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Investigating Pre-Service EFL Teachers’ Self-efficacy in Their Classroom Management Skills using the EPOSTL as a Self-assessment Tool

Cansu Aykut Kolay1, İsmail Hakkı Mirici2
1Hacettepe University Graduate School of Educational Sciences, Ankara, Turkey.
2Hacettepe University, Faculty of Education, Ankara, Turkey.
  • Published: 30/10/2024

Abstract

Self-efficacy in classroom management is one of the important dimensions of the concept of teacher self-efficacy. Higher levels of classroom management self-efficacy (CMSE) have been positively correlated with an increase in teacher resilience and students’ learning outcomes. Therefore, it is crucial for teachers to develop CMSE beliefs to promote the quality of their teaching. Although the issue of classroom management has been comprehensively explored in the field of education, there are not many studies focusing on pre-service EFL teachers’ development of CMSE beliefs. Moreover, the relationship among several variables such as teachers’ affective states and students’ attitudes towards teachers or courses has been explored in the context of foreign language education (FLE). However, whether there is a relationship between self-assessment and development of CMSE beliefs in FLE settings has not been studied extensively. In this vein, the purpose of this study is to investigate pre-service EFL teachers’ CMSE beliefs depending on their use of the European Portfolio for Student Teachers of Languages (EPOSTL) as a self-assessment tool in their undergraduate education. This study follows an interventionist experimental design based on mix-method data collection. The participants of the study are 31 senior pre-service EFL teachers studying at a state university in Türkiye. Quantitative data of this study were collected through Teachers’ Sense of Efficacy Scale (TSES) by Tschannen-Moran and Woolfolk Hoy (2001) in the form of pre-test and post-test to the participants. Between pre and posttest period, the participants assessed themselves through the EPOSTL for three times. Qualitative data were collected through the participants’ reflective reports and semi-structured interviews and subjected to thematic analysis. The findings of the study have shown that the use of EPOSTL leads to an increase in participants’ level of CMSE beliefs. It may be stated that the wide-spread use of the EPOSTL can be fostered by designing language teacher education programs as more reflection-oriented. By this way, pre-service EFL teachers’ autonomy, CMSE beliefs, perseverance, and continuous professional development can be sustained.

1. Introduction

Self-efficacy is a crucial concept which simply refers to individuals’ own beliefs concerning their capability to accomplish a particular task [1], the place of which in education has highly been investigated. In this regard, Defined by Tschannen-Moran and Woolfolk Hoy in 2001, teacher self-efficacy (TSE) is teachers’ judgments of their capabilities to attain target educational goals with regard to classroom management, instructional methods, and student engagement and learning. It has been found out that higher levels of TSE are positively correlated with reaching desirable educational outcomes not only for teachers but also students [2] which also gradually improves the quality of teaching in general, ultimately.

Among significant constituents of the act of teaching, classroom management is “an umbrella term for an array of teaching strategies that enhance effective time use in class” [3]. It is a highly crucial concept in terms of keeping the quality of education at optimum levels [4]. Classroom management is closely related to teachers’ own classroom management self-efficacy (CMSE) beliefs which are basically referred to as teachers’ belief about their capabilities to organize and execute the courses of action required to create a positive learning environment that supports successful student learning outcomes [5]. CMSE is regarded as one of the important constituents of overall TSE for both pre-service [6] and in-service teachers [7]. In order to measure teachers’ levels of CMSE, several scales have been adapted by scholars e.g., [8,9] from well-known TSE scales such as Teachers’ Sense of Efficacy Scale (TSES), developed by Tschannen-Moran and Woolfolk Hoy in 2001 which aims to measure three factors: efficacy for student engagement, instructional strategies and classroom management. based on an integrated model of teacher efficacy [10].

As higher levels of CMSE are regarded vital in many educational contexts, the relationship between CMSE and specific educational variables has also been investigated in the field of foreign language teacher education though the existing studies are not many in number. The place of CMSE in foreign language education settings have been examined in some studies with regard to certain perspectives including the relationships between emotional states and CMSE [11], students’ confidence in teachers in CMSE and EFL teachers’ perceptions regarding CMSE [12]. In this vein, it is of importance to design teacher education carefully as it is one of the fundamental aspects of pre-service teachers’ identity formation [13]. Since the concepts of agency and autonomy are directly linked to the formation of self-efficacy beliefs [14], giving a larger place to reflective forms of assessment in foreign language teacher education may have an influence of the development of CMSE beliefs as these types of assessment techniques foster learner autonomy. The instrument can be conducive for pre-service EFL teachers to reflect on their theoretical background, competences and values [15]. As a comprehensive and standardized self-assessment for pre-service teachers of foreign languages, the EPOSTL allows pre-service EFL teachers to be aware of meta-cognitive learning strategy, promoting their autonomy [16]. Thereby, pre-service EFL teachers’ use of the EPOSTL as a self-assessment tool in their undergraduate programs may have an influence on their development of overall TSE beliefs [17], including CMSE beliefs as the issue of classroom management is specially emphasized through descriptors focusing on classroom management, the use of course materials, and digital tools within the scope of the self-assessment / conducting a lesson section of the EPOSTL. Within this regard, the purpose of the current study is to explore the potential influence of the use of the EPOSTL as a self-assessment tool by pre-service EFL teachers and their development of classroom management self-efficacy (CMSE) beliefs. Accordingly, the following research questions have been arisen: The main research question: “Is there a relationship between participants’ use of the EPOSTL and their development of CMSE beliefs?” Sub research questions:

  1. What is the CMSE level of the participants before their use of the EPOSTL?

  2. What is the CMSE level of the participants after their use of the EPOSTL?

  3. Is there a significant difference between the participants’ CMSE level before and after their use of the EPOSTL?

  4. Is there a significant difference within participants’ 1st, 2nd and 3rd use of their own EPOSTL in terms of classroom management skills?

  5. What are participants’ viewpoints regarding their use of the EPOSTL and their development of CMSE beliefs?

2. Review of Literature

A. Teacher self-efficacy (TSE)

Within the scope of Bandura’s Social Cognitive, self-efficacy beliefs are defined as “people’s judgments of their capabilities to organize and execute courses of action required to attain designated types of performance” (p.391). In this sense, it can be stated that teachers’ self-efficacy beliefs that can be described as “teacher’s belief in his or her capability to organize and execute courses of action required to successfully accomplish a specific teaching task in a particular context” [10] are of paramount importance in the field of foreign language education. These beliefs play a vital role in terms of increasing the quality of teaching, maximizing students’ learning outcomes and their comprehension [18-20]. Studies have demonstrated that teacher self-efficacy beliefs have a determining role when teachers make decisions regarding instruction such as time management, classroom management and teacher questions [21,22]. Furthermore, teachers’ having higher self-efficacy beliefs show more perseverance and commitment to their teaching which ultimately reflects the teaching tasks they design [23]. Therefore, they do not hesitate to try or adapt new teaching approaches that appeal to students’ diverse needs and interests [24]. Higher levels of teacher self-efficacy are among the most important factors when deciding the type of tasks which are most appropriate for the target learning outcomes, and the required time and effort [25]. TSE is a determinant factor in students’ process of learning, improvement of academic skills and social and affective competences [10]. In brief, it can be stated that TSE is an influential concept with regard to a productive and organized classroom environment [26].

B. Efficacy in classroom management

Classroom management that basically refers to teachers’ actions to sustain the balance among the elements of the classroom such as learners, tasks, time and materials [27] is among the key assets for foreign language teachers to be successful practitioners. Classroom management ensures both physical and mental stability in the classroom by regulating learners’ behavior [28]. Teachers need to have particular skills, beliefs and knowledge in order to make informed decisions and be effective classroom managers [29,30]. However, when teachers lack the belief that they can effectively manage their classroom, their actions towards maintaining an effective learning environment in their classroom may be hindered [14]. Therefore, the term teacher self-efficacy which can be defined as “the belief in one’s capabilities to ‘organize and execute the courses of action required to produce given attainments” by Bandura [14] is of paramount importance in terms of the issue of classroom management. In this regard, it has been claimed that pre-service teachers tend to show lower levels of self-efficacy in their classroom management skills [31]. Classroom management skills are counted as building blocks of an optimal classroom environment as learner achievement can be maximized through those skills, which is why teacher educators put a special emphasis on the development of pre-service teachers’ classroom management skills [32]. Hence, it is crucial for pre-service teachers to develop classroom management self-efficacy beliefs to foster their students’ learning and comprehension [31]. Classroom management self-efficacy (CMSE) can be defined as teachers’ beliefs in their capability to carry out classroom management tasks such as handling distracting behavior or misconduct in the classroom, encouraging students to follow classroom rules and managing time for following the course agenda [33]. It has been found out that teachers having higher levels of these beliefs tend to adopt a more student-centered approach to problems in their classrooms [6], develop humanistic beliefs towards their classroom management skills [22], support their student from social, emotional [34] and academic [5] perspectives. The development of CMSE beliefs in pre-service years is of significance for pre-service teachers to be prepared for actual classroom teaching experiences as higher levels of CMSE beliefs are closely linked to teacher resilience and job satisfaction [29,35]. However, teacher education programs may not be influential enough to equip pre-service teachers with the necessary classroom management skills that are required in authentic classes [36].

1) Self-assessment through EPOSTL in pre-service language teacher education

For pre-service EFL teachers, practicum period has an utmost importance to practice, get experience and develop beliefs of self-efficacy. During this period, pre-service EFL teachers have the chance to observe their mentors and peers, get feedback and adapt their teaching accordingly. As well as feedback from others has an undeniable significance on professional development of pre-service EFL teachers, the role of self-assessment techniques and reflection should also be mentioned [37]. Reflective practices in pre-service EFL teacher education can promote autonomy of teachers which ultimately reveals itself when teachers make informed decisions about their classroom [38,39]. Therefore, alternative forms of assessment can have a positive impact on development of teacher efficacy beliefs. When EFL learners engage in the process of self-assessment, their performance on their courses improves over time [40] as they see their capabilities and competences clearly through forms of self-assessment. Through self-assessment, pre-service EFL teachers can focus on specific dimensions of their teaching performance and instructional methodologies, and they can use this self-assessment process as feedback for themselves [41]. Furthermore, the formative nature of self-assessment can help EFL learners recognize their strengths and weaknesses in a longitudinal way [42].

As a self-assessment tool aiming to allow student teachers to evaluate and reflect on their teaching competences in line with unified and standardized principles [43], the European Portfolio for Student Teachers of Languages (EPOSTL) can be implemented as a reflective tool in pre-service EFL teacher education. With the use of the EPOSTL, pre-service EFL teachers can have the chance to assess themselves and adjust in their teachings when needed [44]. Using the EPOSTL in pre-service language teacher education allows student teachers to constantly question their teaching, rethink, reconsider, and continuously assess and reassess their teaching performance [45] in such a way that they can have the opportunity to create their own teacher identity as reflective ways of assessment promotes learner agency. As beliefs of self-efficacy are placed at the core of the term ‘agency’ [1], pre-service EFL teachers’ engagement in the process of self-assessment and their development of teacher self-efficacy beliefs may be related to each other. In this regard, the use of the EPOSTL in pre-service language teacher education may have an impact on pre-service EFL teachers’ development of self-efficacy beliefs as a reflective self-assessment tool [17].

3. Method

A. Research Design

The current study is an interventionist experimental study [46] based on mix-method research design. As a contributing factor to social science research [47], both qualitative and quantitative data collection methods have been utilized within the scope of the current study, which can enable researchers to reach more detailed findings. Mixed-method research design allows researchers to examine the research focus intensively, to ensure the issue of ‘triangulation’, which is one of the core aspects of the concept of validity [48]. In the scope of this study, the type of mixed method research is sequential explanatory design [49] that is implemented through a preliminary survey followed by an interview. These interviews can allow researchers to reach further information in addition to the one obtained through questionnaires [47]. Overall, mixed-method research can contribute to validity of studies [50].

B. Setting and Participants

This study was conducted at the foreign language department of one of the state universities in the Marmara Region in Türkiye. The participants are 31 (n=16 female, n=15 male) senior grade students studying the department of foreign language education. In parallel with the data collection period, the participants started their practicum lasting for two semesters / 24 weeks. In each academic term, senior grade pre-service EFL teachers visit their practicum schools for six hours weekly and they are supposed to perform at least two macro-teachings observed and evaluated by their supervisors. As for the sampling method, convenience sampling was preferred regarding concerns of physical proximity, availability, accessibility and willingness to participate [47]. In addition to these factors, one of the important reasons why these participants were chosen for the study is that the participants have no background knowledge or training about the EPOSTL.

C. Data collection

The data collection of the study took place in the spring semester of 2023-2024 academic year and lasted for 14 weeks or a semester. As for the quantitative data, adaptation of Tschannen-Moran and Woolfolk Hoy’s [7] TSES was implemented to the participants in the form pretest and posttest. The pretest was administered to participants one week before their practicum started; the post-test was given at the end of the semester. In the 3-months period between pre and posttest, the participants assessed themselves by grading the descriptors in the self-assessment section of the EPOSTL, which is transformed into a 10-point Likert scale by the researcher for the purpose of attaining quantitative results and wrote reflective reports at the end of each self-assessment meeting as one of the sources of qualitative data of the study. At the end of the practicum period, eight participants attended the semi-structured interviews regarding their opinions about the use of the EPOSTL and their development of CMSE beliefs as the other source of the qualitative data of the study.

D. Data analysis

Quantitative data were subjected to several statistical tests through the software SPSS 29. In accordance with the research focus of each research question, different statistical tests were carried out. For the 1st and 3rd research questions, descriptive statistics were calculated. For the 2nd and 4th research questions, an independent sample T-test was conducted. For the 5th and 6th research question a paired sample t-test was carried out. Qualitative data obtained through reflective reports, observation reports and transcriptions of the semi-structured interviews were subjected to coding processes to organize the data and make it more manageable for analysis [51], and then a thematic analysis was conducted.

E. Validity and reliability

In this study, two ready-made instruments (i.e., the TSES and the EPOSTL) were preferred. For reliability of the scale TSES, a number of statistical tests have been carried out to sustain its validity and reliability. For validity, the original scale was subjected to factor analyses by the developers and the following factors emerged: i) efficacy for student engagement, ii) efficacy for instructional strategies, and iii) efficacy for classroom management. For reliability, the developers of the TSES Tschannen Moran and Woolfolk Hoy [7] indicated that the ratio for the reliability of long version is 0.94 and 0.90 for the long one which are acceptable ratios for reliability [52]. As for adaptation of TSES which is used in the current study, the ratio of reliability for the general scale is 0.936 while ratios 0.817, 0.857, and 0.861 were reached for the factors, respectively.

When it comes to the reliability and the validity concerns of the EPOSTL, two piloting processes designed for student teachers and teacher educators were carried out by the project members in the Centre for Modern Languages [53]. Based on the piloting processes which are conducted with a heterogeneous group of participants [54]. necessary adjustments were made to the original version of the EPOSTL such as reducing the number of descriptors from 400 to 195 [53].

A procedure of the interrater reliability [46] was carried out for the reliability of the thematic analysis. An external rater re-coded the parts related to classroom management within the whole data regarding the reflective reports and transcriptions of the semi-structured interviews. A complete consensus was reached between the external rater and researcher as the amount of the data to be coded is quite limited.

F. Findings

This chapter presents the findings in line with the other of each research question. Research Question 1: “What is the CMSE level of the participants before their use of the EPOSTL?” In order to find out whether parametric or non-parametric tests are used, a test of normality was conducted in the first place. As the number of participants is lower than 50 (n=31), the results of the Shapiro-Wilk test are taken into consideration. As can be seen, the data for pre-test is normally distributed as p value is 0.97.

Table 1 Test of normality for pre-test
Shapiro-Wilk
Factor II: Statistic df Sig.
Efficacy for classroom management 0.943 31 0.97

As for the participants’ level of CMSE before the EPOSTL implementation, descriptive statistics were calculated.

Table 2 Descriptive statistics for each item in factor 2 of pre-test
N Minimum Maximum Sum Mean
Std. Deviation
Item9 31 1 5 85 2.7419 1.21451
Item10 31 1 5 88 2.8387 1.09839
Item11 31 1 5 102 3.2903 1.29598
Item12 31 1 5 90 2.9032 1.19317
Item13 31 1 5 90 2.9032 1.04419
Item14 31 1 5 90 2.9032 1.04419
Item15 31 1 4 89 2.871 0.84624
Item16 31 2 5 106 3.4194 0.92283
Valid N (listwise) 31

As can be seen, the minimum number for each item varies from 1.00 to 2.00 while the maximum number ranges from 4.00 to 5.00 in the 5-point Likert scale. The item that has the highest mean value is #16 while the having the least one is #9.

Table 3 Descriptive statistics for overall factor 2 of pre-test
N Statistic Minimum
Statistic 		Maximum
Statistic 		Mean
Statistic 		Std. Deviation Statistic Skewness
Statistic Std.Error 		Kurtosis
Statistic Std. Error
Factor II
Efficacy for classroom management 		31 23.00 33.00 23.8710 6.19000 -687 .421 .025 .821
Valid N (listwise) 31

It can be seen that the overall mean (i.e., the sum of eight items) for Factor II in the pretest is M=23.8710. In the finding of the following research question, whether there is a change in this ratio is presented. Research Question 2: What is the CMSE level of the participants after their use of the EPOSTL? To determine whether parametric or non-parametric tests are used, a test of normality was conducted for the posttest, too. As the number of participants is lower than 50 (n=31), the results of the Shapiro-Wilk test are taken into consideration. As can be seen, the data for pre-test is normally distributed as p value is 0.95.

Table 4 Test of normality for posttest
Shapiro-Wilk
Factor II: Statistic df Sig.
Efficacy for classroom management 0.942 31 0.95

As for the participants’ level of CMSE after the EPOSTL implementation, an increase is observable in the items of the post-test.

Table 5 Descriptive statistics for each item in factor 2 of post-test
N Minimum Maximum Sum Mean
Std. Deviation
Item9 31 2 5 113 3.6452 1.01812
Item10 31 2 5 120 3.871 0.95715
Item11 31 2 5 116 3.7419 0.89322
Item12 31 1 5 113 3.6452 1.01812
Item13 31 1 5 120 3.871 1.02443
Item14 31 2 5 116 3.7419 0.92979
Item15 31 2 5 125 4.0323 0.87498
Item16 31 2 5 125 4.0323 0.98265
Valid N (listwise) 31

The minimum number for each item varies from 1.00 to 2.00 while the maximum rate is 5.00 in the 5-point Likert scale.

Table 6 Descriptive statistics for overall factor 2 of post-test
N Statistic Minimum

Statistic 		Maximum

Statistic 		Mean

Statistic 		Std. Deviation Statistic Skewness

Statistic Std.Error 		Kurtosis

Statistic Std. Error
Factor II
Efficacy for classroom management 		31 14.00 40.00 30.5806 646413 -813 .421 .367 .821
Valid N (listwise) 31

The overall descriptive statistics indicate an increase when compared to the results of the pretest as the mean value in pre-test is while it goes up to 30.5806 in the posttest. The following research question presents whether this increase is statistically significant or not. Research Question 3: Is there a significant difference between the participants’ CMSE level before and after their use of the EPOSTL? In order to see whether the increase is statistically significant, a paired samples t-test was conducted.

Table 7 Paired samples t-test to compare the findings of the pre and posttest
Mean SD Paired Differences t df Sig. (2-tailed)
Std. Error Mean 95% Confidence Interval of the Difference
Pretest Lower Upper
Posttest 6.29032 814941 1.46368 -9.27955 -3.300109 -4.298 30 .000

The results of the paired samples t-test reveal that there is a statistically significant difference between pre and post-test results. It can be stated that participants’ CMSE levels increased after their use of the EPOSTL. As a significant difference was found out, the effect size was calculated, and it was explored that the Cohen’s d value was -.772 which implies a moderate effect (Cohen, 1988). Research Question 4: “Is there a significant difference within participants’ 1st, 2nd and 3rd use of their own EPOSTL in terms of classroom management skills?” A test of normality was conducted to see whether the data are normally distributed at each time of implementation and find out which statistical tests should be carried out

Table 8 Test of normality for factor II
Shapiro-Wilk
Statistic df Sig.
Factor II_T1 0.958 31 .256.
Factor II_T2 0.943 31 0.103
Factor II_T3 0.945 31 0.116

It can be seen that data related to factor II in each time of implementation (i.e., time 1 (T1), time 2 (T2), and time 3 (T3)) is distributed normally. Besides, the mean value was found to be 32.1250 for T1, 32.3548 for T2 and 36.4839 for T3, which means that there is an increase from T1 to T3. In order to explore whether this increase is statistically significant, a Repeated Measures ANOVA was conducted. As a prerequisite of this test, a test of sphericity was conducted beforehand to accurately interpret the findings.

Table 9 Mauchly’s test of sphericity
Within Subjects Effect Mauchly’s W Approx. Chi-Square df Sig. Greenhouse-Geisser Epsilon Huynh-Feldt Lower-Bound
Factor II .989 .323 2 .851 .989 1.000 .500

As can be seen, sphericity is assumed as p value is .851. In this vein, the following table shows the results of Repeated Measures ANOVA test.

Table 10 Repeated measures ANOVA for each EPOSTL implementation
Source
Factor II 		Type III Sum of Squares df Mean Square F Sig. Partial Eta Squared
Sphericity Assumed 372.667 2 186.333 2.759 .071 .084

As sphericity is assumed, the significance value (p=.071) suggests that there is no statistically significant difference within participants’ 1st, 2nd and 3rd use of the EPOSTL in terms of their scoring in the classroom management section of the portfolio although there is an increase from T1 to T3. Research Question 5: “What are participants’ viewpoints regarding their use of the EPOSTL and their development of CMSE beliefs?” In order to find out participants’ viewpoints regarding their use of the EPOSTL and their development of CMSE beliefs, findings from reflective reports and semi-structured interviews are presented.

G. Findings from reflective reports

In the reflective reports and semi-structured interviews, the participants were asked to state their viewpoints regarding their use of the EPOSTL in their foreign language teacher education program. The comments in which the notion of classroom management was discussed are reported in the following extracts:

  • Ext.1. “It is good to know that EPOSTL allows me to see my strengths and weaknesses as when I give a point lower than nine, I immediately start to think that I lack some skills in a specific area and need to be careful about that. This process reveals my weaknesses of which I am normally not aware. For example, time and classroom management can be counted under these. My points for these areas are lower than others, which encourages me to consider how I can improve those.”

  • Ext.2. “After I gave points to descriptors, I started to re-evaluate my own performance in my practicum school especially in the areas of classroom management, and methodology as I remembered the scores that I gave to myself in the EPOSTL. Based on this, I think that descriptors in the self-assessment section of the EPOSTL are action-triggers for pre-service EFL teachers as I started to consider the areas which I previously did not think about.”

  • Ext.3. “I feel myself more confident in conducting lessons, and classroom management when compared to previous times.” In Extracts 1, 2, and 3, it can be seen that participants have positive attitudes towards the use of the EPOSTL as a self-assessment tool in their FLE program. Specifically, in the Extract 1 and Extract 2, it is observable that participants particularly focus on the fact that they start to concentrate on some aspects of their teaching which they previously did not take into consideration including the concept of classroom management.

    H. Findings from semi-structured interviews

  • Ext.4. “Like I said before, I can give classroom management as an example of the competences that I improve through the term. I gained awareness about my classroom management skills through the EPOSTL. We attended a course about this in our FLE program, but I saw that it was not enough when it comes to practice. When we are in actual classroom settings, we may get stuck at some point no matter how much theoretical knowledge we have. At this point, the EPOSTL encouraged me to do research about my classroom management skills.”

  • Ext.5. “The EPOSTL improved my awareness in areas such as classroom management and lesson planning. By assessing myself in these components, I have become more aware of managing diverse classroom dynamics and designing lessons or making lesson plans that meet the different needs of my students.” In Extracts 4 and 5, the participants highlighted the awareness-raising function of the EPOSTL on the development of their CMSE beliefs.

  • Ext.6. “I compared my current classroom management skills with the ones at the beginning thanks to the EPOSTL and I realized that my classroom management skills really improved in time.”

  • Ext.7. “As I said before, it was quite helpful for my teaching and especially in terms of understanding what I am doing in the classroom. Also, it makes me identify the areas where I can improve my teaching skills like lesson planning and classroom management. It was really helpful. While I was completing the EPOSTL, I really thought that I was not good at some specific parts, and I should improve myself.” In Extract 6 and 7, it can be seen that the participant emphasized the reflective function of the EPOSTL.

  • Ext.8. “The EPOSTL helped me change my strategies for maintaining a positive learning environment which definitely affected my classroom management skills.”

In Extract 8, the participant emphasized the action-trigger role of the EPOSTL as she stated that she changed her strategies based on her self-evaluation through the EPOSTL. Overall, the quantitative results suggested that the participant pre-service EFL teachers’ CMSE level significantly increased after they engaged in the process of self-assessment by using the EPOSTL in their practicum period. A clear increase in the mean values is observable from their pretest to posttest results, which is also found to be statistically significant as the conducted tests suggested. Regarding their EPOSTL implementations, the increase from T1 to T3 is not found to be statistically significant, but an increase was observed in the mean values that they gave to the “Classroom Management” part of the sub-section “Conducting a Lesson” in the EPOSTL. The statistically significant increase in their CMSE level was also confirmed by the participants’ viewpoints that they propounded through the reflective reports and semi-structured interviews that constitute the qualitative part of the study. As for the reflective reports, participants generally stated that their attitudes towards using the EPOSTL in their FLE program as a self-assessment portfolio is positive. By this way, they were able to realize the aspects that they previously ignored in terms of classroom management. Similarly, the participants emphasized the role of the EPOSTL as reflective, awareness-raising and action-trigger. In sum, it can be concluded that the participants’ experience with the EPOSTL is promising in terms of promoting their CMSE levels as the quantitative and qualitative data collected in the scope of the current study suggested.

4. Discussion

The main aim of the current study was to explore pre-service EFL teachers’ classroom management self-efficacy (CMSE) development through their use of the EPOSTL in their foreign language education (FLE) program. The concept of CMSE beliefs has been regarded as a very important aspect of foreign language education as higher levels of CMSE beliefs are closely linked to an increase in the quality of education. As CMSE beliefs are a sub-component of the overall concept of teacher self-efficacy (TSE) beliefs [7], self-assessment and development of these efficacy skills may be related. In this regard, the EPOSTL can be a useful tool for pre-service EFL teachers to assess themselves and reflect on their classroom management competences [17].

Within the scope of the current study, it was found out that pre-service EFL teachers do not have high levels of CMSE beliefs as it was found out that they gave the lowest point (i.e., 1.00) to some items especially in the pretest period. This result is in line with the findings of the study conducted by Sivri and Balci [31] in which they concluded that pre-service teachers are inclined to have low levels of CMSE beliefs. However, participants’ level of CMSE increased when they started to use the EPOSTL as a self-assessment tool as the mean scores went up from M=23.8710 to 30.5806 in the scope of the current study. This increase was also found to be statistically significant according to the results of the paired sample t-test (p=.000). Within this regard, it can be stated that the result of this study confirms the findings of previous studies stating that self-assessment and teacher self-efficacy are positively correlated [40] as the concept of CMSE is a subscale of the overall concept of TSE [7]. It can be stated that participants’ inclusion in self-assessment through the EPOSTL lead to an increase in their levels of CMSE as Bandura [1] states realizing their own mastery through self-assessment may foster the learners’ level of self-efficacy. This particular finding also confirmed the result of the study conducted by Ross [41] in which he concluded that forms of self-assessment boost the concept of self-efficacy.

The use of the EPOSTL and increased levels of learner autonomy are found to be interrelated in previous studies [16]. The CEFR, and autonomy and self-efficacy can also be positively correlated. With reference to these previous studies, it can be stated that the statistically significant increase in participants’ level of CMSE may grow out of the process of self-assessment through the EPOSTL in which they were included. However, as there is no study focusing on participants’ uses of the EPOSTL in terms of the change in their CMSE levels, the state of participants’ 1st, 2nd and 3rd use of their own EPOSTL in terms of classroom management skills in the current study cannot be discussed with reference to the findings from previously conducted studies in the existing body of literature.

As for participants’ viewpoints regarding their use of the EPOSTL and their development of CMSE beliefs, it can be pointed out that participants’ general viewpoints concerning using the EPOSTL to assess themselves were positive and constructive. They stated that evaluating themselves over a long period of time helped them detect their strengths and weaknesses more clearly (see Extract 6). As a result, which is in line with the findings of Geeslin’s [42] study, it was discovered that the formative nature of the self-assessment process through the EPOSTL allowed the participants to realize the strong and weak sides of their teaching performance. Moreover, participants stated that using the EPOSTL allowed them to constantly monitor their teaching, reconsider, and evaluate and re-evaluate their own teaching performance as also stated by Mehlmauer-Larcher [45]. They adjusted their teaching style in accordance with their scores on the EPOSTL which demonstrates the areas to improve and of strength. Participants of this study stated in semi-structured interviews and their reflective reports that they improved their CMSE beliefs by sustaining a positive learning atmosphere [5] for their students (See Extract 8) which they realized through the use of the EPOSTL. Another parallel finding with Ross’s [41] study is that the participants of this study extensively emphasized the fact that they concentrated on specific aspects of their teaching, especially the ones that they did not focus beforehand, and recognized their weaknesses or areas of improvement in those parts, which, in turn, they used as a self-feedback for their professional development, highlighting the awareness-raising function of the notion of self-assessment. The participants also stated that their process of decision making was affected by the process of self-assessment through the EPOSTL as some of them changed instructional methodologies that they use in their teachings. These findings are in line with the results of previous studies [38,39] in which it was concluded that reflective forms of assessment can foster teachers’ process of decision-making. Lastly, the findings from semi-structured interviews and reflective reports demonstrated that some of the participant pre-service EFL teachers think that their current foreign language teacher education program falls short when it comes to applying classroom management skills into authentic foreign language classrooms as a parallel finding with the study conducted by Hicks [36].

5. Conclusion

The current study aimed to seek whether using the EPOSTL in pre-service teacher education is related to pre-service EFL teachers’ development of CMSE beliefs. In this regard, the scale TSES was implemented for a group of pre-service EFL students (n=31) in the form of pretest and posttest. In the period between pre and posttest, the participants were supposed to use the EPOSTL on a monthly basis for three months. Besides, they wrote reflective reports after each implementation regarding their experiences with the implementation of the EPOSTL to assess themselves. The study was finalized with semi-structured interviews through which the participants stated the development of their CMSE beliefs after their use of the EPOSTL. The results of the study showed that participants’ levels of CMSE beliefs had increased significantly after they had used the EPOSTL for an academic term. This finding suggests that self-assessment and classroom management skills can be positively correlated since participants pretest results regarding CMSE beliefs (i.e., Factor II) significantly increased after they used the EPOSTL for a semester. As for three implementations of the EPOSTL, there was no statistically significant difference within 1st, 2nd and 3rd use of the EPOSTL in terms of the scores given to the descriptors in the classroom management section of the EPOSTL. However, descriptive statistics show that the participants tended to give higher scores to the descriptors in the classroom management part over a semester. Therefore, it can be finally stated that the participants’ level of CMSE beliefs were positively increased after their use the EPOSTL and assessed themselves. Moreover, the scores that they gave to the classroom management section within their 1st, 2nd and 3rd use of the EPOSTL implementation also increased as the mean values suggested although this increase is not statistically significant. When participants’ constructive comments from the reflective reports and semi-structured interviews are taken into consideration, it can be stated that a regular use of the EPOSTL positively affected the development of participants’ CMSE beliefs.

Suggestions and Implications

Further studies can be conducted with larger numbers of participants to foster transferability of the results. Besides, an experimental design with a control group can be adopted in following studies to examine the relationship between the integration of the EPOSTL into FLE programs and development of pre-service EFL teachers’ CMSE beliefs. As for pedagogical implications, it can be asserted that the EPOSTL can yield promising outcomes especially in foreign language teacher education programs as it was found out that its use as a self-assessment tool is linked to higher levels of CMSE beliefs. It is clear that such reflective implementations allow pre-service EFL teachers to be more autonomous and aware of their own journey of teaching so that they can be more efficient in their practicum classes and micro-teachings. Besides, their perseverance, competency in classroom management, resilience, and continuous professional development can be supported through regular use of the EPOSTL in their undergraduate programs.

Acknowledgments

This research article has been generated from the first author’s PhD dissertation titled “An Exploration of Pre-Service EFL Teachers’ Self-Efficacy Development Using the EPOSTL as s Self-Assessment Tool “and supervised by the second author.

Ethical consideration

The ethical approval was provided by Hacettepe University Ethics Commission on 23rd of November (Registration number: E-66777842-300-00003203804)

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Citation

Cansu Aykut Kolay, İsmail Hakkı Mirici. Investigating Pre-Service EFL Teachers’ Self-efficacy in Their Classroom Management Skills using the EPOSTL as a Self-assessment Tool[J], Archives Des Sciences, Volume 74 , Issue 6, 2024. -. DOI: https://doi.org/10.62227/as/74615.