EXPLORING CORE APTITUDE COMPETENCIES FOR PROSPECTIVE SECONDARY SCHOOL TEACHERS IN PUNJAB: A QUALITATIVE FOCUS GROUP STUDY

Abstract

It was a qualitative focus group study which aimed to investigate the main aptitude skills needed for prospective secondary school teachers in Punjab. The study was done as the qualitative part of a larger mixed methods study on the development and validation of an Aptitude Test for Prospective Teachers. It was a purposive sample of ten participants comprising teacher educators, secondary school heads, experienced secondary school teachers, assessment and test-development experts, a curriculum specialist and an educational technology expert. A semi-structured focus group discussion was used to collect data, and thematic analysis was used to analyze the data. The results identified four key competence themes: Pedagogical knowledge/instructional practices, Emotional intelligence/Personal qualities, Ethical awareness/Professionalism, and Technological proficiency. Participants noted that teacher aptitude must not be restricted to just academic performance and knowledge alone, it should also encompass the skills of planning lessons, classroom management, effective communication, evaluation, patience, empathy, acting ethically, and being responsible about the use of technology in teaching and assessment. The study found that the aptitude of prospective secondary school teachers is a multidimensional aptitude and therefore a balanced assessment system is required. The results serve as a qualitative basis for creating test items as well as a contextual competency matrix of aptitude for future secondary school teachers in Punjab.