Teachers’ Pedagogical Content Knowledge, Learners’ Engagement, and Mathematics Performance: Bases for Action Plan

Abstract

In this research, the researcher examined how learner engagement mediates the connection between teacher Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK) and the math performance of Key Stage 2 students in the Municipality of Buenavista using a descriptive correlational research design. A validated survey questionnaire was utilized to collect data from 60 math teachers and 1,977 learners included an academic record of students’ performance. The results showed that the math teachers had a "Highly Competent" level of PCK (M=3.85) and the students had an average level of "Engagement" (M=3.09) with the lowest emotional engagement. Though teachers were competent in teaching, mediation analysis via Path Analysis indicated that learner engagement had no significant mediational effect (p=0.974) on the relationship between teachers’ PCK and learner performance. The results suggest that although teacher competence and learner engagement are critical factors in influencing students’ math achievement, other systemic or external variables may play a larger role influencing mathematical outcomes. Based on these findings, an action plan has been developed to increase emotional engagement and address the performance gap between instructional quality and academic achievement.