Instructors\u27 sense of teaching efficacy and their causal attributions for student failure

Research on teaching efficacy suggests that in comparison to instructors with lower teaching efficacy, instructors with higher teaching efficacy are more willing to take responsibility for student failure, more likely to expect failing students to succeed in subsequent performance, and more willing to help failing students. Those findings are primarily based on research in K-12 settings. This study expanded on existing research by exploring the mentioned differences between instructors with lower and higher teaching efficacy in a higher education setting. Instructors at a comprehensive public university with a primary focus on undergraduate education completed a survey in which they indicated their likely responses to failing students in two different case scenarios. Instructors\u27 responses to the survey were analyzed via multiple linear regression with part correlations to determine the effect of teaching efficacy on each of the three dependent variables after controlling for instructors\u27 perception of the stability of the failure cause, instructors\u27 perception of student control over failure, and instructors\u27 gender, rank, and years of teaching experience. Results of the study showed a statistically significant effect of teaching efficacy on instructors\u27 willingness to provide proactive help to the failing student in both case scenarios. However, the effect of teaching efficacy on instructors\u27 willingness to take responsibility for student failure, their expectancy of students\u27 success in future performance, and their willingness to provide reactive help was mixed for the two case scenarios, producing a statistically significantly effect in only one of the two case scenarios for each of the three dependent variables. Results from the study suggest that the context of student failure has a mitigating influence on how instructors\u27 sense of teaching efficacy impacts their reaction towards failing students. Potential reasons for the mitigating effect of failure context are discussed