Self-efficacy and School Leaders’ Feedback: A Study of Iranian EFL Teachers

Abstract

Many studies have described aspects of gender which might affect teachers’ beliefs and attitudes toward their job and the quality of teachers’ performance within the classroom seems to be highly influenced by different factors in and out of the classroom. This study sets out to investigate the effect of received feedback from school leaders on sense of efficacy of male and female EFL teachers. DeNisi and Kluger (2000) stated that feedback to ones’ performance is an important element of having high job satisfaction and motivation. Considering the impression that teachers could not teach at advance levels, unless school leaders find them qualified enough for teaching at these levels, this study examines the effect of teachers’ position in a language institute, regarding the levels they teach, on their perceived efficacy after receiving feedback. For this purpose, 30 male and female teachers who all teach at the same language school in Mashhad, a city in Iran, were selected. The participants were divided according to the level they taught, 15 at elementary levels and 15 at advance. The obtained data were analyzed through SPSS software (version 16). The numerical results proved teachers’ sense of efficacy was influenced significantly by school leader’s feedback and the change was positive. Also, sense of efficacy of teacher who taught at both elementary and advance levels increased but not significantly.