issues were about the teaching approaches and strategies of the most effective teachers. Which policies should teacher education programs use in ensuring that trainee teachers are effective? From the early 1980s to the late 1990s, the focus became more about the knowledge of teachers. What should teachers know and be able to do? From the 20th century into the 21st century the most crucial question focuses on outcomes, specifically, the impact of teachers on learners. A more recent trend is to measure the knowledge of the teacher (both subject and pedagogic knowledge) through testing teachers, rather than relying solely on qualifications and long years of work as the primary indicators of teacher competence.
The primary aim of this study was to assess the impact of a trained teacher on learning the outcome of student's in Indonesia. However, it is probably the second after a similar study performed by Kusumawardhani in 2017. The only difference among the two studies is that the current research focuses on trained teachers and learning outcome of student's while the other examined the impact of certification of 2007 and 2008 program by the government on teachers capabilities and student learning outcome. In addition, several studies have been carried out on the relationship between teacher(s) certification and training on the learning outcome of students in other countries. However, majority of the studies were carried out in the US and Europe.
An examination of the effects of learning outcome of students in Indonesia is justified. The results of the research would provide insights into the necessity of hiring and developing certified and trained teachers. Improvement in the ability of the teachers to help students attain their education goals besides guiding the quality of the current teacher in-service training (Wayne and Young 2003, p. 93). The improvement in knowledge in these areas will enable policymakers, researchers and administrators to better identify the desirable teacher characteristics that contribute to the best achievement of learners. Understanding this relationship will also help policymakers and researchers to devise better intervention programs that would facilitate positive teacher behavior.
Literature on Teacher Training and Learning Outcomes of Students
The review of literature performed for this research paper has shown that conclusions and findings of several studies that investigate the impact of a trained teacher on learning outcomes of students. Majority of the studies have been carried out in the USA, and the significant findings summary fall in this section. However, the U.S education system significantly differs from that of Indonesia. The variations in the education systems are taken into considerations in the transfer of the findings of these studies to Indonesian education system. The main reason for concern of difference in the two systems is the complexity of the method to use in singling out teacher's training from other factors having impacts on student's academic outcome.
Studies on the impact of teacher training on student's academic outcome have their methodological origin in natural sciences according to Borko et al. (2008). As the researchers conclude, these studies are concerned with the identification of causes and effects relationships. They further suggested that these studies become widespread in the introduction of “No Child Left Behind” reforms in the US and the current studies are designed to identify ‘what works.' Although policymakers believe in such designs in predictions of student's academic outcome, Borko et al. (2008) suggested that “such studies cannot always account for the failure or success of something in different contexts” (Borko et al. 2008, p. 1024).
Goe (2007) used standardized student test scores achieved in the measurement of the outcome but pointed out to the approach as uniform and having three main difficulties Goe (2007, p. 2). First, obtaining linked teachers - student quantitative or qualitative data is difficult thus making it impossible to relate specific student’s outcomes scores in a test a particular teacher. Second, it is difficult to single out contributions of teachers from the input of classroom climate, curriculum, materials, textbook, and peers when determining students test score achievements. Third, these tests are designed to measure achievements of the students as opposed to measuring teacher training on outcomes of students. The researcher makes use of teacher training and characteristics as input variables in the measurement of teacher effectiveness. However, the study concludes that despite statistical significance of results in previous reviews the studies are of no practical relevance or inconsistent (Goe 2007, p. 3).
Moreover, Cochran-Smith and Fries (2008) authored a literature review on all studies on teacher training between the period 1920-2005 and reported that Ballou and Podgursky (2000a, b) concluded that a weak correlation between teachers training (advanced degree) and the effectiveness of the teacher’s exits based on evidence. In contradiction, Darling-Hammond (2000) re-examined the indications used by Ballou and Podgursky and concluded that the researchers had misrepresented a significant percent of the evidence base. Thus, the misrepresentation enabled them to arrive at their conclusion that "teacher education makes no difference to teacher performance or student learning outcomes” (Fries and Cochran-Smith 2008, p. 1062). Following a review of 150 journals published in the past five decades, The Abell Foundation (2001) came to a similar conclusion as did Ballou and Podgursky. The consensus is that “the academic research attempting to link certification of teachers with student achievement is astonishingly deficient; certification is incapable of providing any insight into an individual’s curiosity, affinity for children and instructional skills.” (Cochran-Smith and Fries 2008, p. 1063).
Conceptual and methodological difficulties in creating a causal relationship between student's academic outcome and teacher's training were also pointed out in a report by the US "Committee on the Study of Teacher Preparation Programs” (National Research Council 2010, p. 22). The report highlighted three areas of difficulty which include; one, “the use of strict experimental design principles can be problematic in some educational settings since it is difficult to control for all the important factors that are likely to influence student outcomes” (NRC 2010, p. 22). Second, “the complex nature of schooling children makes it difficult to identify the role of teacher preparation among the many intertwined influences on student outcomes empirically" (NRC 2010, p. 22). Third, “there are no well-formed theories that link teacher preparation to student outcomes” (NRC 2010, p. 22).
A ten-year study (1994-2004) in North Carolina concluded that Grade 2-5 elementary school student registered comparatively higher results in mathematics and reading tests when taught by National Board Certification accredited teachers (Clotfelter et al. 2007, p. 34). Similar results occurred in a medium sized study carried out by Sato et al. (2008). In their research teachers with NBTCs certificates also obtained higher quality assessment practices. Regardless of the evidence provided by these two studies, Rouse (2008) challenged the results by performing quasi-experimental research on a sample of 54 teachers in North Carolina. The results did not establish a statistically significant connection between students math and reading test scores (academic outcome) and board certification. In another study, Gimbert et al. (2007) failed to establish the relationship between the various models applied in training teachers to the educational results of the students. However, Lustick and Sykes disregarded the outcomes of the students in their study and established a significant relationship between teacher's achievements in teacher training and Board certification. Moreover, Petty et al. (2007) survey on NBCT certificate holders who were due to renew their ten years certification yield the following results: 92 percent reported that NBCT Certification positively affected their students' learning outcomes while 98 percent reported a positive influence of the certification on their careers.
According to Cochran-Smith (2005), teacher quality and education have become constructed as a policy problem. The critical issue in forming it as a policy problem is to understand what is possible to control and influence by policymakers and possibly to have a favourable positive influence on student learning outcomes. A critical issue for policy is to consider what aspects of teacher policy including teacher remuneration, teacher professional development, including in- and pre-service training, and school-related factors such as school governance have an impact on teacher quality and student outcomes. This review will consider these issues about quality teaching and quality teachers (Cochran-Smith 2005; Strong 2012). Teacher's competency usually marked by the possession of a qualification which certifies teachers, although, as the literature points out this does not necessarily imply effective teaching including pedagogical knowledge /pedagogic skills/subject knowledge. Competence is usually acquired through some form of pre- and in-service professional development training recognizing trainees' prior learning experiences.
Further, Day et al. (2005; 2006a, b) indicated that teacher commitment is the primary determinant of student's academic outcome. They presented an argument that teachers training and professional development should not be separated from the fundamental requirement (teacher's commitment). They supported their case by showing that a standards-based approach to teacher training will reduce the teacher's dedication and thus negatively affect the outcome of students. The researchers further suggest that school leaders and policymakers should take into consideration the frameworks for professional development that are likely to improve teaching positively that is, acknowledgment of teachers’ professional values and build on this context. The problems of teacher retentions can be reduced through sustaining commitment across career phases.
Finally, on literature review, the only study from Australia reviewed in this paper is the research by Kusumawardhani (2017). The research aimed at determinations of the impact of teacher certification program in Indonesia in 2007 and 2008 on teacher and student outcomes. Using the TSIV (two-sample instrumental variable) model, the researcher established that the relationship between certification of teachers and students learning outcomes and teacher performance was not statistically significant (Kusumawardhani 2017, p. 590).
Policy Design
Deciding how to measure teacher quality depends on what the conceptual frameworks and meaning of quality are. Different theoretical frameworks determine the choice of indicator for gauging the quality of the teacher. The most widely agreed outcome of quality teaching is learning, and student learning assessments are frequently used to measure this. Thus, the most commonly used measure of teacher quality is students’ academic outcomes obtained through student learning assessments. National examination results are usually used to measure student outcomes and to correlate with teacher quality.
Teacher knowledge is usually measured by their qualifications. In countries with weak certification and quality assurance procedures, these can be an unreliable predictor of teacher quality. In more recent times (Cochran-Smith 2005, p. 14) teacher tests have become more common. Examples include the teacher certification system in Indonesia (World Bank 2013), and a teacher assessment in SACMEQ where student
Students and teachers take a similar test with the aim of assessing subject knowledge of teachers (Spreen and Fancsali 2005). A Teacher Development Needs Analysis employed in Nigeria evaluates both content and pedagogic expertise (ESSPIN 2011).
Direct measures of the teacher quality which are based on observations in the classroom are usually the most robust, reliable and authentic. All other methods and standards, though necessary, provide a proxy method of gauging the quality of the teacher. Irrespective of the choice of the teacher evaluation method used, it is imperative that teachers themselves are involved in designing the system and its implementation. Through this way can teachers feel a sense of ownership and commitment to the appraisal and evaluation process? Moreover, any evaluation of teaching quality should be cognisant of the other context-specific factors that can influence this (primarily student background and prior learning, school infrastructure, and resources).
The primary objective of the research essay was to determine the impact of trained teachers on learning outcomes (as measured by students GPA scores in 2013/2014) in Indonesia. The study was carried out with the intention of adding on the available literature examining the relationship between teacher training and learner’s academic performance (GPA scores). Also, the study sought to determine the link that exists among gender, certification of teachers, the highest level of education, classification of schools and language of instruction in schools.
Research Questions
What is the relationship between teacher’s highest level of education and student’s GPA score in Indonesia?
Does teacher’s gender, classification of school, certification, and language of instruction affect the learning outcome of students in Indonesia?
Do a combination of the highest level of education and gender predict student's GPA scores?
The independent variables in the study were; a) gender of the teacher, b) Highest level of education of teachers, c) Classification of school, d) Language of instruction, e) certification of teachers. The dependent variable was student's GPA score of 2013/2014.
Hypotheses
Hypotheses 1: There exists a positive relationship between teacher’s highest level of education and Student’s GPA score in 2013/2014.
Hypotheses 2: There exists a significant relationship between gender, classification of school, certification of the teacher, and language of instruction and learning outcome of students in Indonesia
Hypotheses 3: A combination of the highest level of education and gender predict student's GPA scores Data.
Data
This study used archival data collected during "Indonesian Family Life Survey 2014" particularly the school information data. The main objective of this research was to examine the impact of a trained teacher on learning the outcome of students in Indonesia. Therefore, grade point average (GPA) for 2013/2014 class, teachers highest level of education, number of certified teachers, the gender of the teachers, instructional language in schools and classification of the school data was used in answering the research question.
Since the researcher did not have knowledge of Indonesian language yet some part of the data was written in Indonesian, the researcher used google translation to translate those parts. Specifically, areas that were translated is the identification of teachers in the survey data. The survey involved teachers, non-teachers, and administrators. Any data that was collected from "Guru' (teacher) were included in the sample.
Data Screening
The total data available from the survey was from 2668 schools. However, 250 variables were missing, therefore, the first stage performed was to eliminate the columns without data. The second stage involved extraction of the GPA for 2013/2013, teachers highest level of education, certification, the gender of the teacher, instructional language in the school and classification of the school. In the third step all the data that missed the term ‘Guru' (teacher), or ‘Wali kelas' (Home-based Teacher) were also excluded since the study focused on teachers. Step three reduced the data to 251. The final step involved coding the data in SPSS. The codes used were derived from the survey questionnaire, and only ordinal and nominal data were coded. The codes; Highest level of education (60 = D1, D2, D3 – Junior College, 61 = University S1 – Bachelor, 62 = University S2 – Masters, 63 = University S3 – Ph.d and 85 = Other).
Statistical Analysis
The data analysis process involved the following steps. First, measures of central tendency and dispersion were calculated for scaled data (GPA scores for students in 2013/2014, and the number of certified teachers). Percentages were used for highest level of education of the teacher, gender, classification of the school and teaching language. The first step was performed to define the data further for generalization of the results. Second, GPA scores were regressed against all other variables. Since the sample size was more than 30, p-value criteria were used in determining the statistical significance of the coefficients estimated b the regression model. The purpose was to determine the linear relationship between learning outcome of students as measured by GPA score in 2013/2014. However, to test whether there exists a statistically significant relationship between teachers highest education level and certification, generalized linear model (GLM) was performed. Data analysis was performed using SPSS 23.0
Empirical Strategy
The regression model used in this study was modified from the Ballou and Podgursky (2000a). In line with the study question, the model below was used in the study.
Where;
Yij = Student’s GPA score in 2013/2014 (dependent)
Bi = Coefficients
X1 = Highest level of education of the teacher
X2 = Certified Teachers
X3 = School Classification Independent Variables
X4 = Language used in the School
X5 = Gender of the teacher
Uij = Random error term
Several models were discovered in the review of the literature, however, in order to determine the impact of teacher training on student outcome a linear model was considered appropriate (Ballou and Podgursky 2000a, p.12).
Results
This research aimed to assess the impact of a trained teacher on the learning outcomes of students as measured by GPA scores in Indonesia 2013/2014. Besides, the research explored the influence of teachers gender, certification, school classification, and language used in the school on the learning outcome of students. To begin with, descriptive statistics of students GPA scores in 2013/2014 were computed. Second regression analysis was performed, followed by ANOVA analysis of the effect of teacher certification and the highest level of education has on the learning outcomes of students.
Descriptive Data for Continous Variables
Descriptive statistic for the student’s GPA score in 2013/2014 and number of certified teachers are represented in table 1.
Table 1: Descriptive Statistics for Continous Variables
Variable
N
Mean
Std. Deviation
Student’s GPA score in 2013/2014
251
36.69
25.36
Number of Certified Teachers
251
16
15
The mean for student's GPA score is 36.69 implying that on average students from Indonesia scored averagely 36.99 points in 2013/2014. But, the large standard deviation of 25.36 is an indication that there exist students who had extremely low or high scores. Similar results are observed in the number of certified teachers with a mean of 16 implying that each school in Indonesia on average have 16 certified teachers. However, the large standard deviation of 15 is an indication that there some schools with less than two teachers while other have more than 30 teachers.
These results prompted the researcher to carried normality test on the two variables and plotted the histogram as shown in chart 1 and two below. The study utilized Kolmogorov-Smirnov normality test because the sample size of 251 is greater than 200.
Table 2: Kolmogorov-Smirnov Normality Test
Variable
Statistic
P-value
Student’s GPA score in 2013/2014
0309
.000
Number of Certified Teachers
.189
.000
Since both p-values for students GPA score and number of certified teachers is less than .05 the sample data came from a normally distributed population.
The histogram shows that the sample has outliers at the extreme right. However, the remaining data area proximately normal distributed. The outlier is the reasons for large standard deviation observed in table 1 above.
From the histogram, the number of certified teachers is negatively skewed.
Descriptive Data for Categorical Variables
As stated earlier the characteristics of the categorical data are presented in form of percentages as shown in chart 3 to 6 below.
From the sample of 251 61.35% of the teachers included in the analysis were males while 38.65% were female. The data show that majority of teachers in Indonesia are male. Given the sociological set-up of the country, these results are in line with the expectations of the researcher. Therefore, it will be possible to generalize the results since both genders are relatively represented in the survey.
Some Studies have linked learners outcome with the instructional language used. From the results, 57.03% of the schools use Indonesian while 32.53% of the schools use Indonesia and local dialects. This implies that the remaining percentage represent schools that have international students. From these results, the researcher postulates that language will not have any significant influence on the students learning outcomes.
The percentage of schools that are not classified in Indonesia as reported by the data is 45.02%. Classification of schools helps in identification of top performing schools. However, the based on the translations from googling the Indonesian classification of schools is based on the language of instruction and nature (public and private).
From chart six above, 1.99% of the teachers surveyed are holders of D1 or D2 or D3 junior college qualification, 30.28% are Bachelor degree holders, 27.89% Masters Holders, 0.40% Ph.D. holders, and 39.44% reported not knowing their qualification. From these results majority of the teachers are either holder of bachelors or master's degree.
Regression Analysis
Students GPA scores in 2013/2014 were regressed against the five independent variables, and the results are as represented in table 4.
Table 4: Regression Results
Model
Coefficients
Std. Error
t value
p-value
Constant
62.226
11.353
5.481
< .001
Highest Level of education
-.329
.146
-2.244
.050
Classification of the school
-.021
.035
-.587
>.050
Teaching Language
.807
2.022
.399
>.050
Gender
-1.006
1.685
-.597
>. 050
From the results only highest level of education was significant at 95% level of significance. The coefficients are βo = 62.226, β1 = -.329, β2 = -.050, β3 = -.021, β4 = .807 and β5 = -1.006. Therefore, the estimated model is as shown below.
= 62.226 -0.329 X1 – 0.050 X2 – 0.021 X3 + 0.807 X4 -1.006 X5.
Table 5: Tests of Between-Subjects Effects (ANOVA)
Source
Type III Sum of Squares
Df
Mean Square
F
P-Value.
Highest level of education
9021.406
5
1804.281
2.880
.015
Gender
66.159
1
66.159
.106
.745
Education * gender
169.973
3
56.658
.090
.965
Error
150983.035
241
626.486
Total
498616.626
251
R Squared = .061
From the R- squared the variable highest level of education accounts for 6.1% of the changes in GPA scores of students in Indonesia. A combination of teacher’s highest level of education and gender does not significantly influence students GPA scores in Indonesia.
Table 6: Interpretation of the Parameter Estimates of the Model
Variable
Parameter Estimate
Interpretation
Intercept
62.226
Students GPA score without the intervention of the teachers highest level of education, certification, classification of the school, language used in the school and gender of the teacher will average 62.23.
Teacher’s Highest Level of Education
-0.329
For schools whose teachers have the highest level of education the GPA score of the student will be reduced by a factor of 0.329 and on the other hand those with teachers with a low level of qualification GPA score will improve by a factor of 0.329.
Number of Certified Teachers
-0.050
A unit increase in the number of certified teachers in a school decreases the students GPA score by a factor of 0.050. Also, a unit decrease in the number of certified teachers increases the GPA score by a factor of 0.050.
Classification of the School
-0.021
Classification of school decreases students GPA score by a factor of 0.021. Also, nonclassified schools improve GPA by 0.021
Language Used in the School
0.807
A unit change in language used in a school changes GPA score by 0.0807 units.
Gender of the Teacher
-1.006
Gender of the teacher affects student’s score by a factor of 1.006.
Discussion, Conclusions, and Limitations
The study found results that to an extent contradicts previous results. From the literature, weak relationship existed between trained teacher and students’ outcome. However, in this study a statistically significant relationship between teacher's highest level of education and student's result was established at 95% level of significance. Besides, the relationship was found to be negative. One of the possible explanation for a negative relationship can be attributed to reduced teacher commitment. Teachers with masters and Ph.D. are always involved in more than one activity. Some concentrate on the publication of journals, training in higher institutions of learning or contributing to research organization in their areas of specialization. Therefore, looking at the results of these perspectives warrants a negative student learning outcome as the level of education of their teachers improves. Further, teachers with a low level of education are likely to spend a lot of time with their students since their level of commitments is reduced. These teachers concentrate on the students' performance as opposed to their activities.
Contrary to governments expectations the results of these study revealed the existence of a negative relationship between certification of teachers and the learning outcome of students. Stakeholders in the education sector regard certification of teachers as having a positive impact on learners a generalization which did not hold for the study. These results reflect a situation in which certified teachers get contented and thus lost the motivation of getting certified. These results `contradicts findings by Petty et al. (2007) which reported that certified teachers perform better than those not certified.
The results for certification of the school showed an insignificant negative relationship with learner's outcome. However, from the literature review there were studies examining an aspect of classification of schools and the GPA scores of students. Therefore, the researchers were not able to explain the findings. Further studies can be done on the effect of classification of scho
