Perceived self-efficacy of preschool teachers in early reading instruction

The main purpose of this study was to create an instrument to measure the perceived self-efficacy of preschool teachers in early literacy instruction. The secondary purpose was to make group comparisons using demographic characteristics and identify potential predictor variables. The participants included 100 preschool teachers from Lutheran preschools in the Southwestern United States. The study used multivariate correlational methods for instrument creation, causal-comparative methods to make group comparisons of demographic characteristics, and sequential regression to identify possible predictor variables. Three components were identified in a principal components analysis: instruction in literacy, knowledge of literacy, and diagnosis of literacy difficulties. No demographic characteristics were found to be significant. The most significant finding of the study included a discrepancy between average scores in instruction in literacy and knowledge of literacy indicting that preschool teachers may need additional training in literacy theory.