The Role of Teacher Efficacy and Characteristics on Teaching Effectiveness, Performance, and Use of Learner-Centered Practices

Abstract

The study tested two models on the interaction of teacher variables using Structural Equations Modeling (SEM). In the first model, the effect of teachers personality characteristics and teaching efficacy on teachers performance and effective teaching was tested. In the second model, the effects of learner-centered practices on teachers performance, effective teaching, and teaching efficacy were included. 296 teachers from a community college were assessed by their students on their teaching performance using the Student Instructional Report (SIR), the Effective Teaching Inventory (ETI), and the Learner-centered Practices Questionnaire which were devised by the researchers. On the other hand, the teachers assessed themselves using Osgoods Personality Characteristics Scale and the Teacher Efficacy Inventory by Gibson and Dembo (1984). In the SEM analysis, the two models did not change on their measures of goodness of fit with a RMSEA of.045 indicating that both models have a rather good fit. It was found that the teachers practicing learner-centered approaches use their self-efficacy in order to be effective in teaching, but it was also found that being effective does not result in high teaching performance ratings. The use of learner-centered practices is seen as effective but does not warrant having high ratings based on student assessment.