Assistance for students at ELL (part 2)

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4 Research on Teacher Efficacy Related to Working with Students with Special Needs

Research in the field of Special Education has reported varying degrees of teacher confidence in their ability to make accommodations and modifications (Brownell & Pajares, 1999). Numerous studies have reported a relationship between teachers' efficacy and their success in including students receiving special education services in their mainstream classrooms. This literature is equally relevant to ELL students, the target population of my study.

Personal teaching efficacy, the belief that one has the ability to impact student learning (Gibson & Dembo, 1984), is grounded in Bandura's (1993) theoretical social cognitive research as well as important empirical research conducted over the last several decades (Ashton & Webb, 1983; Gibson & Dembo, 1984; Woolfolk & Hoy, 1990). According to Bandura (1 993), individuals pursue activities in which they feel competent and avoid those in which they doubt their abilities. Repeated patterns of these expected behaviors either reinforce or limit one's perceived level of self-efficacy (Bandura, 1977, 1993). Bandura (1993) theorizes that there is a reciprocal relationship between efficacy perceptions and individuals' performance. The control one exercises is influenced by the extent of one's perceived efficacy. One's behavior is determined by a combination of "outcome expectancy," the belief that behavior will lead to a desirable outcome and "self efficacy," the belief that one has the skills to bring about an outcome (Bandura, 1993).

Educational researchers have applied Bandura's (1993) construct of efficacy to teachers in school settings in a variety of ways. Some (Ashton & Webb, 1983; Gibson & Dembo, 1984; Woolfolk & Hoy, 1990) have studied outcome expectancy in relation to a teacher's belief about the degree to which students can learn given their background, socio-economic status, and school conditions. Others, such as Tshannen-Moran, Woolfolk-Hoy, and Hoy (1998), have applied Bandura's (1993) self-efficacy construct to school settings through an examination of teacher self efficacy. This type of efficacy describes the degree to which a teacher rates his or her own skills and ability to effect positive change. Teachers weigh their perceptions of personal competence in relation to the demands of the task when assessing their efficacy for a given situation in terms of the likelihood of success for their efforts (Tshannen-Moran et al., 1998).

The logic behind studying this form of efficacy is fairly straight-forward. Self-concepts and personal beliefs held by teachers affect thought patterns, emotions, choices, and behavior (Bandura, 1977). In the context of teaching, these thought patterns, emotions, choices, and behaviors manifest themselves in teachers' task persistence and perseverance. When teachers believe that continued effort on their part is likely to result in student mastery of the content, they are more likely to persevere in their attempt to reach their students. The greater teachers' perseverance, the more likely it is that students will receive the assistance they need to be successful (Gibson & Dembo, 1984). Thus, greater teaching efficacy should result in improved student learning. However, one must keep in mind that teaching efficacy is always dependent on the context in which one is teaching. At any moment, one should expect that a teacher may have varying degrees of efficacy with regard to his or her ability to meet the needs of different children within the classroom.

This logical argument has empirical support as well. Ashton and Webb (1983) reported that teachers' beliefs and perceptions about their ability to teach particular students influence instructional practices and ultimately, student achievement outcomes. They found that teachers with higher self-efficacy are more likely to have the confidence to take risks, use new strategies, and improve their instructional skills.

Gibson and Dembo (1984) reported similar findings. Highly efficacious teachers maintain high standards, focus on academic instruction, monitor students' on-task, behavior, and create supportive classroom environments. Likewise, high efficacy teachers spend more time monitoring, checking seatwork, and preparing for lessons. More recently, teacher efficacy has been linked to additional teacher behaviors such as organized and planful teaching (Allinder, 1994b).

Perceived teacher self-efficacy also influences the pattern of teachers' instructional behaviors (Gibson & Dembo, 1984). In a study in which they compared teachers having high and low efficacy, Gibson and Dembo reported that high efficacy teachers demonstrated better classroom organization and more skilled questioning techniques. They were better at monitoring student behavior, providing quick feedback, and modifying instruction to fit students' changing needs. The authors reported a connection between these teacher behaviors and student achievement. The authors argued that a teacher's willingness to persist in attempting to teach a student in a failure situation is related to his or her confidence in teaching ability in conjunction with his or her perception of the student's ability to learn. For example, the authors state that high efficacy teachers are more effective in leading students to correct responses through questioning whereas low efficacy teachers tend to move on to another student, showing less persistence with struggling students having difficulty.

Much of the research on the link between teacher efficacy and student achievement has focused on general education teachers working with students who have special needs. Research conducted on efficacy has been in the context of general education teachers' experiences with respect to mainstreamed special education students in inclusion service delivery models and the impact on student performance. Classroom teachers who believe they can successfully instruct students with disabilities are more likely to include disabled students in their classrooms than teachers who doubt their abilities (Ashton & Webb, 1983). Likewise, teachers with higher efficacy persevere to a greater extent in creating accommodations for students with special needs, and consequently have greater success in student achievement (Ashton & Webb, 1986).

Teacher efficacy beliefs have a direct effect on teachers' beliefs about their success in instructing mainstreamed special education students. Teachers are more willing to include special needs students in their classrooms and persist in teaching disabled students when they feel successful (Brownell & Pajares, 1996). General education teachers' feelings of efficacy and success are related to their ability to adjust instruction to the needs of their students and provide accommodations (Brownell & Pajares, 1996). However, teacher efficacy has implications beyond Special Education. The construct of teacher efficacy may also apply to teaching English language learners in general education settings.

4.1 Applying Teacher Efficacy to the Context of English Language Learners

Efficacy beliefs held by general education teachers faced with ELL students needing specialized language instruction may impact teaching practices profoundly. Just as general education teachers' efficacy related to their ability to meet the needs of their students with learning disabilities affects how they interact with students, it is reasonable to expect this concept has implications for ELL students. To date, however, this is an area that has not been well-researched. Although researchers have connected the level of teacher efficacy to the level of inclusion of special needs students in mainstreamed classrooms by measuring the relationship between teacher beliefs and instructional behaviors (Brownell & Pajares, 1996), they have not yet connected teacher efficacy beliefs to the context-specific case of ELL students in general education classrooms where ELL students receive instruction entirely in English. Nor have researchers connected the construct of teacher efficacy to the degree of success experienced by ELL students in general education classrooms. Most importantly, research has not been conducted connecting teacher efficacy beliefs in an ELL context-specific case to ELL student achievement outcomes.

Questions arise in considering the possible role of teacher efficacy in student achievement with regard to an ELL-specific context. How does teacher self-efficacy influence the quality of instruction, student participation in learning activities, and student achievement outcomes for ELL students in general education classroom settings? How is teacher efficacy developed, fostered, and supported in terms of effectively teaching ELL students? Many connections to the literature surface which may provide a foundation for studying the role of teacher efficacy in teaching ELL students.

[To be continued...]

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