Classification of job competencies for English teachers and analysis of related factors

This study explored the job competencies among English teachers in South Korea across nine task areas to understand how these competencies are executed in practice. It investigated job competency profiles, examining the impact of individual teacher traits, school background factors, and educational policies on these competency types. Additionally, it sought to verify if there were differences in teacher satisfaction across various competency types. The study revealed three distinct competency profiles for English teachers, indicating that their job competencies manifest in three different types. The profiles were named as Poor Type for the lowest level, Basic Type for the middle level, and Master Type for the highest level of competency. As a classification predictor, gender and work experience were not significant, whereas educational background and teacher efficacy showed a positive correlation with job competency. Institutional analysis indicated that private English teachers exhibited higher competency levels, and active participation in job-related training was beneficial. Educational policies, particularly those aimed at protecting teaching rights and standardizing school operations, were found to be effective. Finally, the analysis of differences in teachers’ satisfaction by English teacher job profile showed that both life satisfaction and job satisfaction were higher for basic and master teachers than for poor teachers. This research validates the competency framework for English teachers, analyzing influences from personal to policy levels. It offers insights for refining teacher education through longitudinal data analysis.