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Citation:

Garcia, D. C. (2004). Exploring connections between the construct of teacher efficacy and family involvement practices: Implications for urban teacher preparation. Urban Education, 39(3), 290-315.

Annotation:
This study investigates the relationship between teachers' self-efficacy and the family involvement practices of these teachers. It was predicted that teachers with higher levels of self-efficacy (for family involvement) will report a greater number of practices designed to involve families in their children's education. Results suggested that teacher self efficacy was significantly correlated to and was a predictor of family involvement practices. In this study, teachers who perceived themselves as more efficacious in their ability to work with families made more attempts to involve families in the education of their children. The results also suggested that teacher efficacy should be measured in context and for task-specific domains (such as family involvement self-efficacy) rather than broader measures of self-efficacy. The sample included 110 elementary school teachers from 59 schools in south Florida. All the teachers were enrolled in a graduate program. Teachers completed questionnaires including 1) a demographic questionnaire; 2) the Teacher Efficacy Scale (Gibson & Dembo, 1984); 3) the Family Involvement Teach Efficacy Scale (Garcia, 2000); and 4) the Teacher Family Involvement Practices Survey (developed for the current study). Analyses included correlations and regressions on the above variables and the primary dependent variable-family involvement practices. The authors suggest that teacher education programs should include courses and requirements that promote experience with families. They also recommend that teachers observe others engaged in efforts to involve families, and that school leaders build greater home-school relations. While this study does not test a particular intervention, it does further understanding about why teachers make choices to include or not include meaningful family involvement practices.