Preservice Teacher Self-Efficacy: Pre-COVID and During-COVID Perspectives from Kuwait

Abstract

Self-efficacy, or teachers' beliefs in their ability to effectively handle the tasks, obligations, and
challenges associated with their professional activity plays a crucial role in influencing important academic outcomes (e.g., students' achievement and motivation). This is especially relevant in EFL/ESL language learning as teacher attitudes about their abilities to effectively instruct and motivate students affect their students’ perceptions of themselves as language learners and even their motivation to learn the target language. The COVID pandemic presented significant challenges to preservice EFL teachers worldwide, especially in Kuwait. This study examines preservice EFL teacher self-efficacy in the final semester of teacher education before the pandemic with preservice EFL teacher self-efficacy during the pandemic. Ninety secondary EFL preservice teacher education students (54 in the pre-COVID group and 36 in the during-COVID group) participated in the study. The participants completed a modified version of the STEBI-B, a self-report questionnaire designed to measure preservice teacher self-efficacy and outcome expectancy. The findings indicated higher levels of self-efficacy in the Pre-COVID group of preservice EFL teachers; especially on response items related to instructional methods/teaching content. The results of the study have implications for education programs offering online degree options as well as for traditional campus-based education programs.

Received: 20 September 2024 / Accepted: 20 November 2024 / Published: 11 January 2025