Influence of personal teacher efficacy on selection of teaching methods in secondary schools in Kwale County, Kenya

Abstract

Teachers’ effective management of the learning situation has and continues to draw the concern of many researchers. This is more so in response to declining standards in learner achievement within the country, Kenya and the need to keep pace with the rest of the world. Since teachers are the primary agents in implementing the curriculum, their personal perceptions concerning the prevailing conditions as well as their ability to contribute in turning around the circumstances through use of innovative techniques ultimately influence instructional strategies they adopt. Personal Teacher Efficacy is an indicator of their willingness or otherwise to embrace a given circumstance. Though data on PTE seems to exist, much of this work has its origin outside Africa. None exist that provides an insight on secondary education management of classroom pedagogy in Kenya. Additionally, most of the existing data show minimal direct link between PTE and teachers’ choice of teaching method. Further, their analysis indicates inconsistencies regarding the sources of efficacy information. This study therefore sought to assess the influence of PTE on choice of teaching methods among secondary school teachers in Kwale County as a contribution in furthering this line of research. Data was obtained from 121 (76 male, 45 female) practicing teachers in public secondary schools within the county using a questionnaire comprising of items adapted from the Teachers' Sense of Self-Efficacy Scale (Tschannen-Moran & Hoy, 2001) and the Mentor Support Scale (Capa & Loadman, 2004). Results showed that teacher’s demographic characteristics of age, gender and teaching experience as well as their mastery of teaching techniques are the main sources of teachers’ PTE. Similarly, teachers’ age, teaching experience and mastery were found to be significant predictors of their choice of innovative instructional techniques.