It is tacitly understood that teachers, besides having academic qualifications, are also professionally qualified to teach. A few weeks ago, the first cohort of teachers graduated from the Faculty of Education with a Master’s qualification to teach.

This year the Institute for Education launched initial teacher education courses that will lead to a professional qualification, a milestone in Malta’s initial teacher education. Despite Malta’s strong culture of professional qualification for teaching, the employment of supply teachers persists and appears to be increasing as the popularity of teaching as a career choice decreases.

A recent comparative research study explored the self-efficacy of professionally qualified teachers who have undergone an initial teacher education (ITE) programme, and others who only have an academic qualification.

As far as can be ascertained, this study appears to be the first, at least in the local context, which looks at enhancing our understanding of how differently qualified teachers evaluate their capabilities in teaching their students, and indeed their own professional learning.

According to Bandura (1997), teachers’ sense of self-efficacy relates to their ability to en-able successful learning, especially in disadvantaged students, and directly influences their effort, persistence and resilience in coping with complex classroom situations.

The research participants perceived learning capability as a fixed property of the mind, not as a product of effort

In the study, a mixed methodo­logy was used to gather field data through questionnaires filled in by the participants themselves as well as semi-structured interviews with teachers in Maltese schools.

One overarching observation from the findings of the study was that there are subtle and nuanced variations in how differently qualified teachers construe their self-efficacy with respect to teaching disadvantaged children, as well as with respect to their own professional development. Self-efficacy was construed by teachers in a reality fraught by dilemmas and elements of change, yet with the potential of being buffered by relationships.

Surprisingly, more teachers with ITE who participated in the research exhibited self-efficacy doubts when teaching students of diverse abilities. These teachers were found to experience achievement dilemmas, whether to proceed with the syllabus or to persist at teaching an outcome. It appears that such teachers focus more on the learning process rather than on motivational strategies.

On the other hand, participating teachers who have not obtained a professional teaching qualification felt less self-efficacious when teaching students who had unsupportive home backgrounds. Nonetheless, more of the latter teachers were ready to share their resources, and valued feedback regarding their practice than their professionally qualified counterparts.

An important commonality that emerged was that the research participants perceived learning capability as a fixed property of the mind, not as a product of effort. Interestingly, more teachers with ITE were found to have a fixed mindset, and related successful learning with rewards or praise (Dweck & Leggett, 1988).

The study’s findings can serve to sensitise leadership teams to the factors within and outside schools that destabilise the self-efficacy of teachers with different qualifications, thus informing support structures about ways of enhancing their self-efficacy. Since the employment of supply teachers is likely to continue, further research in this area is warranted.

Angela Coppini Charles was recently conferred a Master of Arts  in Comparative Euro-Mediterranean Education Studies after successfully completing the degree at the University of Malta’s Euro-Mediterranean Centre for Educational Research. The degree was funded by an award under the En­­dea­vour Scholarship Scheme, which is part-financed by the EU – European Structural and Investments Fund under Operational Programme II – Cohesion Policy 2014-2020. To contact the author, e-mail angela.coppini-charles.01@um.edu.mt.

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