Teacher preferences for collaborative relationships: Relationship to efficacy for teaching in prevention-related domains

Abstract

Recent movements in educational reform call for increased collaborative activities among school personnel. The present study examines student and practicing teacher preferences for modes of working on a variety of student-related concerns and relationships with personal and general efficacy for teaching in prevention-related areas. Elementary and secondary student teachers and practicing teachers were asked to rate their preference for working on student academic, behavioral, and self-esteem problems. The range of working preferences included working with other professionals (collaborative), letting other professionals handle the problem (expert), and working alone. These working preferences were found to vary according to teacher level of experience and grade level of teaching. Significant relationships were found between collaborative work preferences and personal teaching efficacy.The demands of teaching in elementary and secondary schools are changing rapidly as public education attempts to meet the needs of a diverse population. Children are coming to school with multiple needs and multiple risk factors that are likely to affect their educational progress (Slavin, 1989). Children who come from poverty situations, disrupted families, and disorganized communities need different educational strategies to facilitate their learning. Academic emphasis needs to be accompanied by attention to the behavioral, social, and self-esteem. In fact, such focus on personal, social and health promotion has been mandated by drug and alcohol prevention programs (BrandenMullen & Elias, 1991). Similarly, the presence of special needs children in classrooms requires attention to these factors as well, to promote success in work, recreational, and community participation (Villa & Thousand, 1988). If schools are to facilitate the development of all children, the scope of school services and interventions needs to expand (Morrison, 1989). The task of changing the scope of services and interventions will require classroom teachers and support personnel to work together in the learning of new skills and the implementation of reforms. This study examined teacher attitudes toward collaboration and their relationship to efficacy for teaching a broader set of skills to children.Given the growing numbers of children who need alternative, prevention-related programs and support systems, consultation and collaboration among professionals have been advocated by educational professionals from a variety of disciplines, such as school psychology (

Special education teachers' perceptions of factors influencing their instructional practices

“…A positive relationship has been found between collaboration and the sense of self-efficacy (Raudenbush et al, 1992;Morrison et al, 1994), but teachers vary in their readiness to enter a collaborative relationship. The results of a study conducted by Morrison et al (1994) indicated that teachers who preferred to work collaboratively with other professionals on various student-related issues perceived themselves as more skillful.…”

“…The results of a study conducted by Morrison et al (1994) indicated that teachers who preferred to work collaboratively with other professionals on various student-related issues perceived themselves as more skillful. Other researchers also found a positive correlation between collaboration and higher self-efficacy; the more collaborative work that teachers are involved in, the higher sense of efficacy they have (Rosenholtz, 1989;Raudenbush et al, 1992;Morrison et al, 1994;Ross, 1994).…”

Preliminary Investigation of the Sources of Self-Efficacy Among Teachers of Students with Autism

“…Teachers with increased self-efficacy also display the following effective methods of coping with stress: use more effective instructional strategies; manage classroom behavior more effectively; exert more effort in organizing, planning, and delivering their lessons; set higher goals for instruction; and engage students to a greater extent in learning compared to teachers with low self-efficacy (Allinder, 1994; Chwalitsz, Altameyer, & Russel, 1992; Ross, 1998; Tschannen-Moran & Woolfolk-Hoy, 2001). In addition, teachers who display more confidence in their skills are typically more receptive to the consultation and application of novel instructional practices (Morrison, Wakefield, Walker, & Solberg, 1994) compared to teachers with low self-efficacy, who direct more frequent criticism toward students making mistakes and are more susceptible to becoming frustrated when classroom routines are not followed (Gibson & Dembo, 1984; Woolfolk, Rosoff, & Hoy, 1990). Despite this growing body of research, it is unclear how well these findings generalize to special education teachers or teachers of specific student populations (Wolters & Daugherty, 2007).…”

Las preferencias participativas del profesorado de educación física en su actividad profesional

“…Todos los movimientos educativos y las reformas que se han realizado en las últimas décadas han promocionado la relación entre el personal docente, destacando el papel de las actividades colaborativas y cómo éstas pueden contribuir a la mejora de la actuación docente (Morrison, Wakefield, Walker y Solberg, 1994).…”