Olympiad Preparation as a Factor in Physics Teachers’ Development
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Date
2026
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SDU University
Abstract
Global declines in physics enrollment and shortages of qualified teachers raise serious concerns for physics education quality. While Olympiad programs are mainly seen as boosting student achievement, their role in teacher professional growth remains underexplored. This study examines how Physics Olympiad (PO) preparation affects in-service teachers' content knowledge (TCK), instructional practices, and student achievement. Using a quantitative design, data were collected from 23 Bilim Innovation Schools in Kazakhstan through three sources: Teacher Assessment Tests (TAT), Olympiad Preparation Activities (OPA) across six subdomains, and multi-level Olympiad results. Twenty-three teachers were grouped by performance and analyzed using ANOVA and LSD post hoc tests in SPSS. Teachers fully engaged in Olympiad lesson delivery, planning, and event organization showed significant TCK gains, though effects on student achievement were less consistent. Active participation — particularly in exams and events — was linked to stronger pedagogical competence. These results suggest Olympiad preparation functions as embedded, practicebased professional development, benefiting both teachers and learning environments, and offer evidence for national STEM policy and sustainable teacher development models.
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Keywords
Physics Olympiad, teacher professional development, content knowledge, pedagogical competence
Citation
Makhsutbekova A / Olympiad Preparation as a Factor in Physics Teachers’ Development / SDU University / Department of Pedagogy of Natural Sciences