THE RELATIONSHIP OF PRIOR TRAINING AND PREVIOUS TEACHING EXPERIENCE TO SELF-EFFICACY AMONG GRADUATE TEACHING ASSISTANTS

This study, based on the theoretical model of Teacher Self-Efficacy proposed by Denham and Michael (1981), explored the effects of prior training, previous teaching experience, and certain demographic variables on the teaching self-efficacy of graduate teaching assistants. An adapted version of the Self-Efficacy Toward Teaching Inventory (Tollerud, 1990) was administered to a sample of graduate teaching assistants. Graduate teaching assistants with prior training endorsed a significantly higher level of self-efficacy than those with no training. Correlational analyses demonstrated significant positive relationships between prior training and previous teaching experience with level of self-efficacy. Multiple regression analysis indicated that previous teaching experience explained a significant amount of variance in self-efficacy. Results are discussed in light of the current training and utilization of graduate teaching assistants, and suggestions for future research are offered.