Elementary students perceptions of their teachers' self-efficacy, interest, and enjoyment of science and science teaching

Abstract

Current literature reveals that researchers are not using student perceptions as a large component to their data collection nor as an avenue to investigate how students pick up on their teachers’ self-efficacy (SE) for, interest in, and enjoyment of science teaching. In my dissertation, I explored the relationship between teacher beliefs, student perceptions of teacher beliefs, and student beliefs by developing and implementing instrumentation measuring students’ perceptions of their teachers’ SE, interest, and enjoyment for science and science teaching. In an effort to measure elementary students’ perceptions of their teacher’s SE, interest, and enjoyment of science and science teaching, I developed nine instruments and established reliability () for each. These instruments are the: (a) Teacher Instrument for Science Self-Efficacy ( = .852); (b) Teacher Instrument for Science Interest ( = .900); (c) Teacher Instrument for Science Enjoyment ( = .923); (d) Student Perceptions of Teacher Self-Efficacy Instrument ( = .635); (e) Student Perceptions of Teacher Interest Instrument ( = .661); (f) Student Perceptions of Teacher Enjoyment Instrument ( = .762); (g) Student Instrument for Science Self-Efficacy ( = .723); (h) Student Instrument for Science Interest ( = .767); and (i) Student Instrument for Science Enjoyment ( = .763). I administered these instruments to grade 3 elementary teachers (NT = 7) and grade 3 students (NS = 73) in three combined surveys: The Teacher Instrument for Science Self-Efficacy, Interest, and Enjoyment, which was made up of 51 Likert-scale items with six open-ended response prompts; the Student Instrument for Perceptions of Self-Efficacy, Interest, and Enjoyment of Science, which was made up of 25 Likert-scale items; and the Student Instrument for Science Self-Efficacy, Interest, and Enjoyment, which was composed of 24 Likert-scale items. The results of a MANOVA showed that there were no differences between groups, in this case teachers, when considering either student perceptions or student beliefs. The results of regression analysis showed that student perceptions of their teachers’ self-efficacy, interest, and enjoyment of science and science teaching are predictive of student interest in and enjoyment of science. Finally, the results of an SEM analysis showed specific predictive pathways that exist between the independent variables (perceptions of self-efficacy, interest, and enjoyment) and the dependent variables (student self-efficacy, interest, and enjoyment). More specifically, student perceptions of teacher self-efficacy predicted student interest; student perceptions of teacher interest predicted student interest and enjoyment; and student perceptions of enjoyment predicted student self-efficacy, interest, and enjoyment of science. Overall, I found that students generally perceive their teachers’ beliefs in science more negatively than teachers report for themselves and that student perceptions of their teachers’ beliefs are predictive of their own beliefs in science. These results hold implications for both research and practice. More specifically, my research provides a meaningful application of student perceptions and gives it weight to be considered in other areas of educational research such as teacher preparation and student achievement. My research provides more support for the impact teacher unpreparedness has on student belief development and on student achievement, given that my research has shown that student perceptions of their teacher SE, interest, and enjoyment are predictive of student beliefs in science. As educational researchers, we have to pay more attention to elementary teacher preparation in science. When teachers are not self-efficacious in science, they have a lower interest in science, thus enjoying it less and further perpetuating the cycle of beliefs development. My research in teacher and student beliefs supports what is already known about elementary teacher SE while also adding new findings regarding teacher interest and enjoyment of science. Further, by including student perceptions, we can continue to gauge the current conditions of various aspects of elementary teacher preparation and practice in science and reconsider its impacts.