Early childhood teachers’ perceived competence during transition from teacher education to work: results from a longitudinal study

Abstract

The transition from education to work is a challenge for early childhood teachers. In this study, competence self-ratings of 348 German early childhood teachers were investigated one year before, at the end of and four months after early childhood teacher education at universities and vocational schools. Perceived competence was assessed by means of a questionnaire. Invariant from time of measurement, confirmatory factor analysis yielded one factor with child-related competences and one factor with environment-related competences. Latent difference scores analyses yielded a significant increase in both competence factors towards the end of teacher education and a decrease in child-related competences when teachers started to work in a kindergarten after graduation. The decrease in perceived child-related competences could be predicted by the teachers' ratings of the teacher education's practice orientation. The level of teacher education (university vs. vocational school) had no effect. However, the decrease in childrelated competences also occurred regarding teachers who did not start to work in a kindergarten, indicating that there is no evidence for a severe 'practice shock' after graduation. Results are discussed regarding professional development of early childhood teachers.

Measuring Teacher Sense of Efficacy: Insights and Recommendations Concerning Scale Design and Data Analysis from Research with Preservice and Inservice Teachers in China

“…Sang et al (2010) even referred specifically to TSE with computers. Malinen (2013) identified efficacy domains of inclusive instruction, collaboration, and managing behavior; Yin et al (2013) identified efficacy domains in relation to professional growth, participation in decision making, and perceived impact on colleagues; and Mischo (2015) identified a range of activities that he categorized as either child-related competencies or environment-related competencies. Although some of these domains overlap each other and with the domains represented by the TSES, the recommendation made more than 10 years ago by Poulou (2007, p. 214) that "future research should encompass additional dimensions of teaching efficacy in order to reflect the multidimensionality and complexity of teaching" continues to resonate.…”

The development of interaction skills in preservice teacher education: A mixed-methods study of Dutch pre-service teachers

“…Further, preservice training is assumed to ensure that practitioners have the competencies needed to support the development and learning of young children, laying a foundation for teachers' PD (Hamre 2014;Institute of Medicine and National Research Council 2015). In recent studies, surveys have been used to investigate prospective ECEC teachers' self-esteem (e.g., Mischo 2015), teacher beliefs (e.g., Vartuli and Rohs 2009), self-efficacy (e.g., Guo et al 2010), and self-reported perceptions of their professional competence (e.g., Mischo 2015;Strohmer and Mischo 2016). Observational studies of prospective teachers are needed, however, to provide direct insight into pre-service teachers' interaction skills in ECEC practice.…”