Exploring the Affiliation between Teachers' Professional Development and Students' Academic Performance in Higher Education in China

Abstract

This research explored the factors that underlie Teachers' Professional Development in China's Higher Education and their ramification on Students ‘achievement. The study was carried out in the Jiangsu Province of China where arguably there exist some of the topmost universities in China. Survey questionnaires were used to solicit views from 288 university teachers from (Jiangsu University, Jiangsu University of Science and Technology, Nanjing University and Nanjing Normal University) who participated in the study. Confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation model were used to analyze the data. It was found out that these teachers were familiar and interested in some specific professional development programs namely: Courses and Workshops, Reading of Professional Literature, Education Conferences and Seminars, Individual and Collaborative research, Observation visits to other Universities, Conflict Management, Classroom Management, and Building Students' Engagement and these positively influenced students' performance. It was revealed that what motivated these teachers to embark on these professional programs include: need to improve the instructional method, managerial skills, research abilities, and the interest for personal development. However, it was found out that some factors militate against teachers from participating in the professional development programs.