The Effects of Study Abroad on Spanish Teachers’ Self-Efficacy: A Multiple Case Study
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.36366/frontiers.v29i1.384Keywords:
Teacher efficacy, Study abroad, Spanish teachers, Case study, Education abroadAbstract
Teacher efficacy, or the degree to which teachers feel as though they can affect positive outcomes in their classrooms, has received considerable attention over the last three decades (Bandura 1977, 1997; Tschannen-Moran & Johnson, 2011). Research has shown that, among foreign language teachers, self-efficacy is associated with their language proficiency (Chacón, 2005; Yilmaz 2011) and students’ achievement (Swanson, 2014). The purpose of this qualitative inquiry was to better understand how the study abroad experience affected four, inservice Spanish teachers’ feelings of self-efficacy as it relates to language proficiency and instructional practice. Using a multiple case design (Stake 2006), we conducted interviews, recorded field note observations and collected participant reflection journals. Findings revealed that, as a result of the study abroad experience, participants described awareness of their foreign language proficiency, discussed re-assessing their classroom practice and explained a commitment to increasing target-language use in the classroom.
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References
Allen, H. W., & Herron, C. A. (2003). A mixed methodology investigation of the linguistic and affective outcomes of summer study abroad. Foreign Language Annals, 36(3), 370-384.
Allen, H. W. (2010). Language-learning motivation during short-term study abroad: An Activity theory perspective. Foreign Language Annals, 43(1), 27-49.
Allinder, R. M. (1994). The relationship between efficacy and the instructional practices of special education teachers and consultants. Teacher Education and Special Education, 17, 86-95.
American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages. (2010). Position statement on use of the target language in the classroom. Retrieved from http://www.actfl.org/news/position-statements/use-the-target-language-the-classroom-0.
American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages. (2012). ACTFL proficiency guidelines [Electronic version]. Retrieved from http://www.actfl.org/sites/default/files/pdfs/public/ACTFLProficiencyGuidelines2012_FINAL.pdf
American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages. (2013, August). ACTFL/CAEP program standards for the preparation of foreign language teachers. [Electronic version]. Retrieved from http://www.actfl.org/sites/default/files/pdfs/ACTFL-Standards20Aug2013.pdf
Ashton, P.T., & Webb, R. B. (1986). Making a difference: Teachers’ sense of efficacy and student achievement. New York: Longman.
Bandura, A. (1977). Self-efficacy: Toward a unifying theory of behavioral change. Psychological Review, 84. 191-215.
Bandura, A. (1997). Self-efficacy: The exercise of control. New York: W. H. Freeman.
Brand, B. R., & Wilkins, J. L. M. (2007). Using self-efficacy as a construct for evaluating science and mathematics methods courses. Journal of Science Teacher Education, 18, 297-317.
Brecht, R. D., Davidson, D. E., & Ginsberg, R. B. (1995). Predictors of foreign language gain during study abroad. In B. F. Freed (Ed.), Second language acquisition in a study abroad context (pp. 37-66). Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing.
Burley, W. W., Hall, B. W., Villeme, M. G., & Brockmeier, L. L. (1991). A path analysis of the mediating role of efficacy in first-year teachers’ experiences, reactions and plans. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, Chicago.
Chacón, C. T. (2005). Teachers’ perceived efficacy among English as a foreign languages teachers in middle schools in Venezuela. Teaching and Teacher Education, 21(3), 257-272.
Collentine, J. (2004). The effects of learning contexts on morphosyntactic and lexical development. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 26, 227-248.
Cooper, T. C. (2004). How foreign language teachers in Georgia evaluate their professional
preparation: A call for action. Foreign Language Annals, 37(1), 37-48.
Covert, H. H. (2014). Stories of personal agency: Undergraduate students’ perceptions of developing intercultural competence during a semester abroad in Chile. Journal of Studies in International Education, 18(2), 162-179.
Cubillos, J. H., & Llvento, T. (2012). The impact of study abroad on students’ self-efficacy perceptions. Foreign Language Annals, 45(4), 494-511.
Enochs, L. G., & Riggs, I. M. (1990). Further development of an elementary science teaching efficacy belief instrument: A preservice elementary scale. School Science and Mathematics, 90(8), 695-706.
Fraga-Cañadas, C. P. (2010), Beyond the classroom: Maintaining and improving teachers'
language proficiency. Foreign Language Annals, 43(3), 395–421.
Freed, B. F. (1995). What makes us think that students who study abroad become fluent? In B. F. Freed (Ed.), Second language acquisition in a study abroad context (pp. 123-148). Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing.
Gibson, S., & Dembo, M. (1984). Teacher efficacy: A Construct validation. Journal of Educational Psychology, 76(4), 569-582.
Guskey, T. R. (1984). The influence of change in instructional effectiveness upon the affective characteristics of teachers. American Educational Research Journal, 21, 245-259.
Hall, B., Burley, W., Villeme, M., & Brockmeier, L. (1992). An attempt to explicate teacher efficacy beliefs among first year teachers. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, San Francisco.
Huffaker, D. A., & Calvert, S. L. (2005). Gender, identity, and language use in teenage blogs. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 10(1).
James, N. & Busher, H. (2009) Online interviews: Epistemological, methodological and ethical considerations in qualitative research, London: Sage.
Jochum, C. J. (2014). Measuring the effects of a semester abroad on students’ oral proficiency gains: A comparison of at-home and study abroad. Frontiers: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Study Abroad, 24, 93-104.
Jochum, C. J., Rawlings, J. R., & Tejada, A. M. (2015). Study abroad as professional development: Voices of in-service Spanish teachers. In P. Swanson (Ed.) Dimension: 50 years of Language Teaching and Learning (pp. 121-135). Decatur, GA: Southern Conference on Language Teaching.
LeLoup, J. W., Ponterio, R., & Warford, M. K. (2013). Overcoming resistance to 90% target
language use: Rationale, challenges, and suggestion. NECTFL Review, 72, 45-60.
Liskin-Gasparro, J. E. (1982). ETS Oral Proficiency Testing Manual. Princeton, N. J.: Educational Testing Service.
Malone, M., Rifkin, B., Christian, D., & Johnson, D. (2005). Attaining high levels of proficiency: Challenges for foreign language education in the United States. CAL Digests.
Midgley, C., Feldlaufer, H., & Eccles, J. (1989). Change in teacher efficacy and student self-and task-related beliefs in mathematics during the transition to junior high school. Journal of Educational Psychology, 81, 247-258.
Mills, N. A., & Allen, H. W. (2008). Teacher efficacy in native and non-native teaching assistants of French. In J. Siskin (Ed.), From thought to action: Exploring beliefs and outcomes in the foreign language program (pp. 213-234). Boston: Heinle.
Moore, W., & Esselman, M. (1992). Teacher efficacy, power, school climate and achievement. A desegregating district’s experience. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, San Francisco.
Parkay, F. W., Greenwood, G., Olejnik, S., & Proller, N. (1988). A study of the relationship among teacher efficacy, locus of control, and stress. Journal of Research and Development in Education, 27(4), 13-22.
Patton, M. Q. (2002). Qualitative research & evaluation methods. (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks: Sage.
Ross, J. A. (1992). Teacher efficacy and the effect of coaching on student achievement. Canadian Journal of Education, 17(1), 51-65.
Salmon, G. (2000). Computer mediated conferencing for management learning at the Open University. Management Learning, 31(4), 491-502.
Schmidt-Rinehart, B. C., Knight, S. M. (2004). The homestay component of study abroad: Three perspectives. Foreign Language Annals 37(2). 254-262.
Segalowitz, N., & Freed, B. F. (2004). Context, Contact, and Cognition in Oral Fluency Acquisition: Learning Spanish in At Home and Study Abroad Contexts. Studies In Second Language Acquisition, 26(2), 173-199.
Seidman, I. (2012). Interviewing as qualitative research: A guide for researchers in education and the social sciences (4th ed.). New York: Teachers College Press.
Stake, R. E. (2006). Multiple case study analysis (1st ed.). NY: The Guilford Press.
Swanson, P. (2008). Efficacy and interest profile of foreign language teachers during a time of critical shortage. NECTFL Review, 62, 55-74.
Swanson, P. B. (2010). Teacher efficacy and attrition: Helping students at introductory levels of language instruction appears critical. Hispania, 93(2), 305-321.
Swanson, P. (2012). Second/foreign language teacher efficacy and its relationship to Professional attrition. Canadian Modern Language Review, 68(1), 78-101.
Swanson, P. (2014). The power of belief: Spanish teachers’ sense of efficacy and student performance on the National Spanish Examinations. Hispania 97(1), 5-20.
Swender, E. (2003). Oral proficiency testing in the real world: Answers to frequently asked questions. Foreign Language Annals, 36(4). 520-535.
Tschannen-Moran, M., & Woolfolk Hoy, A. (2001). Teacher efficacy: Capturing an elusive construct. Teaching and Teacher Education, 17, 783-805.
Tschannen-Moran, M., & Johnson, D. (2011). Exploring literacy teachers’ self-efficacy beliefs: Potential sources at play. Teaching and Teacher Education, 27, 751-761.
Yilmaz, C. (2011). Teachers’ perceptions of self-efficacy, English proficiency and instructional strategies. Social Behavior & Personality: An International Journal, 39(1), 91-100.
Allen, H. W. (2010). Language-learning motivation during short-term study abroad: An Activity theory perspective. Foreign Language Annals, 43(1), 27-49.
Allinder, R. M. (1994). The relationship between efficacy and the instructional practices of special education teachers and consultants. Teacher Education and Special Education, 17, 86-95.
American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages. (2010). Position statement on use of the target language in the classroom. Retrieved from http://www.actfl.org/news/position-statements/use-the-target-language-the-classroom-0.
American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages. (2012). ACTFL proficiency guidelines [Electronic version]. Retrieved from http://www.actfl.org/sites/default/files/pdfs/public/ACTFLProficiencyGuidelines2012_FINAL.pdf
American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages. (2013, August). ACTFL/CAEP program standards for the preparation of foreign language teachers. [Electronic version]. Retrieved from http://www.actfl.org/sites/default/files/pdfs/ACTFL-Standards20Aug2013.pdf
Ashton, P.T., & Webb, R. B. (1986). Making a difference: Teachers’ sense of efficacy and student achievement. New York: Longman.
Bandura, A. (1977). Self-efficacy: Toward a unifying theory of behavioral change. Psychological Review, 84. 191-215.
Bandura, A. (1997). Self-efficacy: The exercise of control. New York: W. H. Freeman.
Brand, B. R., & Wilkins, J. L. M. (2007). Using self-efficacy as a construct for evaluating science and mathematics methods courses. Journal of Science Teacher Education, 18, 297-317.
Brecht, R. D., Davidson, D. E., & Ginsberg, R. B. (1995). Predictors of foreign language gain during study abroad. In B. F. Freed (Ed.), Second language acquisition in a study abroad context (pp. 37-66). Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing.
Burley, W. W., Hall, B. W., Villeme, M. G., & Brockmeier, L. L. (1991). A path analysis of the mediating role of efficacy in first-year teachers’ experiences, reactions and plans. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, Chicago.
Chacón, C. T. (2005). Teachers’ perceived efficacy among English as a foreign languages teachers in middle schools in Venezuela. Teaching and Teacher Education, 21(3), 257-272.
Collentine, J. (2004). The effects of learning contexts on morphosyntactic and lexical development. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 26, 227-248.
Cooper, T. C. (2004). How foreign language teachers in Georgia evaluate their professional
preparation: A call for action. Foreign Language Annals, 37(1), 37-48.
Covert, H. H. (2014). Stories of personal agency: Undergraduate students’ perceptions of developing intercultural competence during a semester abroad in Chile. Journal of Studies in International Education, 18(2), 162-179.
Cubillos, J. H., & Llvento, T. (2012). The impact of study abroad on students’ self-efficacy perceptions. Foreign Language Annals, 45(4), 494-511.
Enochs, L. G., & Riggs, I. M. (1990). Further development of an elementary science teaching efficacy belief instrument: A preservice elementary scale. School Science and Mathematics, 90(8), 695-706.
Fraga-Cañadas, C. P. (2010), Beyond the classroom: Maintaining and improving teachers'
language proficiency. Foreign Language Annals, 43(3), 395–421.
Freed, B. F. (1995). What makes us think that students who study abroad become fluent? In B. F. Freed (Ed.), Second language acquisition in a study abroad context (pp. 123-148). Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing.
Gibson, S., & Dembo, M. (1984). Teacher efficacy: A Construct validation. Journal of Educational Psychology, 76(4), 569-582.
Guskey, T. R. (1984). The influence of change in instructional effectiveness upon the affective characteristics of teachers. American Educational Research Journal, 21, 245-259.
Hall, B., Burley, W., Villeme, M., & Brockmeier, L. (1992). An attempt to explicate teacher efficacy beliefs among first year teachers. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, San Francisco.
Huffaker, D. A., & Calvert, S. L. (2005). Gender, identity, and language use in teenage blogs. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 10(1).
James, N. & Busher, H. (2009) Online interviews: Epistemological, methodological and ethical considerations in qualitative research, London: Sage.
Jochum, C. J. (2014). Measuring the effects of a semester abroad on students’ oral proficiency gains: A comparison of at-home and study abroad. Frontiers: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Study Abroad, 24, 93-104.
Jochum, C. J., Rawlings, J. R., & Tejada, A. M. (2015). Study abroad as professional development: Voices of in-service Spanish teachers. In P. Swanson (Ed.) Dimension: 50 years of Language Teaching and Learning (pp. 121-135). Decatur, GA: Southern Conference on Language Teaching.
LeLoup, J. W., Ponterio, R., & Warford, M. K. (2013). Overcoming resistance to 90% target
language use: Rationale, challenges, and suggestion. NECTFL Review, 72, 45-60.
Liskin-Gasparro, J. E. (1982). ETS Oral Proficiency Testing Manual. Princeton, N. J.: Educational Testing Service.
Malone, M., Rifkin, B., Christian, D., & Johnson, D. (2005). Attaining high levels of proficiency: Challenges for foreign language education in the United States. CAL Digests.
Midgley, C., Feldlaufer, H., & Eccles, J. (1989). Change in teacher efficacy and student self-and task-related beliefs in mathematics during the transition to junior high school. Journal of Educational Psychology, 81, 247-258.
Mills, N. A., & Allen, H. W. (2008). Teacher efficacy in native and non-native teaching assistants of French. In J. Siskin (Ed.), From thought to action: Exploring beliefs and outcomes in the foreign language program (pp. 213-234). Boston: Heinle.
Moore, W., & Esselman, M. (1992). Teacher efficacy, power, school climate and achievement. A desegregating district’s experience. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, San Francisco.
Parkay, F. W., Greenwood, G., Olejnik, S., & Proller, N. (1988). A study of the relationship among teacher efficacy, locus of control, and stress. Journal of Research and Development in Education, 27(4), 13-22.
Patton, M. Q. (2002). Qualitative research & evaluation methods. (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks: Sage.
Ross, J. A. (1992). Teacher efficacy and the effect of coaching on student achievement. Canadian Journal of Education, 17(1), 51-65.
Salmon, G. (2000). Computer mediated conferencing for management learning at the Open University. Management Learning, 31(4), 491-502.
Schmidt-Rinehart, B. C., Knight, S. M. (2004). The homestay component of study abroad: Three perspectives. Foreign Language Annals 37(2). 254-262.
Segalowitz, N., & Freed, B. F. (2004). Context, Contact, and Cognition in Oral Fluency Acquisition: Learning Spanish in At Home and Study Abroad Contexts. Studies In Second Language Acquisition, 26(2), 173-199.
Seidman, I. (2012). Interviewing as qualitative research: A guide for researchers in education and the social sciences (4th ed.). New York: Teachers College Press.
Stake, R. E. (2006). Multiple case study analysis (1st ed.). NY: The Guilford Press.
Swanson, P. (2008). Efficacy and interest profile of foreign language teachers during a time of critical shortage. NECTFL Review, 62, 55-74.
Swanson, P. B. (2010). Teacher efficacy and attrition: Helping students at introductory levels of language instruction appears critical. Hispania, 93(2), 305-321.
Swanson, P. (2012). Second/foreign language teacher efficacy and its relationship to Professional attrition. Canadian Modern Language Review, 68(1), 78-101.
Swanson, P. (2014). The power of belief: Spanish teachers’ sense of efficacy and student performance on the National Spanish Examinations. Hispania 97(1), 5-20.
Swender, E. (2003). Oral proficiency testing in the real world: Answers to frequently asked questions. Foreign Language Annals, 36(4). 520-535.
Tschannen-Moran, M., & Woolfolk Hoy, A. (2001). Teacher efficacy: Capturing an elusive construct. Teaching and Teacher Education, 17, 783-805.
Tschannen-Moran, M., & Johnson, D. (2011). Exploring literacy teachers’ self-efficacy beliefs: Potential sources at play. Teaching and Teacher Education, 27, 751-761.
Yilmaz, C. (2011). Teachers’ perceptions of self-efficacy, English proficiency and instructional strategies. Social Behavior & Personality: An International Journal, 39(1), 91-100.
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Published
2017-04-27
How to Cite
Jochum, C. J., Rawlings, J. R., & Tejada, A. M. (2017). The Effects of Study Abroad on Spanish Teachers’ Self-Efficacy: A Multiple Case Study. Frontiers: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Study Abroad, 29(1), 28–45. https://doi.org/10.36366/frontiers.v29i1.384
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