Development of Teacher Efficacy for Inclusive Practices in Canadian Teachers
Abstract
In Canada’s education sector of society, inclusion upholds the notion of equity for all students regardless of any ability, race, gender, or mental well-being. With this notion, children have the right to a safe classroom environment that fosters a sense of belonging. Research has shown that for teachers to effectively implement inclusive practices, they must hold a strong notion of teacher-efficacy for teaching students with diverse needs. Teacher efficacy is “the belief or conviction that they can influence how well students learn, even those who may be considered difficult or unmotivated.” Importantly, research has found teachers’ efficacy to be related to higher student achievement outcomes, motivation, and building self-efficacy in students themselves. Research Gap: Despite understanding Teacher-efficacy to be related to many positive outcomes for the use of inclusive teaching, there is little known about its development and how it changes from preservice to in-service teaching. Subsequently, the experiences that influence teacher efficacy development are also less clear. Thus, the current research aimed to answer the following two questions through a mixed-methods design: 1. How does teacher efficacy for inclusive practice change from preservice to in-service? 2. What experiences influence teacher efficacy over time? Method: Preservice teachers from 11 Faculties of Education across Canada were given the Teacher Efficacy for Inclusive Practices questionnaire to measure efficacy scores across three time points from preservice into in-service work. In addition, participants were interviewed twice to investigate the experiences related to the development of efficacy. Results showed teacher efficacy for managing behaviour and using inclusive instruction to increase significantly from the period participants were in their first year of Faculty of Education into their second year and was maintained into the first year of teaching. Teacher efficacy for collaborationdid not change significantly at any time point. A thematic analysis of interviews showed practicum, associate teachers, and coursework to be the most frequently discussed experiences as impacting efficacy levels. These findings reveal new insight into the supports teacher candidates and in-service teachers require to increase their confidence for using inclusive practices.