Strengthening the technological pedagogical and content knowledge competencies of prospective Catholic teachers in Indonesia

This study aims to investigate the level of Technological Pedagogical and Content Knowledge (TPACK) competence of prospective Catholic Religious Education teachers who participated in a microteaching programme at the Pontianak State Catholic College, Indonesia. A total of 113 fifth-semester students participated as respondents through an online survey using a TPACK instrument consisting of 40 items in seven sub-dimensions: TK, CK, PK, PCK, TCK, TPK, and TPACK. Descriptive statistical analysis showed that Pedagogical Knowledge (PK) was the strongest aspect with the highest average score (M = 4.8), while Technological Knowledge (TK) was the lowest aspect (M = 1.4), followed by a significant weakness in Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK). Overall, the TPACK level of prospective teachers was in the high category but was not evenly distributed across all sub-dimensions. These findings indicate that prospective teachers have a strong pedagogical foundation but are not yet able to effectively integrate technology with Catholic religious education content. This study emphasises the need to strengthen the curriculum, facilities, and learning technology training so that microteaching can play an optimal role as a laboratory for developing TPACK competencies. Strategic integration of TPACK is recommended to prepare prospective Catholic religious education teachers to become educators who are able to teach creatively, contextually, and relevantly in the digital age.