Understanding the relationship between teachers' race and self-efficacy in teaching Black and White students.

摘要

Data support the existence of racially predictable education disparities, and research has linked teacher self-efficacy to positive student outcomes; however, studies have yet to examine the relationship between the two. This quantitative study examines whether there was a relationship between teachers' race and their self-efficacy in teaching Black and White students. Sites included a large, suburban K-12 school district and a small, urban K-8 charter school, both in the northeastern region of the United States. Using the 51-item survey that included the Teacher Sense of Efficacy Scale (TSES) and two adapted versions, data for 203 completed cases from in-service teachers were analyzed and reported using correlations, independent samples t-tests, and one-way analysis of variances. The results highlighted positive relationships between exposure to Non-Whites and teacher self-efficacy with an interesting finding for the management subscale, both overall and towards Black students for one of the variables. In addition, locus of control over factors impacting the performance of Black students yielded statistically significant results only on the engagement subscale, both overall and towards Black students. Also, there was no relationship between race and teacher self-efficacy. Nor was there a difference between teacher self-efficacy scores based on White and Non-White designations, diversity training, or locus of control over factors impacting the performance of White students. The implications of this study extend to institutions of higher learning, school districts, classrooms, homes, and researchers.;Keywords: Teacher Self-Efficacy, Teachers' Race, Black Students, White Students, Exposure, Public Schools, Race, Locus of Control, TSES ,K-12 Teachers, Suburban School, Urban School, Charter School, Exposure to Race.