The role of teachers' self-efficacy beliefs in the development of teacher-student relationships

Gender match in secondary education: The role of student gender and teacher gender in student-teacher relationships

We conducted three studies focusing on gender differences in the quality of student-teacher relationships (i.e., closeness and conflict) in the first 2 years of secondary education. Furthermore, we examined whether boys shared more favorable relationships with male teachers and whether girls shared more favorable relationships with female teachers (i.e., gender match hypothesis). Students (N = 812 in Study 1, N = 789 in Study 2, N = 484 in Study 3) reported about their relationship with their homeroom teacher (Study 1), Dutch and mathematics teachers (Study 2), or Dutch, mathematics, English, and history teachers (Study 3). Structural equation modeling revealed that, in six out of seven relationships, boys experienced more conflict with teachers than girls. In three out of seven relationships, boys also reported less closeness with teachers than girls. Teacher gender did not affect relationship quality, except for conflict with the homeroom teacher in Study 1 (i.e., students reported more conflict with female homeroom teachers than with male homeroom teachers). Finally, girls tended to experience more favorable relationships with female teachers than boys, partly supporting the gender match hypothesis. Thus, relationship-focused interventions in secondary education might benefit by accounting for gender match between students and teachers.

Video-feedback intervention to promote positive parenting and sensitive discipline in early elementary education (VIPP-School): a randomized controlled trial

The VIPP-SD (Video-feedback Intervention to promote Positive Parenting and Sensitive Discipline) program has been shown to promote positive interactions between parents and children with behavior problems. This study evaluated an adapted version for teachers (VIPP-School) through a parallel-group randomized controlled trial involving 58 teacher-child dyads from kindergarten to second grade. Teacher-child dyads were randomly assigned to VIPP-School (n = 28) or an active control group (n = 30). Intention-to-treat analyses showed improvements in teacher sensitivity (d  = 0.87) and supportive teacher classroom interactions (d  = 0.53) in the VIPP-School condition compared to the control condition. VIPP-School had no significant effect on teachers' observed sensitive discipline (although changes were in the expected direction), nor on reported child externalizing behavior, overall relationship quality, school happiness or teacher self-efficacy. These findings show that the intervention, originally developed for families, could be effectively applied to early elementary education. The limited number of sessions increases the feasibility of VIPP-School.

Student-teacher relationships and sense of academic futility: Longitudinal associations among early adolescents of immigrant and non-immigrant background

Sense of academic futility entails feelings of having no control over ones' educational success. Although mounting evidence points to its negative consequences for students' educational outcomes, less is known about its socio-contextual antecedents. Relatedly, the current study explored how fair and supportive relationships with teachers are related to the sense of academic futility and if class belonging mediates this link in a sample of adolescents with immigrant and non-immigrant backgrounds. A total of 1065 seventh-grade students (Mage = 13.12; SD = 0.42; 45% girls) from 55 classrooms completed questionnaires at two time points 1 year apart. Results of multilevel analyses indicated that fair and supportive relationships with teachers contributed to decreases in sense of academic futility at the individual but not at the classroom level. No mediation or moderation effects emerged. These findings highlight the crucial role of democratic student-teacher relationships in supporting the positive school adjustment of all students in increasingly multicultural societies.

Are early child teachers' coping flexibility and narcissism associated with the teacher-child relationship?: The mediation of teacher efficacy

This study was conducted to determine whether the coping flexibility and narcissism of child teachers are related to the teacher-child relationship through teacher efficacy, focusing on the importance of coping flexibility and narcissism, which has recently attracted attention in relation to human psychology. To this end, data from 329 child teachers working in kindergartens and daycare centers were analyzed using the Coping Flexibility Questionnaire (COFLEX), Murray's Narcissism Scale, Teacher Self-Efficacy Scale (TSES), and Student-Teacher Relationship Scale (STRS). A higher level of coping flexibility and teacher efficacy in early child teachers showed direct and indirect links to the teacher-child relationship. Covert narcissism also demonstrated direct and indirect negative associations with teacher efficacy and the teacher-child relationship. Despite teacher efficacy being a prominent variable in many studies, its connection with the teacher-child relationship was comparatively weaker than that of coping flexibility and narcissism. These results suggest that we should pay more attention to the psychological factors of teachers in addition to teacher-related variables. It suggests that growth writing, which involves expressing personal thoughts and experiences to foster self-awareness. And the need to provide a specific repertoire, examples, and manuals for stress situations of early childhood education field to enhance teacher's coping flexibility.

The relationship between professional identity and professional development among special education teachers: a moderated mediation model

The professional development of special education teachers has received increasing attention in recent years, and identity has been identified as a protective factor in this context. However, only a limited amount of information is available regarding the potential mediators and moderators of this relationship. A major objective of this study was to determine (a) whether self-efficacy mediates the relationship between professional identity and professional development and (b) whether perceived social support moderates the indirect relationship between professional identity and professional development among special education teachers. A total of 2668 special education teachers participated in this study and completed measures relating to their professional identity, self-efficacy, perceived social support, and professional development. The study found that (1) professional identity is significantly and positively related to the professional development of special education teachers, while self-efficacy and perceived social support are similarly positively related to their professional development; (2) the relationship between professional identity and professional development is partially mediated by teachers' self-efficacy; and (3) perceived social support moderates the indirect effects of professional identity on special education teachers' professional development via self-efficacy. Based on the findings of this study, it appears that high perceived social support may be a protective factor concerning the professional development of special education teachers with low self-efficacy since these special education teachers appear to require more professional development.

The impact of the integration of digital platforms and active teaching strategies (Kahoot!) on the performance of Brazilian medical course students in the discipline of histology

Teaching human histology is part of understanding the tissues of the human body and, therefore, it is part of the training curriculum of all health courses. The increase in technologies and active teaching methodologies has a positive impact on student learning, as it reduces the challenges present in the subject. Therefore, this work aimed to compare the performance of students in the histology discipline, when compared to traditional teaching methodology and its association with game-based learning and a basic histology teaching platform. Three classes of the medical course were selected between the years 2022 and 2023, each of which was separated into a group. One group did not have access to any platform, being called the Traditional Group (TG), a group that used Kahoot!, being called the Kahoot Group (KG), and a group that used the teaching platform, being called the Histoatlas Group (HG). Both KG and HG groups showed greater effectiveness in learning and improved performance, when compared to TG. These improvements in KG and HG were also highlighted as learning aids and easy to use. KG students performed better in the practical test when comparing groups. However, this difference was not observed in the students' averages. However, students pointed out the relevance of trying to improve the traditional teaching methodology. Therefore, this study points out that, even though the traditional teaching methodology is efficient in the student's teaching and learning process, there is a need on the part of students to make the subject more dynamic.

Relationships between Resilience and Self-Efficacy in the Prosocial Behavior of Chilean Elementary School Teachers

Teachers' actions go beyond instruction, as their personal traits influence their teaching methods, problem-solving skills, and the quality of their relationships with students. Among these attributes, their prosocial competencies stand out for contributing to school, community, and social coexistence. Furthermore, the connection they have to resilience and self-efficacy promotes increased effectiveness in meeting the demands of an ever-more challenging work environment. This research aimed to analyze the effect of the relationship between self-efficacy and resilience on the prosocial behavior of Chilean elementary school teachers. The sample consisted of 1426 teachers (77.2% women) working in public and subsidized Chilean schools. Structural equation modeling (SEM) explored the relationships between self-efficacy, resilience, and prosocial behavior. The findings indicate that self-efficacy and resilience directly and positively affect the prosocial behavior of elementary school teachers. It is suggested that resilience, self-efficacy, and prosociality among teachers are promoted due to their synergistic effects and, consequently, the benefits for school children, especially those from vulnerable social contexts.

Who you know influences where you go: Intergroup contact attenuates bias in trainee teachers' school preferences

The vicious cycle of educational inequality may be maintained and perpetuated by teachers' lack of desire to work in socioeconomically deprived communities. Across two studies (Ntotal = 606), we experimentally investigated whether teachers' aversions to such settings could be mitigated by contact experiences with (a) people experiencing financial hardship and (b) children from disadvantaged backgrounds. Trainee teachers rated their levels of desire to work in schools that varied in terms of the socioeconomic backgrounds and diversity of their student populations. They also reported their contact experiences. Although, overall, teachers showed an aversion to working in a school that served a diverse and low-income community compared to one with average student demographics, this effect was attenuated when teachers had more prior contact with both close others in financial hardship and children from disadvantaged backgrounds. These findings were replicated across both studies. Further analyses also revealed that the relation between contact and school desirability may, at least in part, be mediated by changes in teaching self-efficacy. These findings demonstrate the potential value of teachers' contact with other groups as a method of reducing bias in education.

Exploring the mediating role of self-efficacy beliefs among EFL university language learners: The relationship of social support with academic enthusiasm and academic vitality

This study explores the intricate relationship between social support, academic enthusiasm, and academic vitality among English language learners (ELLs) in 2023, with a specific emphasis on the intermediary role of self-efficacy beliefs. Despite the existing body of literature, there has been a notable dearth of discussions concerning the influence of social support on academic enthusiasm and vitality. In 2023, the educational landscape is evolving rapidly, demanding a deeper understanding of the factors that drive student motivation and academic engagement. This study addresses this gap by investigating the role of social support and self-efficacy beliefs in shaping academic enthusiasm and vitality among ELLs in this contemporary educational context. Through a quantitative research approach, this study engaged a cohort of 242 ELLs from Zanjan University, encompassing both genders. Data were diligently collected through the administration of four distinct questionnaires by using multiple-stage cluster sampling. To unearth insights into the complex relationships under scrutiny, data analyses were meticulously conducted using SPSS 25 and AMOS 24. The consequential findings underscore the paramount significance of cultivating a supportive educational milieu that effectively bolsters self-efficacy beliefs. This nurturing environment, in turn, begets heightened academic enthusiasm and vitality among ELLs. The implications of these findings are manifold, offering universities a valuable toolkit to forge strategies and interventions aimed at fostering not only social support but also the crucial underpinning of self-efficacy beliefs. By doing so, these institutions can effectively nurture the academic enthusiasm and vitality of ELLs, thereby enhancing their educational experience and outcomes.

The relational side of teachers' self-efficacy: Assimilation and contrast effects of classroom relational climate on teachers' self-efficacy

Although much is known about the sources of teachers' self-efficacy (TSE), less attention has been paid to the social-contextual specificity of TSE and the processes influencing the relevance of TSE information sources. This study investigated both dyad-level relationships and the classroom relational climate as predictors of TSE at the student and classroom level. Additionally, we explored two competing hypotheses-assimilation and contrast-articulating how teachers use information conveyed by classroom relationship experiences as a heuristic to interpret relationship experiences with individual students as a TSE source. Elementary school teachers (N = 86; 72.05% female) completed the Student-Teacher Relationship Scale and Student-Specific Teacher Self-Efficacy Scale for randomly selected children (N = 687, 50.1% girls, Grades 3-6) from their classes. Doubly latent multilevel structural equation modeling was used to test for associations of Closeness and Conflict with TSE at both the student (L1) and classroom level (L2). Contextual effects, corresponding to associations of classroom-level Closeness and Conflict with TSE above the same associations at the student level, were calculated to test assimilation and contrast hypotheses. At L1, results indicated positive associations between Closeness and TSE and negative associations between Conflict and TSE. At L2, only Conflict was negatively associated with TSE. Consistent with the contrast hypothesis, the contextual effect of Closeness, but not Conflict, was negative and significant. Hence, teachers' judgments of a relatively close classroom relational climate may lead them to perceive relational closeness with individual students in a more negative light, resulting in lower levels of TSE toward these students.

A Parallel Process Growth Curve Analysis of Teacher-Student Relationships and Academic Achievement

Teacher-student relationships (TSR) have been a key focus of study for developmental and educational psychology researchers interested in improving proximal and distal academic outcomes for children and youth. Although prior empirical work suggests some degree of association between TSR and achievement, the co-development of TSR and achievement during elementary grades remains unclear with most findings limited to reading and mathematics achievement. The current study used parallel process growth curve models (PPGCMs) to examine the longitudinal growth trajectories of teacher-student closeness and conflict, and science, reading, and mathematics achievement simultaneously for children followed from kindergarten to third grade in the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 2010-2011 (N = 13,490). Findings from the final PPGCM showed teacher-student closeness in kindergarten was positively associated with science, reading and mathematics achievement in kindergarten (r = 0.234 to 0.277) and the linear growth of achievement through third grade (r = 0.068 to 0.156). Teacher-student conflict in kindergarten was negatively associated with science, reading, and mathematics achievement in kindergarten (r = -0.099 to -0.203) and the linear growth of achievement through third grade (r = -0.081 to -0.135). Child biological sex, family socioeconomic status, and child racial and ethnic identity predicted TSR and achievement developmental trends. Implications of the findings and future directions for research are discussed.

Chinese Private Preschool Teachers' Teaching Readiness and Teacher-Child Relationships: The Chain Mediation Effects of Motivation to Teach and Self-Efficacy

The teacher-child relationship is a key element in measuring the quality of childcare institutions and is essential to the current and future physical and mental developmental outcomes of children. The purpose of this study is to investigate the role of private preschool teachers' readiness to teach in influencing the teacher-child relationship, and to explore the mechanisms by which teachers' motivation and self-efficacy mediate their readiness to teach and the teacher-child relationship. Online questionnaires were administered to 289 early-childhood teachers in Shanghai, China. The findings of the study indicated a significant and positive correlation between early-childhood teachers' readiness to teach and the quality of the teacher-child relationship. In addition, early-childhood teachers' internal motivation to teach and self-efficacy mediated their readiness to teach and the teacher-child relationship, respectively. However, teachers' external motivation did not mediate the effect of teaching readiness on the quality of the teacher-child relationship. Moreover, teachers' motivation to teach (encompassing both internal and external factors) and their self-efficacy played chained roles in mediating the relationships between teaching readiness and the teacher-child relationship. This study highlights the significant roles of teaching readiness and instructional motivation, along with self-efficacy, in cultivating positive teacher-child relationships within early-childhood education settings.

Psychometric properties of the Teachers' Sense of Efficacy Scale in a sample of Chilean public school teachers

The Teachers' Sense of Efficacy Scale (TSES) has demonstrated suitable levels of reliability and validity for its use on the teacher population in several countries, and it is the most used scale to assess teachers' beliefs in their efficacy. However, few psychometric studies exist on its applicability to elementary teachers in public schools. This study analyzed the psychometric properties of the TSES in teachers who work in elementary education. The sample comprised 1,406 Chilean teachers, mainly women (77.2%), from various Chilean public and subsidized schools. The results obtained from three confirmatory factor analyses demonstrated that the model that best fit the data was bifactor exploratory structural equation modeling (B-ESEM) for 24 items, one general factor, and three residual factors. The results of the factorial invariance analysis indicate that the TSES remains stable up to the strict level of invariance for the variable sex. These results imply that the TSES can be used on Chilean teachers. The results are discussed based on the theoretical and empirical evidence available.

Patients' well-being during the transition period after psychiatric hospitalization to school: insights from an intensive longitudinal assessment of patient-parent-teacher triads

BACKGROUND

The transition period after psychiatric hospitalization back to school is accompanied by various challenges, including a substantial risk for rehospitalization. Self-efficacy and self-control, as transdiagnostic variables and important predictors of coping with school demands, should be crucial factors for successful adaptation processes as well as an overall high well-being during school reentry. The present study therefore investigates how patients' well-being develops during this period, and how it is related to patients' self-control and academic self-efficacy, as well as parents' and teachers' self-efficacy in dealing with the patient.

METHODS

In an intensive longitudinal design, daily ambulatory assessment measures via smartphone were collected with self-reports from the triadic perspective of 25 patients (M_age = 10.58 years), 24 parents, and 20 teachers on 50 consecutive school days, starting 2 weeks before discharge from a psychiatric day hospital (mean compliance rate: 71% for patients, 72% for parents and 43% for teachers). Patients answered daily questions between five and nine o'clock in the evening about their well-being, self-control, academic self-efficacy and about positive and negative events at school, as well as parents and teachers about their self-efficacy in dealing with the patient.

RESULTS

Multilevel modeling revealed that on average, patients' well-being and self-control decreased during the transition period, with trends over time differing significantly between patients. While patients' academic self-efficacy did not systematically decrease over time, it did show considerable intra-individual fluctuation. Importantly, patients experienced higher well-being on days with higher self-control and academic self-efficacy as well as with higher parental self-efficacy. Daily teacher self-efficacy did not show a significant within-person relationship to daily patients' well-being.

CONCLUSIONS

Well-being in the transition period is related to self-control and self-efficacy of patients and their parents. Thus, addressing patients' self-control and academic self-efficacy, as well as parental self-efficacy, seems promising to enhance and stabilize well-being of patients during transition after psychiatric hospitalization. Trial registration Not applicable, as no health care intervention was conducted.

Self-efficacy, organizational commitment, workload as predictors of life satisfaction in elementary school teachers: the mediating role of job satisfaction

Background

Life satisfaction as well as job satisfaction of teachers has a significant impact on educational outcomes.

Objective

To evaluate a model of factors predicting life satisfaction through the mediating role of job satisfaction.

Methods

This was a cross-sectional study, with a sample of 300 primary school teachers of both sexes (68% female, 32% male) and with a mean age of 42.52 years (SD = 10.04). They were administered the General Self-Efficacy Scale, the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS), the Workload Scale (ECT), the Generic Job Satisfaction Scale, and the Organizational Commitment Questionnaire (OCQ). Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used for data analysis.

Results

The SEM analysis found significant goodness-of-fit indices: (χ2 = 13.739; df = 5; p = <0.001; CFI = 0.99, TLI = 0.98, RMSEA = 0.05, SRMR = 0.04). Specifically, self-efficacy and organizational commitment were positive predictors of job satisfaction, while workload was a negative predictor of job satisfaction. The mediating effect of job satisfaction between self-efficacy, life satisfaction, workload, and overall life satisfaction was confirmed.

Conclusion

The results confirm the importance of self-efficacy, organizational commitment, and workload in job satisfaction and overall life satisfaction of elementary education teachers. Job satisfaction acts as a mediator in this relationship. It is important to reduce workload and promote self-efficacy and organizational commitment to improve the well-being and satisfaction of teachers.

Self-efficacy, reflection, and resilience as predictors of work engagement among English teachers

Introduction

Given the significant role of work engagement of teachers in educational contexts, some scholarly attention has been directed to exploring the predictors of this construct. Against this backdrop, this study aimed to investigate the predictors of teacher work engagement among Chinese English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers by testing a model that includes teacher self-efficacy, teacher reflection, and teacher resilience.

Methods

To achieve this goal, 512 EFL teachers were invited to participate in an online survey, which consisted of four questionnaires. The construct validity of the measures was confirmed through confirmatory factor analysis. Then, structural equation modeling was utilized to examine the relationships between the variables.

Results

The findings indicated that teacher self-efficacy, teacher reflection, and teacher resilience were direct predictors of work engagement, and teacher self-efficacy had an indirect effect on work engagement via teacher reflection and resilience. Similarly, teacher reflection also had an indirect impact on work engagement through teacher resilience.

Discussion

These results have important implications for teacher education programs. The significance of these predictors of work engagement among EFL teachers highlights the importance of fostering self-efficacy, reflection, and resilience among teachers in order to promote their work engagement. Further research can explore ways to enhance these predictors through training and support programs for teachers.

Children’s perspective on fears connected to school transition and intended coping strategies

The transition from primary to secondary school comes with major changes in the lives of children. There is a shortage of in-depth analyses of young people’s perspectives concerning their fears and strategies to address these. This qualitative study aims to gain first-hand understanding of children’s fears and the intended coping strategies used during school transition. Data from 52 workshops were analysed, with a total of 896 students (M age = 10.40, SD = .839) in lower Austria. First, in the classroom setting, a vignette story about a child facing fears about school transition from primary to secondary school was developed with pupils in a brainstorming session. This was followed by self-selected small group discussions, where pupils proposed strategies to help cope with these fears. A thematic analysis was carried out. Major thematic clusters distinguished between four types of fears: peer victimisation, being alone, victimisation by authority figures, and academic failure. Three additional thematic clusters described strategies for countering the fears: enacting supportive networks, personal emotion regulation, and controlling behaviour. In addition to these connected clusters, two further themes were identified: strategy outcomes and consequences, i.e., personal experiences with using specific strategies, and the discussion of participants about contradictions and questionable usefulness of identified strategy outcomes. In conclusion, the children in our study reported more social fears as compared to academic fears. Children seem reasonably competent at naming and identifying strategies; however, maladaptive strategies, as well as controversies within the described strategies may indicate a lack of certainty and competence at engaging with these strategies on a practical level.

Primary school teachers' emotions, implicit beliefs, and self-efficacy during the COVID-19 pandemic

During the Covid-19 pandemic, primary school teachers faced many challenges when providing online and hybrid teaching, especially in PE classes. This study aimed to analyze emotions, self-perceived instructional competence, and incremental beliefs during the first lockdown, in distance education instructional delivery, and, as the pandemic emergency persisted, in hybrid teaching. One hundred and four primary school teachers (Males = 7; Females = 97; M_age= 53.24; SD_age= 7.34) were involved in the study from four Italian Primary Schools. Participants filled in the Motivation, Emotion, Strategies, and Teaching questionnaire (MESI) ( 1) administered in an online survey. Results showed that younger teachers had significantly lower scores in negative emotions when they taught than the older ones. On the other hand, older teachers have more belief in their own abilities to improve teaching, unlike younger teachers. Multivariate regression analysis indicated that teachers' positive emotions experienced in teaching predict perceived instructional efficacy during distance learning. Furthermore, teachers' positive emotions experienced in teaching and in the role of teacher predict teachers' changes in PE teaching during distance learning. Incremental beliefs predict perceived instructional efficacy during distance learning. Efforts on pre-service and in-service teacher training programs could help teachers strengthen emotional competencies and manage their stress in the classroom, both in normal educational contexts and in adverse conditions.

Development and Validation of the Teacher Career-Related Support Self-Efficacy (TCSSE) Questionnaire

Background: Career-related teacher support self-efficacy refers to the teacher’s confidence in his/her own ability to support students’ career choices. To our knowledge, there are neither studies that focus on this topic nor instruments to measure it. Therefore, the current study aimed at developing and validating an instrument to assess teacher career-related support self-efficacy (TCSSE). Methods: In a multi-step process, items were developed and three studies that involved Italian in-service teachers were conducted. In Study 1 (n = 232), the TCSSE was developed and exploratory factor analysis on the 51 initial items was performed. In Study 2 (n = 294), six factors—Get Ready, Empower Self, Get Curious, Empower Skills, Emotional Support and Instrumental Support (α = 0.885)—across 36 items were tested through confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). In Study 3 (n = 100), the reliability of TCSSE was tested. Results: The EFA performed in Study 1 suggested a six-factor solution with 36 items. The results of Study 2 confirmed the six-factor structure (χ2 (579) = 1387.965, p < 0.001, CFI = 0.964, TLI = 0.961, RMSEA = 0.069), the internal consistency (α = 0.863 for Get Ready, α = 0.857 for Empower Self; α = 0.864 for Get Curious; α = 0.909 for Empower Skills; α = 0.881 for Emotional Support; α = 0.885 for Instrumental Support) and validity of the TCSSE. Finally, in Study 3, the reliability of TCSSE was also confirmed. Conclusion: The TCSSE questionnaire can provide researchers and practitioners with a new and reliable measure to assess teacher career-related support self-efficacy. Suggestions for future studies and practice are also provided.

Preschool Children's Observed Interactions with Teachers: Implications for Understanding Teacher-Child Relationships

Theory and research point to the daily interactions between individual children and teachers as formative to teacher-child relationships, yet observed dyadic teacher-child interactions in preschool classrooms have largely been overlooked. This study provides a descriptive examination of the quality of individual children's interactions with their teacher as a basis for understanding one source of information theorized to inform children's and teachers' perceptions of their relationships with each other. Children's dyadic interactions with teachers, including their positive engagement, communication, and conflict, were observed across a large and racially/ethnically diverse sample of 767 preschool children (M = 4.39 years) at three time points in the year. On average, most children displayed low-to-moderate levels of positive engagement (78%), while nearly all children showed rare communication (81%) and conflict (99%) with the teacher. Boys demonstrated lower positive engagement and higher conflict with the teacher than girls. Black children were observed to demonstrate higher positive engagement with the teacher compared to White children. No differences in interaction quality were observed for Black children with a White teacher compared to White child-White teacher or Black child-Black teacher pairs. Results advance our understanding of dyadic teacher-child interactions in preschool classrooms and raise new questions to expand our knowledge of how teacher-child relationships are established, maintained, and modified, to ultimately support teachers in building strong relationships with each and every preschooler.

Under Psychological Safety Climate: The Beneficial Effects of Teacher-Student Conflict

Previous studies have mainly focused on the negative effects of teacher-student conflict; the positive effects of conflict have rarely been mentioned. This paper suggests that encouraging conflict could act as a teaching method to improve students' innovative competence. This study has two objectives: (1) to examine how various types of teacher-student conflict affects students' innovative competence and (2) to identify the mediating role of a psychological safety climate in the association between conflict and students' innovative competence. To achieve the objectives, we used evidence from 1207 university students. Multivariable logistic regression analysis revealed that conflicts were associated with students' innovative competence, and the mediation role of a psychological safety climate is significant. Specifically, the results revealed that Cognitive Conflict had significant positive effects on students' innovative competence, whereas Affective Conflict had a significant negative effect on students' innovative competence. In addition, we clarified a psychological safety climate as the boundary condition for the relationship between conflict and students' innovative competence.

A Structural Model of Teacher Self-Efficacy, Emotion Regulation, and Psychological Wellbeing Among English Teachers

Because of the exacting nature of teaching, identifying factors affecting teachers' mental health and psychological wellbeing are of paramount importance. Parallel with this line of inquiry, the goal of this project was to test a model of psychological wellbeing based on teacher self-efficacy and emotion regulation in an EFL context. To this end, 276 Iranian English teachers participated in this survey. First, the measurement models for the three latent constructs were verified through performing Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA). Then Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was used to test the hypothesized model. SEM outcomes evince that both teacher self-efficacy and emotion regulation were the significant predictors of teachers' psychological wellbeing, with teacher self-efficacy being a stronger correlate than emotion regulation. The findings offer significant implications for English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers.

The Role of Teachers' Interpersonal Behaviors in Learners' Academic Achievements

In the context of English as a foreign language classroom, affections that form between teacher and students may affect the teaching/learning process. This review aimed to investigate the related studies on the effect of teacher-learner interpersonal relationships on learners' educational performance in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) educational contexts. This review concluded that there is a significant constructive correlation between teacher-learner interpersonal relationships and learners' academic achievement. Learners are required to have some sense of belonging to improve their educational performance. Moreover, other positive emotional factors such as grit, wellbeing, self-efficacy, academic engagement, motivation, and foreign language enjoyment can mediate the association between teacher-learner interpersonal relationships and learners' academic success. The study concludes with some implications for English learners, English language teachers, and English language teacher trainers. The ideas can improve their awareness of teacher-student interpersonal relationships, including teacher stroke, rapport, and teacher immediacy and their role in improving learners' foreign language learning.

A Phenomenological Study of Educators' Experience After a Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic

This phenomenological study investigated educators' lived experiences of teaching online in higher institutions in Malaysia. Data, which was generated through semi-structured interviews with 20 lecturers from three universities in the country, was analysed based on the thematic analysis approach guided by the Technological, Pedagogical, and Content Knowledge (TPACK)-self-efficacy framework. The findings revealed that after a year of teaching online, the potential of technology has been acknowledged by the educators after some trials and constraints were addressed. The domains related to Technology Content Knowledge (TCK), Technology Pedagogical Knowledge (TPK), and TPACK were evident in the findings. However, Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK) was not given emphasis, hence this manuscript argues that educators need to be constantly reminded of the significance of PCK. The findings discussed in this manuscript can be a helpful guide for educators when there is a need for them to teach online.

Creativity: The Effectiveness of Teacher-Student Conflict

This study examines the effectiveness of different types of teacher–student conflict in promoting students’ creativity in universities. Previous studies mainly focused on the negative effects of conflict; few examined its positive effects. Teacher–student conflict in university classes can take many forms; however, there are no clear definitions of the various types of such conflict. This study classified teacher–student conflict as understanding conflict, process conflict, and relationship conflict, and we used this classification to extend prior research by revealing the beneficial impacts of teacher–student conflict on students’ creativity. We empirically examined the relationship between teacher–student conflict and students’ creativity. The hypotheses were supported by using data from questionnaires completed by 2009 students at 17 American universities. We then conducted a hierarchical regression analysis of the data using structural equation modeling. The findings indicate that understanding conflict and process conflict had significant positive effects on students’ creativity, whereas relationship conflict had a significant negative effect on students’ creativity. This study thus revealed the positive effect of teacher–student conflict in university classes and suggests encouraging conflict (understanding conflict and process conflict) as a unique teaching method to stimulate students’ creativity.

On the Role of Teacher-Student Rapport on English as a Foreign Language Students’ Well-Being

Given the centrality of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students’ wellbeing in their academic success, identifying factors that may be influential in fostering students’ well-being is of high importance. As such, several studies have delved into the role of various personal and interpersonal factors in increasing EFL students’ well-being. However, little attention has been devoted to the function of teacher-student rapport. Besides, no systematic or theoretical review has been conducted in this regard. To address these gaps, the present study intends to illustrate different definitions of student well-being and teacher-student rapport, their sub-components, and their theoretical relations. Building upon the theoretical and empirical bases, the facilitative function of teacher-student rapport in increasing EFL students’ well-being was proved. Some beneficial implications are also discussed.

Change in School-Based Speech-Language Pathologists' Job Satisfaction During COVID-19 School Closures: Applying the Conservation of Resources Theory

PURPOSE

The purpose of this investigation was to explore how school-based speech-language pathologists' (SLPs') job satisfaction changed because of the COVID-19 global pandemic. We situated job satisfaction within the Conservation Resources (COR) theory.

METHOD

We distributed a web-based survey to school-based SLPs throughout the United States. A total of 1,352 SLPs followed the link and 1,069 completed at least 90% of the survey. The survey was composed of four parts: (a) demographic information, (b) obstacles faced during COVID-19 school closures, (c) job satisfaction, and (d) self-efficacy. Self-efficacy was divided into three subscales: decision-making, instructional, and disciplinary.

RESULTS

Nearly half (48%, n = 522) of the sample reported a decline in job satisfaction following COVID-19 school closures. Using a binomial logistic regression, we found that time pressures and disciplinary self-efficacy predicted this change in job satisfaction. Individuals who reported higher disciplinary self-efficacy and more pressures on their time were 1.2 times more likely to experience a decline in job satisfaction. Number of obstacles faced, caseload size, years of experience, and the additional two self-efficacy scales were not related to this change.

CONCLUSIONS

Job satisfaction is considered a malleable resource within the COR theory. Indeed, we observed a change in this resource due to the rapid shift in service delivery methods, paired with variable levels of support and resources from school districts. Our results have implications for how administration may support SLPs in and out of times of acute crises.

Teaching during a Pandemic: United States Teachers' Self-Efficacy During COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic had significant implications on schools during 2020, with districts moving to all virtual instruction during the spring and facing the debate of how to return safely to school in the fall. With these decisions, teachers, schools, and districts faced many challenges when providing face-to-face, hybrid, and virtual teaching. The purpose of this study was to explore how the new teaching approaches and requirements have impacted teachers' self-efficacy, specifically instructional and engagement efficacy. The current study included 361 participants from across the United States who completed the Teacher Sense of Efficacy Scale (TSES) subsections of instruction and engagement. The results found the average teacher self-efficacy scores for both instruction and engagement were lower than TSES scores of instruction and engagement in previous studies. The results also indicated teachers who are teaching virtually had the lowest efficacy scores compared to teachers teaching in a hybrid or all in-person model. However, the results suggested no difference in efficacy score based on years of teaching experience, teacher location, previous accolades, or instruction level.

Measuring Preservice Teachers’ Anticipated Teacher–Student Relationship Quality

The current study aimed to develop a measure of anticipated teacher–student relationship quality to be used with preservice teacher populations that is operationally similar to a measure commonly used with inservice teachers (i.e., short-form of the Student–Teacher Relationship Scale). To date, teacher–student relationship quality has been a construct studied solely with inservice teacher populations. Two hundred and thirteen preservice teachers participated in the current study. Results suggest that the developed measure of anticipated teacher–student relationship with preservice teachers demonstrated response trends similar to the measure used with inservice teachers except that preservice teachers anticipate more conflict with future students than inservice teachers report with current students. Additionally, results show the developed measure fits the two factor structure of the original scale and exhibits concurrent validity via associations with teacher self-efficacy beliefs. Implications for measuring anticipated teacher–student relationship quality within teacher education programs and future directions for research are discussed.

Returning to teaching during COVID-19: An empirical study on elementary teachers' self-efficacy

The purpose of this study was to explore how the new teaching approaches and requirements because of COVID-19 impacted elementary teachers' self-efficacy, specifically instructional and engagement efficacy. The current study included 329 participants from across the United States who completed the Teacher Sense of Self-Efficacy Scale (TSES) subsections of instructional and engagement. The results found the average teacher efficacy scores for both instructional and engagement were lower than TSES scores of instructional and engagement in previous studies. The results also indicated teachers who were teaching virtually had the lowest instructional efficacy scores compared to teachers teaching in a hybrid or all in-person model. However, the results suggested no difference in engagement efficacy score based on the instructional approach. There was also no difference in both instructional and engagement efficacy based on previous accolades or teacher location.