Collective teacher efficacy and job satisfaction: Psychometric properties of the CTE scale

Teachers’ self-efficacy has widely recognized as a strong contributor to the student achievement and teachers’ psychological well-being. A large body of research has focused on individual’s self-efficacy beliefs. However, research on collective self-efficacy is sparse. The aim of the present study was to examine the factorial validity of the Collective Teacher Efficacy Scale (CTE) on Greek context and to examine how collective teacher efficacy was related to teacher job satisfaction. The sample consisted of 201 primary school teachers. Confirmatory factor analysis was conducted and showed that Collective Teacher Efficacy Scale had a two-factor structure. The results also indicated that collective teacher efficacy had a positive significant relationship with teacher’s job satisfaction. Implications and directions for future research are suggested

KINDERGARTEN STUDENTS’ UNDERSTANDING OF THE QUALITY OF THEIR RELATIONSHIP WITH THEIR TEACHER

Teacher-child relationships in early childhood are increasingly considered as a prerequisite for children’s development. The Child Appraisal of the Relationship with the Teacher Scale (CARTS) (Vervoot, Doumen, & Verschueren, 2015) is a new multidimensional measure that evaluates the quality of teacher-child relationships from the children’s perspective. The purpose of this study was to confirm the factor structure of the Dutch version of CARTS in the Greek context, to describe the perceptions of young children about their relationship with their teachers and to examine whether child’s age, gender, and ethnicity contribute to this relationship. In total, 366 children (Mage= 5.4) from 36 kindergarten of Greece participated in this study. Results supported the construct validity of the CARTS scale. CFA implementation, consistent with attachment-based research revealed the three dimensions of the teacher-children relationships, Closeness, Dependency and Conflict. Supportive and warmth relationships were found. Children’s demographics characteristics affect the quality of teacher-child relationships. The results highlighted the importance of the dyadic relationships

Patterns of teacher-child relationships quality: Young children’s perspectives

Examining children’s perspectives about the quality of teacher-child relationships can contribute significantly to our understanding of how the quality of these relationships is developed. The Child Appraisal of the Relationship with the Teacher Scale (CARTS) is a newly developed measure that assesses the quality of teacher-child relationships from children’s perspectives. The purpose of this study was a) to confirm the factor structure of the Greek version of CARTS, b) to examine whether any patterns of teacher-child relationships exist, and c) if they are associated with children’s gender and age. The sample consisted of 365 preschool children from Greece. Results confirmed the construct validity of the CARTS scale. Consistent with attachment-based research, results revealed four types of teacher-child relationships. In addition, results showed that patterns of teacher-child relationships based on children’s perspectives, similar to those of teachers’ perspectives, are existent from the early years

Collective teacher efficacy and job satisfaction. Psychometric properties of the CTE scale

Teachers’ self-efficacy has widely recognized as a strong contributor to the student achievement and teachers’ psychological well-being. A large body of research has focused on individual’s self-efficacy beliefs. However, research on collective self-efficacy is sparse. The aim of the present study was to examine the factorial validity of the Collective Teacher Efficacy Scale (CTE) on Greek context and to examine how collective teacher efficacy was related to teacher job satisfaction. The sample consisted of 201 primary school teachers. Confirmatory factor analysis was conducted and showed that Collective Teacher Efficacy Scale had a two-factor structure. The results also indicated that collective teacher efficacy had a positive significant relationship with teacher’s job satisfaction. Implications and directions for future research are suggested. (DIPF/Orig.

Developing a scale for the assessment of early childhood educator’s social self-efficacy and examining its relation with teacher-child interactions and child outcomes

This thesis introduces for the construct of Teachers’ Social Self-efficacy into the field of education. The construct of Social Self-efficacy has up to now been more frequently encountered in the fields of organizational psychology and management and it refers to the ideas formed about the abilities of an individual in relation with their performance in interpersonal relationships. In the field of education, the majority of researchers focus on the connection between the teacher’s general self-efficacy and the practice of education itself and the school performance of the students, rather than the concept of self-efficacy as this is demonstrated through the interaction between teachers and students. The main goals and objectives of this thesis are two. The first is to provide a clear definition of the construct of Teachers’ Social Self-efficacy and to offer a description of all its aspects. The second is to develop a valid and reliable scale in order to assess the Teachers’ Social Self-efficacy (TSSES) and consequently be able to estimate the construct of TSSE in Greece. This thesis also is to look into some possible associations between the TSSES and the quality of the teachers-child relationship as well as the learning performance of the children. In order to fulfil the afore-mentioned goals two pilot and one main study were conducted. The pilot study focuses on the initial pilot run of the TSSES in 162 nursery teachers so as to examine the psychometric properties of it. The main study confirms the psychometric properties of the TSSES, within a sample of 488 preschool teachers. The association between the TSSES and the quality of teacher-child relationship reveals through the participation of 979 children and the respective teachers from 123 classes of public preschools in Greece. Five measures were used for data collection: a) the Teachers’ Social Self-Efficacy Scale (TSSES), b) the Student-Teacher Relationship Scale (STRS), c) the Child Appraisal of Relationship with Teacher Scale (CARTS), d) the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test-Revised (PPVT-R) and, e) the Test of Early Mathematics Ability - Short (TEMA- S). The results of these studies shed light on the multidimensional nature of the TSSES, highlighting the five factors. What is more, some demographic features of the population of teachers are also connected with their TSSES. Generally speaking, the teachers demonstrate high levels of social self-efficacy. The importance of this concept is highlighted through the findings of its interrelation with the quality the quality of the teachers-child relationship. This thesis is important because it provides teachers with new information concerning their abilities at an interpersonal level, which derives from the estimation of all the aspects of their social self-efficacy. This knowledge is a precondition if we want to effectively enhance the interaction between teachers and children and to design targeted training programmes and interventions towards an effective management of the classroom and the building of positive relationships inside it. Finally, the confirmed psychometric properties of the Teachers’ Social Self-Efficacy turn it into a valid and reliable measure for the academic community to use.Η παρούσα διατριβή εισάγει στο πεδίο της εκπαίδευσης την έννοια της Kοινωνικής Aυτο-αποτελεσματικότητας των εκπαιδευτικών. Η έννοια της Κοινωνικής Αυτο-αποτελεσματικότητας (Social Self-Efficacy) απαντάται συχνότερα στο επιστημονικό πεδίο του μάνατζμεντ και αναφέρεται στις πεποιθήσεις για τις ικανότητες του ατόμου σε σχέση με την επίδοση του στις διαπροσωπικές σχέσεις. Στην επιστήμη της παιδαγωγικής, το μεγαλύτερο μέρος των ερευνητών εστιάζει την προσοχή του στη γενική αυτο-αποτελεσματικότητα των εκπαιδευτικών και τη σύνδεση της με τη διδασκαλία και τα ακαδημαϊκά επιτεύγματα των μαθητών, παραμελώντας σημαντικά την έννοια της αυτo-αποτελεσματικότητας σχετικά με τις αλληλεπιδράσεις παιδαγωγού-μαθητή. Η παρούσα διδακτορική διατριβή έχει δύο βασικούς σκοπούς. Ο πρώτος σκοπός αφορά την εισαγωγή της έννοιας της κοινωνικής αυτο-αποτελεσματικότητας των εκπαιδευτικών, με την διατύπωση ενός σαφούς ορισμού και την περιγραφή των διαστάσεών της. Ο δεύτερος σκοπός αφορά την κατασκευή ενός αξιόπιστου και έγκυρου εργαλείου μέτρησης της Κοινωνικής Αυτο-αποτελεσματικότητας των εκπαιδευτικών προκειμένου να εκτιμηθεί η έννοια στην Ελλάδα. Επιμέρους στόχος της διατριβής είναι η διερεύνηση των σχέσεων μεταξύ της Κοινωνικής Αυτο-αποτελεσματικότητας των εκπαιδευτικών, με την ποιότητα των σχέσεων εκπαιδευτικών-μαθητών και με τα μαθησιακά αποτελέσματα των μαθητών. Για την εκπλήρωση των παραπάνω σκοπών πραγματοποιήθηκαν δύο πιλοτικές και μια κύρια έρευνας. Μέσω της πιλοτικής εφαρμογή της Kλίμακας της Κοινωνικής Αυτο-αποτελεσματικότητας των Εκπαιδευτικών (ΚΚΑΕ) σε 162 παιδαγωγούς πρώιμης παιδικής ηλικίας διερευνάται η αρχική εγκυρότητα και αξιοπιστία της. Η κύρια μελέτη επιβεβαιώνει την αξιοπιστία και την εγκυρότητα της νέας κλίμακας σε ένα δείγμα 488 νηπιαγωγών. Ακόμη ο έλεγχος της εγκυρότητας του κριτηρίου της ΚΚΑΕ πραγματώνεται με την ποιότητα των σχέσεων εκπαιδευτικών-μαθητών αποκαλύπτεται μέσω της συμμετοχής 979 παιδιών και των αντίστοιχων εκπαιδευτικών από 123 τάξεις δημόσιων νηπιαγωγείων της Ελλάδας. Τα εργαλεία που χρησιμοποιήθηκαν για τη συλλογή των δεδομένων είναι: α) η Κλίμακα Κοινωνικής Αυτο-αποτελεσματικότητας Εκπαιδευτικών (ΚΚΑΕ), β) η κλίμακα Student-Teacher Relationship Scale (STRS), γ) η κλίμακα Child Appraisal of Relationship with Teacher Scale (CARTS), δ) το Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test-Revised (PPVT-R) και τέλος, ε) μια προσαρμογή του Test of Early Mathematics Ability - Short (TEMA-3). Τα αποτελέσματα των μελετών φανερώνουν την πολυδιάστατη φύση της ΚΚΑΕ αναδεικνύοντας τους πέντε παράγοντες. Επιπρόσθετα, ορισμένα δημογραφικά χαρακτηριστικά των παιδαγωγών συνδέονται με τη κοινωνική αυτο-αποτελεσματικότητα τους. Σε ότι αφορά το προφίλ της κοινωνικής αυτο-αποτελεσματικότητας των εκπαιδευτικών φαίνεται ότι οι παιδαγωγοί σημειώνουν υψηλά επίπεδα κοινωνικής αυτο-αποτελεσματικότητας. Επιπλέον, η σημασία της έννοιας αναδεικνύεται από τα ευρήματα της συσχέτισής της με την ποιότητα των αλληλεπιδράσεων εκπαιδευτικών– μαθητών στη τάξη. Η σημασία της διατριβής έγκειται στο γεγονός ότι προσφέρει νέες πληροφορίες στους εκπαιδευτικούς για τις ικανότητες τους αναφορικά με τις σχέσεις και αλληλεπιδράσεις με τους μαθητές. Οι πληροφορίες αυτές αναφέρονται στη γνώση που ανακύπτει από την αυτο-αξιολόγηση των πεποιθήσεων των εκπαιδευτικών και ενισχύει τον εντοπισμό των τομέων του παιδαγωγικού έργου που ενδεχομένως να χρειάζεται βελτίωση, εξέλιξη ή πρόσθετη επιμόρφωση. Αυτή η γνώση αποτελεί βασική προϋπόθεση για την αποτελεσματική ενίσχυση των αλληλεπιδράσεων εκπαιδευτικών–μαθητών και για το σχεδιασμό στοχευμένων επιμορφώσεων και παρεμβάσεων προς την κατεύθυνση της αποτελεσματικής διαχείρισης της τάξης, αλλά και της δημιουργίας θετικού κλίματος στην τάξη. Επιπρόσθετα, η δημιουργία ενός αξιόπιστου και έγκυρου εργαλείου για τη μέτρηση της ΚΚΑΕ, αποτελεί ακόμη μία συνεισφορά της παρούσας διατριβής