Date of Award

Spring 2019

Document Type

Open Access Dissertation

Department

Educational Studies

First Advisor

Rhonda Jeffries

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to examine the impact of short professional development interventions, covering core concepts in teaching and learning, on the self- efficacy of academic librarians in the teaching role. The participants in this study were six academic librarians at a large, research-intensive university in Canada for whom instructional work was a requirement of their position.

To examine librarian self-efficacy in the teaching role, the participants completed a standard self-efficacy questionnaire and a semi-structured interview prior to participating in the professional development interventions. The topics covered for professional development included learning theory, lesson planning, classroom management, and assessment, with an emphasis on formative assessment practices. After participation in the professional development, participants engaged in their regular instructional work and, six to eight weeks later, completed the standard self-efficacy questionnaire and a second semi-structured interview.

The results of this study indicate librarian self-efficacy in the teaching role is a complex interplay of factors, including self-perception, faculty interactions, and institutional support. While self-efficacy is impacted by short professional development interventions on teaching, those interventions alone are not enough to develop teaching self-efficacy for academic librarians.

Rights

© 2019, Kari D. Weaver

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