Understanding Sources of Self-Efficacy of Chinese Students Learning English in an American Institution

2016 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 83-112 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huifang Zuo ◽  
Chuang Wang

AbstractThis qualitative study explores the sources of the self-efficacy development of five Chinese doctoral students’ use of English as a second language in a southeastern university in the United Sates. Although individual differences were reported, common themes were also recognized. Consistent with the self-efficacy theory and previous studies in this field, the major factors that influenced the participants’ self-efficacy beliefs to use English are (1) past performance, (2) peers’ and advisors’ influence, (3) social persuasions, (4) emotional and physiological states, (5) self-awareness of English proficiency, (6) familiarity with and the difficulty level of the tasks, and (7) interest. The uniqueness of this study is that western individualism and Chinese collectivism were considered in the discussion of self-efficacy development. In order to improve Chinese students’ self-efficacy beliefs in learning English as well as to enhance their academic attainments and professional performance, it is necessary to explicitly understand which factors and components play significant roles in the development of their self-efficacy beliefs.

2019 ◽  
Vol 1 (2019-V1-I1) ◽  
pp. 57-69
Author(s):  
Pelin Piştav-Akmeşe ◽  
Nilay Kayhan

Abstract Quality special education services are closely related to the quality and the efficacy of the teachers. The purpose of this study is to investigate the difficulties faced by the special education teachers and their selfefficacy beliefs. The study included 84 special education teachers. Data for the study were collected using the Tool for Identifying Difficulties Faced by Special Education Teachers and Teacher Interpersonal SelfEfficacy Scale. Results showed that while the difficulties faced by the teachers did not differ based on gender, they differed significantly based on the undergraduate programs from which the teachers graduated, type of the school in which the teachers worked and the need for the in-service training. Another finding of the study was that the self-efficacy beliefs of the teachers do not differ based on their gender, undergraduate program from which they graduated and type of the school they worked in. However, self-efficacy beliefs of the teachers differed according to their need for in-service training. Recommendations for future practice is presented. Öz Özel eğitim hizmetleri öğretmenlerin niteliği ve etkililiği ile yakından ilişkilidir. Bu çalışmanın amacı, özel eğitim öğretmenlerinin karşılaştıkları güçlükler ve öz-yeterlik inançlarını incelemektir. Çalışma 84 özel eğitim öğretmeni ile yürütülmüştür. Araştırmanın verileri Özel Eğitim Öğretmenlerinin Karşılaştığı Zorlukları Belirleme Aracı ve Kişilerarası Öz-Yeterlik Ölçeği ile toplanmıştır. Öğretmenlerin karşılaştıkları güçlüklerin cinsiyete göre farklılık göstermediği gözlenirken, mezun oldukları lisans programına, görev yaptıkları okul türüne ve hizmet içi eğitim gereksinimleri olup olmama durumuna göre gruplar arasında anlamlı farklılık görülmüştür. Araştırmanın diğer bir bulgusu ise, öğretmenlerin öz-yeterlik inançlarının cinsiyetlerine, mezun oldukları lisans programına ve çalıştıkları okul türüne göre farklılık göstermediği, ancak hizmet içi eğitim gereksinimleri olup olmama durumuna göre değiştiğini ortaya koymaktadır. Çalışmanın sonunda uygulamaya yönelik öneriler sunulmuştur.


2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (7) ◽  
pp. 47
Author(s):  
Fatih Veyis

It is a scientifically and developmentally undeniable reality that the educational activities that guide education and training activities and aim to raise the nation according to the requirements of the age and keep up with the necessary arrangements for this purpose. With the periodic developments in the world, the transformation in the philosophy of education and understanding of education has brought along the application of new approaches and understandings in education. The constructivist approach that started to be applied in education with these developments is also one of the new educational approaches. Constructivist understanding is defined as a process in which students are actively involved in educational activities and new information is built on pre-learning. Constructivism is a contemporary understanding that covers all kinds of practices that the student can actively engage in the learning process, and it emphasizes that education can be successful to the extent that it can serve individual differences. It has been fifteen years since the practices on constructivism started to be implemented in our country. During this period and as a point reached, it is a question of how much this understanding is applied. With this research, it is aimed to examine the self-efficacy beliefs of Turkish language and literature teachers towards applying constructivist approach in terms of various variables.


2006 ◽  
Vol 95 (1) ◽  
pp. 39-47 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mica A. Hutchison ◽  
Deborah K. Follman ◽  
Melissa Sumpter ◽  
George M. Bodner

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nga Thi Tuyet Phan

The study looked at factors that influenced the self-efficacy in teaching English as a Foreign Language (EFL) of a group of university teachers in Vietnam. This study explored the relationship between Vietnamese teachers’ discourses of effective teaching practices and their self-efficacy beliefs, the influence of Vietnamese culture and context on teachers’ self-efficacy beliefs, and whether participating in the research led to a change in the self-efficacy beliefs of the teacher participants and of myself as researcher.The research took the form of a qualitative case study. Participants were eight university teachers of the English language at a technical university in Vietnam. Data collection lasted six months. Data collection tools included focus group discussions, individual interviews, journaling, and observations. An inductive coding process and thematic analysis were used for analysing data. Findings indicate that social persuasion was the most influential source of self-efficacy information. The study shows that different sources of self-efficacy information interacted with one another to influence the two dimensions of self-efficacy. Besides, it appears that teachers’ understanding of a number of environment and workplace factors appeared to constrain some teachers into adopting the Grammar Translation Method (GTM) approach and possibly reduced their self-efficacy in adapting a Communicative Language Teaching (CLT)-oriented approach. After participating in the study, the teaching approaches of study teachers and my own approaches seemed to be more CLT-oriented although most of us were characterised by a low sense of self-efficacy in adapting this approach in the Vietnamese classrooms. Findings also suggest that several aspects of Vietnamese culture, e.g. the concept of face, are likely to have influenced the way the study teachers selected, weighted and interpreted efficacy-building information. In addition, it is plausible that changes in context, e.g. teaching different kinds of students, led to a change in the way the teachers and I weighed and selected self-efficacy information. Self-reflection, self-doubt and self-regulation were other factors causing fluctuations in the study teachers’ and my self-efficacy. My study contributes to a widening understanding of how different aspects of culture can impact on self-efficacy. It provides examples to challenge the claim that the self-efficacy of experienced teachers is stable and the widespread view that a negative sense of self-efficacy induces individuals to give up and make less effort. The study shows the relationship between teacher self-efficacy beliefs and their discourses of EFL instruction, i.e. their self-efficacy in using different aspects of a communicative approach fluctuated at different stages of the study. The study points to the need to improve leadership practice and teaching conditions at the faculty and university. Preparing teachers for regulation strategies, encouraging them to work collectively, and offering more professional development programs are likely to develop a stronger sense of self-efficacy among teachers.


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