Examining the Teacher Efficacy and Achievement Goals as Predictors of Turkish Student Teachers’ Conceptions about Teaching and Learning

English Version

Abstract

Based on the fact that the relationships among student teachers’ efficacy beliefs, achievement goals, and conceptions about teaching and learning has remained to be investigated to date, this study aimed to examine student teachers’ efficacy beliefs and achievement goals as predictors of their conceptions about teaching and learning. Results of the present study showed that student teachers’ conceptions about teaching and learning are significantly predicted by their efficacy beliefs and achievement goals. Results also demonstrated that the effects of student teachers’ efficacy beliefs and motivational beliefs on their conceptions about teaching and learning vary as a function of the fields of study, indicating that the effects of both efficacy beliefs and motivational beliefs onstudent teachers’ conceptions about teaching and learning are domain specific. Overall results of the study suggested that the relationships among teacher efficacy, motivational beliefs, and conceptions about teaching and learning are not negligible. Implications for teacher education and directions for future studies were also discussed.

Despite the fact that teachers’ efficacy beliefs and achievement goals have long been investigated in educational settings (Gibson & Dembo, 1984; Tschannen-Moran & Woolfolk Hoy, 2001; Ames, 1992; Elliot & Church, 1997; Elliot, 1999; Wang, Biddle, & Elliot, 2007), few studies directly investigated the relationship between them (Midgley, Anderman & Hicks, 1995; Deemer, 2004; Wolters & Daugherty, 2007). In fact, there is no such study, to the best of the researcher’s knowledge, in which both student teachers’ efficacy beliefs and achievement goals were examined as predictors of their conceptions about teaching and learning. However, it is important to examine teacher efficacy and achievement goals as predictors of student teachers’ conceptions about teaching and learning for at least three reasons. First, teachers’ efficacy beliefs, achievement goals, and conceptions about teaching and learning are related to important educational outcomes such as student motivation and classroom-related behaviors, each of which is important to achieve desirable educational and instructional goals in educational settings. Second, teachers’ efficacy beliefs are important to explain teachers’ adaptation and resistance to reform agendas (Pajares, 1992). Investigating the relationships among student teachers’ efficacy beliefs and their conceptions about teaching and learning would reveal important results in order to change teachers’ beliefs in a desired way. Finally, previous research showed that teachers’ conceptions about teaching and learning are belief-driven (Chan, 2003; Chan & Elliott, 2004).


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