The Influence of Christian Religious Education Teachers’ Professional Competence on the Learning Motivation of Seventh-Grade Students at UPT SMP Negeri 007 Sinambela in the 2024/2025 Academic Year

Abstract

The objective of this study is to examine the positive and significant influence of Christian Religious Education teachers’ professional competence on the learning motivation of seventh-grade students at UPT SMP Negeri 007 Sinambela in the 2024/2025 academic year. The research employed an inferential quantitative method, with a population of 156 students. A sample consisting of 30% of the population, or 46 students, was selected using a simple random sampling technique. The research instrument was a closed-ended questionnaire consisting of 40 items, with 22 items measuring variable X and 18 items measuring variable Y. The instrument was tested on 32 students outside the research sample to ensure validity and reliability. The findings of the study demonstrate a positive and significant influence of Christian Religious Education teachers’ professional competence on students’ learning motivation. The results are as follows: (1) Correlation test results showed rcalculated > rtable (0.599 > 0.291); (2) Significance test results indicated tcalculated > ttable (4.962 > 2.021); (3) The coefficient of determination was 35.88%; (4) The regression equation was obtained as part of the analysis; and (5) Hypothesis testing using the F-test revealed Fcalculated > Ftable at a significance level of α = 0.05, with numerator df = 24 and denominator df = n-2 = 46-2 = 44, resulting in 24.52 > 1.51. Based on these results, the alternative hypothesis (Ha), stating that there is a positive and significant influence of Christian Religious Education teachers’ professional competence on the learning motivation of seventh-grade students at UPT SMP Negeri 007 Sinambela in the 2024/2025 academic year, is accepted, while the null hypothesis (H0) is rejected.