Self-Efficacy: A Determining Factor of Teaching Efficiency

Self-Efficacy: A Determining Factor of Teaching Efficiency

Binita Saharia¹, Dr. Jerina Begum²

¹MA, M.Phil; B.Ed, Research Scholar, Department of Education, University of Science & Technology Meghalaya

²MA, Ph.D, Associate Professor, Psychology, University of Science & Technology Meghalaya

DOI: https://doi.org/10.51244/IJRSI.2025.120700009

Received: 23 June 2025; Accepted: 30 June 2025; Published: 28 July 2025

ABSTRACT

Teaching is the practice implemented by a teacher aimed at transmitting skills to a learner, a student, or any other audience in an educational institution. It is closely related to learning, the student’s activity of appropriating this knowledge. H.C Morrison stated that “teaching is an intimate contact between a more mature personality and a less mature one, aimed at advancing the education of the latter.” Teaching is an interactive process, primarily involving classroom talk, which takes place between teacher and pupil and occurs during defining activities.

Teaching efficiency refers to a teacher’s ability to maximize student learning within a given time frame, resources and effort. Efficiency in teaching means making the most of the limited time available for instruction. It involves optimizing teaching strategies, managing time, and ensuring that students gain knowledge and skills within a reasonable timeframe.

Teacher’s self-efficacy is defined as their belief in their capability to handle tasks related to their professional work successfully. Teachers self efficacy impacts important academic outcomes such as students well-being, achievement, and motivation. Self-efficacy, a teacher’s belief in their ability succeed in teaching, is a crucial factor determining teaching efficiency. Teachers with high self-efficacy are more likely to be effective, engaging and persistent in the face of challenges. They are also more likely to adopt new teaching methods, plan effectively and deal constructively with student mistakes.

Keywords: Self Efficacy, Teaching Efficiency, learning, satisfaction, teachers, students

INTRODUCTION

Self Efficacy refers to an individual’s belief in his or her capacity to execute behaviour necessary to produce specific performance attainments (Bandura 1977, 1986, 1997). Self efficacy can determine the teaching efficiencies of a teacher. Teachers self efficacy determines whether they can motivate students to learn and guide them in the right way. It has found that teacher efficacy was strongly related to teacher behaviour, work stress, job satisfaction, student outcomes and it accounted for individual differences in teaching effectiveness. At present, it is needed to study the self efficacy of a teacher which can help to improve different skills or strategies with teaching qualities.

Objectives of the Study

The objectives of the present study are:

To know about the meaning   of Self efficacy and teaching efficiency.

To find the relationship between self-efficacy and teaching effectiveness

To identify the factors of self efficacy and how to develop the self efficacy of the teachers.

To find out the skills through professional development program and in service training

To identify the quality of self efficacy of teacher.

To analysis self efficacy as a determining factor of teaching efficiency.

To identify some other important dimensions of self efficacy are as teaching instruction, adaptability of education to individual student need, motivating students, keeping discipline, cooperating with colleagues and parents, coping with changes and challenges.

To help to understand teacher’s self efficacy as a key psychological construct in their professional development opportunities, directly impacting student’s academic learning and achievement.

Meaning of Teaching Efficiency

Teaching efficiency is a multifactorial combination of various qualities of teachers. As for example, Huge number of knowledge on the concern subject, Conceptual clarity of all students, skills of teaching-learning communication and presentation, committed professional practitioner and commitment to achieve excellence, commitment to basic human values, positive attitude towards students, achievements, abilities of managing classroom interaction and evaluation etc. An efficient teacher can be succeeds in producing desirable changes in the cognitive, affective and psychometric domains of the behaviours of students through her or his teaching. (Kukreti, B.R & Bhatt, T 2021)

Theory of teaching efficiency

Teaching efficiency theory focuses on maximizing the impact of teaching on student learning within a given time frame. This theory involves strategies and techniques that enable teachers to deliver effective instruction and optimize learning outcomes, often in the context of limited time or resources. It emphasizes the importance of careful planning and effective classroom management. Following are some significant factors as—

Time management

Resource optimization

Active learning

Clear objectives

Constructive feedback and Assessment

Effective classroom management

Teaching efficiency theory suggests that effective teaching involves achieving desired learning outcomes with minimal resources of effort. It’s about maximizing student learning outcomes with minimal resources of effort. This theory highlights the importance of teachers understanding how students learn best and tailoring their methods to enhance both learning and resource.

Ways of Building Self-Efficacy of a Teacher for Improving Teaching Efficiency

Prompt to feel confident and positive

Take up a 3 steps of formal procedure before class starts

Grow strong relationship with students

Practice different training methods.

Engage in lifelong   learning and look for feedback

Dimensions or Factor Affecting in the Teaching Efficiency

Teaching efficiency can be measured by several dimensions as follows:

Lesson preparation

Classroom management

Student engagement

Teaching methods

Curriculum adaptation

Digitalization

Some other factors of teaching efficiency are evidence-based teaching, reflective teaching, continuously developing teaching, and accurate implementation of evaluation, and realistic proficiency with students.

How to Improve Teaching Efficiency

There are some ways for improving teaching efficiency of a teacher as follows:

Blended learning helps to develop the teaching efficiency.  Student can learn at their own consign, which make learning more effective.

Effective communication between instructors and students is important for improvement of teaching efficiency.

Consider the individual differences among the students   for maintaining their individual capabilities.

Collection of teaching feedback can help teachers to understand the teaching strategies and make the teaching- learning   process   more effective.

Mentoring can be an effective way to increase teaching quality and empower teachers.

Use of technology   is also an effective skill for improving   teaching efficiency.

Effective classroom management can be creating an efficiency of a teacher.

Use of lesson plan   in the classroom is an effective strategy for an efficient teaching practice.

In the present study researcher wants to present self efficacy as a factor which is affecting on the teaching efficiency of a teacher in the teaching learning process. Self efficacy of a teacher is the major key for giving motivation to the students in classroom teaching. Without an efficient excellence of a teacher, no student can achieve in their educational advancement. Therefore, teachers have to have an effective quality as self efficacy on teaching efficiency.

Meaning of Self -efficacy

Self efficacy is an individual’s belief in their ability to perform specific behaviours and actions. Self-efficacy is the measure of one’s own ability to complete the task and reach the goals. Self efficacy is one’s belief in one’s ability to succeed in specific situation.

“Self efficacy is the belief in one’s capabilities to organize and executes the course of action required to manage probable situations. These beliefs are determinates of how people think, behave and feel.”(Albert Bendura, 1994).

Self efficacy has an important framework in education to explain the perception and judgement that influence teachers’ decisions and actions in the classroom. (Frank Pajares, 1996)

Theory of self Efficacy

Albert Bandura (1977) developed a theory on Self efficacy that emphasizes the belief in one’s own ability to succeed in specific task or challenges. It refers to an individual’s belief in his or her capacity to execute behaviours necessary to produce specific performance attainments. Some of the key sources of self efficacy theory as—Mastery experiences, vicarious experiences, Verbal persuasion, psychological and emotional states etc.

Teachers’ self efficacy is defined as their belief in their capability to handle task related action. Self efficacy of a teacher is a key factor of teaching efficiency. It is a teacher’s belief in their ability to successfully teach in a class room, even when students are unmotivated or in difficult situation. If a teacher has self efficacy then he feels very comfort to teach or communicate with his students. There have some factors as higher job satisfaction, better mental health, improvement of student’s academic performance.

Teachers with high self efficacy are more likely to be open to new ideas, be willing to try-out with new teaching method, be committed to teaching, be less critical of students who make mistake, constantly work with students who are struggling, set challenging goals, plan and organize more, seek assistance, adjust their teaching strategies when faced with difficulties.

Characteristics of Self Efficacy

There are some characteristics of self efficacy. They are as follow:

Task-specific

Belief

Influences many aspects of human experience

Different from self esteem

Relationship of emotional and social intelligence

Different from of self esteem

Self Efficacy of a Teacher

Teacher self-efficacy is defined as teachers’ personal believes in their abilities to help students to learn, influencing their activities, effort and persistence in the classroom.

Teacher self efficacy refers to teachers’ beliefs in their capabilities to make positive differences in students’ engagement in learning process.

A teacher’s sense of self efficacy is important because teachers need to feel competent and confident in their ability to teach and   reach all students’ framework in education system.

Self –efficacy of a teacher is a teachers’ belief in their ability to plan, organize and perform activities to achieve educational goals.

In regard to teaching, teacher self efficacy is defined as a judgement of his/her own capabilities to bring about desired outcomes of student engagement and learning, even when students are difficult or unmotivated (Moran. T & Woolfolk. H, 2001)

If a teacher has self efficacy then he feels very comfort to teach or communicate with his students.

Factors Affecting on Self-Efficacy of teacher

There are some factors that affect on self efficacy of teachers as follows:

Instruction-teachers ability to teach

Adapting education to individual student’s need. Teachers’ ability to adapt their

Teaching to meet the needs of student individually.

Motivating students

Keeping discipline

Cooperation with colleagues and parents

Coping with changes and challenges

Dimensions of self Efficacy

Experience of enactive attainment

Modelling of various experience

Social operations

Psychological factors

Personality factors

Sources of Self Efficacy (Bendura, 1994)

Mastery experiences

Social modelling

Social persuasion

Psychological responses

Improvement of Self Efficacy of a Teacher

There are some of the measures for improving self efficacy of a teacher. They are as

Arrangement of workshops and training

Engagement of online courses which helps teachers stay current with best practices

capacity building programs with practical skills and strategies

Peer mentorship, co-teaching, fostering positive relationships with students and colleagues are the factors for improvement of self efficacy.

Receiving positive and specific feedback on teaching performance

Create comfortable sharing ideas in the classroom.

On the basis of above measures, a teacher can be improved the self-efficacy or the self confidence in the classroom teaching. By focusing on these strategies, teachers can cultivate a strong sense of self-efficacy, leading to increased job satisfaction, improved student outcomes, and a more positive and productive learning environment.

Review of Related Literature

Many of the Researchers have studied on the self efficacy and teaching efficiency.

Shazadi, Tayyaba, Khatoon, Sufiana, Aziz, Shamsa, Hassan, Hamid (2011) Conducted a study on Determining factors affecting teachers self efficacy at secondary school level. In this study the researchers want to find out the effect of age, gender, qualification and teaching experience on the self efficacy of secondary school teachers.

Gupta,S & Goswami, V (2014) Studied on Self efficacy as a key factor for effective teacher educators. Objective of this study is to assess the professional effectiveness of teacher educators having high, average and low occupational self-efficacy. A sample of 300 teacher educators from government and private institutions were identified as sample for this study.

Soon, E.C (2019) Studied on Strategies for developing and maintaining self –efficacy in teachers. Study have indicated that factors such as the availability of teaching resources and the level of interpersonal support received from school leaders, colleagues, parents and the wider community affect the levels of self-efficacy of trainee teachers more than their more experienced colleagues, while mastery   experience seems to play a greater role in the higher level of self efficacy of experienced teachers.

Lazarides, R & Warner. M. (2020) studied on Teacher self efficacy. The researchers found that all the factors of self efficacy or efforts pay off for bureaucratic teachers themselves, who have been found to be affected by burnout less often and are more satisfied in their jobs but also for their students, who show more motivation, academic adjustment and achievement. The aim of this study is to provide an introduction in current theoretical and empirical work on teacher self-efficacy.

Karim,R, Masud, N&Teherun, M&Suborna, T (2021) Conducted a study on Self-efficacy as a key components of teacher effectiveness. The objective of this study is to analyze the interconnectedness among self efficacy and teacher effectiveness. Study shows that the development of teachers’ self efficacy and teachers’ effectiveness. It has suggested that self efficacy development program should be included in the teacher’s professional development frameworks to improve teacher effectiveness.

Shah, D.B & Bhattarai, P (2023) Studied on factors contribution to teachers self efficacy in Nepal. Objectives of the study were to find out the factors which can be help to contribute to the teachers’ self efficacy. The study administered the NTSE tool, developed through the e-Delphi technique. A sample of 390 public school teachers was drawn from a population of 3427 teachers in the Kathmandu, Lalitpur, and Bhaktapara District of Nepal. A Cluster sampling technique was used to draw a local government body in each district.

Zhang, X, Admiraal, W & Saab, N (2024) Studied on Factors affecting teachers self-efficacy in primary education. The study examined the relationship between teachers self-efficacy for teaching.

Self efficacy scale developed by Albert Bendura (1982) was used by the researcher. The population of the study was all the secondary school teachers working under Federal Directorate of Education Islamabad. Ten percent teachers each of the five sectors were taken as sample of the study through stratified random sampling. The findings of the study revealed that gender, academic qualification, experience and locality significantly affect the self efficacy, but age and professional qualification have no significant relationship.

Relationship of Teaching Efficiency and Self Efficacy in Teaching Learning process

Self efficacy is a key factor in teacher effectiveness, both are closely correlated. It is directly take part in enhancing teacher effectiveness through improving self enhancement values or motivations for teaching, as well as by improving self confidence. Self efficacy scores and knowledge scores significantly increase over time concurrently but without any predictive power of each other. Teachers self efficacy is defined as teachers beliefs about their ability to achieve outcomes in terms of their teaching and learning of students’ part. Recent researches on teacher self efficacy often focused on the reciprocal relations between studies suggesting that effective teaching predicts teaching behaviour (Holzberger et al,2013, Praetorians et. al 2017). Research shows that teachers with high level of self efficacy are more open to adopt new teaching method, set themselves more challenging goals etc.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Teacher’s self-efficacy is important for the teaching and learning process as well as for student achievement and teacher effectiveness. According to the many research studies, self efficacy can help teachers be more effective in a variety of ways. Many researchers have found that mainly four factors as efficacy in student engagement and efficacy in instructional preparation, which contribute to teacher’s self- efficacy. It helps in the teacher’s self efficacy as a key psychological construct in their professional development opportunities, directly impacting student’s academic learning and achievements. It is important to explore the indirect relationship between teacher’s classroom management practices and student’s capabilities to carry out required academic activities. Previous research has suggested four sources related to the development of self efficacy: mastery experiences, vicarious experiences, verbal persuasion, and somatic and affective states. To improve that type of efficacy there must be needed some intervention programs for teachers in training, teaching profession.  There is still a lack of longitudinal and experimental research on independent effect of each of the four sources on teacher’s self efficacy.

CONCLUSIONS & SUGGESTIONS

NEP- 2020 has suggested that the teacher self efficacy provides professional development opportunities, promotes continuous learning, bring up a supportive environment, encourage innovative teaching practices and coordinate critical thinking skills into the curriculum.

Some suggestions by NEP 2020 regarding teacher self efficacy are:

Enhance Teacher Training

Focus on Comprehensive Development

Regular Professional Development

Empowering the Teachers

Assessment for Learning

Addressing Diverse Needs

There have some significant   suggestions by various studies to the development of self-efficacy. There is still a lack of longitudinal and experimental research on independent effect of each of the four sources on teacher self efficacy. It has suggested four sources related to the development of self efficacy. It should be needed to conduct in-service training and professional development programs for the teachers.

On the basis of the above discussion, it can be concluded that Self efficacy is a determining factor of teaching efficiency. In the teaching learning process it is very essential and have vital role to improvement of the academic achievement and performance of the learners or students. Self- efficacy of an efficient teacher is influenced by different components and conditions as for example self awareness, self-regulation, self motivation, self-confidence, self management, good communication skills etc.

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