Date

5-2018

Department

School of Education

Degree

Doctor of Education (EdD)

Chair

Meredith Park

Keywords

Clinical Field Experience, Grit, Pre-Service Teachers, Resilience, Self-Efficacy, Teacher Preparation Abstract

Disciplines

Education | Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research | Educational Methods | Educational Psychology | Other Education

Abstract

The purpose of this predictive correlational study was to examine the relationship between the personality trait of grit and self-efficacy levels. The predictor variable of grit to the criterion variable of self-efficacy for pre-service teachers enrolled in a teacher preparation program at a Mid-Atlantic university was studied. Investigating connections between motivation and resilience that might result in self-efficacious behaviors was the focus of the study. The study was important because although some research studies existed regarding content specific self-efficacy of pre-service teachers, limited research had been conducted regarding self-efficacy beliefs of pre-service teachers based on school level. This was a correlational research design study to determine if a significant relationship existed between grit and self-efficacy of pre-service teachers. The Short Grit Scale (Grit-S) and the Teacher’s Sense of Efficacy Scale (TSES) were the instruments used for the collection of data. The instruments were completed online and data was collected electronically. A bivariate regression analysis was used to determine the strength and direction of the relationship. Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) was used to analyze the data. The study included responses from 73 participants obtained from a voluntary convenience sample of students completing the student teaching phase of the clinical field experience at a Mid-Atlantic private university. Results of the study indicated a moderately significant positive correlation between grit and self-efficacy (F (1, 71) = 42.45, p < .001, r2 = 0.37).

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