Influential Factors of Student Teachers\u27 Self-Efficacy in Teaching Students With Disabilities

This study was designed to explore potential influential factors contributed to student teachers’ self-efficacy beliefs in teaching students with special needs. The efficacy theory (Bandura, 1977) was applied as the theoretical frameworks of this study. This framework guided this study for a deeper understanding of how preservice teachers interpreted their experiences when teaching students with special needs. The participants were preservice teachers in one of a university in the Midwest who enrolled in the student teaching program in Spring 2018 and taught students with special needs in their classroom(s). Collecting data, this study employed surveys and structured interviews were conducted three to four times for four participants to explore how they perceived their teaching experiences. The first survey was distributed at the end of the first placement, and 76 participants completed the survey (33% response rate), while the second survey was distributed six weeks afterward at the end of the second placement with the completion of 41 participants. Independent t-tests were conducted to determine factors that differentiate preservice teachers’ self-efficacy beliefs. The interview data was analyzed through systematic qualitative analysis to explore influential factors of preservice teachers’ self-efficacy beliefs. Six factors reported by student teachers associated with their perceived self-efficacy: successful experiences, quality of relationships with students with special needs and teachers, previous coursework primarily with special education content, previous experiences, and the availability of support based on qualitative findings. Implications for teacher preparation programs and future research are presented