The impact of Chinese mathematics teachers’ competence on students’ affective learning outcomes and the mediating role of instructional quality

Abstract The impact of teachers’ competence on instructional quality provided by them, and their students’ mathematics learning outcomes has been a focal point of educational research for several decades. However, limited attention has been given to the impact on affective factors as key indicators of students’ learning outcomes, and particularly within the Chinese educational context. This study examines the impact chain from secondary school mathematics teachers’ professional competence through instructional quality to students’ affective mathematics learning outcomes. The sample comprises 117 Chinese junior secondary school mathematics teachers with varying teaching experience and their students (3471 participants aged 13–14 years). The impact was measured with established instruments from prior research of the Teacher Education and Development Program in Mathematics (TEDS-M) research program. In line with findings from the current discourse, no significant direct effects of teachers’ professional competence on students’ affective learning outcomes and their implemented instructional quality could be identified. However, weak indirect effects mediated by instructional quality were identified, highlighting the need for further research on students’ affective learning outcomes that considers cultural factors, among others.