Identifier

etd-01272014-160928

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Human Resource Education and Workforce Development

Document Type

Dissertation

Abstract

Teacher efficacy studies in agricultural education have primarily focused on documenting the perceived teaching efficacy of agriculture teachers. A limited number of studies have focused upon the factors that may help shape those efficacy beliefs. Therefore, the primary purpose of this study was to investigate the factors that may contribute to the teaching efficacy beliefs of beginning agriculture education teachers. These factors included perceived collective efficacy, perceived principal support, and perceived teacher preparation program quality. The population for this study included all agriculture teachers in Missouri and Kansas (N=213) who had not completed more than five years teaching agricultural education at the conclusion of the 2012 – 2013 academic year. The instruments used in this study included a modified version the Teachers’ Sense of Efficacy Scale – Short Form, the Principal Behavior Scale, the Collective Efficacy Scale – Short Form, and the Teacher Preparation Scale. Multiple regression analysis revealed that two factors, perceived collective efficacy and perceived teacher preparation program quality, accounted for 34% of the variance, indicating other factors beyond the scope of this study affect the teaching efficacy beliefs of beginning agriculture teachers. It is recommended that future research be conducted regarding the status of the perceived collective efficacy of the agricultural education profession. Recommendations and plans to develop new and existing programs to increase the collective efficacy of individual schools and the agricultural education profession are discussed. It is further recommended that refinement of the Teachers’ Sense of Efficacy Scale be conducted to develop an instrument better suited to address the various roles and responsibilities of agricultural education teachers.

Date

2013

Document Availability at the Time of Submission

Release the entire work immediately for access worldwide.

Committee Chair

Kotrlik, Joe

DOI

10.31390/gradschool_dissertations.2554

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