TEACHERS’ PEDAGOGICAL CONTENT KNOWLEDGE AND STUDENTS’ ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT: A THEORETICAL OVERVIEW

Teachers are the most important factor in students’ learning, yet little is known about the specialized knowledge held by experienced teachers. In recent years, discourse on teachers’ content knowledge (TCK), pedagogy knowledge (TPK), and pedagogical content knowledge (TPCK) on students’ learning outcomes have attracted increasing attention from several agents of change in the education industry. Conceptualizing teacher knowledge is a complex issue that involves understanding key underlying phenomena such as the process of teaching and learning, the concept of knowledge, as well as the way teachers’ knowledge is put into action in the classroom. Empirical research shows that teacher quality is an important factor in determining gains in students’ achievement. By inadequately explaining teachers’ knowledge, existing educational production function research could be limited in its conclusions, not only by the magnitude of effects that teachers’ knowledge has on students’ learning but also about the kinds of teacher knowledge that matters most in producing students’ learning outcomes. Teachers are expected to process and evaluate new knowledge relevant for their core professional practice and to regularly update their profession’s knowledge base. This article reviews literature related to the concept of teachers’ pedagogical content knowledge in enhancing students’ academic achievement.