A Program to Enhance Competence of Art Teachers in Higher Vocational Colleges in Zhejiang

Abstract

This study aims to: 1) investigate the components of competence of art teachers in higher vocational colleges in Zhejiang; 2) explore the existent state, desired state, and priority needs of competence of art teachers in higher vocational colleges in Zhejiang; 3) develop a program to enhance competence of art teachers in higher vocational colleges in Zhejiang. The research was divided into three phases:

Phase 1): Investigating the components of competence of art teachers in higher vocational colleges in Zhejiang, and confirming the suitability of these components with 5 experts.

Phase 2): Exploring the existent state, desired state, and priority needs of competence of art teachers in higher vocational colleges in Zhejiang. The sample group for this phase included 5 higher vocational colleges in Zhejiang Province, with a total of 275 persons.

Phase 3): Developing a program to enhance competence of art teachers in higher vocational colleges in Zhejiang. This phase included in-depth interviews with 5 experts to study the principles and methods for developing art teachers competence, as well as evaluating the suitability and feasibility of the program. Research instrument included interview forms, questionnaires, and assessment forms. The statistical methods used in the research included percentage, mean, standard deviation, and content analysis.

The research findings are as follows:

1) There are 4 components of competence of art teachers in higher vocational colleges in Zhejiang including;1) Teaching ability, 2) Innovation ability, 3) Social service ability, 4) Professional ability, and those of which are overall at the highest of applicability.

2) The existent state of competence of art teachers is generally at a medium level, while the desired state of competence is at the highest level. After modifying the priority needs index (PNI) modified, the ranking is as follows: social service ability ranks first, innovation ability ranks second, teaching ability ranks third, and professional ability ranks fourth.

3) The program to enhance competence of art teachers in higher vocational colleges in Zhejiang consists of principles, objectives, content, development process, and evaluation. The methods for developing teacher competence including; 1) case study, 2) peer mutual assistance and observation, 3) participatory learning and action research, 4) expert guidance, and 5) training, with a development period of 145 hours and evaluation of the suitability and feasibility of the program was found to be overall at the highest level.

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