Enhancing Science Teachers' Continuous Professional Development through Digital Mentoring: Advancing Teacher Education for 21st-Century Classrooms

Jack Gladys Uzezi, Bileya Samuel Garpiya, Igoh Sunday Adah

Abstract


This study investigated the impact of digital mentoring on science teacher continuous professional development in Taraba State, Nigeria, which was aimed towards transforming science teachers’ education for the 21st century classroom. The study adopted a survey research design. The population for the study consisted of all secondary school science teachers. The sample size comprised 120 science teachers. Digital Mentoring Questionnaire (DMQ) was the instrument used for data collection. The instrument was found to have a reliability coefficient of 0.71 using Cronbach’s alpha. Research questions were answered using the descriptive statistic of mean and standard deviation. The finding showed that digital mentoring is effective for science teacher continuous professional development. The findings also showed that the perception of science teachers on the effectiveness of digital mentoring compared to traditional methods is high. It is evident from the findings of this study to conclude that digital mentoring is effective in science teacher development. Hence, science teachers should be encouraged to use digital platforms for continuous professional development, which will help them to stay updated with emerging technologies and teaching practices to cope effectively with the 21st century classroom/skills.


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References


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