Abstract:

This paper reports research investigating the self-efficacy of trainee teachers related to anti-CoVid-19 measures including school closures and social distancing from March 2020 [1], as they impacted on Initial Teacher Education (ITE) programmes leading to the recommendation for Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) in England. Other factors disruptive to ITE programmes during two national lockdowns (the second from January 2021) included absences due to illness or precautionary self-isolation, and the rapid development of on-line and blended learning and teaching strategies. Quantitative data from this investigation has been reported in a previous conference paper [2). The current paper presents qualitative data collected during the same survey. This suggests possible explanations for respondents’ overall high self-efficacy scores for teaching skills and exceptions to this where they occurred [2]. The research considers the direct and immediate impact on the self-efficacy of ITE participants recommended for QTS in 2020 and 2021 and the potential implications for their future teaching.

The research utilised Friedman and Kass’ [3, p684] definition of teacher self-efficacy as a “teacher’s perception of his or her ability to perform required professional tasks and to regulate relations involved in the process of teaching and educating students”. Pre-validated questionnaires [3] [4] were adapted to incorporate trainee teachers' belief in their own capabilities responding to the challenges posed by disruption to ITE programmes due to anti Covid-19 measures. The intended outcome was to support schools and new teachers by identifying short and long term remedial in-service training needs and successful distance learning strategies and materials for development. The qualitative data was collected through relatively unstructured open response items that invited respondents to explain or qualify numerical scores they had ascribed for teaching skills within three categories: pedagogy, classroom management and student engagement. Participants on ITE programmes at a large (approximately 500 students) Higher Education (HE) QTS provider in partnership with schools in the Northwest of England returned up to three on-line self-efficacy questionnaires at key points during 2020 and 2021.

Respondents reported unique training and ITE experiences and were generally confident that the pandemic had not been detrimental to their development as teachers. Some areas were identified for further future development depending upon several contexts. Qualitative responses were analysed thematically to answer the research question: Do the open answer questionnaire responses explain the high levels of confidence expressed as self-efficacy scores by trainees and the areas where they expressed less or more confidence?

References:
[1] https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-school-closures#history
[2] Tynan, R. and Mallaburn, A., “The self-efficacy of trainee teachers who were recommended for qualified teacher status (QTS) in England during the covid-19 pandemic,” EDULEARN22 Proceedings. 2022
[3] Friedman, I. A. and Kass, E., “Teacher self-efficacy: a classroom-organisation conceptualisation,” Teaching and Teacher Education, vol. 18, pp. 675-686, 2002
[4] Tschannen-Moran, M. and Hoy, A. W., “Teacher efficacy: capturing and elusive construct,” Teaching and Teacher Education, vol. 17, pp. 783-805, 2001

Keywords:

Qualitative data, teacher, self-efficacy, initial teacher education, Covid-19, pandemic, qualified teacher status, England.