Teachers Complain over Professional Development

I am doing comparison study on teacher efficacy rates between special education and general education teachers in collaborative settings at my school. While the research is slim in this area of special education, several studies have shown that high efficacy rates are correlated to high achievement rates; therefore, I felt it important to look at this data for my school since we have high turnover when it comes to teachers in these settings.

While special education teachers did score above their colleagues in general teaching efficacy, special education teachers and general education teachers had mixed results in personal teaching efficacy. I strongly suspect that professional development is the cause of the low scores among general education teachers under general teaching efficacy has to do with the fact that they have had very little professional development in regards to inclusion classrooms. As for the mixed results for both groups under personal teaching efficacy, I attribute to that fact that some of these teachers were not given a choice. I know that one teacher was told that he could teach math but he had to teach inclusion. I wonder if administrators understand that efficacy rates are the key to success with assigning placements in their schools. Why would they put anyone in a position that is not going to give their 100 percent.

Interestingly, Teaching Generation Z has entry that is asking why there is always resistence to professional development. Some of it I know is tied to the fact that teachers have a fear of change and this contributes to low efficacy.

I am very motivated and consider myself a life-long learner which is demonstrated by the fact that I am trying to earn a doctorate in education. I don't think of myself as any great intellectual (just average) but I love being surrounded by people who challenge me. I view my desire to further my education as internal - perhaps it comes from the fact that my natural mother only had an eighth grade education herself or perhaps it is fear that I will become obsolete.

I can't understand why teachers in my building complain about professional development when I see it as a job security feature in the uncertain environment of NCLB's highly qualifed teacher. Also, I can't get a raise but my district will pay for course work which as long as I keep to the subjects that I teach. If I ever wanted to get out of education (and I don't), the classes that I take would lead me to other careers. So you would think that teachers that complain about professional development would be at least selfish about it but that is not the case.

This leads me only to believe that these teachers have low self-efficacy; therefore, I do not think these teachers can impact learning of students. I wonder if efficacy scales should be used on teachers to see if they should be even allowed to teach or have a contract extended.