Teacher Efficacy And Related Factors Of Special Education School In China

There is an increasing concern about teacher efficacy,which have been hypothesized to influence student outcomes like achievement or discipline problems.Many dissertations have explored the predictor factors of teacher's efficacy,but few studies about special education teacher have been conducted.This dissertation tries to analyze predictor factors of teacher efficacy.Questionnaires data were collected from the eastern,central and western regions of China.In the first research,the Teacher Efficacy Scale(TES)was revised and its reliability and validity were tested.Results of explored factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis show that TES is composed of two dimensions:PTE and GTE.Results indicate that TES adapt to measure teacher efficacy of special education school teacher in China with sufficient reliability and validity.The Sense of Teacher Efficacy scale(TSES)was revised and its reliability and validity were tested.Results of explored factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis show that TSES is composed of three dimensions:student engagement,classroom management and instructional strategies.Results indicate that TSES adapt to measure teacher efficacy of special education school teacher in China with sufficient reliability and validity.The Utrecht Work Engagement Scale(UWES)was revised and its reliability and validity were tested.Results of explored factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis show that UWES is composed of three dimensions:absorption,vigor and dedication.Results indicate that UWES adapt to measure work engagement of special education school teacher in China with sufficient reliability and validity.In the second research,quantitative results demonstrated that teacher efficacy of Chinese special education school located above-medium,the average score on TES full scale was 4.04,on general teacher efficacy dimension and personal teacher efficacy dimension respectively were 3.51 and 4.44;the average score on TSES full scale was 6.33,on student engagement,instructional strategies and classroom management respectively were 6.07,6.31 and 6.67.Teacher efficacy was influenced by elements of school and students.Teachers in the schools for deaf and for blind scored higher than those in the schools for mental retardation.Senior middle school teachers scored higher than the junior high school teachers and primary school teachers,the preschool teachers scored lowest.Along with the increasing number of disorders in class,teacher efficacy showed a decreasing trend.Teacher efficacy was influenced by teachers' own characteristics.Female teachers scored higher in teacher efficacy than male teachers.Married teachers scored higher than the unmarried teachers.Teachers with children scored higher than teachers with no children.Along with the increasing of age and teaching experience,teacher efficacy showed a rising trend.With the advancement of educational level,professional knowledge and teachers' professional title,teacher efficacy showed a rising trend.Teachers of operational courses scored higher than teachers of cognitive courses.Headteachers scored higher than other teachers.Teacher efficacy was influenced by education management factors.Teachers satisfied their income scored higher than those who were not satisfied income.Teachers accepted theoretical and practical training scored highest,teachers haven't received any training scored lowest.Teacher efficacy was influenced by regional factors.Teachers in the eastern and central China scored higher than teachers in the western regions.Teachers in the metropolis,provincial capital and prefecture-level city scored higher than teachers in the county-level city and towns.Teacher efficacy was influenced by social psychological factors.Results of hierarchical linear model and structural equation model showed that teacher efficacy was predicted significantly by social support,work engagement and job burnout.Work engagement and job burnout played an intermediating role between social support and teacher efficacy.In the third research,qualitative research results demonstrated that influence factors of teacher efficacy as reported by teachers in Chinese special education school were mainly grouped into four themes:the student individual factors,including the student individual defects,types of disability,class characteristics,students age,the change of new students;the teachers' self-qualities,including work attitude,teaching effect and teaching experience,curriculum setting,transferred from common school to the special schools;education management factors,including teaching professionalization,the professionalization of teacher cultivating and training,educational mechanism;social support level,including parents support,family and social acceptance.Based on the above conclusions,the author put forward some suggestions on improving teacher efficacy of Chinese special education school by setting up social support system of family,schools and community.