From Teacher Training Through the First Year on the Job: Changes in Foreign Language Teacher Efficacy

For decades, there has been a shortage of language teachers in the US and other parts of the world. While teacher retirements and attrition certainly help explain the shortage, teachers’ sense of efficacy in teaching languages also plays a role, especially among novice instructors (Swanson, 2010a). The present quantitative study focuses on measuring teacher education candidates’ sense of efficacy in teaching languages at two points: near the beginning of the teacher education program and one year following program completion. Tschannen-Moran and Woolfolk Hoy’s (2001) Teacher Sense of Efficacy Scale and Swanson’s (2010a) Foreign Language Teacher Efficacy Scale were used to measure participants’ sense of efficacy in teaching. Data analysis revealed that participants’ sense of efficacy in the area of content knowledge increased over time. However, mixed results in participants’ confidence in other areas such as student engagement and classroom management were found. The findings have implications for teacher education program and program directors.