The preliminary presumption is that academic teachers are competent in teaching based on the degree they graduated in. It is claimed that teachers with low quality competency in teaching are those who are not skilled and practice passive teaching method. Recent reviews on education mostly talk about creating 21 st century teaching environments in schools therefore studentcentered classroom approach for Malaysian students which is implemented with clarity and 27 understanding that, can engage

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... chers and students in new ways should be studied. This paper seeks to determine the factors that contribute to excellent result achievement by students in relations to teachers' competency. The study employed a mixed-method approach using a quantitative technique of semi-questionnaire survey on teaching competencies for teachers from selected excellent religious secondary schools under BPI (Islamic Education Department, MOE) that underwent the Virtuous Student Character Program (SUMUR) and qualitative in the form of interview for Sic+, PPD excellent guide teachers from the selected SABK and SMKA secondary schools (School Improvement Specialist Coaches (SISC+) under the Malaysian Education Blueprint, PPPM 2013-2025. The independent variable is teacher competencies, the mediator is holistic centered learning and the dependent variable is student academic performance (based on Malaysian Education Certificate "SPM" 2015 result) as per specified in each instrument. The findings will contribute towards a better understanding on how teaching competency affects students' academic performance in relations to Holistic Centered Learning and the SUMUR program.